Following Jesus Tape: E- 41 E. Rome Time: 6 / 1 /03 11a.m. Text: John 21: 15-23 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Introduction: In the first part of this chapter we find Peter going back to his old way of life. He goes fishing. However, this is not where he was suppose to be. Peter and the other disciples were commissioned to fish for men instead of fish. Now, they had fished all night and caught nothing. You see, when you are out of the will of God things are not going to go right. The Lord shows up and tells them to drop their net on the right side of the boat and they ended up with a net full of fish. Then the Lord fixes breakfast for them, and then he strikes up a conversation with Peter. We are going to notice that conversation, and the spiritual applications that we can apply to our own lives. Peter had been a failure, but the Lord was not giving up on him. Aren t you glad that God can still use people who fail him? Let us notice a phrase in V. 22 Last phrase- follow thou me. We are going to be talking about Following Jesus. I. The Passion Described For Following Jesus A. The Definition Of Love V. 15-17 has several words for love. Let s read it and note these words so we can understand what the application was for Peter and also us. V. 15- So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon [ old name ], son of Jonas, lovest [ agape ] thou me more than these? He saith unto Him, yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love[ Phileo] thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. V. 16- He saith to him again the second time, Simon [ old name ] son of Jonas, lovest [ Agape ] thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love [ Phileo ] thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. V. 17- He saith unto him the third time, Simon [ old name ], son of Jonas, lovest [ Phileo ] thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, 1
Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus said unto him, Feed my sheep. Spiritual Application The Lord asked Peter if he loved him three different times. The first two times the Lord used the word agape love, which means a deep committed, sacrificial love. This was the love that is mentioned in John 3:16, which says that God so loved the world. This is the kind of love that the Lord wants from us. Peter, however, answered backed that he loved the Lord with the word Phileo, which means affectionate love. You see, at one time Peter would have used the strong word for love, agape, but now, he is not that sure of himself, since he had failed the Lord several times. Christian Friend, the Lord doesn t want us to love him with an affectionate love, but love him with a deep committed, sacrificial love, the kind of love that He has for us. Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. If there is one thing that the Lord wants from his children, it is the kind of love that he has for us. Revelation 2: 4 The Lord speaking to the church of Ephesus, said, Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou has left thy first love. Peter s love had waned and it showed up in his actions and this is the reason that we have this account in John. You see, if you really love the Lord, it will show up in your living. Question : Has you loved waned? If it has, your actions and life will reveal it. John 14:15 If ye love me keep my commandments. John 14: 23- If a man love me, he will keep my words. 2
Peter loved the Lord, but he did not love the Lord the way that he needed to, that is the reason that he went fishing for fish instead of fishing for men. The Lord used the word Simon,instead of Peter, because he went back to his old way of life. Simon s love has been challenged, has yours? If you really love the Lord the way that you need to, it will keep you following the Lord. Peter had stopped following the Lord, but he was fixing to start back. The Definition Of Love B. The Display Of Love We have noticed that real genuine love for the Lord will show up in your LIFE, but now we want to notice that true genuine love will show up in your LABOR. 1. The Spiritual Application To The Pastor, The Leader If you noticed, every time that the Lord asked Peter if he loved him, he would tell him to do something. In V. 15- the Lord said, Feed my lambs. In V. 16- he said, Feed my sheep. In V. 17- the Lord said, Feed my sheep. Peter was to feed the lambs, the little ones. Peter was to feed the sheep. This is the Pastors job also. He is to feed the lambs, the little ones with the milk of the word. Then the Pastor is to feed the sheep, the older Christians with the meat of the word. This is the Pastor s main responsibility. 1 Peter 5: 2- Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight, not by constraint, but willingly- Sometimes sheep are not all that loveable. Did you notice that he didn t ask Peter if he loved the sheep? He asked him if he loved him. 3
You know what keeps the man of God feeding and tending sheep? It is not his love for the sheep, even though he should love them. It is his love for the Lord. The Lord asked Peter if he loved him, and then Peter said that he did, then the Lord said, feed my sheep. The Spiritual Application To The Leader, The Pastor 2. The Spiritual Application To The People, The Laymen You see, the Pastor has a job to do, but he can t do it all. Lay people also, has a job to do. Every Christian has a job to do. If you really love the Lord the way that you need to, you will not only live for the Lord, but you will also labor for the Lord. 1 Corinthian 15: 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. The Passion Described For Following Jesus II. The Prophesied Death For Following Jesus V. 18 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou was young, thou girdest thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shall stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. V. 19- This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. A. Jesus Describes His Freedom V. 18 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, when thou was young, thou girdest thyself, and walkest whither thou wouldest- Peter had been a fisherman and he enjoyed the open sea and the life of being a fisherman. Now, Peter was a disciple and had enjoyed his freedom in being a disciple, but that was fixing to change because of his new commitment to Christ. 4
Freedom is an important element in life. We take freedom for granite in the United States, but most people in this world do not have the freedom that we have. We should thank God ever day for the freedom that we have. We should thank God ever day for the freedom of worship. There are still a few countries that you can t worship the true and living God. Jesus Describes His Freedom B. Jesus Describes His Future 1. Jesus Mentions The Cause Of His Future Death V. 18 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou was young, thou girdest thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shalt gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. V.19- This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. This speaks of the type of death that Peter would face out in the future, which was crucifixion on the cross. Now, the historians tells us that Peter did not feel like he was worthy to be crucified the way that Christ died, so he asked to be crucified upside down. One might ask, what is the spiritual application for us who lives in the year 2003? If you are a Christian there will be a cross in your life. Matthew 16: 24- Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. Following Jesus involves a cross and hardships. Etc. Not only that, but there needs to be a daily crucifixion in our Lives. Let s listen to Paul talk about the crucifixion of the flesh. 5
Romans 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. V.11- Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. V. 12-Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Galatians 5: 24- And they that are Christ s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. Christian friend, we are to die daily to the flesh. We are to crucify the flesh daily. We can t give in to the flesh. We can t give in to that old sin nature. The old sin nature will try to get you to sin and do what you want to do instead of what God wants. One might say, well preacher that will take the fun out of life. Not according to Paul. Galatians 2:20- I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live- In order to live and have that victorious life, you must die out to the self-life. This is what Peter had to learn the hard way. If you want to really live and enjoy your Christian life, then stop living for self, and start living for the Saviour. Jesus Mentions The Cause Of His Future Death 2. Jesus Mentions The Consequences Of His Future Death V. 19- This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. John is telling us that Peter s death glorified God. Now, let us think about two ways that Peter s death glorified God and then make a personal application. a) The Life That He Lived Before Dying Glorified God After this account in John 20: 15-25 where the Lord teaches Peter a lesson in a loving way, Peter s life was never the same 6
after that. He became a great soul winner, and he stop living the self-life and started living a life that glorified God. One reason that Peter s death Glorified God was because of the life that he lived before dying. Christian friend, you can t die right, if you have not lived right. Christian friend, your death and your funeral can not glorify God, if you die out of the will of God. Peter s death glorified God because he died in the will of God. His Christian friends at the funeral knew the kind of life that he had lived and therefore God was glorified. The Life That He Lived Before Dying Glorified God b) The Love That He Displayed By Dying Glorified God The Lord had asked Peter if he loved Him 3 times. Two times he asked Peter if he loved Him with Agape love, which means deep committed sacrificial love. This is the kind of love that is used in John 3:16. Peter, not being sure of himself answered back 3 times that he loved the Lord, but he used the word Phileo, which speaks of brotherly love, or affectionate love. Point: Peter never got around to telling the Lord that he loved him in a sacrificial, deep committed love, but Peter proved his sacrificial, deep committed love by being a marter for Christ. Peter never denied his Lord after this experience. In fact it cost him his life, but he glorified God by the love that cost him his life. People who attended Peter s funeral said that Peter glorified God from the love that cost him his life. Present day application. How is it going to be at your funeral? Are people going to be able to say that you loved God with an Agape love. Are you going to glorify God at your funeral because the preacher will 7
be able to say, here lies a person who loved God and they displayed it by the way they lived. If not, they should be able to say that. How is your love life today? Let s glorify God by the love that we display in our ever day lives. The Passion Described For Following Jesus The Prophesied Death For Following Jesus III. The Personal Duty For Following Jesus A. The Question Asked By Peter V. 20- Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple [ John ] whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? V. 21- Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Here Peter is, fixing to get into trouble with the Lord again. Here Peter is, being concerned about what someone else is going to do for the Lord. Do you know, there are a lot of Christians like that? They are always looking at some other Christian and wondering about what they are going to do or not do for the Lord. Now, if you are like that, you sure do need to hear the answer from our Lord to Peter. The Question Asked By Peter B. The Question Answered For Peter 1. Notice The Asking Rebuke To Peter V. 22 Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Do you want me to amplify what the Lord told Peter in the Greek? He was saying to Peter, it is none of your business what John is going to be doing for me. Did you know that this rebuke to Peter is a rebuke for all of us? 8
Do you know that you are going to give a personal account to Christ at the judgment seat of Christ? You are not going to give an account for anyone else, and no one else is going to give an account for you. Romans 14: 12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. 2. Notice The Admonition Reply To Peter a) The Person Revealed To Follow V. 22- Last phrase- follow thou me. Jesus let Peter know that he was to follow him, and him only. Jesus is our main leader to follow. Yes, church members have a Pastor who is the under Shepard, but the main leader to follow is the chief Shepard, Jesus Christ. He knows how to lead. One might say, I don t have the Lord with me as Peter did. The Lord is in Heaven now, so I can t follow him. Yes, you can. He left his directions in his word. Proverbs 3: 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Psalms 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. If you follow the Lord s directions, He will never lead you down a path that will hurt you, but help you. The Person Revealed To Follow b) The Personal Responsibility To Follow V. 22- Last phrase- follow thou me. 9
Conclusion: Amplified- Peter, you follow me. Peter was concerned about John following the Lord, but now he has a personal admonition to follow the Lord. We Have Been Talking about: Following Jesus 1. The right kind of love will keep us following Jesus. 2. If we love the Lord the way we need to and live & labor for him, our life and death will glorify God. 3. If we follow the right person, Jesus, we will live a good life in this world. Following his leadership, following his word, will not hurt us, but help us. 4. Question? Does your life and labor reveal that you love the Lord the way that you need to? 5. Jesus told Peter, follow thou me. 10