He Restores My Soul
Notes
Transcript
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15 When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus replied, “Feed My lambs.”
16 Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus told him, “Shepherd My sheep.”
17 Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was deeply hurt that Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” “Lord, You know all things,” he replied. “You know I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
18 Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.”
20 Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. He was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper to ask, “Lord, who is going to betray You?”
21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!”
23 Because of this, the rumor spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die. However, Jesus did not say that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who has written them down. And we know that his testimony is true.
25 There are many more things that Jesus did. If all of them were written down, I suppose that not even the world itself would have space for the books that would be written.
PRAY
Introduction
Throughout Jesus’s time with His disciples, He had told them repeatedly that He had come to lay down His life. Luke tells us of one occasion that Jesus took the Twelve aside and said to them, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything the prophets have written about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. They will flog Him and kill Him, and on the third day He will rise again.” (Luke 18:31-33)
But even though He told them this many times, they did not understand. On the night of His betrayal, He had told them near the end of John 13, “Little children, I am with you only a little while longer. You will look for Me, and as I said to the Jews, so now I say to you: ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’” (John 13:33)
The disciples were confused and distraught by this, and Peter spoke up (as he often did) and said, “Lord, where are You going?” Simon Peter asked. Jesus answered, “Where I am going, you cannot follow Me now, but you will follow later.” “Lord,” said Peter, “why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my life for You.” “Will you lay down your life for Me?” Jesus replied. “Truly, truly, I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.
Peter thought that he was so strong. He was the Rock after all. But he was not as strong as he thought.
He thought that he really loved Jesus. But he loved his own safety and comfort more.
He thought he was ready to die for Jesus. But he wasn’t even willing to acknowledge Jesus to a servant girl.
Jesus knew Peter better than Peter knew himself, and He predicted Peter’s failure, even though Peter continued to protest.
But Jesus also predicted Peter’s restoration. His failure was not the end of the story for him. Jesus told him in Luke 22:31-32, Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith will not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
Though Jesus knew that Peter would fail, He also knew that Peter would be restored. Jesus knew that because He had prayed for Peter, and Jesus’s prayers are effective. And Jesus knew that He Himself would be the one to restore Peter to a right relationship with Himself and prepare him for the mission ahead.
Jesus Restores Peter (& Us)
Jesus Restores Peter (& Us)
As a result of Peter’s denial of Jesus, he apparently still had ongoing shame or guilt that needed to be dealt with.
He covered himself up before coming to Jesus
He tried to show how strong he was by dragging the net full of fish to shore by himself
The charcoal fire must have reminded him of the setting of his denial of Jesus
I wonder if Peter had these words of Jesus in mind from Matthew 10:33: But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.
Peter may have been tempted to wonder whether there was hope for him. Could Jesus still use him even though he had failed so badly?
Maybe you have felt like that too. Maybe some sin from your past or something that you’re struggling with even right now has you wondering whether there’s any hope for you. Maybe like Peter, you’ve denied Jesus either in your words or deeds. You’ve refused to speak up for Him or to stand up and do what’s right because of the pressure of others.
Jesus wants you to know that just like for Peter, there is hope for you. If you will turn from your sin and follow Jesus, there is great hope, and He can use you to accomplish great things.
Jesus took the initiative to restore Peter
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus replied, “Feed My lambs.”
16 Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus told him, “Shepherd My sheep.”
17 Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was deeply hurt that Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” “Lord, You know all things,” he replied. “You know I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
Jesus required Peter to confess his love for Jesus 3 times, once for each denial. I think this is why John tells us in v. 17 that Peter “was deeply hurt” the third time Jesus asked. Peter knew why Jesus had asked him 3 times, and it hurt to have his sin exposed. But when sin is exposed, grace has an opportunity to do its work.
The first time Jesus asks the question in v. 15 He says,
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus replied, “Feed My lambs.”
“Do you love me more than these?” - almost certainly meaning, “Do you love me more than the other disciples love me?” This seems to be what Peter had claimed back in Matthew 26:33: Peter said to Him, “Even if all fall away on account of You, I never will.”
Peter thought himself to be the strongest of the disciples with the greatest love for Jesus. But he had failed miserably, and as we talked about back in John 18, John was almost certainly present with Peter when Peter denied Jesus.
Now Jesus gives Peter the opportunity to repent and confess his love for Jesus in front of John and the other disciples.
Some scholars and pastors have pointed out that Jesus uses two different Greek words for love in these questions, agapao and phileo. And some say that there is a special difference in meaning to these words that John is drawing attention to. I don’t think that’s the case. Elsewhere in this Gospel, John has used these two verbs for love interchangeably, and even in Jesus’s own words to the Father He goes back and forth. It’s probably nothing more than a stylistic difference.
If that went over your head, don’t worry about it. The English word love is a fine translation of both of those Greek verbs, so we’ll just stick with that!
The Process of Restoration
I think there are two things going on in these verses that we need to see and that Jesus does for us as well when we need restoration.
First, Jesus offers grace and forgiveness.
Jesus initiated this interaction with Peter, and He is the one who comes looking for us as well when we need restoration. He comes to us with arms open wide, offering us His grace and forgiveness. He’s not angry at us. He died to take away our sin, and He doesn’t want us to live under it’s power and influence. He has paid the price and stands ready to receive us back.
When Jesus asks Peter, “Do you love Me?”, He is asking if Peter is willing to acknowledge and receive the forgiveness that Jesus is offering him. As Jesus said about the sinful woman who anointed Him in Luke 7:47, “because her many sins have been forgiven, she has loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.” So when Jesus asks Peter about his love for Jesus, he is asking if Peter is willing to acknowledge the depth of his sinfulness and the greatness of Jesus’s grace and forgiveness. This is our response -
Second, We must turn from sin and embrace Jesus.
Here Peter repents of his sin and turns back to Jesus; now he is choosing Jesus instead of sin and self. He is no longer denying Jesus, but rather confessing his love for Jesus. To be restored to Jesus, we must consciously choose to forsake our sin and turn to Jesus again. And when we do, we find that He’s right there ready to embrace us.
Jesus restored Peter directly - He sometimes does this with us through His Word by His Spirit; other times He uses believers to gently correct or rebuke us.
On another occasion in Galatians 2, Paul had to rebuke Peter for an unloving choice Peter had made not to associate with Gentiles.
Paul tells us in Galatians 6:1-2, “Brothers, if someone is caught in a trespass, you who are spiritual should restore him with a spirit of gentleness. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
Part of our work as a church is to lovingly confront sin in each other’s lives to help one another grow in love and good deeds. We don’t live the Christian life alone; we work together to build up the body of Christ in love.
Another important thing to consider from these verses is that the love that Jesus calls Peter to is a deep affection for Jesus, a real desire for Him, real emotion. But the kind of love Jesus calls us to also leads to obedience to Jesus.
As a test of Peter’s love, Jesus gives him three commands in v. 15-17. “Feed My lambs”, “Shepherd My sheep”, “Feed My sheep.”
Sometimes people get love and obedience confused though, and they’ll say that obedience = love. But it is better and more biblical to say that obedience comes from love; obedience is motivated by love. It is the affection and desire for Jesus that leads us to obey Him.
Jesus said this 3 times in John 14.
v. 15: If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
v. 21: Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me.
v. 23: If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word.
Jesus Reminds Peter (& Us) of His Mission
Jesus Reminds Peter (& Us) of His Mission
Feed His Sheep
Feed His Sheep
This is a task that is given to each of us as followers of Jesus. Peter’s role as an apostle was different from ours, but we also are to feed Jesus’s sheep.
-they are Jesus’s sheep, not Peter’s or ours
-shepherding Jesus’s sheep means feeding them
How do we feed Jesus’s sheep?
-Peter and we feed Jesus’s sheep with Jesus’s words
We can only feed other people what we ourselves have taken in. We need to listen to and grow in our knowledge of Jesus and His Word so we can feed others with it too. This means spending significant time reading, studying, listening to, and meditating on the Bible, so that it fills us and flows out of us when we talk.
When you talk with your children or other family members, do your words feed their soul with Jesus, or lead them away from Jesus?
When you talk with coworkers or people at the store or restaurant, are the words of Jesus flowing from your lips?
When you talk to other people here at church, do they hear Jesus speaking His words of life through you?
Every one of us has opportunities to influence others with our words. And if we fill our minds with Jesus’s words, our words will start to sound like His, and they will feed people’s souls with Jesus.
That’s what Jesus wants from us.
In v. 22-24 we see the need for careful listening and interpretation of the words of Jesus.
22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!”
23 Because of this, the rumor spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die. However, Jesus did not say that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who has written them down. And we know that his testimony is true.
If we are not paying close attention to Jesus’s words and asking the right kinds of questions, we can misunderstand or misinterpret what Jesus said or meant. This shows us that we need to be very careful in how we treat God’s Word. Just like we don’t want other people to twist our words and meaning, we must be careful not to do that to Jesus.
Faithfully Follow Jesus
Faithfully Follow Jesus
I think it’s so neat the Jesus began and ended His ministry with Peter with the same words. Matthew 4:18-20 reports Jesus’s initial call to Peter:
18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
19 “Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”
20 And at once they left their nets and followed Him.
And now in John 21, at the end of Jesus’s time on earth, He says once again to Peter, “Follow Me.” He says it twice in v. 18-22:
18 Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.”
20 Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. He was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper to ask, “Lord, who is going to betray You?”
21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!”
For Peter, following Jesus meant giving his life for Jesus. According to tradition, Peter was crucified upside down, and that seems to fit what Jesus says here in v. 18 about him stretching out his hands.
Christ’s call to follow Him is for the glory of God, as v. 19 says: “Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God.” The goal of Jesus’s followers isn’t to live a long and comfortable life here on earth. It is to glorify God - to make His name known as far and wide as we can.
Jesus calls us to follow Him too.
-whether to the death, for the glory of God, as Peter
-or in old age and exile like John
Peter was concerned about what was going to happen to John. “Is he going to suffer and die like me also?”
Jesus simply says, “What is that to you?” He is saying, “Don’t worry about him. Just make sure that you are faithfully following Me.”
We don’t need to be concerned about God’s specific plans for others. We just need to determine that we will follow Jesus ourselves.
Some Christians will have an easier life than others. For those who suffer more, we should not be jealous or envious of others who suffer less. Rather we must all look to Christ in faith and travel the road He has given us, for the glory of God.
As we close the Gospel of John, John wants us to know, this is just the beginning.
25 There are many more things that Jesus did. If all of them were written down, I suppose that not even the world itself would have space for the books that would be written.
Knowing Christ is a lifelong pursuit - and for all eternity we will be growing in our knowledge of Him.
Application
Have you received the grace and forgiveness of Jesus? Do you love Jesus?
Are you feeding Jesus’s sheep with Jesus’s word?
Are you faithfully following Jesus?
For Further Study and Application
Restoration to Jesus is an ongoing process for Christians because we continue to struggle with sin. Read 1 John 1:5-2:2 and consider how it relates to John 21. Is there specific sin in your life right now that you need to repent of and turn back to Jesus? Jesus asks you also, “Do you love Me?” What’s your answer? If your answer is yes, how are you demonstrating your love for Jesus? (see John 14:15, 21, 23). True love for Jesus flows from first receiving His love for you (1 John 4:19). Have you come to know and trust His love? (1 John 4:16)
What “sheep” in your life need feeding? Every believer is called to make other disciples of Jesus (Matthew 28:18-20), and part of this process is teaching others what Jesus has said. In what ways are you feeding others with the words of Jesus?
Are you faithfully following Jesus? What sacrifices have you made to demonstrate the seriousness of your commitment to Him? Are you willing to die for Him if He calls you to do that?
John ends his Gospel by telling us, “There are many more things that Jesus did,” that John didn’t include in his Gospel, and that “not even the world itself would have space for the books that would be written.” What are some of the things that you would like to know more about if you could? What are some questions that you want to ask Jesus when you see Him?
