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.” John 21:15
In the English translations this passage is not only confusing, but seems redundant. What was Jesus trying to prove here, especially since He asked that question two more times. Part of the problem is that the word for love that Jesus uses is agapeo, unconditional, all encompassing love. In comparison to the word Peter used to answer, phileo, a fond affection of friends, to like deeply.
Peter needed to know one more time that his betrayal of Jesus didn’t qualify him from continuing to be His disiciple and be used of Him. It also reminded him that the love of Jesus far exceeds ours. Jesus goes on to ask Peter two more times if he loves Him and Peter continues to say yes he does. In asking Peter if he loved Him, Jesus was telling Peter, you can only love me back, because of how deep my love is for you. The deep, all encompassing love that forgives the betrayal of a friend as well as the guilt and shame that is acquired from being the betrayer. A love that overcomes what ever destructive force the enemy is trying to inflict on both the giver and receiver.
Think about what Jesus was showing Peter, love generated from the heart that has been forgiven will overcome anything the enemy uses to destroy it and the person. And then goes on to remind Peter, to then share that forgiveness and its restoration with others, so that the love of God will be like food to the sheep and lambs that are following Jesus our Shepherd. Peter couldn’t help but remember Jesus saying “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” John 13:34.
Notice Jesus addressed Peter as Simon, which means to listen intently and he not only listened, but he understood the difference between perfect love and human love and it set Peter free to receive and know the love of Jesus just like John experienced and he was never the same. May we learn the same lesson Simon did that day on the shore, that until we truly receive the forgiveness of Jesus through His all encompassing love we will never experience the joy of being fully loved or be able to truly love others, especially those who don’t deserve it. Oh how the world needs to see the love of Jesus through us.
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