(Preached at GracePointe Church, Springtown, TX Nov. 1, 2026)
15 So
when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of
Jonah, 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.”
16 He
said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord;
You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
17 He
said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He
said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You
know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My
sheep.
Lord, there is
so much packed into these three verses. Help us to know how to go from remorse
to restoration with you so that we can go from erosion and destruction that breaks
down others to edification and developing to build up others. In Jesus Name Amen
This week I was at the Shepherd’s Gathering of the SBTC,
and one of the panelists mentioned a book entitled, DARK CLOUDS, DEEP MERCY:
DISCOVERING THE GRACE OF LAMENT. A fellow pastor moaned with approval so I
wrote the title down and purchased and read it this week
The author, Pastor Mark VROE-Gup, and his wife
experienced the death of a still-born daughter, weighing 9 pounds and with that
experience, the parents experienced tremendous grief.
In fact, it was more than grief, more than mourning. Mark
Vroegop said it was on par with the book of Lamentations in the Bible. He said,
“To cry is human, but to lament is Christian.
“Lament is different. The practice of lament—the kind
that is biblical, honest, and redemptive—is not as natural for us, because
every lament is a prayer. A statement of faith. Lament is the honest cry of a
hurting heart wrestling with the paradox of pain and the promise of God’s
goodness.” (pg. 26)
“You might think lament is the opposite of praise. It isn’t.
Instead, lament is a path to praise as we are led through our brokenness and
disappointment. The space between brokenness and God’s mercy is where this song
is sung. Think of lament as the transition between pain and promise. It is the
path from heartbreak to hope.” (
pg. 28)
Lament is found in scriptures. It is the voice of the
martyrs in Revelation 6 where they cry out to God with a loud voice, saying,
“How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our
blood on those who dwell on the earth?”
The Lament in Lamentations is 1 How
lonely sits the city That was full of people! How like a widow is she, Who
was great among the nations! The princess among the provinces Has become a
slave! 2 She weeps bitterly in the night, Her tears are
on her cheeks; Among all her lovers She has none to comfort her. All her
friends have dealt treacherously with her; They have become her enemies.
We all have learned something of God’s forgiveness. We
know verses about God’s grace. We can quote passages about mercy. We tell others
that Christ died for our sins. But sometimes the person we struggle most to
forgive is the person staring back at us in the mirror.
You can still see the mistake, you hear the words you should
have never spoken, you still feel the shame of failure. That is where Peter
finds himself, sopping wet, in John 21.
Peter carries something heavier to breakfast than the net
he’s dragged in. Maybe he counted the 153 fish, avoiding the Savior he swam to
see. Jesus also knows the weight Peter carries.
John tells us there was a charcoal fire and fish already
there. This word charcoal fire is used only twice in the
New Testament. The first time was in John 18 when Peter stood at a charcoal
fire in the courtyard of the high priest. Three times he denied Christ.
Three times he said, “I do not know Him.” Three times he failed. Now
Jesus has prepared another charcoal fire.
This is not accidental. Our Lord brings Peter back to the
place of his greatest failure, not to condemn him but to restore him. Jesus
knows something Peter does not yet know.
The same man who denied Christ around one fire will soon
proclaim Christ before thousands in Jerusalem.
The same man who trembled before a servant girl will soon
stand before rulers and authorities.
The same man who fell publicly will one day lead
powerfully. Jesus knows Peter’s potential. Peter only sees his failure. And isn’t
that often true of us? We see what we’ve done.
Jesus sees what He can make of us. This morning I want us
to see how Christ edifies His people, how he edifies Peter and encourages him
to edify others. Edification means building up. In Peter’s restoration we
discover that Jesus builds us up so that we can build up others.
I want to remind you that when Jesus officially changed
Simon’s name to Peter he said this, “And I also say to you that you are Peter,
and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not
prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and
whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on
earth will be loosed in heaven.”
It was upon Peter’s confession that Jesus was the Christ that Jesus said the kingdom would be built and that he would hold keys to the kingdom of heaven. What a weight of responsibility.
I. Edification Begins With a Relationship (Feeding Lambs,
John 21:15) Jesus built upon Peter’s confession (Matt 16:15-18)
Jesus began with a question. “Simon, son of Jonah, do
you love Me more than these?” Jesus calls him Simon, not Peter. Simon son
of Jonah. There are eight or nine men identified as Simon, more than any other man’s
name and second only to Mary in the new Testament. On the other hand, no one
else is named Peter.
Jesus knew all things. He knew at this Galilean breakfast
that within a month, Peter the Rock, will preach one of the most
powerful sermons in all of Christian history at the very place where Simon,
the Regular, had been terrorized by a servant girl. Jesus knew Peter’s
potential. Simon did not. Jesus will reveal it.
Jesus taught Peter a lesson he could have learned no
other way. The strength of a disciple is not confidence in himself but his
faith in Christ. Jesus asks, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than
these?” Some think that the question
is about fishing. Do you want to fish for fish or for men? But I think he is recalling to Simon that the
night before the crucifixion that Peter, the Rock, proudly proclaimed that
though all else would fall, Peter never would. Simon must know he is fully
restored from his denial. Before a charcoal fire, Jesus asked a humbling
question. And Peter humbly answered, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
The second thing to notice here is that Peter uses a
different word for the word love. Jesus asked about agapeo love.
Peter responds with phileo love. Instead of claiming supreme
devotion, Peter simply says, “Yes, Lord, You know I love You.”
I believe Peter agapeo loved Jesus. At the end of
his life, in his second epistle, Peter knew the distinction of agapeo
and phileo. 2 Peter 1 says, “5 But also for this very
reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to
knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance
godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to
brotherly kindness love agapeo.
Phileo is a lesser form of love. Agapeo
Edification always starts here. Before Jesus calls Peter to ministry, He calls Simon back
to Christ. Ministry without love is dangerous. Service without love
becomes duty. Activity without devotion becomes empty religion.
The first question is not:
Can you teach? Can you lead? Can you organize? Can you serve? The first
question is: Do you love Christ Jesus? Simon Peter knew the
difference and humbly told Jesus that he loved Him, but not braggadocios use
agape.
Do you love Jesus? Not believe in Him. Do you love
Him? Edification begins when our hearts are right with Christ. The church doesn’t
need more religious activity. The church needs people who genuinely love Jesus.
Because everything else flows from there.
II. Edification
Involves Gracious Restoration (Tending Sheep, John 15:16) 1 Peter 2:4-8
Jesus asks again. “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Has Simon learned his lesson? Will the Rock
soften his self-reliance and solidly rely on Christ? Talk was cheap the night
before Simon, the Regular, denied Christ three times. Peter, the Rock, will be
tested and restored so that he soon can walk the costly walk.
It is a friendship love, stronger than “liking” someone
but we could use that here. “Yes, Lord, You know that I strongly like You.”
Peter did not say he loved Jesus more than the other disciples. Peter responded
without bravado or overstating. Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” Peter
likely returned to looking at the fire.
Jesus is not nearly done. “Simon, son of Jonah, do you
agape love me?” Peter had no idea where Jesus was going with this. This
second time, Jesus lessened his question slightly, not saying “more
than these” but “do you love agape, love with abandonment, with
no expectations, just pure godly love?”
I don’t think Simon was ready for a second question. He
was unprepared to answer more astutely, Peter responded identically with the phileo
love. “Yes, Lord, You know that I ‘strongly like’ You.”
Jesus however, was prepared. Instead of saying, “Feed
my lambs”, he replied with a similar but different command, “Tend or
shepherd my sheep.” While Peter gives the same answer, Jesus probes. Again
Peter responds. Jesus changed both the verb (from feeding to shepherding) and
the object of the verb (from lambs to sheep). Feeding is easy.
Lambs are cute and cuddly. Shepherding is harder. Sheep are more stubborn. This
reminds Simon that he is to protect and care for, Pastor, and not just feed,
preach, and tell.
But then comes the third time.
Do you feel Peter’s awkward, uncomfortable feelings? If
Peter had a collar, he would be pulling on it, clearing his throat, wishing he
could be anywhere else than under Jesus’s un-flinching gaze.
III. Edification
Produces Loving Service (Feeding Sheep, John 15:17) 2 Peter 1:5-9
A third time it came. “Simon, son of Jonah, do you…” wait
for it… “love (phileo) Me?” Maybe the inflection was “Do you even ‘strongly
like’ Me?
Ouch! “Grieved was Peter…” The Greek puts “grieved”
at the first of the sentence to emphasize Peter’s emotional response. “Lord,
you know all things. You know…”
long pause. Simon’s
heart hurt. The memories returned. The rooster crowing, not for real but
perhaps in Simon’s mind, in his memory. The tears. The shame. The guilt. Three
denials. Now three questions. Grieved was Peter.
But what will he say? Phileo? Agape? Has humility taken hold of his heart?
Will he succumb to proud but empty promises? He began with “Lord.”
He continued with “You know all things.” Simon knew that his friend, his
Lord and His God, knew his heart, his hurts like no one else.
God knows you. He knows you and your failures, your
hurts. And Jesus loves you. Jesus is not punishing Peter. Jesus is restoring
Peter. For every denial there is now an opportunity for affirmation. And for
every failure you have ever committed, Jesus is waiting to restore you just as
well, just as much. For every wound there is now a touch of grace. For every
failure there is now a step toward restoration.
Peter continue, “You know I … phileo … love
you.” Jesus responds with a slightly different third com-mand, “Feed my
sheep.”
Our sins may describe our past but they do not define our
future. Peter humbly would always remember his hurts, but he grew from them. That
is how grace works.
There is a difference between remorse and restoration.
Peter had remorse. He wept bitterly. He regretted his failure. He hated what he
had done. Many people stop there. They carry guilt. Regret. Jesus wanted Peter
to experience more than remorse. restoration.
Restoration means allowing Christ to rebuild what failure
has broken. Perhaps someone here has been forgiven by God but you still haven’t
forgiven yourself. You believe God’s grace extends to everyone else except you.
You believe God can use everyone else except you. You look at your failures and
say, “My usefulness is over.” Peter would disagree. Simon discovered that God’s
grace is greater than our worst day. The Lord does not merely forgive sinners.
He restores them. He edifies them. He rebuilds them.
The charcoal fire became a classroom of grace. Peter
discovered that failure was not the final chapter. Jesus was writing another
chapter. And Jesus is still writing those chapters today.
“Feed My lambs.” Care for those young in the faith. Nourish
them. Strengthen them. Help them grow. Then, “Shepherd My sheep.” Protect them.
Lead them. Guide them. Care for them. Then, “Feed My sheep.” Continue
nourishing the people of God. Do you see the pattern? Love for Christ always
expresses itself in care for others. We show our love for the Shepherd by
loving His sheep. We demonstrate our devotion vertically by serving
horizontally. Jesus essentially says, “Peter, if you love Me, help My people.” That
is edification. Building others up. Helping people take their next step with
Christ. Encouraging. Teaching. Discipling. Serving. Strengthening. The restored
believer becomes a restorer. The encouraged believer becomes an encourager. The
edified believer becomes an edifier.
IV. Edification Multiplies Through Humble Shepherding (1
Peter 5:1-4)
A surgeon cannot heal what a patient is unwilling to
expose. If something is buried deeply, it must be brought into the light.
Jesus, the Great Physician, lovingly exposes Peter’s
wound so He can heal it. If you’ve been restored, who are you helping? Who are
you encouraging? Who are you discipling? Who are you building up? Because
edified believers become edifiers. The restored become restorers. The comforted
become comforters. The strengthened become strengtheners.
Jesus saw something Peter could not yet see. The Simon
who denied Christ became Peter the shepherd. Years later Peter wrote: “Be
shepherds of God’s flock.” Where did he learn that? At a charcoal fire. “Clothe
yourselves with humility.” Where did he learn that? At that charcoal fire. “God
opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Where did he learn that? At
a fish breakfast on the Sea of Restoration. God transformed Peter’s greatest
weakness into one of his greatest ministries.
And God does the same thing today and can do that at
GracePointe Church.
