[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the 19th of April, 2015.]
Over the last few weeks, we’ve been looking at the Resurrection Story from the Gospel according to John. Today I’ll conclude this story of Jesus from John’s eyes, and I’d like to do so in much the same way Jesus did, by asking a question.
Hear and follow along to an exchange between the resurrected Jesus and Peter, His rock, as recorded toward the end of John’s Gospel account, chapter 21, verses 14 through 19, and I’d like to read from the Contemporary English Version…
Hear and follow along to an exchange between the resurrected Jesus and Peter, His rock, as recorded toward the end of John’s Gospel account, chapter 21, verses 14 through 19, and I’d like to read from the Contemporary English Version…
14 This was the third time that Jesus appeared to His disciples after He was raised from death.
15 When Jesus and His disciples had finished eating, He asked, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than the others do?”
Simon Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know I do!”
“Then feed My lambs,” Jesus said.
16 Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”
Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know I love You!”
“Then take care of My sheep,” Jesus told him.
17 Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus had asked him three times if he loved Him. So he told Jesus, “Lord, You know everything. You know I love You.”
Jesus replied, “Feed My sheep. 18 I tell you for certain that when you were a young man, you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will hold out your hands. Then others will wrap your belt around you and lead you where you don’t want to go.”
19 Jesus said this to tell how Peter would die and bring honor to God. Then He said to Peter, “Follow Me!”
--John 21:14-19 (CEV)
Let us pray... Lord Jesus, we bow our heads to You and open our ears to hear Your message for us this morning. Speak to us, Lord, in words that we might hear, and stirrings of our hearts that we might feel. In Your most beautiful name, Jesus we pray. Amen.
Poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning lived from 1806 until 1861 – a mere 55 years. In 1850, she wrote her Sonnet #43, more commonly known by the title I’ve given this message today:
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
Isn’t that beautiful? Many of you may be familiar with this poem, but for just a moment, consider it from a slightly different perspective. Can you hear Jesus saying these words, maybe from the cross? Or perhaps He would declare His love for us while still walking among us after His resurrection but before His ascension into heaven, such as in our scripture reading this morning.
“I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, to the level of every day’s most quiet need. I love thee freely; I love thee purely, with My childhood’s faith. I love thee with the breath, smiles, tears, of all My life. I shall but love thee better after death.” And isn’t that Jesus, loving us all the more even after His death?
How do I love thee?
This is the third time Jesus has appeared to His disciples as a group after His resurrection, not counting the one instance when He appeared to Mary Magdalene alone. They had just shared a meal, a breakfast of fish and bread – Jesus showing His love and His fellowship with His followers. I believe Jesus took Peter aside to have this little discussion, because in verse 20 John notes that “Peter turned and saw Jesus’ favorite disciple following them”.
So Jesus gets Peter alone for a few minutes and asks him, “Do you love Me more than the others do?” And Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know I do.” Notice that Peter didn’t say that he loved Jesus more than the others love Him. He didn’t even say the words, “I love you”, not in this translation. Again Jesus asks if Peter loves Him, and this time Peter replies that Jesus knows the disciple loves His Master. He doesn’t really say, “I love You”, but “You know I love You”. Jesus asks yet a third time, “Do you love me?”
This stung Peter, being asked the same thing for the third time. John even notes that Peter was hurt. Why? I mean besides the obvious. Doesn’t it hurt if someone questions our love for them, especially after we’ve said we love them? Peter, being a pretty emotional fellow, would have felt embarrassed and hurt being asked again and again if he loved Jesus. But there may be another reason for the pain, and it ties in with how Jesus addressed Peter in his three questions.
Peter denied Jesus three times after the Lord’s arrest, just as Jesus had said he would. Three times he denied knowing Jesus or having been with Him. And three times Jesus asked, “Do you love Me?” Three times Peter had denied Jesus – who could blame the Lord for wanting to be sure that Peter indeed loved Him?
Those denials threatened to strip Peter of his discipleship! And the telltale sign is in the name Jesus called Peter by – Simon, son of John. This was Peter’s former name, before he became a disciple. Jesus renamed him Peter, Rock, the foundation upon which the Lord would build His church. Jesus normally called him Simon Peter or simply Peter, but now He reverted back to the old “Simon, son of John”. Did Jesus no longer consider Peter His disciple, because of those denials?
How do I love thee?
We know love is extremely important to Jesus - it’s His overriding theme. He commands us to love - to love God and each other. Listen to what He says in the 15th chapter of John’s Gospel, verses 12 through 14…
Poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning lived from 1806 until 1861 – a mere 55 years. In 1850, she wrote her Sonnet #43, more commonly known by the title I’ve given this message today:
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
Isn’t that beautiful? Many of you may be familiar with this poem, but for just a moment, consider it from a slightly different perspective. Can you hear Jesus saying these words, maybe from the cross? Or perhaps He would declare His love for us while still walking among us after His resurrection but before His ascension into heaven, such as in our scripture reading this morning.
“I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, to the level of every day’s most quiet need. I love thee freely; I love thee purely, with My childhood’s faith. I love thee with the breath, smiles, tears, of all My life. I shall but love thee better after death.” And isn’t that Jesus, loving us all the more even after His death?
How do I love thee?
This is the third time Jesus has appeared to His disciples as a group after His resurrection, not counting the one instance when He appeared to Mary Magdalene alone. They had just shared a meal, a breakfast of fish and bread – Jesus showing His love and His fellowship with His followers. I believe Jesus took Peter aside to have this little discussion, because in verse 20 John notes that “Peter turned and saw Jesus’ favorite disciple following them”.
So Jesus gets Peter alone for a few minutes and asks him, “Do you love Me more than the others do?” And Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know I do.” Notice that Peter didn’t say that he loved Jesus more than the others love Him. He didn’t even say the words, “I love you”, not in this translation. Again Jesus asks if Peter loves Him, and this time Peter replies that Jesus knows the disciple loves His Master. He doesn’t really say, “I love You”, but “You know I love You”. Jesus asks yet a third time, “Do you love me?”
This stung Peter, being asked the same thing for the third time. John even notes that Peter was hurt. Why? I mean besides the obvious. Doesn’t it hurt if someone questions our love for them, especially after we’ve said we love them? Peter, being a pretty emotional fellow, would have felt embarrassed and hurt being asked again and again if he loved Jesus. But there may be another reason for the pain, and it ties in with how Jesus addressed Peter in his three questions.
Peter denied Jesus three times after the Lord’s arrest, just as Jesus had said he would. Three times he denied knowing Jesus or having been with Him. And three times Jesus asked, “Do you love Me?” Three times Peter had denied Jesus – who could blame the Lord for wanting to be sure that Peter indeed loved Him?
Those denials threatened to strip Peter of his discipleship! And the telltale sign is in the name Jesus called Peter by – Simon, son of John. This was Peter’s former name, before he became a disciple. Jesus renamed him Peter, Rock, the foundation upon which the Lord would build His church. Jesus normally called him Simon Peter or simply Peter, but now He reverted back to the old “Simon, son of John”. Did Jesus no longer consider Peter His disciple, because of those denials?
How do I love thee?
We know love is extremely important to Jesus - it’s His overriding theme. He commands us to love - to love God and each other. Listen to what He says in the 15th chapter of John’s Gospel, verses 12 through 14…
12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.”
--John 15:12-14 (NKJV)
He certainly laid down His life for us, and much more! Of course, Jesus comes by this devotion to love honestly – He gets it from His Father. I want to read from John’s 1st letter to the far-flung Christian church, from chapter 3, and I’ll start with the first part of verse 1 and then go to verses 16 and 17…
How do I love thee?
Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love Me?” Three times Peter answered, “You know I do.” And each time, Jesus instructed Peter to take care of His sheep. We know Jesus meant His church, not literal sheep. Jesus is charging Peter to look after the Church of Christ after Jesus leaves this earth and returns to heaven. He is instructing Peter to put that love he just professed into action by seeing to the needs of his brethren. And He is restoring Peter’s discipleship, an act of love and compassion on His own part, a sign of both His love and His lordship.
“Do you love Me, Simon, son of John? Then prove it! Put that love into practice and see to the needs of all those who will follow Me. And then, when you die, it will be to the glory of the Lord and you will bring honor to God.”
How do I love thee?
Maybe Jesus kept questioning Peter’s love because He wanted to bore down to the root of discipleship: what do we love the most? What do we put our greatest love in? What matters the most to us in this life? In what do we invest our all?
Do we love Jesus more than anything else? If so, we know what we must do. We must feed His lambs. We must take care of His sheep. We must see to the needs of our brothers and sisters. We must put that love for Jesus into action.
And there’s one last instruction Jesus gave Peter: “Follow Me”. To be disciples of Jesus, to be worthy of His calling, we must truly follow Him. Fortunately, He doesn’t ask for much, just that we turn from our sin and love each other the same way He loves us.
And if we do that, He’ll never have to ask, “Do you love Me?”
Amen.
Let us pray… Lord Jesus, You ask of us such a simple question, one we ask each other from time to time: “Do you love Me?” When we ask it of each other, we are seeking confirmation of their love, maybe because they don’t show what we expect to see. “If you really love me,” we’ll say, “you’ll show it more.” Is that true of us, Lord? Do we fail to show the level of love You would expect to see from us? Is that why You have to ask, “Do you love Me?” Because we don’t prove with our actions what our words so easily try to convey?
We are so blessed, Jesus! Our heavenly Father gives us so much, and all so that we can share with others. Whether it be some element of our earthly resources entrusted to us, some special talent He graciously bestowed upon us, or simply a measure of the time He has allowed us here on this earth, we have so much that we can share with those who have so little, or for whom the need is so obviously great. Help us, please Lord, to see the need right before our eyes and to respond to that need in a way so quickly and so righteously that You will have no further need to ask, “Do you love Me?”
Father God, hear us as we pause for a moment to speak to You silently from our hearts, to give You our thanks, to honestly repent of our misdeeds. Hear us, and then speak to us in the quiet that we may know Your voice and Your will…
Father God, Your grace and Your mercy and Your generosity know no bounds. You give to us so that we might share with others. You bless us so that we might be a blessing to the world. Father, forgive us the times Your Son had to ask if we love Him. Jesus, please be patient and help us show Your love to all this earth.
In Your most blessed name, Jesus, we love You and we pray. Amen.
1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!
16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?
God loves us so much He calls us His children! Jesus loves us so much He gave His very all for us! How do I love thee? John says the very least we can do is help our brother in need, otherwise we have no love in us. If we turn our back on those whose needs are great, then even the love of God can’t abide in us.--1 John 3:1a, 16-17 (NKJV)
How do I love thee?
Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love Me?” Three times Peter answered, “You know I do.” And each time, Jesus instructed Peter to take care of His sheep. We know Jesus meant His church, not literal sheep. Jesus is charging Peter to look after the Church of Christ after Jesus leaves this earth and returns to heaven. He is instructing Peter to put that love he just professed into action by seeing to the needs of his brethren. And He is restoring Peter’s discipleship, an act of love and compassion on His own part, a sign of both His love and His lordship.
“Do you love Me, Simon, son of John? Then prove it! Put that love into practice and see to the needs of all those who will follow Me. And then, when you die, it will be to the glory of the Lord and you will bring honor to God.”
How do I love thee?
Maybe Jesus kept questioning Peter’s love because He wanted to bore down to the root of discipleship: what do we love the most? What do we put our greatest love in? What matters the most to us in this life? In what do we invest our all?
Do we love Jesus more than anything else? If so, we know what we must do. We must feed His lambs. We must take care of His sheep. We must see to the needs of our brothers and sisters. We must put that love for Jesus into action.
And there’s one last instruction Jesus gave Peter: “Follow Me”. To be disciples of Jesus, to be worthy of His calling, we must truly follow Him. Fortunately, He doesn’t ask for much, just that we turn from our sin and love each other the same way He loves us.
And if we do that, He’ll never have to ask, “Do you love Me?”
Amen.
Let us pray… Lord Jesus, You ask of us such a simple question, one we ask each other from time to time: “Do you love Me?” When we ask it of each other, we are seeking confirmation of their love, maybe because they don’t show what we expect to see. “If you really love me,” we’ll say, “you’ll show it more.” Is that true of us, Lord? Do we fail to show the level of love You would expect to see from us? Is that why You have to ask, “Do you love Me?” Because we don’t prove with our actions what our words so easily try to convey?
We are so blessed, Jesus! Our heavenly Father gives us so much, and all so that we can share with others. Whether it be some element of our earthly resources entrusted to us, some special talent He graciously bestowed upon us, or simply a measure of the time He has allowed us here on this earth, we have so much that we can share with those who have so little, or for whom the need is so obviously great. Help us, please Lord, to see the need right before our eyes and to respond to that need in a way so quickly and so righteously that You will have no further need to ask, “Do you love Me?”
Father God, hear us as we pause for a moment to speak to You silently from our hearts, to give You our thanks, to honestly repent of our misdeeds. Hear us, and then speak to us in the quiet that we may know Your voice and Your will…
Father God, Your grace and Your mercy and Your generosity know no bounds. You give to us so that we might share with others. You bless us so that we might be a blessing to the world. Father, forgive us the times Your Son had to ask if we love Him. Jesus, please be patient and help us show Your love to all this earth.
In Your most blessed name, Jesus, we love You and we pray. Amen.
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