John 21.17 17 The
third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt
because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you
know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.””
On about the 3rd hole yesterday, my new boss
and I began to talk shop. In a non-threatening, but deep way, he began to ask
me about what I do, how I do, who I know, and what I know about who I know. He
was interested in the people I work with (and for). He asked about their
hobbies, how they spend their leisure and what I know about what they like to
do. He asked their churches and how they participate.
He caught me completely off-guard. I expected the usual,
and he caught me completely unprepared for his line of questioning. I was a bit
taken aback.
I think the moment Peter realized it was Jesus on the
beach, he expected what I had expected: the usual. I think Peter expected to be
rebuked. I think he expected to be scolded. I think he thought his nose would
be rubbed in it. But Jesus caught him off-guard. Jesus asked, Peter, do you love Me?
Peter, like most of us was a transactional person. Peter
had a production mentality. He knew Jesus was really only counting butts and
bucks. He knew he had to give a report for his actions, and he wasn’t prepared
for what Jesus queried him about: Peter,
do you love Me?
In John 14.23 Jesus said, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them,
and we will come to them and make our home with them.” Jesus questioned Peter’s
obedient by asking him about his love. It wasn’t production. It wasn’t
position. It wasn’t possession. It was simply: Peter, how much do I mean to you? My boss got me to thinking about
the people that I work with, and simply asked, through a series of inquiries: Paul, how much do they mean to you?
My eyes opened to a new vista; a way of thinking that I
hadn’t considered. It helped me to see people in a different light: people
really are just people (and all that
comes with it). But it made me reevaluate my role in their lives, and theirs in
mine. Do I love them?
Peter expected to get written up, punished – or worse: demoted.
Jesus simply helped him to see things differently and then reevaluate his
purpose on earth, in Heaven, and ultimately, in the lives of those who would
see and study his life for the next 21 centuries, and beyond. Talk about a
reset. Jesus told Peter: Just do what I
tell you to do.
Yesterday, my boss offered the same advice to me, and
then pointed me toward some resources that would help. My golf game improved,
my view of my calling improved. My view of God and people improved. And, last
night, I slept like a little lamb. Today, I am relieved, renewed, refocused, and
refreshed…
Father, I think You
ask me: Paul, do you trust Me? Paul, are you willing to obey Me? And, Paul, do
you love Me and the ones to whom I send you? Like Peter, I of course exclaim:
Lord, You know I do! And today, I think I heard You say: Then, feed My sheep,
and do what I tell you to do. Lord, I will. Amen
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