Do You Love Me (Resurrected Witness – Part V)

Sermon Title: “Do You Love Me?”

Good News Statement: Jesus loves us

Preached: Sunday, May 29, 2022 at Dogwood Prairie UMC & Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): John 21:15-19 Today’s scripture reading comes from the Gospel of John chapter twenty-one verses fifteen thru nineteen. Listen to these words spoken by the beloved disciple…

Jesus and Peter

¹⁵ 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.” ¹⁶ 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.” ¹⁷ 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. ¹⁸ 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.” ¹⁹ (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”

This is the Word of God for the People of God; And all God’s people said, “Thanks be to God.”

 

Introduction:

One Sunday morning, a mother went in to wake her son and tell him it was time to get ready for church, to which he replied, “I’m not going.” “Why not?” she asked. “I’ll give you two good reasons,” he said. “One, they don’t like me, and two, I don’t like them.” His mother replied, “I’ll give you two good reasons why you should go to church. One, you’re 54 years old, and two, you’re the pastor!”

Sometimes in life we all need to experience or be encouraged by the gentle nudge of tough love: we need someone to tell us that we need to take responsibility for our actions, to live up to what we have been called to do. Additionally, we need someone to remind us of the responsibilities we have and the people we are called to take care of, support, and nurture. Ultimately, we need Jesus to repeatedly ask us, “Do you love me? Are you still willing to feed and tend my sheep? Are you willing to go where I need you and lead the people who I have placed before you? Do you love me?”

We began our journey of travelling with the resurrected Jesus while he was on the road to Emmaus. As we walked with Jesus and the other two men—we realized that Jesus recognize us, before we recognize Him. On the road to Emmaus, Jesus recognizes you. Jesus recognizes you in your defeat, doubt, joy, and excitement. He recognizes you when you approach the altar, feel abandoned, or need healing. Jesus recognizes you when you don’t recognize him.

After walking with Jesus, the stranger, we ate with him and the two men around a shared table after making it to Emmaus. The story of Jesus eating with these two men is our reminder that as Christians our actions, our love for all “strangers”, speaks louder than our words, and that we must not miss our opportunity to notice the important people in our life. Jesus breaking bread with these two men is our reminder that it’s never too late to notice the important people in your life. It’s never too late to recognize Jesus in your life.

Then, we were introduced to Thomas, the twin, who had doubts. We all experience doubt in our life: as a matter of fact, 65-85% of people experience doubt on a daily basis. Doubt is part of life; and it doesn’t remove our faith or take away our salvation. When doubt creeps in our life, we must remember what Jesus told Thomas: “Do not doubt but believe” (John 20:27). During Jesus’ resurrection, we recognize that with Jesus in our life, the doubt that we experience can be removed by acknowledging our doubt, asking God for help, and then listening to what God offers us in return. We must not doubt but believe.

Last week we recognized that Jesus wants to be involved in our everyday lives. After failing to catch any fish, Peter and the other disciples were frustrated, tired, stressed out, and probably hungry. And then a stranger, in the early morning hours, simply says, “Cast your net on the right side of the boat” (John 21:6). In an act of desperation, they listened to the stranger. And much to their surprise, the net is filled with one-hundred and fifty-three fish! It was at that moment they realized that the stranger on the shoreline was Jesus. “It is the Lord.” We recognized that Jesus will fill our nets if we are willing to do the work he has called us to do.

Today, we find ourselves, after having breakfast with Jesus, listening to Jesus question Peter’s love for him. Three times Jesus asks Peter, “Do you love me?” And twice Peter responds by saying, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you” (John 21:15-16). But the third time Peter responds, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you” (John 21:17). Today, we recognize that our love for Jesus is the most important thing in life: it motivates the spirit, enriches the mind, strengthens the body, and nudges the heart to feed and tend the sheep of Jesus Christ.

Opening Prayer:

            Let us pray… Dear Lord Jesus, I pray that You allow this message to put our love for Christ before all things and to give us the tough love that we need to feed and tend Your sheep. May my words fall to the ground as Your words settle in the hearts of all those before me. In your Resurrected name we pray, Amen.

Body:

As the disciples hauled the one hundred and fifty-three fish on to the shore of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias), Jesus is there with his charcoal fire cooking a fish and making bread. Jesus is already preparing to feed the disciples—Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, the sons of Zebedee, and the other disciples (John 21:1-3). Jesus is essentially, through his cooking, letting the disciples know that he will always be able to provide them with what they need in life. Paul highlights this characteristic of Jesus in his second epistle to the people of Corinth. Paul writes, “And [Jesus] is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8). Because the disciples listened to Jesus and cast their net on the right side of the boat (John 21:4-8), they have been blessed with more than enough to feed and tend the sheep of Jesus Christ. Something that we are all capable of doing!

Our reading today begins where we left off last week. “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’” (John 21:15). This passage gives us an account of examining our love relationship with Jesus. Jesus asks Peter, three times, “Do You Love Me?” (John 21:15, 16 & 17). So I ask you today, “Do you love Jesus?”

Simon Peter was very loyal to Jesus. He impressed Jesus many times with his confidence: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (Matthew 6:68). “You are the Christ!” (Matthew 10:1-31). But during the last supper, Jesus made a shocking prediction that disturbed him: Jesus told Peter, “Truly I tell you, this day, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times” (Mark 14:30). Upon hearing this, Peter was so sad and resisted, saying to Jesus: “Even though I must die with you, I will not deny you” (Mark 14:31). When Jesus was arrested and all the other disciples ran away, he followed Jesus, although at a distance. But at a critical moment when he was identified as one of Jesus’ disciples by a servant girl and his very survival was in question, he instinctively tried to save himself. He flatly denied Jesus as his loving master three times. He even cursed himself while denying Jesus (Mk 14:71).

That night, Peter went out and wept bitterly (Luke 22:62). However, the Lord Jesus visited Peter and began the healing process. Christ is in your life to heal and remove whatever is keeping you from loving him. As Paul would note, we must remove the “rubbish”—the garbage, the useless things, the debris, the filth—from our life before we can fully love Christ. Is there anything—any rubbish keeping your from fully loving Christ today? 

Look at verse 15 with me. “When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” Here the word “these” refers to something Simon Peter cherished dearly. It can be the fish he had just caught, his ordinary life, his success, his dream, accomplishment, and, in a broad sense, his whole life. Therefore, by asking the question, Jesus is demanding from Simon the greatest love for him. “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” Jesus wants Simon as well as all of us to love him the most—more than anything else. He asks this same question consecutively three times very seriously. God wants us to love him more than anything else (Deuteronomy 6:5). But do we? Do we love God more than anything else? I love playing drums, but I love God more. I love eating frozen pizza, pasta, and anything I can cook in the microwave, but I love God more. I love being outside, but I love God more. I love eating chips and reading, but I love God more. You can fill in the blank, but do you love God more than what you put in the blank, more than “these”?

Jesus deserves such love from Peter as well as us because he had given us his life as a sacrifice on the cross. By His death on the cross, Jesus first demonstrated he had loved us more than anything else. God himself also deserves such love from us because he gave us his one and only son as a ransom sacrifice for our sins (John 3:16). So Jesus, our Lord, asks each of us, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?”, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Do you truly love Jesus more than anything else in the world? The question of whom or which we love the most is very important. I often ask my parents who they love more: my mom usually doesn’t have an answer (it’s me!) but my dad says Jackson, who is their pet dog!

By whom we love, by what we love, our life is determined. The Samaritan woman suffered greatly and was miserable because she loved human husbands the most. Her life was full of shame and sins and eventually ruined. When Zacchaeus the tax collector loved money the most, he became rich but unhappy and lost. When Samson loved a lover more than God, he consumed his life miserably. On the other hand, when Daniel decided to love God more than his own life by renouncing comforts in a palace, he lived a righteous life which is still inspiring to many of us today. The Lord Jesus asks, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”

Not only did Jesus want Peter’s love, but he also wanted to help him to recover his wounded heart. To do so he helped him confess his love to Jesus. The fact that Jesus loves us is not enough. We must love him back. Because of sin, we fail God and lose our confidence to confess our love to him. So Jesus began to help Peter restore his confidence that was lost through his failure. As we know, Peter wanted to love Jesus more than anything else; after all he answered Jesus by saying, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you” (John 21:15). But the day came when Peter should have proved his love for Jesus and he didn’t. He failed. So Jesus helped Peter say what his heart wanted to shout out but what his mouth could not say. Jesus led Peter to make a confession of love and to feed his sheep.

Something wonderful happens in our hearts when we open our mouth and confess to our Lord Jesus, “Lord Jesus, I love you.” When Peter said, “Yes, Lord. You know that I love you,” it was more than a confession of love. It was a public declaration of his failure and his utter hopelessness as a lost sinner who had found endless mercy and forgiveness through the unconditional love of Jesus. It was Jesus’ love therefore, that empowered him and enabled him to confess his love to Jesus with all his confidence of a child of God. The time has come to confess your love for Jesus. Repeat after me, “I love you, Jesus.” “I love you, Jesus.” “I love you, Jesus.”

Needless to say, Jesus knew that Peter loved him, he intentionally asked the same question three times in a digressive manner so that Peter could see if he truly loved Jesus. Jesus asked Peter from “Do you truly love me more than these?” to “Do you truly love me?” and to finally “Do you love me?” Although Peter said “Yes Lord, you know that I love” Peter was hurt. To admit his failure before Jesus was painful and humiliating before the other disciples. The rejection of love was hurting, but Jesus changed his heart.

To make sure Peter understood the love that Jesus was seeking from him—the love that changed his heart—Jesus commanded him, “Feed my lambs,” or “Tend my sheep,” or “Feed my sheep.” Jesus was not just giving Peter a mission, he was expressing his deepest concern for his own flock. Jesus loves his flock more than his own life. Jesus wanted Peter to share his heart’s concern for his flock. He wanted Peter to demonstrate his love for Jesus by feeding his sheep. Simply, Jesus wanted him to be a shepherd, but not just any shepherd, though. Jesus wants Peter and us to become a true shepherd.

A true shepherd loves and serves God’s suffering flock with the word of God. They teach the good news, they pray for them, they serve them until they too can come out of their sins and failures, and they accept God’s love for them and grow to be shepherds as well. We must love Jesus’ sheep and take care of them no matter how difficult it may be. This is true love. In what ways are we being a true shepherd to our congregation and to our community? Are we feeding each other or are we letting people go hungry?

Sometimes feeding Jesus’ sheep seems impossible. Some of us feel hesitant to feed God’s flock. Some of us feel as if we aren’t the right person to feed God’s flock. But let me tell you something: if you love Jesus and you believe Jesus abides in you, then you are more than capable of feeding God’s flock! Feeding God’s flock is not an easy job: it takes sacrifices, it involves making changes, it will be uncomfortable, and it may even take the act of walking in someone else’s shoes; but we must not give up. I remember learning to ride a bike: it was tough, there were lots of falls and bad crashes, and possibly some kicking of the tires, but I kept trying: I kept pedaling and believing. Jesus needs us to keep pedaling and to keep trying to feed as many sheep as possible. Jesus needs us to love the flock like he loves us.

Jesus could have found other candidates—better ones, smart and faithful ones. Instead, the Lord Jesus revisited Peter—who denied Jesus—Thomas—who doubted Jesus—and the other disciples—who were called a faithless generation. Jesus did not even say a word of disappointment. Jesus knew and embraced their weaknesses and failures and gave them strengths and promises. He covered their failures with heartfelt love. Jesus chooses imperfect people to do extraordinary things. He has chosen you to feed and tend his flock with unending love.

Simon Peter, in his love for Jesus, accepted this call. He did not know where to go and how to feed God’s flock. He did not have a clear idea how to serve and succeed Jesus’ ministry. By faith, Peter just accepted and made every effort to obey Jesus’ command despite his weaknesses and shortcomings. Peter just followed Jesus. Peter walked in the shoes of Christ and fed and tended the people. Are you willing to follow Jesus’ command, to love him, and to feed and tend his flock? After hearing about and reading about the horrific situation that took place this past Tuesday (May 24, 2022) at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children were killed along with two adults in a school shooting, this nation, now more than ever, needs to experience the love of Christ. We all need to say “Yes” when Jesus asks us, “Do you love me?” because people need love now more than ever.

 

Conclusion:

As Tina Turner famously asked, “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” we know that love has everything to do with it. Our text today reminds us that we are too love Jesus more than anything else in our life; and when we choose to love Jesus we will be able to do all things through him who strengthens us; and we will feed and tend the flock of God as they need. At times it will be difficult but we must try to walk in his shoes and do what he commands us to do. We all know this world could use a lot more love. And Jesus comes to confirm his love for us and to restore our love. Love has everything to do with it.

So when Jesus asks you, “Do you love me,” what will you say? There are a lot of sheep out there that are counting on you and us as a church to feed them with the love of Jesus Christ. Are you willing to feed his lambs, tend his sheep, and feed his sheep? Do you love Jesus?

Closing Prayer:

            Let Us Pray…Dear Lord Jesus, help us to boldly claim that we love you and that we are here to feed and tend your sheep. Change our hearts and fill our life with love, strength, and endurance to lead others to you. And help us to follow in your footsteps. In your name we pray, Amen.

 

Benediction:

Let us love Jesus more than anything else, remembering how Jesus has lavished his love on us. In return, let us love Jesus by feeding and taking care of his sheep all the more, overcoming the challenges and difficulties each of us may face. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, go, transforming lives as you live well and wisely in God’s world. Amen. Amen. Amen.