Well, we're continuing today our study in the Gospel of John, the last chapter of John, and next week we will, Lord willing, conclude the book. So today we're in chapter 21, and we're looking at verses 15 through 19 of chapter 21 of John's Gospel, 1,078 in your pew Bibles. Remember, they are at the sea. We looked at the setting last time. Jesus has prepared for them breakfast. And they are going to eat. And now we're going to focus for a moment on Jesus and Peter together. This is the word of the Lord beginning at verse 15. When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, feed my lambs. He said to him a second time, Simon, son of John, do you love me? He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, tend my sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon, son of John, do you love me? Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, do you love me? And he said to him, Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you. Jesus said to him, feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go. This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God. And after saying this, he said to him, follow me. And there will end the reading of God's word. The wonderful truth that the end of John 21 is being shown to us, and this is a fabulous chapter to study. I said last time, post-resurrection, we have some really important moments in the Gospels of certain things that are captured for us, particularly in John. The theme here is restoration and recommission. Those are the themes that we have at the end of chapter 21 in light of this whole gospel that comes together and shows us these themes and what the Lord has done. But the point, the major point here is that the failure of the disciples, the weakness of the disciples, the things that have happened that the disciples did that were terrible in these last days, in these last times before Jesus was going to the cross, does not annul the calling that Jesus has for them. It does not make the call void. And this is a really important point for our faith. This is an important point for being a Christian. How the Lord treats and how the Lord deals with Peter here is really important for us to understand. It's important to understand for the mission of the church, but it's important for us to understand as followers of Jesus. Did you notice that last statement? It is aimed with a call that we would be followers of Jesus. Well, what prevents that? And what causes difficulty with that? And what holds us back from being followers of the Lord? Those are important questions that we have to explore a little bit here. But Jesus all along the way made known the truth. You did not choose me, John 15. I chose you, and I appointed you to bear fruit. This is the kind of language the Scripture uses to really impress upon us the sovereign power in the call of God upon our lives. Without me, Jesus said, you can do nothing. Nothing. Those are the kind of statements that we get from Jesus along the way. From beginning to end, all the fulfillment, all the works were prepared beforehand that we would walk in them. And when it came to their failures, when it came to their denials, Jesus said, look at my hands, touch my side, do not be unbelieving but believing. So what a message for us. God knows, I love reading Psalm 103 that says he knows our frame, he remembers that we are dust, there's nothing about us that surprises the Lord, he knows every weakness, he knows the things that we give into, he understands the propensity, he understands how very weak we are. And even though your sins are heaped up like a mountain, he's forgiven you. This is what John's gospel has said. He has loved you. He has answered you. He's done everything necessary to help you. And now he wants us to think about the very thing he said about himself. As I was about my father's business. I want you to be about my father's business. It's really important, isn't it? What stops us from doing that? What holds us back from doing that? As I, he said in the last chapter, as the father sent me, so I'm sending you. That was particularly focused on the apostles, but there's most certainly the calling of the Lord when he says, follow me. And that's what we're looking at today. The same is true for us, that the reality is, is that we can go backward. We can go backward. So if I asked you today this morning, what direction are you really going in? Are you about your Heavenly Father's business? Or would you honestly say, if I asked you that question, you say, you know, Pastor, I have to admit, I'm drifting. I've gone backward. I don't know where I am today. and I don't know why I'm behaving the way that I'm behaving, and I don't know why I continue to do the things that I don't want to do. And I admit, I look at this passage, and I say, you know, I understand Peter. I get Peter. There are many times I'd rather go back and just fish. You know, I have that dream, you know, to get a little pond somewhere and just throw out my line and have nobody call me. That would be great, you know? Is that the calling of the Lord for me? These are the kind of things we're looking at today to be about the calling Jesus has. So I want you to notice what happens here in John 21. Jesus fully restores Peter. It's a really beautiful section. And he wants you to identify with this story. He wants us to think about this story and understand this story. It comes with a great calling on your life that he said from the beginning to you, follow me. What keeps us? Well, we're going to look at here for a moment the penetrating question Jesus begins to press Peter with, the probing answer that is provided and then this powerful calling that Jesus leaves him with. And we'll start with this penetrating question that is a remarkable question that's asked three times. I want you to put yourself in the shoes of Peter just here for a minute. Jesus focuses in now on Peter. That's not coincidental. Peter is a fun study. He tends to get, he tended to do all the foolish things in the gospel. And Jesus, of course, used Peter as a great example for us. Peter had awfully stumbled. I mean, he really did stumble in the worst sort of way. What he did was bad. He really denied the Lord three times terribly. These weren't little denials. These were choices to deny. They were willful choices on his part to deny. You remember that he's with the coals of fire and he's warming himself because he's cold and Jesus is being punched and beaten and hauled off. And at one point, I think it's Luke's gospel, says Jesus turned around and looked at Peter when the rooster crowed. It was no little failure. Last time Jesus meets them on the shore, we looked at this fascinating section that he begins to reinstate them in their calling, as he did, to be fishers of men. Not fishers of fish, but fishers of men. That calling had not changed. That was the whole point of that section. But the scene must have really overwhelmed Peter when he looked on the seashore and there was another scene, charcoal of coals. Same construction, only the second time used in the gospel of John, so John wants us to tie it back to the denial. That's how we know in interpreting that this is the right way to go with it. The scene has been recreated. And Peter was being reminded on the basis of his calling that Jesus never chose him in the first place, thinking that he was strong enough or together enough himself to fulfill that calling. Peter was to lean upon the Lord. Peter was to trust the Lord. Think of the moment here. You know, Satan is a great accuser. You've had certain traditions who've given Satan way too much tradition, and I don't think our tradition has probably taken the threat of Satan seriously enough. Paul warned constantly he was wanting to go certain places, and Satan hindered him. This perspective of Peter, I think Peter understood when he would write later, Satan walks about, roams about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Satan is a great accuser, and Satan is one who does everything he can to weaken and destroy pastors. He wants to take down the courage of the pastor. This is exactly where Peter is. Peter is discouraged. When you fail, you don't really feel like you could be useful for Jesus, do you? Peter will not only have to deal with all these problems, Jesus knows that the weight of the struggle, the weight of the discouragement, what it typically does is it makes people give up. Discouragement produces inactivity. Discouragement and failure promotes going backward. And this is not just for pastors. It's the same struggle. Discouragement can make us rather neglectful in the callings that he has given us. And I think the sort of force of this passage, the emphasis of this passage is, it's a passage that's essentially pulling us out of ourselves. I want you to notice something. It's interesting that Jesus addresses him not as Peter. Notice it there. When he had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? Now, this is one of those decisions as an interpreter and pastor and preacher. Do you make anything of that? Everyone will say, oh, you shouldn't make things of that and you shouldn't go too far. I think this is something that you have to look at the book of John and say, Where did this come from and how had John already used this? And you'll remember all the way back in chapter 1, right at the beginning, which is sort of a bookend here to the book, back in chapter 1, Jesus said to him, remember, you shall no longer be called Simon, but Cephas, which is translated as stone. Now, it's interesting to me, to say the least, that now at the beginning of his restoration, Jesus now has employed the word Simon, the name Simon. You'll remember that in Peter's confession in the other Gospels that when he said, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus first used the name Simon, but then he said, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church. He was this foundational representative apostle who, in his confession, this was an important moment in that confession. But I think Jesus is saying, do you remember the moment? You remember the moment when I said, you shall no longer be called Simon. You shall be called Cephas. I think Jesus is asking an important question here. I think Jesus is drawing out something important here. And it really is a question of, who are you? Who are you? You know, this is a very big consequence that the apostles understood of Jesus' resurrection when all throughout the New Testament they would say if anyone's in Christ, he's a new creation. The old is past and behold, the new has come. You can't help but wonder, was Jesus having Peter think about this very important point? How do you think of yourself? What do you think of yourself? Who do you think you are? Who are you? And then comes this really probing question. Penetrating question. Simon, do you love me more than these? This is quite a moment in the Gospel of John right at the end. Simon, son of Jonah, John, do you love me more than these? You should notice how each question is crafted a certain way. Each moment here is important in this threefold questioning of Peter. It's not so much the, it is the love that's important, but it's also what follows of what is added or what is not added that really you have to stop and think about for a moment. Jesus is indicating something important, that he sees Peter has retreated to his old self. He sees Peter is discouraged. He sees Peter feels like giving up. And Jesus here has come as he has retreated to his old calling of being a fisherman. It was not the truth of the matter. His calling for Peter had not changed. Do you love me more than these? That's a fascinating question. You can't miss what the biblical writers want us to see. What the writers want, what John wants you to see is, is each question is a response to each failure of Peter. Do you love me more than these? If Peter denied Jesus three times, Jesus will restore him three times. If Peter denied Jesus over a coal of fire, Jesus will restore him over a coal of fire. If Peter failed in his mission, then Christ was going to strengthen him and call him and recommission him in that mission. But what is the Lord's concern? That's what I'm curious about. What is the Lord's concern? It's the way he speaks to him. Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? It's interesting that the word here, play on love. Some have tried not to make much of it. I think you should make a lot of it. The first word for love is agape. That's an important word in the Bible. That important love to value, to cherish, to long for, to sacrifice, has that sacrificial element to it. We understand it's the most profound love word in the Scripture that we use all the time when we talk about weddings and things like this. But notice how Jesus is probing Peter, do you agape me more than these? It's a really kind of strange question. Why would you ask that? It would be like, I mean, feel it for a minute. It would be like Jesus specifically asking me, Chris Gordon, do you love me more than all these people sitting here? Of course I do. That'd be arrogant, wouldn't it? Do you love me more than these? Remember the first denial? Remember what happened that led up to the denial? Peter said to Jesus, even if all these deny you, I won't. Even if all these people out here deny you, I'm going to tell you right now, I won't do it. That's a lot of pride. That is quite a statement. That is quite a statement. You have to really think of yourself pretty highly to say that. Peter had lifted himself up above all the disciples. Lord, if all your sheep were made to stumble and I alone stood and I had to face it, I wouldn't do it. What's interesting about that is I don't, I think sincerely in him, there was a lot of love in that statement. What a mixture of love and pride. What a mixture. You know the most dangerous threat to Christianity really is your own pride. Pride is a sworn enemy, your own sworn enemy in some ways of your own flesh. Thinking that you can do this on your own. thinking that you have the strength and power every day to do this on your own. We're full of pride. All it takes is for Jesus to let a little pride to mature in us, just a little bit of pride to mature in us, like a little servant girl coming up to Peter and saying, you weren't with him, were you? No. You didn't even stand up to a little girl. I don't know what you're saying. I don't know this man. Even if all are made to stumble, first denial, I will not. Peter, Peter, Peter, do you love me? Do you agape me more than these? See it? So Jesus is drawing out a confession. I think he's drawing out a confession that I'm not sure Peter initially saw. I think later he saw this really clearly. Right in front of all the disciples standing there, Jesus singles out Peter and says, do you love me more than these, Peter? Awkward moment when you've just denied him in front of all these. Jesus is drawing out from Peter the very thing he said in John 15. Peter, I told you, apart from me, you can do nothing. No strength. Himself. I think there's a great inward struggle of Peter here that I find Romans 7-ish. I really want to love you. Listen to how he responds. Indeed, Lord, you know that I love you. What's interesting is that he will not use the same word in the Greek. I have affection for you. I have affection for you. You know I have affection for you. I find that significant that he will not use agape. And here's that inward struggle of the believer. I really believe it's captured here. It's something that you have to understand that life is weak. We are weak. We do love. We ourselves get in the way of that love. And what we have here is Jesus beginning to restore Peter in the midst of that struggle. Isn't it? Isn't it beautiful? right in front of the coals of fire upon which he had denied his Lord just a few days previous to this and asking him, do you love me more than these when he said a few days ago, I'll never deny you even if they do. But now he says, I can't. I love you, but I don't love you the way that you're asking. This is our struggle. The actions of denial at the heart of Jesus' afflictions prove that he did not have the kind of love that Jesus was here talking about. Surely his actions had spoken volumes. His actions were hypocrisy. But he refuses to say, I agape you, but he can't say, I don't love you. You see it? Of course he loved him. But he's a conflicted man. What's happening right now? Something really healthy. on-the-spot training in humility. On-the-spot training in humility. Jesus keeps going. He said to him a second time, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me? Son of John, do you love me? Jesus gets deeper. Now, notice there, he goes further. He's pressing him. He uses the same word for love, but now he axes off, do you love me more than these? do you love me? Period. What a question. You have to go back and say, okay, well, what happened in the second denial that Jesus would do that? And the second denial goes like this. Remember what happened? The second denial servant girl came to him and said, this fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth, but he denied again with an oath. Whoa. He now took an oath that he didn't know Jesus. Oats are serious in the Bible. You're not supposed to do that. You're not supposed to do that. Do you really love me, Peter? You say you love me, but do you remember that oath you took that you didn't even know me? Do you love me? Lord, you know that I have affection for you. Again, you know I've got affection for you. You see what he does? It's very clear. The third time, Jesus does something a little interesting. Jesus asks him again a third time. Do you love me, Peter? And now it's the same word Peter's been using the whole time. Okay, I'll come to your level, Peter. Do you have any affection for me? Do you have affection for me? again you're taken to the third denial a little later those who stood by came up to peter and say surely you also are one of them for your speech betrays you then he began to curse and swear that doesn't sound like a lot of affection does it i don't know what curse words he chose i don't think they were good ones that's not much affection He's a fisherman then, that's for sure. Peter's in despair at this point. And he appeals to Christ's divinity, which is a really interesting moment. You see, he knows who Jesus is. Lord, you know all things. You're omniscient. That is quite a confession, by the way. That is quite a confession. I haven't shown it. I have affection for you. You see, where Jesus has brought Peter, his pride's been dealt with. His sin has been uncovered. He is completely humbled. And what is Jesus after here? These three questions have jolted him to think a lot about his love for the Lord. I mean, that is the commandment, isn't it? you should love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. That is the summary of the law, isn't it? And I think the apostles stood back from this moment, standing there. John would write a little later. We love him. We agape him. Because he first agaped us. I think this is a big moment. It's vital for the Christian life. It's vital for the Christian life. I never really loved him at all to begin with, did I? You didn't love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength to begin with. You didn't make that choice. He chose you when you were yet a sinner. And he loved you this way. He died for you. He agape'd you first. And that's the reason you're here today. See, it's a big moment in the Gospels when John, when Paul comes in Romans 5 and says, listen, you know, scarcely full, a man died for somebody. But what a message it is. While we were yet sinners, Jesus died for us. Isn't that just what Peter realized? It's got to get a hold of you. Or else you're going to go backward. And your whole life's going to be going backward. Remember I said last week, don't do it. The Lord won't let you go. He's going to come get you. That's what chastisement is. But do you see what Jesus is saying here? how do we agape him? How can we love Jesus when we're this much of a mess and we're pulled this way and that way and our own hearts rise up and condemn us? You see what Jesus was doing here. It's very clear. Jesus was giving Peter the opportunity to confess, to receive help, but importantly, restoration is what this is about. And it's important that Jesus gives now the single most important way that Peter can love Jesus. You want to know how you can love Jesus today? Get out of yourself. Get out of yourself. He's forgiven you. He's washed you. He's loved you. That love was before you ever said yes to any of this. Do you understand that? That love was before you said yes to anything, before you stood up here and professed faith, before even the covenant sign was put on your forehead. He had gawped you in A.D. 30. And from the foundation of the world, you were chosen. Get out of yourself. He's done everything necessary to forgive you. You're not under condemnation anymore. You look at people going backwards. They're living in a lot of guilt and shame. Stop. Come to the Lord. He loves to renew. He loves to help, but he loves to restore. Here's how you can show your love for me. Amazing verse. Here's how you can remain committed to me. Feed my lambs. Tend to my sheep, Peter. Lambs are weak, aren't they? Immature flock. Sheep, as we know, are prone to wander. There's that little video that's floating around. Did you see it? Of that sheep that's in a ditch. He's stuck in a ditch. Some guy comes and pulls the leg out of the sheep and he pulls and he pulls and he pulls and the sheep pops out and he runs a big run and he runs and he dives and he goes right back in the ditch. It's a great video. Peter, you were the wandering sheep. You were the immature lamb. You departed from the fold. Look what I've done for you. I pulled you out of the pit today. I've come after you today. I've restored you today. All your failures I've just dealt with. I've answered you today amidst all your failure and your deep denials and the things that you've done your whole life, and they're heaped up like a mountain. That's a mountain of sin. You rejected me. And I've come after you with a tender, enduring, loving, restoring as your good shepherd. So you know how you can love me? Go do the same. Go get them. Feed my sheep. There's a whole bunch of them wandering. There's a whole bunch of them who need to be fed. Do you know what I've done? Do you know what I've done for you? Explain then this kind of love with the same love that won you. You want to know the greatest way God's love to you is shown, by the way? Is when shepherds feed you with his word. I think at this point, Jesus places a powerful calling right on Peter in the life of Peter, and he does it on you. And Jesus says something that, Peter, I want us to think about that's really interesting. When you were younger, you, really interesting, isn't it? When you were younger, you went around and you did what you wanted to do. You went where you wished. Verse 18, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted. But when you're old, you will stretch out your hands and another will dress you and carry you where you do not wish. This he said to show what kind of death he was to glorify God. And when he had said this, he looked at Peter and he said, follow me. I think this is a very significant moment in the life of Peter. Peter, when you were younger, isn't this just true of everyone sitting here right now? You did whatever you wanted to do. You went around and you did whatever you wanted to do. No longer. You're mine. And guess what? Someday you're going to go where you don't want to go. You're going to stretch out your hands and they're going to carry you where you do not want to wish. The church historian Eusebius records it this way. Peter seems to have preached in Pontus and Galatia and Bithynia and Cappadocia and Asia to the Jews of the dispersion and at last came to Rome where he was crucified upside down for so he himself asked to suffer. I don't know if that's true. I don't know how much that's true. But at least that's the historical record we have. Peter, you're mine. First question of the Heidelberg is so helpful, isn't it? What's your only comfort in life and in death, boys and girls? That you're not your own. You were bought with a price. You belong in body and soul, in life and in death. This is what Jesus says to you. Do you love me? You've gone enough your own way. We do whatever we want to do, don't we? We do whatever we want to do. Do you love Jesus? If you're restored today, he has a wonderful plan for your life. Let me tell you what it is. You might get to die for him. That's a wonderful plan for your life. Most here will never have to face that. Probably all of us will never have to face it. Maybe a pastor. I hope it's not. But the basic call here is on your life too. Follow me. I bought you. I forgive you. Your life will become when you follow less and less about you. Your desires, your wants, your pursuits. You will begin to look like Jesus. You'll begin to look like a servant. Then people will know you belong to the Lord. I don't think it's coincidental. Tonight we get the opportunity to consider how to love the Lord's sheep by using our gifts among them. Do you love the Lord? Do you love him? Well, do you know his love for you? See, this is the restoring moment in Peter's life, and I pray it's the restoring moment in your life. It's the restoration we need every day, to be honest with you. I love you, says Jesus. I first loved you. That's what the apostles took from this. And now you can show that love by loving my people. By loving my flock I died for. That's my calling on your life. Follow me. You want to know what following Jesus is? There you go. Love my people. Love my people. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you. For this marvelous text that shows us the restoring mercies of the Lord. Thank you for coming after us. We confess that we desire to love you with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And there's an inward battle that goes on. Pride is great. We easily go our own way doing our own things. We are so thankful that you are so patient with us. That you come to us with this wooing shepherd voice. calling us back to you, having us think about your agape love for us from the beginning, reinstating us to the purpose for which you called us, calling us to become servants. Thank you for purchasing us with the precious blood of your Son. Thank you for giving us purpose. And for any who are discouraged today, for any who are going backward, for any, Lord, who struggle, with wondering about your love, may this passage put that to rest. May we see, Lord, how you come after us to pull us out of ourselves. We might start to look like Jesus. Thank you, O Lord, for calling us, for saving us, and for giving us a place and purpose. We praise the name of the Lord. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.