The Easter
story deals with hope when it presented the transformed lives of the disciples.
The death of Christ rendered them hopeless, but the resurrection gave them
hope. The resurrection also deals with faith in the story of Thomas the
doubter. Thomas’ faith in Jesus Christ was shaken because of Jesus’ death, but
Jesus appears to Him to restore His faith and confidence in Him. In this post,
the greatest of the triad—love—will be highlighted. This is just proper,
because if at the cross God showed His love for us, during the resurrection
days, God asked about our love for Him. The reading is from John 21:15-17
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.” 16 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.” 17 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.”
Do you
love me more than these? (15:15)
The setting
of John 21:15-17 is that of a breakfast over fish (21:12). It was in the
context of this communal gathering that Jesus opened His mouth and directed a
question to Peter: “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than
these?” (15:17). I can imagine the tension here. The question was
addressed only to Peter, not to the whole crowd. Jesus locked His eyes on to
Peter and asked him of his love for Him in the presence and hearing of the
other disciples. This must have been a very awkward moment. The disciples all
knew the not-so-distant-blunder of the outspoken Peter. They can remember how
Peter publicly declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will not deny you!”
(Matt 26:33-35; Mark 14:29-31; John 13:37; 15:12-13), and also how Peter also
publicly denied Jesus Christ three times (Matt 26:69-75; Mark 14:66-72; Luke
22:54-62; John 18:16-18, 25-27).
Jesus’
question to Peter was like a knife wrenched in his heart, but the fang of the
question was probably intended by Jesus. The question about our love for God is
not a private question between God and us only. There is no such a thing as
secret love for God. God asks the question of our devotion to Him in the presence
of our close friends and family members. The question stings painfully because
like Peter, these close friends and family members are the ones who know us and
our blunders. To answer the question in public is scary, because the eyes and
ears of many are attentive to us. But there is no other way. God demands that
our love for Him be made public and for the world to see.
The first
question is very interesting. What do the “these” refer to? Leon Morris argues
that the “these” does not refer to the other disciples. Jesus was not asking if
Peter loved Him more than how the other disciples love Him. Rather, “these”
refer to the fishing paraphernalia. The question, therefore, is “Do you love me
more than fishing?” It sounds like a simple question, but it actually is quite
profound. Jesus was asking Peter about his future. It was a question of Peter’s
way of life. It was a question of career choice.[1] Was Peter going to be a fisherman
or an apostle? Let us remember that the disciples went fishing at the
instigation of Peter (John 15:3). This is interesting because for one week, the
disciples locked themselves in the room (John 20:19, 26), and the story of John
21:1-14 was the first time in the resurrection narratives that the disciples
voluntarily went out, and their purpose was to fish. It would appear that Peter
was going back to His old career as a fisherman. They no longer feared the
Jewish leaders because the act of fishing symbolized that they have returned to
their old lives and have moved on. Their Jesus experience and commitment were
over. When Jesus asked “Do you love me more than these?” He was asking if Peter
loved Him that He would go back to His calling to be a fisher of men (Matt
4:19). When Peter said “Yes Lord, you know that I love you,” the immediate
response of Jesus was, then “Feed my lambs” (John 15:15).
Do you
truly love me? (15:16)
It seems
that Jesus was not satisfied with Peter’s affirmation, because Jesus asked
Peter again: “Simon, son of John, do you truly love me?” (15:16). Again, it is
good to remember that Jesus’ questions to Peter were in the presence of the
disciples. If the first question created an awkward atmosphere, the fact that
Jesus asked the same question to Peter might have further thickened the air.
But Jesus had the right to ask the question again, because Peter did not really
answer Jesus’ question in the first instance. This is more obvious in the
original Greek manuscripts:
Jesus: “Simon, son of
John, do you love (agapas) me more than these?”
Peter: “Yes, Lord; you know that I love (philo)
you.”
Jesus: “Simon, son of John, do you love (agapas)
me?”
Thus, the
reason Jesus asked Peter the same question again was that Peter did not answer
Jesus’ question in the first place. Jesus was asking if Peter love Him in an agape
way. Agape is the kind of love that God has for humanity. It refers
to God’s faithful love—a love that never lets go. It is love that is willing to
make a sacrifice for others to the point of death (Rom 5:8; 1 John 3:16). Jesus
was asking Peter if he had this kind of love for Jesus. But as we see in 20:15,
Peter actually avoided the question and literally said, “Yes Lord, I have a
brotherly affection for you.” Basically, Peter said something like: “Yes Lord,
I love you but not the kind of love that you are expecting from me.” Jesus was
bro-zoned by Peter!
Jesus asked
Peter again because Peter’s response was disappointing. Jesus wanted him to
love Him with all his heart, soul, body, and mind (Matt 22:37), but Peter’s
commitment was limited. In fact, Peter was actually shameless, because his
response to Jesus’ second question was the same as the first one:
Jesus: “Simon, son of John, do you
love (agapas) me more than these?”
Peter: “Yes, Lord; you know that I love (philo)
you.”
Jesus: “Simon, son of John, do you love (agapas)
me?”
Peter: “Yes, Lord; you know that I love (philo)
you” (John 15:15-16).
Maybe the
reason Peter responded in this way was because He no longer dared to be
arrogantly sure in front of others again. He was afraid that He would fail
again. He knew himself better now. He once proclaimed his undying commitment to
Jesus in front of the other disciples, and he failed miserably in fulfilling
his words. So this time, in the presence of the disciples, He did not dare to
be so sure again. But you know what, it was precisely what Peter did not want
to say that Jesus wanted to hear. Jesus wanted to hear from Peter his
confession again. Jesus was challenging Peter to be so valiant again. He wanted
Peter to express the same level of devotion for Him before his denials. Jesus
was challenging Peter and us today if we can love Him in the same way that He
loves us.
Do you
love me? (15:17)
Jesus was
not satisfied even after asking Peter twice, and receiving Peter’s response
twice too. In John 20:17, it says that “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?” Jesus was a persistent
stalker. He asked the same question a third time, and but what was Jesus’ focus
this time?
It would
appear that Peter’s love and commitment to Jesus has turned somewhat cold when
Jesus died. He no longer had the same passion as before for Jesus Christ. He
went back to fishing and when asked if he loved Jesus, he responded that he
loved Jesus as a brother or friend. Something happened to Peter’s love when
Jesus died. He lost his motivation. He lost his zeal. He lost his vigor. He
lost the fiery love that he once had for Jesus.
The third
question is actually probably the most important. Whether we like it or not,
Peter did not want a crucified Messiah. He was expecting a victorious political
king. This is why when Jesus said that He would suffer and be killed, Peter
rebuked Jesus sternly (Matt 16:22; Mark 8:32). Peter loved the Jesus who was
popular and was going to be the political liberator of the nation of Israel.
Peter wanted a victorious Lord, not a failed revolutionary. Peter wanted a
Lion, not a Lamb. Again, his actions of going back to fish and his affirmation
that he loved Jesus only as a brother indicate that something has changed in
his heart. Jesus’ third question asked Peter if he still loved Him even though
He was not the person Peter wanted and expected. Jesus was a crucified Messiah.
Would Peter still follow Him? Would Peter love Him even though He was not the
man he wanted?
Conclusions
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