Love, Feed, and Follow, May 4, 2014

Love, Feed and Follow

Deuteronomy 6:1-5, John 21:15-19

May 4, 2014

Grace Presbyterian Church

Rev. Dr. Richard E. Miller

Catching Fish Last Sunday, our scripture told us of the time after the resurrection when Peter and the disciples walked to the Sea of Galilee to meet Jesus. Peter decided to go fishing and the others joined him. But they caught nothing. Jesus appeared on the sea shoreand told them to cast their nets on the right side of the boat. They caught 153 fish.

Do You Love Me? This morning is part two of this story. After a time of joyous hugs and laughter, Jesus and the disciples cooked some of their freshly-caught fish and ate a hearty breakfast. Then, when everyone was full, Jesus quietly turned to Peter and asked, “Simon, son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” Note that Jesus called Peter by his birth name of Simon rather than by Peter, the name he had given him. [Matthew 16:18] Perhaps that was to get Peter’s undivided attention and to let Peter know that what he was about to say was very important.

More than These What does Jesus mean when he says, “Do you love me more than these? Who or what are the “these”? It could refer to a number of things. Do you love me more than going fishing? More than walking along the familiar lakeshore? Do you love me more than the security of a livelihood, a trusted routine, a dependable income? Do you love me more than family, more than friends? 

Peter never hesitated when he replied, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus then responded, “Feed my lambs.” 

A short time later, Jesus again turned to Peter and asked, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” And again Peter replied, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” And Jesus replied, “Tend my sheep.”

Then still a third time Jesus posed the question, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”  By this time, Peter felt hurt that Jesus asked him the same question a third time. 

He said, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” Then he said  “Follow me!” In the space of a few moments of time, Jesus asked Peter a question three times in a row and gave him the commands of feed my sheep, tend my sheep and follow me.

The Question The question was simple, direct and to the point. “Do you love me?” “Yes or No, do you love me?” Peter couldn’t say, “Well, Jesus, I really like you.” Or, “I love you most of the time.” Peter could only answer “yes” or “no.” And three times Peter said, “Yes, Lord, I love you.” As we know, love is a word that is used in many different ways - from saying “I love ice cream,” or “I love my new car,” or “I love blue grass music.” However, the love we give and receive from one another is treasured by all of us. This includes the love we have for good friends, the love we have for our spouse and family.

One person said that “The most important things to do in the world are to get something to eat, something to drink and somebody to love.” [Brandan Behan] 

I think this is true since most people go through life seeking someone to love and being reassured that somebody loves them. These are strong and vibrant loves that are very important in our lives. They were important in Peter’s life as well. Thus, when Peter said to Jesus that he loved him, it meant that Peter’s love was greater than all other loves of his life. And his loyalty to Jesus was greater than all other loyalties of his life.

Denials and Affirmations  Jesus didn’t ask Peter the same question three times in a row because he was hard of hearing and didn’t hear his answer the first two times. And he didn’t ask Peter the same question three times in a row simply to upset Peter.

The three times Jesus asked Peter if he loved him corresponds to the three times that Peter had earlier denied even knowing Jesus at all. [Mark 14:66-72] Jesus gave Peter an opportunity to forever cancel his three earlier denials, and to replace them with three affirmations of love. In other words, any guilt Peter might have had in denying Jesus was erased by the forgiveness of his Master. And Peter knew that Jesus still trusted him and had confidence in him.

Shepherds and Sheep As we know, the metaphor of shepherds and sheep is a common one with Jesus. He said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” [John 10:11-12] Elsewhere, Jesus talks about how a shepherd calls his sheep by name, and how they know his voice and follow him. [John 10:3-4]  The writer of Hebrews refers to Jesus as “The great shepherd of the sheep.” [Hebrews 13:20]

Jesus asked Peter to care for his sheep because he knew that soon he would ascend into heaven. His sheep would be without a shepherd unless his disciples became shepherds in his place to make sure his flock received spiritual food. 

Jesus also was saying, “Peter, if you really, really love me, show that love by feeding and tending my sheep.”

Love an Action Word  Love is an action word - it must be expressed both in words and deeds.

The story is told of an elderly couple who were constantly fighting, arguing, yelling at each other. They had been doing it from the time when they were first married as young people. They argued and fought from the time they got up in morning until they fell asleep at night. Finally one day the wife said to her husband, "I'll tell you what, Harvey, the loving way to end our fighting is to pray that one of us dies. And after the funeral is over I'll go live with my sister."

Follow Me Finally Jesus said to Peter and his disciples, “Follow me.” Finding them fishing, Jesus reached out and called them back to their original calling of being fishers of people. This was the same command he gave to them three years earlier when he found them fishing on the Sea of Galilee and said “Follow me.”

Now What?  We’re a great deal like those disciples by the seashore. As they waited for Jesus to appear, they were asking among themselves, “Now what happens?”

Two Sundays ago, we celebrated Easter by affirming and proclaiming the joy and power of the risen Lord in our lives. We left worship with a strengthened resolve to follow Christ in faithful paths of discipleship. But Easter’s over. So now what happens? Springtime is here and summer is ahead of us, with cookouts and picnics, fishing and boating, gardening and golf. As we enjoy these things, it will be very tempting to revert to our old habits, comfortable responses, and safe behaviors. It will be easy to hide from our discipleship in the familiar ruts and demands of daily living.

Christ Isn’t Done With Us Yet!  However, the question and orders are clear. “Do you love me?  If so, feed my lambs and follow me.”  They go together. They cannot be separated. We cannot love Jesus without feeding his sheep and following him. And we cannot follow Christ without loving him. If we say we love him, then our words and actions must reflect such love.

For instance, the story is told of a teenager came home from choir practice early one evening. His father was surprised to say the least since choir practice normally went on for another hour. Looking over his paper he asked, "Hello, son. What brings you back so soon?" The son replied, "The organist and the choir director got in a terrible argument about how to sing `They’ll know we are Christians by our Love,' so we quit for tonight."

Does this mean we are to give up picnics and boating and golf? Are we to feel guilty watching television or going to see the Cardinals play ball? By no means! But we are to love Jesus more than these.

Loyalties and Priorities Very often, life comes down to a matter of loyalties and priorities. When we accepted Christ as Lord and Savior, we offered God our greatest love and our highest loyalty. We said that we would love and follow Christ wherever he led us. How will you show the world that you love Jesus more than anyone or anything else? How will you put that love into action? 

The story is told of a boy with Down’s Syndrome named Shay. One day Shay and his father walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they'll let me play?" Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and, getting none, he took matters into his own hands and said, "We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning." In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. However, in the ninth inning, there were two outs and the bases were loaded. The winning run was at the plate Shay was scheduled to be next at bat. At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least be able to make contact. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game. Instead, the pitcher took the ball and turned and threw the ball on a high arc to right field, far beyond the reach of the first baseman. Everyone started yelling, "Shay, run to first! Run to first!" Never in his life had Shay ever made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run to second!" By the time Shay rounded first base, the right fielder had the ball. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions and intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head. Shay ran toward second base as the runners ahead of him deliriously circled the bases toward home. When Shay reached second base, the opposing shortstop ran to him, turned him in the direction of third base, and shouted, "Run to third!" As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams were screaming, "Shay, run home!" Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the "grand slam" and won the game for his team. That day the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world. Yes, every moment of our lives we must decide how much we love Jesus.

Final Thoughts  Now that Easter is over, we must not go back to our old, comfortable and predictable life and act as though nothing happened on Easter morning so many years ago.  Every day is Easter filled with moments of new birth. And every day Christ asks, “Do you love me more than these?” If you say “Yes, Lord, I love you,” then he says “Feed my sheep and Follow me.” Amen.  

Deuteronomy 6:1-5 NRSV

Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that the Lord your God charged me to teach you to observe in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, so that you and your children and your children’s children may fear the Lord your God all the days of your life, and keep all his decrees and his commandments that I am commanding you, so that your days may be long. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe them diligently, so that it may go well with you, and so that you may multiply greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you.

 Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.
John 21:15-19 NRSV

 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.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt 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. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.’ (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, ‘Follow me.’