Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him more than others three times after their meal. Each time, Peter affirmed his love for Jesus. Jesus then told Peter to feed His lambs and sheep, commissioning Peter for ministry and service. While Jesus' question implies the importance of loving Him above all else, it also shows His care and desire for His followers' love. One can demonstrate their love for Jesus through devoted thoughts, speech, desire for intimacy with Him, and service to Him.

1. JESUS WAS ASKING PETER, DO YOU LOVE ME?
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
John 21:15 15
Whenthey had finished eating, Jesus said
to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me
more than these?" "Yes, LORD,"he said, "you know
that I loveyou." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."
BIBLEHUB RESOURES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
"lovestThou Me?"
John 21:15
J.R. ThomsonTo comprehend this interview and dialogue, it is necessaryto
look at preceding circumstances.In a conversationwhich took place before
our Lord's betrayal, Peterhad made the most ardent professions of
attachment and devotion to his Master. Thoughall should forsake Jesus, yet
would not he! He was willing evento die with him! But the events of the awful
night of the Lord's apprehensionand mock trial before the Jewishcouncil,
had made evident the moral weaknessofspiritual fiber which was hidden by
his impetuous fervor. Peter's faith had failed, and he had been led by timidity
to deny the Lord he loved. That he repented of his cowardice, and that with
bitter tears, was knownto the Masterwhom he had wronged. These
circumstances accountfor the language ofJesus when he met his disciple by
the lake of Galilee. Jesus elicitedfrom his followerthe thrice-repeated
expressionof his love, and, having done this, treatedPeteras one restoredand
reconciled, imparted to him his apostolic commission, and predicted his future
of service and of martyrdom. Turning from the specialincident which called
for the question and the answerhere recorded, we direct attention to what is
practicaland of universal application.
I. A POINTED QUESTION. "Lovestthoume?"

2. 1. This question implies that Christ has a claim upon our love. This claim is
founded upon:
(1) His supreme worthiness to be loved. Who, in himself, in character, in
moral excellence, canbe comparedwith Jesus, as the Objectof human
affection? He was admired and loved on earth; but since his ascensionhe has
been more intensely and far more widely admired and loved by those whom
he has left behind him. In a word, he deserves love;and we "needs must love
the worthiest."
(2) His love to us. Christ's is no cold, elevateddignity and excellence.He is a
Being of benevolence, compassion, and tenderness;and these qualities he has
displayed towards us. His love and kindness to men are simply the expression
of his holy, gracious nature. He first loved us; and, if we love him not, we
prove our insensibility and moral debasement. There is nothing meanly
interestedand unworthy in the love Christ's people bear him.
(3) Especiallyupon his sacrifice and death. "Greaterlove hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his life for his friends;" and this proof of Divine
affectionJesus gave. His was the love which is "strongerthan death."
"Which of all our friends, to save us.
Could or would have shed his blood?
But Immanuel died to have us
Reconciledin him to God.
This was boundless love indeed:
Jesus is a Friend in need."
2. This question implies that Christ is solicitous and desirous of our love. Men
often seek the friendship of those who are above them in abilities, in station, in
character, in power. Jesus does just the contrary when he condescends to ask
our love. It is a proof of his disinterested and benevolentaffection, that Jesus
should deign to address to eachhearer of His Word the question, "Lovest
thou me?"
3. This question implies that in Christ's view our love towards himself is of
vast importance to us. To love him, as he knows full well, is to man the spring
of the truly religious life. It is the surestmeans of becoming like him. Nay, to
love Christ is to be in the way of loving everything that is good. It must not be
supposedthat such affectionis the merely sentimental side of religion; it is
closelyconnectedwith practice, for love is the divinely ordered motive to duty
and service. How different is Christianity from other and merely human
religions!These teachmen to fear God, to propitiate God, but never to love

3. God. Jesus draws our love towards himself, and thus leads us into love to God
as the element of our higher life.
II. As ARDENT RESPONSE. In the case ofPeter, the reply to our Lord's
pointed question was most satisfactory. It may wellbe pondered as an
example for us, as Christians, to imitate. It was:
1. An affirmative answer, inconsistentwith coldness, indifference, and mere
respect.
2. A modest and not a boastful answer. Peterhad endured a bitter experience
of the mischief of self-confidence and boastfulness;into this sin he was not
likely again to fall.
3. A cordial and sincere answer, opposedto merely formal and verbal
profession.
4. An open and public answer, suchas should ever be given to the rightful
Lord and holy Friend of man.
5. A consistentanswer - one supported by a lit e of loving devotion.
6. An acceptable and acceptedanswer. WhenJesus asksourheart, and we
yield it, never need we fearlest he should reject what we offer. - T.
Biblical Illustrator
So when they had dined, Jesus saith... Simon son of Judas, lovestthou Me
more than these?
John 21:15-17
Peter's restoration
A. Gray.I. THE LORD'S QUESTION.
1. The question itself.(1)The feeling inquired about. Other feelings there are
which often move the soul; but love surpasses themall. Every one knows what
is meant by love.(2)The objectof the love to which the question relates. The
question is not, dostthou love at all? Perhaps there never was a heart so hard

4. as to be entirely a strangerto it. The question is, among the various objects
thy love embraces, is that object to be found whose claimis paramount? We
say not that unrenewed persons do not love at all; but they love other objects
in place of Christ. But the new birth carries up the dear emotion to the object
that best deserves it.(3)The degree of this love to Christ. The question may
mean, either, "Lovestthou Me more than these men? or more than these
things," and calls upon us to say, not that we love the Lord, but how much we
love Him. Does it prevail over the love we feel for inferior objects?
2. The circumstance that Christ puts the question. It is often put by Christ's
friends and ministers; but it comes with deeper meaning and greaterpower
from Christ. It implies —(1) That Christ considers He has a claim to the love
of His people. What are the grounds of this claim? We ought to love Him —(a)
For what He is. What saith the law? "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with
all thy heart," &c., "and thy neighbour as thyself." God and man, as Christ is,
in one Person, both tables of the law command Him to be loved —(b) For
what He has done: long ago as God the Son in the council of peace, and in
human history as the Man Christ Jesus.(2)ThatHe sets a value on His people
s love. When another asks you, "Lovestthou Christ?" you cannot gatherfrom
it that Christ Himself cares whetheryou love Him or not. But Christ's own
inquiry shows that the matter is not indifferent to Him. Despise His people's
level He reckons it a portion of His reward. And, when He sees its fruits, He
sees ofthe travail of His soul, and is satisfied.(3)That He is concernedfor the
prosperity of His people's souls. The love of Christ is inseparably connected
with the love of God.(4)Let us advert to some of the occasionswhenChrist
puts the question.(a) The occasionofshowing His own love. Such was the
present. He was fresh from Calvary. "Lovestthou Me? See how I have loved
thee!" Such is the occasionwhen a sinner is converted. Then, for the first
time, a sense ofChrist's love breaks in.(b) When He gives His people special
work to do.(c) In the day of temptation, and suffering for His sake. Trials
bring our love to the proof.
3. The circumstance that Christ repeats it. The gospelministry puts it from
week to week. Why? Because—(1)Love to Christ is of vital importance.(2)
There is a spurious love to Christ, a feeling of sentimentalism, which is called,
by some, love to Christ. There are some, too, who love a Christ of their own,
who, they fancy, takes awaythe sting from sin. As if that were possible, or that
God's holy Son would do it if He could!
II. THE DISCIPLE'S ANSWER. We cannotsay that believers are always able
to reply as Peterdid. There are times when they think that they do not love
the Lord. And. there are times when the utmost length they cango is, "Lord, I

5. can scarcelytell if I love Thee or not." Yet there are times when they canuse
Peter's language. Secretseasons ofenlargement, when the Lord unveils His
face to them, and they see the King in His beauty. Words are good, but not
essential;and there is an answerin the heart which the Lord caninterpret
right well.
1. Who does not know that true love can proclaim its existence through the
eyes when the tongue says nothing? The soul has eyes as well as the body.
And, when God's people are meditating on Christ, what are they doing but
feasting the eyes of their souls, and involuntarily declaring their love to Him?
2. There are acts of memory also, which are the consequences oflove. In the
long absence ofloved ones how fondly do we call to mind what they saidto us,
and cherish the particulars of the interviews we had together!And how
natural is it to prize the messages theysend us! Thus works the love of
believers towards Christ. They take pleasure in remembering past fellowship.
3. The way, too, in which Christ's approaches are receivedis a declarationof
love. It makes their heart leap when tidings that He is near is brought to them,
and when the sound of His footsteps is heard.
III. THE LORD'S COMMAND.
1. Its nature. Christ has a flock, of which He is the owner; for it was given to
Him of the Father, and He bought it with His blood. He is its Shepherd; for it
was committed to His care, and He acceptedthe charge of it. This flock He
commends to the goodoffices ofall that love Him. Private disciple though you
be, you may help to feed Christ's flock. Thoughyou cannot dispense the bread
of life by public ministrations, .you may dispense it by private intercourse,
prayers, and contributions.
2. Some important principles which it involves.(1)That love needs an exercise
as well as am object. The first thing is to fix it on Christ. That being done,
"Now," says the Lord, "thy love must not be idle. If thou lovestMe, go work
for Me. Only thus canthy love continue and increase."(2)Thatlove prepares
us for the service of Christ. It is a motive inciting to that which is well-pleasing
to Him, the doing of His will.(3) That love must extend to His people. "Feed
My lambs — feed My sheep."(4)Thatlove ought to show itself to the world.
The feeding of Christ's lambs and sheepimplies publicity. It is, therefore, a
confessionofChrist before men. Thereby we tell the world that we love Him,
and prove that we are not ashamedof His cause.
(A. Gray.)
The grand inquiry

6. W. Jay.The question is —
I. REASONABLE. Becausewe oughtto love Him, and the affection is just.
Contemplate —
1. His Person. He is altogetherlovely: comprising in Himself all the graces of
time and of eternity; all the attractions of humanity and of Deity. Bring
forward all the excellencesthe world ever saw;add as many more as the
imagination can supply: all this aggregate is no more to Him than a ray of
light to the sun, or a drop of waterto the ocean.
2. His doings.
(1)Look backward, and considerwhat He has done.
(2)Look upward, and considerwhat He is doing.
(3)Look forward, and consider what He will do.
3. His sufferings. To enable Him to be our best friend, He submitted to a scene
of humiliation and anguish, such as no tongue can express, orimagination
conceive. Neverwas there sorrow — and, therefore, never was there love —
like thine! But we must observe, not only what He suffers for us, but what He
suffers from us, and suffers in us. "Forwe have not an high priest who cannot
be touched with the feeling of our infirmities." He that toucheth us toucheth
the apple of His eye. "O, for this love, let rocks and hills," &c
II. IMPORTANT, because we must love Him: and the affectionis not only
just but necessary —
1. To our sanctification. Love is a transforming principle. By constant
residence in the mind, the image stamps and leaves its own resemblance.
2. To give us delight in all our religious services. It is the nature of love to
render difficult things easy, and bitter ones sweet. Whatwas it that turned the
sevenyears of hard bondage that Jacobservedfor Rachelinto so many
pleasantdays? What is it that more than reconciles thatmother to numberless
nameless anxieties and privations in rearing her baby charge? Butthere is no
love like that which a redeemedsinner bears to his Redeemer;and, therefore,
no pleasure can equal that which he enjoys in pleasing Him.
3. To render our duties acceptable. The Lord lookethto the heart; and when
this is given up to Him, He values the motive, though we err in the
circumstances.
4. To ascertainour interest in the Saviour's regards. His followers are not
describedby their knowledge, theirgifts, their creed, their profession;but by

7. their cordial adherence to Him., His love produces ours; but our love evinces
His — "I love them that love Me."
III. SUPPOSES DOUBT.Is there nothing in you to render this love suspicious
—
1. To the world? You are not only to be Christians, but to appear such. Have
you risen up for Him againstthe evildoers, and never denied His name, nor
concealedHis truth?
2. To the Church? There are many of whom, as the apostle says, "We stand in
doubt." But your ministers and fellow-members are entitled to satisfaction
concerning, if not the degree, the reality of your religion.
3. To yourselves. "Tis a point I long to know," &c. If I loved Him — could I
ever read without pleasure the Book that unveils His glories — could I ever
fear to die — could I feel so impatient under those afflictions that make me a
partakerof the fellowship of His sufferings?
4. To the Saviour. There is a sense in which this is impossible. We are all
transparencybefore Him. But we are to distinguish the question of right from
the question of fact. With regard to right, He may, and He often does,
complain in His Word, as if He was disappointed and surprised at the conduct
of His professing people. Estimating our proficiency by our advantages, ought
He not to have found in us what He has yet sought for in vain.
IV. ADMITS OF SOLUTION It is not only possible, but comparatively easy,
to know whether we love another. And here it will be in vain for you to allege
that the ease before us is a peculiar one, because the objectis invisible. For
many of us never saw Howard, but who does not feelveneration at the
mention of his name? How, then, will this love show itself?
1. By our thoughts. These naturally follow the object of our regard, and it is
with difficulty we candraw them off. David could say, "I love Thee, O Lord,
my strength." And what was the consequence?"How precious are Thy
thoughts unto me, O God!"
2. By our speech. "Outof the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh."
3. By desire after intimacy. Separationis a grief. Distance is a torture. "As the
hart panteth after the water brooks," &c.
4. By devotedness to the service and glory of its Master. Nothing can
authenticate the existence ofthis principle in our hearts, detached from this
regard to His will. "He that hath My commandments," &c.
(W. Jay.)

8. The supreme question
J. L. Nye.A lad named Hoopoo, a South Sea Islander, was sent to America to
be trained, that he might be useful in the Mission. One day he was in a large
company, and was askedmany questions about his birthplace. The lad spoke
wisely, but some of his sayings made a gentlemanlaugh. "I am a poor heathen
boy," said Hoopoo;"it is not strange that my blunders in English should
amuse you, but soonthere will be a largermeeting than this, and if we should
then be asked, 'Do you love the Lord Jesus Christ?'I think I shall be able to
say, 'Yes.' What will you say, sir?" The gentleman felt the force of the words,
and found no resttill he also could say, "Yes"
(J. L. Nye.)
Lovest thou Me?
J. Stalker, M. A.St. Peter's first answerwas easyand light-hearted; it came
only from the surface of his mind; it was little better than "Ofcourse I love
Thee." But Christ's close and penetrating wayof putting the question a
secondtime overawedthe disciple, and brought an answerfrom much deeper
down. The third time, Jesus sent the question like a sworddown to the bottom
of the soul, where it drew blood, and the answerwas a groanof pain out of the
depths. He puts the question to us thrice, because there are three storeys in
our nature; the uppermost is feeling, the middle one is intellect, and the
basementis will; Jesus opens the door of each, and asks, "Lowestthou Me?"
I. FEELING. This is the most superficialof the three; and here He first puts
the question. Our feelings have had many objects. We cannot remember when
we began to love some of those whom we hold dear. Other passions we
remember distinctly the genesis of. Now, among the objects we have loved is
Christ one? — the principal one? Has our love to Him formed one of the
colours which can be distinctly tracedin the pattern of the past? Has it a
history, and is it a distinct part of our history?
II. INTELLECT. A man who has been wise and fortunate in marriage will
say, "I loved you at first, because my fancy was takenwith you, and there was
a blaze of feeling. But now, besides that, my calm judgment approves my
choice;the experience of many years has made me only the more satisfied
with it." Happy the man who can saythis and the woman who hears it! Do we
love Christ with such love? Perhaps our religious life beganwith excitement
and ecstasy. This is past: but every day we are more and more convinced that
in choosing Christ we choose wisely;we have a hundred times more reasonfor
loving Him than we had then.

9. III. WILL. The will is the part of our nature out of which resolutions and
actions come, and on this specially wishes to have a hold. Love's realtrial
comes when it is calledupon to endure and to sacrifice. No man knows how
strong his own love to any one is till it has gone past the stage atwhich it is a
delightful feeling, and the stage atwhich it is sensible of deriving advantages
from its object, and has arrived at the stage whenit has to give everything,
bearing burdens, practising self-denials for the sake ofthe person it loves.
Cowper's lines to Mary Unwin are a perfect example of such love. Have we a
love to Christ which makes us slay besetting sins because He wills it, devise
liberal things for His cause, confessHim fearlesslybefore men, and rejoice to
suffer for His sake?
(J. Stalker, M. A.)
Lovest thou Me
C. H. Spurgeon.? —
1. The inquiry is not concerning his love to the kingdom or the people of God,
but to the Son of God. It deals with a personalattachment to a personal
Christ.
2. Our Saviourquestioned Peterin plain setterms. There was no beating
about the bush. As the physician feels his patient's pulse to judge his heart, so
Jesus testedat once the pulse of Peter's soul.
3. This question was askedthree times, as if to show that it is of the first, of the
second, and of the third importance; as if it comprisedall else. This nail was
meant to be well fastened, for it is smitten on the head with blow after blow.
4. Jesus Himself askedthe question, and He askedit until He grievedPeter.
Had he not made his Master's heartbleed, and was it not fit that he should
feel heart-wounds himself?
I. LOVE TO THE PERSON OF CHRIST MAY BE ABSENT FROM OUR
BOSOMS. This inquiry is not rendered needless by —
1. Outward religiousness.Do we enter very heartily into all the public
exercises ofGod's house? Yes, but there are hundreds of thousands who do
that, and yet they do not love Christ! It will be vain to reverence the Sabbath
if you forgetthe Lord of the Sabbath, vain to love the sanctuaryand not the
GreatHigh Priest, vain to love the wedding-feastbut not the Bridegroom.
2. Highest office. Peterwas an apostle, and in some respects a foundation
stone of the Church, and yet it was needful to sayto him, "Lovestthou Me?"
The name of Judas should sound the death knell of all presumptuous
confidence in our officialstanding.

10. 3. Enjoyment of the greatestChristian privileges. Peterwas one of the most
favoured apostles, who beheld Christ on the mount of transfiguration and in
the gardenof Gethsemane.
4. The greatestwarmth of zeal. Peterwas a redhot disciple. You are earnestin
the Sunday school, or preach in the streets, or visit the poor, and are full of
warmth in all things which concernthe Redeemer's cause;but for all that the
question must be put. For there is a zeal which is fed by regard to the opinions
of others, and sustained by a wish to be thought earnestand useful; which is
rather the warmth of nature than the holy fire of grace, and which makes a
man a mere tinkling cymbal, because he does not love Jesus Christ.
5. The greatestself-denial. Petercould say, "Lord, we have left all and
followedThee."
6. The highest mental attainments. Peterwent to college three years, with
Christ for a tutor, and he learned a greatdeal; but after he had been through
his course, his Master, before He senthim to his life-work, felt it needful to
inquire, "Lovestthou Me?" It is, therefore, a healthy thing for the Lord to
come into the study and close the book, and sayto the student, "Sitstill a
while, and let Me ask thee, 'Lovest thou Me?'"
II. WE MUST LOVE THE PERSON OF CHRIST, OR ALL OUR PAST
PROFESSIONS HAVE BEEN A LIE. It is not possible for that man to be a
Christian who does not love Christ. Take the heart away, and life is
impossible.
1. Your first true hope of heaven came to you, if it ever did come at all, by
Jesus Christ. You heard the Gospel, but the Gospelapart from Christ was
never goodnews to you; you read the Bible, but the Bible apart from a
personalChrist was never anything more than a dead letter to you. The first
gleamof comfort that ever entered my heart flashed from the wounds of the
Redeemer.
2. Nordo we merely begin with Him, for every covenant blessing we have
receivedhas been connectedwith His Person — pardon, righteousness,
adoption, &c.
3. Every ordinance of the Christian Church has either been a mockery, or else
we have loved Christ in it. Baptism — what is it but the mere washing awayof
the filth of the flesh unless we were buried with Christ in baptism unto death?
The Lord's Supper, what is it but a common meal unless Christ be there? And
so it has been with every approach we have made towards God. Did you pray?
You could not have done it exceptthrough Jesus the Mediator.

11. 4. If you have made a professionof religion, how can it be a true and honest
one unless your heart bums with attachmentto the greatAuthor of salvation.
5. You have greathopes, but what are you hoping for? Is not all your hope
wrapped up in Him?
6. Since, then, everything that you have obtained comes to you direct from His
pierced hand, it cannotbe that you have receivedit unless you love Him. Now,
when I put the question, recollectthat upon your answerto it hangs this
alternative — a hypocrite or a true man — "Lovestthou Me?"
III. WE MUST HAVE LOVE TO THE PERSONOF CHRIST, OR
NOTHING IS RIGHT FOR THE FUTURE.
1. Fora true pastor the first qualification is love to Christ. Jesus does not
inquire about Peter's knowledge orgifts of utterance, but about his love. And
what is true of a pastor is true of every useful workerfor Christ.
2. If your heart is not true to Christ, you will not be able patiently to endure
for His Name's sake. Beforelong, the time came for Peterto glorify God by
death. Love makes the hero. When the Spirit of God inflames love He inspires
courage.
3. If we have no love for Christ's Personour piety lacks the adhesive element,
it fails in that which will help us to stick to the good old way to the end. Men
often leave what they like, but never what they love.
4. Love is the great inspiriting force. In serving Christ you come acrossa
difficulty far too great for judgment, for prudence, and unbelief weighs and
calculates,but love laughs at the impossibility and accomplishes it for Jesus
Christ.
5. Without love you are without the transforming force. Love to Christ is that
which makes us like Him.
6. Without love to Christ we lack the perfecting element. We are to be with
Him soon;but if we have not love to Jesus we shall not be where He is.
IV. IF WE DO LOVE HIM, WHAT THEN? Let us do something for Him
directly, for He said, "FeedMy sheep." He knew from His own heart that
whereverthere is love there is a desire for activity. What are you doing?
Attending the means of grace and getting a goodfeed. Well, that is doing
something for yourself. Many people in the world are very busy at feeding,
but I do not know that eating a man's bread is any proof of love to him. A
greatmany professing Christians give no proof of love to Christ, exceptthat
they enjoy sermons. But now, if you love Him as you sayyou do, prove it by
doing goodto others.

12. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Lovest thou Me
Bp. Ryle.I. THE PECULIAR FELLING OF A TRUE CHRISTIAN
TOWARDS CHRIST — he loves Him.
1. A true Christian is not a mere baptized man or woman, a personwho only
goes, as a matter of form, to a church on Sundays; he is one whose religion is
in his heart and life, and its greatpeculiarity is love. Hear what St. Paul says
(1 Corinthians 16:22; Ephesians 6:24). Hear what Christ says (John 8:42).
Would you know the secretof this peculiar feeling (1 John 4:19)?
2. A true Christian loves Christ —(1) For all He has done for him.(2) For all
that He is still doing.
3. This love to Christ is —(1) The inseparable companion of saving faith. A
faith of devils, a mere intellectual faith, a man may have without love, but not
that faith which saves.(2)The mainspring of work for Christ. There is little
done for His cause from sense ofduty. The heart must be interested before the
hands will move. The nurse in a hospital may do her duty, but there is a vast
difference betweenthat nurse and a wife.(3) The point which we ought
speciallyto dwell upon in teaching religion to children. Election, imputed
righteousness, &c.,are matters which only puzzle; but love to Jesus is within
reachof their understanding (Matthew 21:16).(4)The common meeting point
of believers of every branch of Christ's Church (Ephesians 6:24).(5)The
distinguishing mark of all savedsouls in heaven. Old differences will be
merged in one common feeling (Revelation1:5, 6).
II. THE PECULIAR MARKS BY WHICH LOVE TO CHRIST MAKES
ITSELF KNOWN. If we love a person, we like —
1. To think about him. We do not need to be reminded of him. It is just so
betweenthe true Christian and Christ! Christ "dwells in his heart," and is
thought of more or less every day (Ephesians 3:17).
2. To hear about him. We find a pleasure in listening to those who speak of
him. So the true Christian likes those sermons best which are full of Christ.
3. To read about him. What intense pleasure a letter from an absenthusband
gives to a wife, or a letter from an absentson to his mother. So the true
Christian delights to read the Scriptures, because they tell him about his
beloved Saviour.
4. To please him. We are glad to consult his tastes and opinions. In like
manner the true Christian studies to please Christ by being holy both in body
and spirit.

13. 5. His friends. We are favourably inclined to them, even before we know them.
And the true Christian regards all Christ's friends as his. He is more at home
with them in a few minutes, than he is with many worldly people after an
acquaintance of severalyears.
6. To maintain his interests and his reputation. We regard the person who
treats him ill as if he had ill-treated us. And the true Christian regards with a
godly jealousyall efforts to disparage his Master's Word, or name, or Church,
or day.
7. To talk to him. We find no difficulty in discovering subjects of conversation,
nor does the true Christian find any difficulty in speaking to his Saviour.
Every day he has something to tell Him, and he is not happy unless he tells it.
8. To be always with him; and the heart of a true Christian longs for that
blessedday when he will see his Masterface to face and go out no
more.Conclusion:
1. Look the question in the face and try to answerit for yourself. It is no
answerto say —(1) That you believe the truth of Christianity. The devils
believe and tremble (James 2:19).(2) That you disapprove of a religion of
feelings. There can be no true religion without some feeling towards Christ. If
you do not love Christ, your soul is in greatdanger.
2. If you do not love Christ, let me tell you what is the reason. You have no
sense ofdebt to Him. There is but one remedy for this state of things — self
knowledge and the teaching of the Holy Ghost.(1)Perhaps you have never
read your Bible at all, or only carelessly. Beginto read it, then, in earnest.(2)
Perhaps you have never known anything of real, hearty, business-like prayer.
Beginthe habit, then, at once.
(Bp. Ryle.)
Lovest thou Me
C. H. Spurgeon.IA SOLEMN QUESTION, notfor His owninformation, but
for Peter's examination, it is well, especiallyaftera foul sin, that the Christian
should wellprobe the wound. Note what this question was.
1. It was concerning Peter's love. He did not say, "Fearestthou Me?" "Dost
thou admire or adore Me?" Norwas it even a question concerning his faith.
That is because love is the bestevidence of piety. He that lacks love must lack
every other grace in proportion. If love be little, fear and courage will be little.
2. He did not ask Peteranything about his doings. He did not say, "How much
hast thou wept? How often hast thou on thy knees soughtmercy?" Though

14. works follow love, yet love excelleththe works, and works without love are not
evidences worth having.
3. We have very much cause forasking ourselves this question. If our Saviour
were no more than a man like ourselves, He might often doubt whether we
love Him at all. Let me lust remind you of sundry things which give us very
greatcause to ask this question.(1) Hast thou not sinned? "Is this thy kindness
to thy Friend?"(2)Does not thy worldliness make thee doubt? Thou hast been
occupiedwith the shop, the exchange, the farmyard; and thou hast had little
time to commune with Him!(3) How coldthou hast been at the mercy-seat!
II. A DISCREET ANSWER. Jesus askedhim, in the first place, whether he
loved Him better than others. Simon would not say that: he had once been
proud and thought he was better than the other disciples. There is no loving
heart that will think it loves better than the leastof God's children. But Peter
answerednot as to the quantity but as to the quality of his love. Some of us
would have answeredfoolishly. We should have said, "Lord, I have preached
for Thee so many times; I have distributed to the poor; Thou hast given me
grace to walk humbly, faithfully, and honestly, and therefore, Lord, I think I
can say, I love Thee." We should have brought forward our goodworks as
being the evidences ofour love. That would have been a very goodanswerif
we had been questioned by our fellow-man, but it would be foolish for us to
tell the Masterthat. The Mastermight have said to Peter, had he appealed to
his works, "Idid not ask thee what are the evidences of thy love, I askedthe
fact of it." Very likely some would have said, "Love Thee, Lord? Why, my
heart is all on fire towards Thee;I feel as if I could go to prison and to death
for Thee!" But that would have been very foolish, because although we may
often rejoice in our ownfeelings, it would not do to plead them with our Lord.
In such manner Peterhad spokenbefore; but a sorry mess he made of it. But
no, Peterwas wise;he did not bring forward his feelings nor his evidences.
But, as though he shall say, "Lord, I appeal to Thine Omniscience:Thou
knowestthat I love Thee." Now, couldwe give such an answer? There is a
test. If thou art a hypocrite, thou mightest say, "Lord, my minister, the
deacons, the members, my friends think I love Thee, for they often hear me
talk about Thee." But thou couldst not say, "Lord, Thou knowestthat I love
Thee";thine own heart is witness that thy secretworks belie thy confession,
for thou art without prayer in secret;thou art stingy in giving to the cause of
Christ; thou art an angry, petulant creature, &c. But thou, O sincere
Christian, thou canstanswerwith holy fear and gracious confidence. Sucha
question was never lint to Judas. The response is recordedfor thee, "Lord,
Thou knowest," &c.

15. III. A DEMONSTRATIONREQUIRED."Lovestthou Me?" Then one of the
best evidences is —
1. To feed My lambs. Have I two or three little children that love and fear My
name? If thou wantestto do a deed, which shalt show that thou art a true
lover, and not a proud pretender; go and feed them. In the ancient Churches
there was what was calledthe catechismclass — I believe there ought to be
such a class now. The Sabbath school, I believe, is in the Scripture; and I
think there ought to be on a Sabbath afternoona class of the young people of
this Church, who are members already, to be taught by some of the elder
members.
2. But we cannotall do that; the lambs cannot feed the lambs; the sheep
cannot feedthe sheepexactly. Therefore allow me to say to some of you, that
there are different kinds of proof you must give. "Lovestthou Me?" Then
preserve that prayer-meeting; see to thy servants that they go to the house of
God. Do something to prove thy love.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
The risen Jesus questioning Peter's love
C. Bradley, M. A.I. We gatherfrom OUR LORD'S INQUIRY —
1. That He takes pleasure in the love of His people towards Him and in their
avowalof it. And herein He discovers His human nature. We are all conscious
that wheneverwe have realaffection towards any object, we desire the same
affectiontowards ourselves, and are gratified by any manifestationof it.
Jonathanshared in this feeling. Now our Lord's heart is, in all sinless things,
like ours. He found gratificationthere, not only in Peter's love, but in these
reiteratedassurances.
2. That Christ has now a specialclaim on our love. Previously to His final
sufferings and death, He does not appear to have ever put this question. But
when for their sakesHe had gone to CalvaryHe felt and acted like one who
had now earneda claim on a sinner's affection, and such a claim as even a
sinner's heart could not resist. Place the cross in whateverlight we may, there
is no exaggerating its importance or its power. As the basis of love nothing
even in heaven is like it.
3. That real love for Christ is of the very utmost importance to us. Love is
nothing more than a feeling. Its importance arises from the place it holds in
the mind, and the influence it exercises overeveryother feeling, thought, and
movement. No wonder, therefore, that when Christ brings a sinner to His feet,
the first thing He asks him for is his heart; one of the first things He takes is

16. his love. Love for Him is not an ornament; it is religionitself, its foundation,
its spring, its strength, its perfection, its glory.
4. That our love for Christ is sometimes questionable and ought to be
questioned.
II. THE ANSWER WHICH PETER GAVE TO THE INQUIRY. From this
we infer at once that it is a question which maybe answered. Thrice said
Christ to Peter, "Lovestthou Me?" and thrice Peteransweredwith
promptitude and firmness that he did love Him. How then, under similar
circumstances, maywe come to a similar answer? We love Christ —
1. When we mourn bitterly for our sins againstHim. Nothing pains a feeling
heart more than to offend causelesslya heart it loves. Forgivenesscannotwear
our pain away, kindness cannotdissipate it; they sometimes rather aggravate
than remove it.
2. When we are especiallyon our guard againsta repetition of those sins
wherewith we have dishonoured Him.
3. When no sin, no sorrow on accountof sin, no state of mind whatsoevercan
keepus from His feet.
(C. Bradley, M. A.)
Jesus questioning Peter's love
C. J. Deems, D. D.Christnever unnecessarilyinjured the feelings of any one;
yet when necessaryHe did not hesitate to inflict pain. Jesus did not flatter and
call Petera rock now — "Simon, sonof Jonas."
I. THE INFERENCESFROM CHRIST'S QUESTION.
1. That Jesus, afterthe Resurrection, was desirous to be loved by man. Do not
make the mistake that you must win His love; see that you love Him.
2. That Jesus wants an avowalof love. How the lover, although he has the love
of his loved one, rejoices in the avowals ofthat love. Jonathan made David
sware twice that he loved him. Christ did not ask this before the Crucifixion.
But now He had given His life He had a right to expectthe heart's deepest
love.
3. That love is the important thing. Christ did not catechise Peteras to his
faith.
II. THE INFERENCESFROM PETER'S ANSWER. Peterwas consciousof
his love. What are the proofs that we love Christ?
1. We have a deep feeling of bitterness when we have come short of love.

17. 2. True love will not allow us to commit the same sin twice over.
3. True love brings the sinner back to Christ.
III. PRACTICAL OBSERVATIONS.
1. There is no religionwithout the love of Christ, and no heaven. Intellect,
wealth, positions, friends cannot make up for the lack of it. Paul holds a man
accursedwithout it.
2. By loving Christ we place ourselves where He can do us the most good.
(C. J. Deems, D. D.)
Peter's confessionoflove to Christ
A. Mackennal, D . D.There are times which revealto us the mysterious
identity of our ever-changing lives; when we read old letters, visit well-
remembered scenes, graspthe hand of old friends, or indulge in the silent
luxury of their presence. You know the subtle influence of such seasons;with
what reality they recallthe past. The coincidencesoflife are designed by God
to reveal us to ourselves and to show what is God's guidance of our life. These
verses recordsuch a period in the life of Peter. The past was with him; what
were its memories for Peter? Of eagerhaste and painful failure; of love for
Christ so true and yet so powerless;of self-confidence and of unfaithfulness.
With chastened, bumble spirit he must have satand pondered; feeling that not
in his devotedness to Christ, but in Christ's love to him, lay his hope that he
might be faithful to his apostleship, if he should be reinstated in it. And to
these, his thoughts, Christ at length gives expression:"Simon, son of Jonas,"
the name by which Christ had first calledhim, and which He had so often
used in tender solemnity, "lovestthou Me more than these?"
I. PETER'SLOVE TO CHRIST.
1. There is a beautiful order in Christ's questions. There is a difference
betweenthe two Greek verbs translated "lovest." Itis not a difference in the
warmth, but in the characterof affection. The one signifies the love based
upon appreciationof another; the other simple personalattachment. The one
might be representedif we said, "I am thy friend;" the other if we said, "Thou
art my friend."(1) It is the former of these words which Christ here uses:
"Simon, sonof Jonas, esteemestthou Me more, art thou more My friend than
thy fellow disciples?" This was just what Peter had professed, "Thoughall
should be offended," &c. "I am ready to go with Thee, both in prison and to
death; ThoughI should die with Thee, yet will I not deny Thee."(2)You can
now understand Peter's reply. Once he would have said, "I know that I am
Thy friend;" he was sure he was to be trusted. But he has losthis self-

18. confidence. He will not profess esteemfor Jesus. He chooses the humbler,
trustful word: "Yea, Lord, Thou knowestthat I love Thee."(3)AgainChrist
asks him, "If not more than these, yet art Thou My friend at all?" And still
the same humble, clinging answercomes from Peter.(4)Now Christ takes
Peter's own word; let it be as Peterwould have it, the trusting affectionof the
disciple. "Peterwas grievedbecause He said unto him the third time, Lovest
thou Me?" Surely Jesus cannotdoubt that. Christ must know that He is all in
all to Peter. "Thouknowestthat under all my boasting, all my mistakes, there
was love for Thee, and that it remains." And this confessionChristaccepts,
and ever will accept.
2. Distinguish betweenthe professionof love to Christ and the confessionofit.
In professionthe personmost prominent in our thoughts is "I who make it;"
in confession, "He whose name I am confessing." Itis not in what we are to
Christ, but in what Christ is to us, that our restand security lie.
3. Observe, too, the period of Peter's life when this confessionis made. It is not
his earliestconfession;he has been brought to it through painful self-
knowledge;it is the utterance of a tried maturity. To setyoung converts on an
estimate of their feeling towards the Saviour, instead of encouraging them to
trust in Him, is full of peril. Christian discipleship sometimes begins with love
to Christ; and singularly blessedare they with whom it does. But in other
ways souls are drawn to Christ; the wearygo to Him for rest, the guilty for
pardon, the helpless for succour. Such will say, "I trust in Christ," "I have
found Christ," "I am following Christ;" but the words, perhaps, halt on their
lips, "I love Christ." It is not for us to insist on their utterance. They are not
for our ears, but for His. And He knows how, from the trusting, the obedient,
and the earnest, to draw at length the full confession, "Lord, Thou knowestall
things; Thou knowestthat I love Thee."
II. THE PROOF AND MANIFESTATION OF LOVE TO CHRIST.
1. In giving Peter the charge, "FeedMylambs; feed My sheep," Christwas
guarding him againsta danger to which he was at this moment liable; the
danger of sinking down into an indulgence of sentiment. We feel in a self-
assertive world, from the strife for mastery, the restlessnessofambition, how
blessedto retire to self-abasementbefore the Lord; how sweetlythen from
lowly lips falls the confession, "Thouknowestthat I love Thee." To cherish
this life alone is very dangerous. Hence comes the pride that apes humility.
Christ sends Peterfrom confessing, as He sent Mary from adoring Him, to do
His work. It was in separating himself from the other disciples, in supposing
himself better than they, that Peterdisplayed the self-confidence whichhe
now so bitterly repented. He was not free from the temptation even in his

19. penitence. It is possible to separate ourselvesfrom others in our very
consciousnessofself-distrust. One of the saddestsights is that of men whose
humblest words are a vaunting of themselves, whose very lowliness is
sentimental and insincere.
2. A higher work is now committed to Peter than when Christ said, "Follow
Me, and I will make you fishers of men." The pastoraloffice is higher than
that of preaching the gospelof the kingdom; to watch overthe flock is higher
than to add to its numbers.
3. Here, too, would Peterhave an opportunity for the constantexercise of
lowliness. He would grow meek and gentle as he fed the lambs and
shepherded the sheep;he would be humbled by every lessonhe learnt of
men's impatience and folly and self-deception. Sympathy is the way to self-
knowledge;our own penitence deepens as we know a brother's sins.
4. They would serve, too, to deepenhis love of Jesus;every brother's fall
would remind him of his own restoration. There is nothing which so deepens
our lore to Christ as the largerknowledge ofHis grace which we gain as we
see souls savedby Him.
5. In this work which Christ assigns to Peter, Petermay see the meaning of the
struggle of contrition through which he is made to pass. He will be better able
to bear with the flock because he knows himself. The heart broken with
penitence will scarcelyharden itself againsta sinful brother.
III. THE CROWN AND PERFECTINGOF LOVE TO CHRIST IS THAT
FULL SELF-SURRENDER BYWHICH WE SHALL GLORIFY GOD (ver.
18).
1. When he was young he girded himself and walkedwhither he would. How
often he wandered, how far astray his hasty will led him! But when he could
no longer go whither he would, when another girded him and carried him
whither he would not, he acceptedthe appointment and the surrender of
himself was complete. In one way or other, this privilege that we glorify God
is given to every one who loves Jesus. Notall need the struggle and the
martyrdom. There are meek souls whose whole life is sacrifice, whose willis
ever submissive. Others require a sharp discipline. Whatever is needed will be
given. And death seems appointed as the completion of all; the chequered,
troubled life is vindicated as a Christian life by the death that glorifies God.
2. "And when He had spokenthis He saith unto him, Follow Me." It was the
first call againrepeated. When Peterhad first heard it he thought that to obey
it would leadhim near a throne; now he knows it will conduct him to a cross.
Yet he draws not back;for meanwhile he has been with Jesus, andlove of

20. Him now fills his soul. What dreams possess us of the honour, and triumphs of
the Christian life when first we rank ourselves as disciples of Christ! Rarely
indeed are these hopes fulfilled; we grow wiser with sad self-sacrifice as we
become holier men. The boundless prospectnarrows before us; we are well
content "to fill a little sphere, so He be glorified."
(A. Mackennal, D . D.)
Christ loved from gratitude
C. H. Spurgeon.Youremember the tale of Androcles and the lion. The man
was condemned to be torn to pieces by beasts;but a lion, to which he was cast,
instead of devouring him, lickedhis feet, because atsome former time
Androcles had extracted a thorn from the grateful creature's foot. We have
heard of an eagle that so loved a boy with whom he had played that, when the
child was sick, the eagle sickenedto; and when the child slept, this wild,
strange bird of the air would sleep, but only then; and when the child awoke,
the eagle awoke.Whenthe child died, the bird died too. You remember that
there is a picture in which Napoleonis representedas riding over the battle-
field, and he stops his horse, as he sees a slain man with his favourite dog lying
upon his bosomdoing what he can to defend his poor dead master. Even the
greatman-slayer paused at such a sight. There is gratitude among the beasts
of the field, and the fowls of the air. And, surely, if we receive favours from
God, and do not feel love to Him in return, we are worse than brute beasts.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
Love a goodaugury
C. H. Spurgeon.Whenthe heathen killed their sacrifices in order to prophesy
future events from the entrails, the worstaugury they evergot was when the
priest, after searching into the victim, could not find a heart; or if that heart
was small and shrivelled. The soothsayers always declaredthat this omen was
the sure sign of calamity. All the signs were evil if the heart of the offering was
absent or deficient. It is so in very deed with religion and with eachreligious
person. He that searchesus searchesprincipally our hearts.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
Love before its judge
C. Stanford, D. D.I. THE HISTORY OF THE QUESTION.
1. The writer, in continuing his accountof what was said and done, goes on to
say: "Now, whenthey had brokentheir fast, Jesus saith," &c. Here we have a
most interesting note of time. It was delicatelycharacteristic ofJesus to see
that all were strengthened and quieted before the questioning. No one who

21. had not been present would have shownthe sense ofmingled homeliness and
solemnity which this verse shows. Whenwe read, "When Jesus satthus on the
well," we say these two lines are by the same writer.
2. This question is a question to a believer. Faith goes before love. It is
impossible to love one whom you do not even trust. Perhaps Christians have
put you wrong by their unscientific way of telling you that all you have to do is
"to give your hearts to Christ"; but you have no heart to give to Him, until by
faith you receive the heart He gives to you. Believing is receiving;and when
the love of Christ is received, the recipient loves Him back again.
3. This question reminds us that the greattestof faith is love. "Faith worketh
by love." Sometimes faith and love are practically so much alike that we can
hardly distinguish them. Talk to that true teacherof theology, a Christian
child, and, while perhaps she will not say a word about faith, she will be sure
to tell you that she "loves Jesus.""Wrong!" says a hard old doctrinist, "we
are justified by faith." "Right!" say we; "forin the consciousnessofthat little
heart love and faith are one." A man may be true to Christ, yet if Christ were
to say, "Understandestthou Me?" or"Followestthou Me?" or, "Confessest
thou Me?" he could not always establishthe fact of his discipleship. There is,
however, no Christian heart but quivers to the question, "Lovestthou Me?"
We setour sealto Wesley's words, "We may die content without the
knowledge ofmany truths, but if we die without love, would the knowledge of
many truths avail us? Just as much as it would the devil. I will not quarrel
with you about your opinions... only see that you love the Lord Jesus Christ."
4. This question was askedin the spirit of reproof. There was reproof —(1) In
the very appellative, "Simon, sonof Jonas," and the sound of it must have
struck upon him like a bolt of ice, making his burning soul suddenly freeze.
On the day of his introduction to Christ, it was predicted that he should be
called"Peter" — that is, a stone. This prophecy was fulfilled on the day of his
memorable confession. It is written of a certain caliph, that he used to give
eachof his principal officers an honourable surname suited to his qualities;
and that, when he wished to show dissatisfaction, he used to drop it, calling
him by his original name, which causedgreatalarm. This helps us to enter
into the meaning of the Simon, sonof Jonas, here. The startled disciple might
have thought that this was as much as to say, "Thouhast nothing in thee
answering to the name 'Rock';a rock does not run away, and does not ebb
and flow; thou art not worthy of thy new name; until thou art clearedin this
court, give it up."(2) In the reference to the other disciples — "More than
these." But how did they prove their love? By language? No;for they were
dumb. By obedience? No;for when the Mastersaid, "Bring of the fish that ye

22. have caught," they stoodstock still, gazing. By work? No;they could not even
haul the net up the strand; Simon did it. While a thought of satisfactionin the
comparisonof himself with them might have shot across his mind, the
question sternly broke in upon it, "Lovestthou Me more than these?"(3)In
the plain allusion to his boastful speech, "If all shall be offended," &c. "Now,
Simon, what do you say?"
5. In reference to his most recent action. On the night before the Crucifixion,
Jesus had said, "Simon, Satanaskedto have you... when once thou hast
turned again, stablishthy brethren." Had he done so? Notif we have correctly
interpreted the words, "I go a fishing; we also go with thee." He did wrong,
and by his super-abundant vitality and eagerlife drew the others along with
him; and this was not to establishhis brethren. It was "a threefold hammer-
stroke," andhad reference to his threefold sin of denial.
6. Think of the question in connectionwith the greatnessofthe questioner.
Love to God is set forth in the "first and greatestcommandment." Christ
claims the very same, "He that loveth father and mother more than Me," &c.
What John thought of Christ's greatnessappears from the words at the
opening of his Gospel, whichpulse all through the succeeding narrative; the
writer does not once forgetthis, nor must the reader, any more than the
singermust forgethis key-note, or the builder that which he builds upon.
7. Think of the question in connectionwith Christ's love to the disciple to
whom He puts it. His love is great, because He Himself is great. As the ocean
holds more water than the tiny lakelet, has more force, carries more weight,
and canbe wrought up into a grander storm, so does the heart of God hold
more than the heart of man.
8. Notice the personality of the question. He deals with us one by one lovingly,
eachsoul with a distinct love; asking eachsoulfor a distinct response;to each
speaks personallyas when He said, "Adam, where art thou?" "Abraham,
Abraham!" "Samuel, Samuel!" "Martha, Martha!" "Saul, Saul!" "Simon,
son of Jonas." Englishnames are on His lips as well as Jewishnames; answer
to your name — it is spokennow — silently to the ear, audibly to the soul —
"Lovestthou Me?"
II. THE HISTORY OF THE ANSWER.
1. It was an answergiven after deep searchings ofheart.(1) The Searcherof
hearts had so orderedthe process ofquestioning as to compelthis. The first
sentence ofit slashedright through the consciencejustwhere it had been last
wounded, and where it was still on fire. "Lovestthou Me more than these?"
What does he answer? does he simply say, "Yes I do"? No! for the word for

23. love which Christ employs is beyond him. Does he sayno? No! Does he take
up the challenge of comparison? No!never again. He is now done for ever
with heroics, comparisons, consequentialairs. Does he sayout from black
despondency, "I have been a self-deceiver, and what I thought was love was
not love"? No!Was he silent? No!speak he must. He therefore looks up, and,
with tumultuous throbs, whispers, "Yea, Lord, Thou knowestThouart dear
to me."(2) The searching eye is still upon him; still using the same word for
love which Simon had humbly put aside for a weakerword, and giving this
word greateremphasis, the Judge repeats the question. Six months before,
Simon would have been ready to say, "Lord, dost Thou doubt me? Love
Thee? Only try me! See if I will not gladly die for Thee!" But now, not daring
to own such a lofty love as Christ's word indicates, he still says, "Thouart
dear to me."(3) Then the King of Grace comes downto him, accepts the
humble word that Simon had chosen, and asks, "Am I dear to thee?" In the
lightning of that instant, he lookedround for something to which he should
make his appealin proof of the sincerity with which he could saythis; and to
what could he make it? Poorman! he thought just then, that if he lookedto
himself for a proof of his love, he could find little better than lies, and oaths,
and treachery. With tears in his heart, in his tones, if not in his eyes, he burst
out, "Lord, Thou knowestallthings, Thou knowestthat Thou art dear to
me!" Could any of us settle this question by an appealto ourselves? Have we
been satisfactorydisciples? Forall that, many a man, who is forcedto answer
"No," may add, "Jesus, Iam sure that I love Thee. Oh, see Thyselfif I do
not!" How does your child prove his love to you? Does he not sometimes give
you trouble? Does his face never redden with sullen temper or with passionate
flash? And are not these signals contradictoryof love? They may seemso, yet
when the proud little heart seems to be full of rebellion, the young rebel
wishes you could but see into it. He is quite unable to prove it from facts, but
he knows that he loves you, and you know it. Sometimes we have no proofs to
give in verification of our love to God. The love is in our heart, but it is
possible to be known, not by its doings, but by itself; and the love itself only
God can see.
2. The question had to be answered, not verbally alone, but practically. Where
there is love, there will be the ministry of love. This ministry is work for souls
before conversionand after it. The first is describedunder a metaphor taken
from the vocationof a fisherman, the other from that of a shepherd. When
souls are drawn out from the sea ofspiritual death, and "captured for their
life," the metaphor of "fishing" breaks down: and the metaphor of
"shepherding" is substituted.

24. 3. Such an answeras that of Petermay include in its consequences much that
will go againstnatural inclination (ver. 18). This oracle darkly told of coming
events that would strike at all his natural loves and likings. He liked the free,
impetuous joy of living. He was to be "bound." He liked to take the lead. He
was to "be carried," he liked to have his own will; he was to be carried
"whither he would not." He liked the glory of heroism: he was to die on a
cross. He liked rapidity of movement: he was to plod on to old age without the
promise of a brilliant career. Before a man's life can fully answerthe question,
"Lovestthou Me?" he must be ready to give up his own choice as to the way
of showing it, and passivelyacceptor actively obey the will of God alone.
4. A disciple is to make the answerto this question the one greatbusiness of
his life (vers. 20, 21). A Christian may prosecute endless questions into the
mysteries around him; and while he does so in season, with due regardto
proportion and perspective, taking care to subordinate eachto its own place
in relation to the one greatquestion. Christ will not say of any such thing,
"What is that to thee?" There was, however, a reasonwhy His rejoinder to
this question should have in it something of the nature of a reprimand. Some
sin, or dangerous infirmity, must have been waking up. Jesus, therefore,
instead of answering him, said, "Whatis that to thee?" and repeatedHis
charge, "Follow thouMe." placing emphasis on the word thou. "Mind your
own business;put all your soul into it; this is as much as you cando." As it
was with Peterthen, so it may be with you now. You may be at a crisis and in
a condition making it perilous to have your attention divided by, the most
fascinating subject that lies outside the soul's greatbusiness;and Christ may
be saying, with reference to what is most exciting your speculative interest,
"What is that to thee? Follow thou Me."
(C. Stanford, D. D.)
Love to Christ
R. Watson.Atfirst sight this appears a singular question to Peter. You would
expectexpostulation and reproof. But Jesus had no need to ask Peterwhether
he had repented. He had "turned and lookedupon Peter;" and Peter's heart
broke. He had seenthe former affection of Peterto his Masterreturn with a
full tide. He who knew all things knew that Peterloved Him; and gave Peter
an opportunity of thrice declaring it in the presence of his fellow-disciples.
When our Lord asks a disciple three times whether he loves Him, he teaches
us that to love Christ is essentialto our discipleship. It is "the first and great
commandment," without it we are but as "sounding brass, or a tinkling
cymbal."

25. I. THE REASONS ON WHICH OUR OBLIGATION TO LOVE CHRIST
RESTS.
1. The supreme excellencyofthe object. We are under a kind of natural
obligation to love that which is excellent. We are certainly under a moral one.
In Christ all goodmeets; it exists in absolute perfection, and can have no
addition.(1) Do the condescensions ofsuperior wisdom attractus? In him we
see the wisdom of God, speaking to man, in words clearas the light of the
intelligence from which they proceeded.(2)Are we affectedby disinterested
benevolence? BeholdHis life of labour, given freely without an exacted
return.(3) Does humility, connectedwith greatvirtues and greatactions,
command the homage of the heart? It was said of Him, "He shall not strive
nor cry," &c. He often said, "See thou tell no man."(4)Is there a charm in the
noble passionof patriotism? For His country our Lord lived. His heart clings
to the "lostsheepof the house of Israel."(5)Does friendship move us? Think
of the family of Bethany; the disciple whom Jesus loved;and his kind regards
for the whole body of his disciples.(6)All moral virtues were in Him. He was
"holy, harmless, undefiled." And all the strongervirtues of religion; such as
meekness,patience, resignation, devotion.
2. The generous interposition of our Lord in the greatwork of our redemption
(Romans 5:7, 8; 1 John 4:10).
3. The benefits which we are constantlyreceiving from His hands. Do we think
of life? We owe it to His intercession. Of ordinary mercies? Theyare the fruits
of His redemption; for we deserve nothing. Of the ordinances? They are
visitations of His grace. Do we regard the future as well as the present? We
expectHis kingdom. Do we anticipate death? We have the victory by Him.
Judgment? We have justification through His blood. Do we think of heaven?
We view Him as the grand source of light, love, and joy. Should constant
benefits excite love? Then surely our love ought to be constant. Should
benefits of the highestkind excite the highest love? Then our love ought to be
supreme. And are they never to cease? Thenought our love to be eternal.
II. THE GREAT OFFICE OF THIS GRACE IN EXPERIMENTALAND
PRACTICAL RELIGION.
1. It is this which gives the true characterto evangelicalobedience. None hut
this is acceptable andrewardable. Man is in three states — unawakened,
penitent, believing. In the first he canhave no love to Christ, because he loves
the world. In the secondhe has no love, because he has the "fear which hath
torment." In the third, only, he loves, because this "love is shed abroad in his
heart by the Holy Ghost given unto him." From this principle obedience

26. derives its character. In unawakenedman some acts of obedience may be
apparent; but these may spring from natural temperament, from a respectto
man's opinion, or even from Pharisaism. In the penitent there is the obedience
of the slave:in the believer obedience is filial; his love is the "fulfilling of the
law; and God graciouslyaccepts whatis done for His name's sake.
2. It is the greatinstrument of high and holy attainments. It produces trust, as
that reciprocallyproduces love; it produces prayer, and so receives blessings
from God; it produces the love of every thing that is like Christ. Holiness is
the elementof love; and it bears the soul into it.
3. It is the grand antagonist-principle of the love of the world (1 John 2:15).
They cannot co-exist.
4. It is the rootand nutriment of charity to man (1 Corinthians 13.).
5. It removes terrors from futurity. Futurity discloses the world where Jesus
is. That is the heavenof heavens to a Christian.
(R. Watson.)
Love to Christ
D. S. Brunton.Love to Christ is the commanding and crowning grace ofa
Christian. As all life, movement, force in man depend on the action of the
central organ, the heart, so all graces,eachone having its ownfunction and
power, have their spring and strength from the grace of love. Express it
another way: All life, and growth, and power, and bloom in nature depend on
the vital air. A plant grows indeed from its root; it lives by the air; it breathes
and blossoms into beauty by the air. The plant of faith grows, the flower of
faith blooms, the fruit of faith ripens in the genialatmosphere of love. Yes,
love is the heavenly air in which all the graces ofthe Christian character"live
and move and have their being." Why love Christ? For what He is, and for
what He has done, including under this lastpoint the continuation of His work
of love, its triumph in His atoning death being carried forward into the
present, and to be consummated in the future. How should we love Christ?
"Lovestthou Me?"
1. Evidently our love to Christ is personal.
2. Love to Christ should be positive. Simon Peteranswered, "Yea, Lord, Thou
knowestthat I love Thee."
3. Forit will be practical. The Christian life springs at the heart, but it works,
it must work, outwards. This, a necessityof its nature. If the blood be not
pulsing even to the fingertips, I am dead or dying. We see the practicaleffect

27. of such loves, as the love of gold, of fame, of pleasure. The Christian's love to
Christ will prove itself.
(D. S. Brunton.)
The Christian's love for Christ
H. D. Northrop.And why should Christ ask that question? Did not He know
whether Simon loved Him or not? Certainly He did, for He knew all things.
Then what could be His objectin thus catechising Peter? Evidently, He wished
to teachhim a lessonof some kind or other. He wishedto remind him of his
former denial, and admonish him never to do the like again. Mark the reply.
Peterhas learned his weaknessby that ignominious fall which he had, and
dares not sayhe loves Jesus more than others; he is not willing to repeathis
former assertion, "Iwill lay down my life for Thy sake;" he canonly say,
"Yea, Lord, Thou knowestthat I love Thee." The question being put the
secondtime seems to have this import — "Are you sure, Simon, son of Jonas,
that you love Me; for, you remember, you once professedthat attachment,
and then belied your words." What bitter recollections ofhis former
treacherymust have rushed at that moment over Peter's mind! No wonder
Peterwas grieved and humbled.
I. Concerning THE NATURE OF THE BELIEVER'S LOVE TO CHRIST.
1. In the first place, it is of Divine origin. It is a truth which the Christian
ought never to forget, that he is indebted to God for everything goodthat he
possesses:for every emotion of penitence, for every ray of hope, for every
exercise offaith, for every heavenly aspiration, for every throb of love. Man
made man a sinner, but man never made man a saint. That belongs to God. I
know there are some who maintain that natural man is not so bad after all.
Some say that regenerationis not a new creation, but only the development of
an old, inward germ, which was left after the fall. That may be the teaching of
pride and reason, but it is not that of Scripture or of human experience. If we
had no other argument to prove that regenerationis the work of the Holy
Spirit, that is sufficient — that man, in his natural state, hates Christ, and yet
is brought sometimes to love Him. The power that canproduce such a change
must be Divine.
2. But, again, the believer's love to Christ is unquenchable; the same power
which creates it, sustains it in existence, just as those same forces in nature,
warmth, and sunlight, and gentle showers, whichcause the seedto burst, also
nourish it, and carry it forward from bursting to budding, from budding to
blossoming, and from that to the yielding of the goldenfruit. I do not say the
believer's love is never feeble;in some instances, alas!it is never anything

28. more. I do not sayit is always in healthful exercise. EvenPetermay deny his
Lord. I do not saythat it never grows dim, for, just as the ancient crownof
Scotlandonce lay so long under ground that it lost its lustre, so all religious
graces,by too much contactwith sin and worldliness, lose their brightness.
Are you mourning, because your love is faint? It is right for you to mourn, but
not to despond, for, if the plant be genuine, it will not die, howevermuch it
may droop.
3. The Christian's love for Christ, once more, is superlative. He loves Jesus
more than anything else;he loves Him more than he loves all things else.
What, then, shall we say of that man who manifestly loves the things of the
world more than Christ? Do you callsuch a man a Christian? Why, he lacks
the grandestelement of Christianity, which is that love for Jesus which
absorbs and controls every other love. Why, Brutus loved justice so much,
that he would not spare his own son when he had forfeited his life. The
Spartan mother loved bravery so much, that she saidto her boys, as they went
out to the wars, "Bring back your shields, or be brought upon them;" and
shall the believer be unwilling to make a sacrifice forChrist, equally great? A
man must love Him, so as to be willing to do that for Him which others can do
from a worldly motive, before he can be a true Christian.
II. In the secondplace, let us notice SOME OF THE REASONS WHY THE
BELIEVER LOVES CHRIST.
1. One goodreason, I think, is because Christloves him. Concerning His
affectionfor His people, there canbe no mistake;they are so dear to Him, so
much a part of Him, that they are said to be the branches of which He is the
vine.
2. Again, the Christian loves Christ by reasonof His lovely character. The
patriarchs and prophets were men of greatvirtues, but none of them could be
said to be perfect. All suns have their spots, except that Sun of Righteousness;
we shall find no blemish there. Have you never noticedhow Scripture labours
to set forth the beauties of Christ's character;the fairestobjects in nature are
employed to symbolize it. There is the rose;other flowers are beautiful, but,
after all, she is the queen. Could the most cunning workmancontrive anything
half so beautiful? Why, no artist can paint it, in all its fairness. Whattender
leaves!What exquisite colour! What variety of tint! What a wealth of
fragrance!How it fills the air with perfumes, and fairly charms the senses!
Christ is calledthe Rose ofSharon. Oh, what humility was His. This was His
most prominent trait. He never did anything for display; He was not fond of
shows. Manmust have his jewels, and his glitter, and his trinkets, his gilded
equipages, and triumphal processions. Notso with Christ; His palace was a

29. cottage;His royal bed was a manger, His state carriage was an ass's colt;His
body-guard were poor fishermen. If man had been going to make a world, he
would have had all the beauties visible to the nakedeye. Not so with God. He
has concealedmuch more than He has brought to light. The dew-drop
perched upon the morning floweris a fine little gem, but what has it concealed
from the nakedeye? Put it under the microscope andsee. In that single drop,
a thousand million living creatures swarm, eachone of them as much the
objectof God's regard as the largestworld that rolls in space. The human
frame is wonderful to look at; dissectit, and you find such beauty and
harmony in its mechanism, such skill and contrivance, as astonishthe
philosopher as well as the savage. Leta sunbeam be shotinto a dark room,
and if, just then, the eyes of a blind man could be opened, the sight of that
golden ray of light would fill him with joy. "What a beautiful thing!" he
would exclaim. A beautiful thing! So it is; but what do you suppose Godhas
concealedin that sunbeam? Pass it through a prism, and lo! what revelations!
Why, you get the sevencolours of the rainbow! And thus is it generallyin
nature: the dross is on the surface;if there are any gems, humility conceals
them. In the characterofChrist how much is manifest, and yet how much
more must be concealed!If His love, His humility, His meekness, His patience,
His forbearance, His consistencywere suchas could callforth the admiration
even of His enemies, how much must there be behind these to confirm and
strengthen the affectionof His friends! And yet we are told the time is coming
when we shall see Him as He is. All the seraphtongues in heavencould not
describe it, and eternity will not give us half time enoughin which to admire
and adore it.
3. The last reasonwhy we should love Christ, is because ofHis sufferings and
death, and the blessings procured thereby. And now, as the result of His
mediatorial work, what do we have We, who believe, have justification, for
one thing; and what does that mean? It means that the sinner is free from the
curse of the law. And we have adoption, for another thing; and what does that
mean? It means that we cancry, Abba, Father! and feel that God is our
Father, and that we are HIS children. We have sanctification, for another
thing; and what does that mean? It means that we are free from that which
blasted Eden and the world, which ruined man and unchained the forked
lightnings of Divine justice, which brought death into the world and every
pang of woe. It means that we are dying to sin, and living unto righteousness.
Such are some of the blessings procuredby Christ for His people. It is not
strange, then, that they love Him; but oh, sinner, it is the strangestthing in the
world that you do not ]eve Him too.

30. III. Finally, THE MANIFESTATIONS OF THIS PRINCIPLE OF LOVE.
1. It will show itself, in the first place, by communion with Christ.
2. Love to Christ will manifest itself again, in a desire to be like Him. "O that I
were a Wellington, or a Bonaparte!" says the warrior. "O that I were a
Praxiteles!" says the sculptor. "O that I were an Angelo, or a Correggio!"
says the painter. "O that I were a Homer, or a Milton!" says the poet. But
what says the Christian? "O that I could be very unlike myself, and very
much like Christ! O that I could put off this old man, and put on the Lord
Jesus!"
3. Love to Christ will show itself in a dispositionto serve Him.
4. Let me, then, say, in conclusion, that love to Christ will manifest itself in a
willingness to suffer for Him.
(H. D. Northrop.)
Love to Christ
CongregationalRemembrancer.I. ITS NATURE. It must be —
1. Sincere, in opposition to that which is hypocritical, like Joab's or Judas's. In
many instances, where love to Christ is not feigned it may be only
professional. There may be a respectfor the religion of Christ where there is
no love to its Divine Author.
2. Habitual, in opposition to occasional.
3. Supreme, in opposition to subordinate, and which may be lawfully
exercisedto the creature. Jesus is to be loved without a rival. "He that loveth
father or mother more than Me, is not worthy of Me" (1 Corinthians 16:22).
II. THE CLAIMS WHICH CHRIST HAS UPON IT. Consider —
1. The infinite dignity of His Person. He is the "chief among ten thousand, and
the altogetherlovely."
2. The work He has accomplished, and the sufferings He has endured, on the
behalf of sinners.
3. The excellencyand importance of the blessings whichHe has purchased for
us.
4. The manner in which the Saviour employs His recoveredlife. He now
pleads for those for whom He once suffered. In answerto His prevailing
intercession, spiritual life is communicatedunto and maintained in the souls
of men.

31. III. HOW THIS LOVE SHOULD BE EXHIBITED. Show your love to Christ
—
1. By an entire surrender of yourselves, and all you have, into His hands.
2. By a public professionof His name and devout attendance on His
ordinances.
3. By fervent and practicallove to His people (1 John 2:14-19).
4. By a patient endurance of oppositionfor His sake (1 Peter2:19, 20).
5. By unwearied endeavours to advance His cause.
(CongregationalRemembrancer.)
Love to the Saviour
E. Griffin, D. D.I. THE NATURE OF TRUE LOVE TO CHRIST. Love is an
affectionresulting from the perception of excellencesin the persons beloved,
causing us to desire the most intimate communion with them, and making us
enjoy from an intercourse with them the sweetestpleasures. And hence it
follows, that love to Christ is that grace whereby, upon a discoveryof the
Redeemer's matchless excellences,the souls of believers are causedto thirst
after a more intimate union with Him, and they esteeman intercourse with
Him their chief joy.
1. What is the foundation of this love? In order that we should love any object,
three things are requisite: this object must have certain excellences;these
excellencesmust be perceived by us; and there must be a conformity between
these excellencesand the inclinations of our hearts.(1)The Saviour has those
excellenceswhichrender Him lovely. In Himself, He is the perfectionof
beauty. Every excellence is concentratedin Him in an infinite degree, so that
the eternalFather always beholds Him with delight, and the splendid host of
heaven gaze upon Him with wonder and love. He moreover has precisely those
graces whichfit Him to be the Saviour.(2) But even these excellences,till they
are presentedto us, cannot be effectualin moving our love. The diamond may
have a dazzling brightness, yet we shall not admire it till it is presentedto our
view. God has therefore been pleasedin the Scriptures to unveil to us the
beauties of Immanuel, that so we might perceive how deserving He is of all
our love.(3)Still, however, this is not sufficient to kindle the holy fire.
Howeverbrightly the sun may shine, yet as long as the eye is distempered, its
light will afford, not pleasure, but pain, because there is not a correspondence
betweenthese two objects. In like manner, as long as the soul is distempered
by sin, the revelation of Christ will excite enmity, not love, because there is no
correspondencybetweenit and the corrupt inclinations of the sinner's heart.

32. It is evident, then, that a correspondencyof heart is requisite to produce true
love to Christ; and this correspondencycanbe produced only by the mighty
operationof the Holy Ghost renewing our minds.
2. Its properties. It is —(1) Enlightened; it knows and delights in the real
characterof the Saviour.(2) Ultimate. It terminates on this Saviour as its end,
and does not regard Him merely as a means to further blessedness.(3)
Supreme, and predominates over every attachment to the objects of earth.(4)
Permanent. It is not like those streams in the desert, which sometimes rush
forward in an impetuous torrent, and at others, entirely dry up; it resembles
rather a mighty stream, steadily rolling its waves along, and growing deeper
and wider, till it empties itself in heaven, the oceanof love.
3. Its effects.(1)A cheerful, constant, and universal obedience to His
commandments. "If any man love Me, He will keepMy words."(2)A love to
everything whereby Christ is displayed. If Christ be loved, the Holy Spirit
who "takes ofthe things of Christ," &c., will be loved also;and His scriptures,
His ordinances, His children, His cause and interest.(3)A longing for His
presence.
II. SOME MOTIVES TO THIS LOVE. Love to Christ is —
1. Reasonable.(1)BecauseHe has incomparably greaterexcellences.
Accumulate, heap one upon one another all the qualities that can captivate a
feeling heart, they are all perfectly combined in Him. On what article will you
institute a comparisonbetweenthese idols who possessyour affection, and the
mighty Saviour? On that of power? His arm upholds the universe; upon it
universal nature fixedly hangs. On that of wisdom? His eye at one glance
pervades all being, and runs through the past, the present, and the future. On
that of permanence? "Fromeverlasting to everlasting He is God." On that of
mercy? Angels confess that their faculties are too weak to comprehend His
goodness,and their tongues too feeble worthily to celebrate it.(2) Of what He
has done for you in creation, providence and grace.(3)Of what Christ can and
will do, if you give Him your affections? Others canbestow only trifling
gratifications whilst you are on earth. While Jesus alone affords a felicity
commensurate with the faculties, coevalwith the existence of the soul.
2. It is pleasant. In every situation of life the exercise oflove to Christ affords
the purest satisfaction;but its effects are more especiallyseenin those seasons
when earthly loves can profit us little — in affliction, in death, in judgment.
(E. Griffin, D. D.)
Love to Christ

33. Homiletic Monthly.I. LOVEST. The question cleaves downto the very core of
Peter's being. He does not ask afterhis speculative faith, his conscience, his
profession:but, Is thy heart Mine? Is My kingdom enthroned in the soul as its
central, governing power? Christ puts the same pointed, radical, searching
question to every disciple. Nothing short of the supremacy of the heart will
satisfy Him. He has loved us with an infinite love even unto death, and He
demands our heart's bestaffections in return. The sum and essenceof
Christianity is love.
II. THOU. Not John, or Matthew, or the disciples collectively;but thou, Peter.
Jesus'eye fastens on him, and again and again, and yet againHe presses the
question. How the words searchedand testedadd grieved the disciple! There
was no escape forhim. It was as if he stood before the burning throne of
judgment. So will it be with every disciple. Religionis pre-eminently a
personalthing. The faith and virtue of others will save no man. Eachfor
himself must heed, believe, obey, love our Lord Jesus Christ, or die in his sins.
"Thou!" How the eye, and voice, and penetrating words of Jesus on the
judgment throne will searchand test every soul of us!
III. ME. NotMy doctrines, only, but My Person, My character— Me, the
Divine Sonof God, the crucified and risen Jesus, the Way, the Truth, the Life
of the world. A speculative faith, orthodoxy, the sacraments and ordinances,
and church relations will not save Simon Peter or any other sinner; nothing
but faith in and supreme love to a personalSaviour, such as is revealedand
proffered to us in the gospel.
(Homiletic Monthly.)
Of Zoning Jesus
J. O. Dykes, D. D.I. A CHRISTIAN'S LOVE TO CHRIST OUGHT TO BE
UNRIVALLED IN CREATION.
1. Forcloseness, because there is betwixt these twain such an intimacy that the
one is everything to the other.
2. Fortenderness, because this is not an equal love, but the love of the little for
the Great, of the enemy disarmed and won over through the sacrifice of his
wrongedand offended Lord.
3. Forstrength. If there is strength in men at all, and love is, as people say, the
strongestthing in men's hearts, then surely this must be the strongestof
known loves. Forit is the deepest. We love others with a part only, but Christ
with the whole heart, &c. We are attachedto others only surface-wise;but it
is the very inner being which is given to Him in love.

34. II. BEING CHARACTERISTIC OF THE CHRISTIAN, THIS LOVE
FORMS THE MOST DELICATE TEST OF EACH PERSON'SRELATION
TO JESUS.
1. Born with the birth of the new creature, it is one of the earliestgraces to
come to strength. Just as in a little child, long before trust becomes intelligent,
or will is disciplined into obedience, orexperience has taught patience or self-
control, there rushes up the first-born virtue, even love for her who bare and
nurseth it: so in very young Christians, we see the flush of first love kindle
their early experience. Apply any other test. Their knowledge is rudimentary,
their faith untried, their works not yet reduced to orderly holiness, their
passions far from subdued. By any other test they seem to fail; but try them
with our wise Lord's own question, and you will see how the eye kindles and
the voice deepens with the answer, "Yea, Lord, Thou knowestthat I love
Thee!"
2. Throughout a Christian's life this continues to be the most sensitive test. In
all, holiness is gradual; in many, slow;in some, fitful, broken by falls and
declensions. Butthis test, if it could be fairly applied, never would fail. No
unconverted man can answerthat to satisfaction;there is no converted man
who cannot. Hence Paul girdles the Church of God with: "Grace be with them
all that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity." That shuts none out who
should be in. Again, he fences off the Church with: "If any man love not the
Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema." That leaves none in who should be
out.
III. A TEST SO PERFECTIS TO BE USED THE MORE DELICATELY IN
PROPORTION TO THE DIFFICULTY OF USING IT AT ALL.
1. Outward conduct is tolerably patent to the eye of every outside observer;
but this question is to be askedonly by the Lord Himself, and only answered
before his own truth-compelling presence. We must take care not to judge of
ourselves in excitedmoments, or to depend on the satisfactionwith which we
turn to religious thoughts when the heart is sad. We must be scrupulously
honest, and judge ourselves in solemn hours, when our sins are in our
memory, and we feel God's eye to be on us.
2. Even under such cautions one ought not to institute this examination often.
Love is a shy thing, which thrives best when no one thinks about it. It grows
up of its own sweetwill. It never bears rough handling, and sometimes will
bear none at all. Besides, the love that must be questioned cannot be very
strong. No man could preserve a deep attachment for any friend who should
be for ever taking his heart to pieces and curiously asking if he loved him.

35. When Christ's Spouse should have come to her perfectstate of assured
affection, she will hear no more the searching question.
3. Meanwhile, we are both feeble and faithless lovers. We do many unlovely
and unloving things to grieve and wrong Him whom we call our Highest,
Dearest, Best.It was after three denials that Jesus askedHis first apostle three
times over, "Lovestthou Me?" Eachdenial had castfresh doubt on his oft-
repeatedprotestationof peculiar and invincible affection. The suspectedone
had to be probed, and deeply, and often, for assurance sake,aftersuch foul
wrong done.
IV. FOR THE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION, WE ARE SENT, EACHOF
US, IN UPON HIMSELF.
1. It is true that, practically, this love works as the motive-powerin Christian
holiness;that deeds are to be the last testby which our love, like our faith, is
to be tested. But our Lord questioned a disciple who had nothing to show but
lies, and oaths, and treachery. It is possible, therefore, to know love, not by its
doings, but by itself. Put a mother where she shall neither see her infant nor
be able to do for it one office of motherly duty, will it be so hard for her to
know she loves? Will not the power of her affectionbetray itself all the more
by yearnings to be with her child? Bring her back her babe, and, after the
first gush of endearment has spent itself, ask her as she looks downon its
sleeping face in the blessedcalmof absolute content, ask her if she loves!I
know of loved ones who shall never more be seenon earth, whom wide seas
have severed;yet love keeps its hold on the long-lost, unforgotten image, and
feeds inwardly on itself, and cannot die.
2. Now, why should not a Christian man be as sure that he loves the Lord
Jesus? Ourfeeling towards Him is quite as personal as to any other friend.
We never saw Him, and shall not, perhaps, for a few years to come. But what
of that? Some of our brothers have seenHim, and their accounts setHim
before us in a lively way. We know what He has been and done for us. Besides,
no Christian is without experience of Him.
V. OUGHT ONE NOT TO SHRINK FROM SO BOLD A DECLARATION?
1. There are people, and these not the worst, who are too conscious ofthe
weakness oftheir love and of their falls to allow even within themselves that
they love Christ at all. But suppose a man is conscious, to do himself justice, of
still really loving Him, whom he grieves to have denied, and to whose blood he
looks for pardon; is he not to say so? Mustone stifle the heart's cry of
affection, and do violence to one's own feelings, and deny with the lips what
the soulaffirms? Yet before we can getthe length of saying that truly, there is

36. one thing to be observed, Repentance must have wrought its perfect work.
Peterwept bitterly on the night of the denial. Through penitence is love
purged. Spare not the sorrow, therefore.
(J. O. Dykes, D. D.)
Love to Christ unique
Lacordaire.Among men who are beloved? Among warriors? Is it Alexander,
Caesar, Charlemagne? Among sages?Aristotle or Plato? Name me one, a
single man who has died and left love upon his tomb! Mohammed is venerated
by Mussulmans, he is not loved. One man alone has gatheredfrom all ages a
love that never fails. Jesus is the sovereignLord of hearts as He is of minds.
(Lacordaire.)
Supreme love for Christ
D. Judson, D. D.A Karen woman offeredherself for baptism. After the usual
examination, I inquired whether she could give up her ornaments for Christ.
It was an unexpected blow. I explained the spirit of the gospel;I appealedto
her own consciousnessofvanity; I read to her the apostle's prohibition (1
Timothy 2.9). She lookedagainand again to her handsome necklace;and
then, with an air of modestdecisionthat would adorn beyond all ornaments
any Christian in the land, she took it off, saying, "I love Christ more than
this."
(D. Judson, D. D.)
Conscious love for Christ
H. C. Trumbull, D. D.Petergave the bestanswerwhen he said, "Thou
knowest,"&c. Mere professions oflove and devotion amount to but little at
any time. Peterhad already overdone the business of professing his unfailing
affectionfor Jesus. Yethe was sure that, in spite of his failure under peculiar
trial, he was knownof Jesus as atheart a loving disciple of Jesus;so he put
himself back, as it were, into the care of Jesus, appealing to Jesus to recognize
the love which was underneath all his surface-swaying ofconduct. A loving
heart is always its own best witness. It will speak as no words canspeak in its
own defence, when doubted. And when a loving heart is pained at being called
in question because of some seeming failure, it cannot do better than to trust
itself to the consciousnessofthe one toward it outreaches in love. If, indeed,
every human friend should fail to recognize the love of another's loving heart,
Jesus neverso fails. The Lord knoweth them that are His — whateverbe their
shortcomings.
(H. C. Trumbull, D. D.)

37. Conscious love for Jesus
Dr. Thompson.WhenDr. Waddell was preaching at Portsmouth, Va., a ship
came into port of which the master and two of the men were Christians.
Learning that the blind preacherwas to conduct a service that night, they
made their way to the place. The discourse was onthese words of Christ to
Peter. Towards the close the preacherappealed to the audience repeatedly,
"Who of you can say, 'Lord, Thou knowestallthings,'" &c. The deepest
silence prevailed; but the heart of one of the sailors was full; he could not
restrain himself, and bursting out he exclaimed in thrilling tones, "Lord,
Thou knowestall things, Thou knowestthat I love Thee." The congregation
was melted to tears.
(Dr. Thompson.)
The realm of love the sphere of religion
D. Thomas, D. D.Some put religion —
1. In the realm of sensuousness. The mere excitement of the senses, by
paintings, sculpture, music, gorgeous rites, and tragic anecdotes, is regarded
as piety; tears of mere animal sympathy are regardedas the expressions of
"godly sorrow," &c.
2. In the sphere of logic. It is in some systemof human thought which men call
orthodox, and nowhere else.
3. In the realm of external performances. If you attend your place of worship,
pay your seculardebts, subscribe to charities, you are a religious man. Now,
the text suggests,whattrue reasonand the whole Bible teach, that, in the deep
moral love of the heart, religion has its seat. Note that this love —
I. IS A SUPREME AFFECTIONDIRECTEDTO CHRIST.
1. Religionis a supreme affection. It is not an ordinary feeling, which flows in
the regularcurrent of emotions, and sometimes rises to fervour, and then
passes away. Itis the master-passionofthe soul, or nothing.
2. Religionis supreme affectionto Christ. Lovestthou — not merely My ideas,
or works, or heaven, but Me. Why should Christ demand this? Because —(1)
It is right in itself. Who ought to have the highestgratitude? The greatest
Benefactor, who "gave Himself for us." Who ought to have the highest
esteem? The MostPerfectExcellence;Christ is the embodiment of infinite
excellence.(2)It is indispensable to man. Man must love something supremely,
and his supreme affection makes him become like the object. If the objectis
imperfect, unhappy, degraded, he will sink into crime, dishonour, and misery.
Hence the necessityofhaving one like Christ to love.

38. II. MUST BE A MATTER OF CONSCIOUSNESS. Boththe question and
answerindicate this. A man cannot be ignorant of the spring of his action, and
the centralfact of his experience. The objectof supreme affectionis ever —
1. The chief thought in the intellect.
2. The chief theme in the conversation.
3. The chief end in the design.
4. The chief objectin the desire. All the laws of mind must be reversedbefore
it can be otherwise.
III. IS THE QUALIFICATION FOR OFFICE IN CHRIST'S EMPIRE. After
Peter's confession— which was sincere, solemn, and thrice repeated — Christ
gave Him a commission, which implied —
1. That he would meet with the spiritually needy — hungry sheep, and feeble
lambs. The world abounds with these young, inexperienced, undisciplined
hungry souls.
2. That he would have at his disposalthe suitable supplies for the needy — the
doctrines he had receivedfrom Christ.
3. That he had the capacityso to present the supplies as to feed the needy.
Nothing can qualify a man to help souls but love for Christ. Learning, genius,
eloquence — all will not avail without this. This is the only true inspiration.
(D. Thomas, D. D.)
Jesus saithunto him, FeedMy sheep.
FeedMy sheep
C. H. Spurgeon.This was a sort of ordination of Peterto the pastorate. Note,
then —
I. THE EXAMINATION.
1. Christ does not admit any without examination, and this should encourage
us to examine ourselves.
2. The examination touched the heart of the man and the very heart of
religion, for if love be absent all is vain.
3. The examination dealt not with mental or spiritual qualifications,
important as they were, but only that which is the supreme endow-merit of
the pastor. It was necessary, because —(1)Love keeps us in Christ's company,
and so we work under His immediate supervision.(2) Love to Christ kindles
love for souls, and love gains almostabsolute controlover them.(3) Love
enables us to bear with the sheep's infirmities without discouragement. What

39. is it that sustains the mother in her weary watchings?(4)Feeding the sheepis
a proof of love. Peterwould have liked a more brilliant proof, and so should
we; but this is the real test.(5)Pastoralwork is the craving of love. Loving
Christ we want to do something for Him.(6) It is also the stimulus of love. The
more we do at it the more we are loved by Christ and man.(7) It is a sphere of
communion. If we go among Christ's sheep we shall be with Him.
II. THE PERSON WHO WAS EXAMINED.
1. Christ examined Peterbecause he wanted re-ordination. Had He not done
so doubt would have been caston his apostleshipin after years. What
blindness has seizedthe Church of Rome, which thinks that Christ spoke to
Peterbecause he was the greatest, whereas itis plain that he was the least. The
others had not denied Him and therefore were not reordained.
2. Christ took Peteroff what might have grown into morbid sorrow. "Peter,
My dear fellow, I know you are sincerelypenitent; do not fret about it, but go
and feed My sheep."
3. Then was not Peterin dangerof getting too big? In the case ofsome men an
early breakdownwas the making of them. They began from that time self
loathing, and the Masterused them.
4. This feeding sheep would benefit Peter. You did not know what a fool you
were till you had to deal with fools;how quick tempered till you deal with the
quick tempered. It was by feeding Christ's flock that the Peterof the
judgment hall became the Peterof the Epistles.
5. Why "Simon sonof Jonas?"(1)The weak name was usedto remind him of
his weakness. If you cannot come as Peter, come as Simon.(2) This was his
name when he was converted. Nothing will help you to feed the flock of God
like the memory of your conversion.(3)This was the name that Jesus called
him when he made his memorable confession. Recollectin addition to your
conversionthe seasonsin which Christ has manifested Himself to you as He
does not to the world.
III. THE WORK. "Feed."
1. The middle word is "shepherdize," but the first and last is "feed." When
you preachgive a hearty meal: the sheepwill put up with many defects if you
only feed them. You may dress them, and lead them about, but this will not
satisfy them. What a quantity the sheep eatin the cloverfield! They won't
leave it and wander down the barren road. God's people hunger and thirst
after righteousness, andit is promised that they shall be filled, not have a nib
and a bite. Never be afraid of giving them too much doctrine. Some want to

40. drive them, but that won't do. You sayyou will lead them, but first feed them.
Don't lead lean sheep. You want to govern them according to the middle
word: but give two doses offeeding to one of governing. You have not to
invent a new food. God has appointed the proper food; and though you might
concocta new food and get your name up, that is no business of yours. That
greatshepherd, the Pope, how much does he govern? how much does he feed?
how much are the sheep nourished by his hallowedcursings?
2. The work begins with the "little lambkins." Put the food, therefore, where
they can getat it. "Bless the Lord," said a farmer, after a sermonfrom a
substitute for his minister, a very high, classicalgentleman, "the hay was put
in a low crib." Some preach as though the Lord said, "FeedMy
camelopards." Nothing but giraffes would be able to reachit from the lofty
rack in which they place the food. "Oh," sayyou, "I want to getthem to
work." Feedthem up to it, then. You cannot getmuch work out of a starving
horse. And whateveryou do, feed yourself. A leanpreacher makes a lean
people.
3. What does this involve?(1)Watchfulness. No shepherd canafford to sleep
at certain times. When you have a lambing time on — a blessedrevival — you
must keepyour eyes open. And the devil goes about as a wolf, you must watch
lest he devour the flock.(2)Patience. The sheepare prone to wander.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
The flock must be fed, not amused
C. H. Spurgeon.Fromthe deck of an Austrian gunboat we threw into the Lago
Garda a successionoflittle pieces of bread, and presently small fishes came in
shoals, till there seemedto be, as the old proverb puts it, more fish than water.
They came to feed, and needed no music. Let the preachergive his people
food, and they will flock around him, even if the sounding brass of rhetoric
and the tinkling cymbals of oratoryare silent.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
Shepherding
R. J. M'Ghee, M. A., C. H. Spurgeon.I. HOW DID THE APOSTLES
GATHER THE SHEEP OF CHRIST? A man must gather a flock before he
can feed it. And the apostles, we know, had a very small one at first (Acts
1:15). All men are representedin the Word of God as sheep which have gone
astray. Therefore the commissionof our Lord to His apostles is, to seek out
His sheep(Ezekiel34.). And our Lord tells us that His own mission was "to
seek and to save that which was lost." So His commissionto His apostles is,

41. "Go ye into all the world," &c. Now the apostles fulfilled our Lord's
command by the free and full proclamationof the glorious gospelof Christ
(Acts 2.). Now look at Acts 13. and you will see the same means used by Paul.
Look againat Acts 10. and 16. The apostles wentto sinners, they proclaimed
to them their guilt, and pardon through the blood of a crucified Saviour. You
see the effect. Those who "gladly receivedtheir word" instantly became the
disciples of the Lord, and joined themselves to the flock of Christ.
II. HOW THE APOSTLES FED THE SHEEP OF CHRIST when they had
gatheredthem to the fold. They fed them with Christ Himself. "I am the
Breadof Life."
1. As proclaimed in His salvation.
2. As revealedin His Word. "Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all
wisdom."
3. As exhibited in His ordinances.
4. As teaching in His commandments.
5. As coming in glory.
(R. J. M'Ghee, M. A.)
FeedMy lambs (A Sabbath-schoolSermon): — Readthe whole chapter, and
observe the change of scene. First, they are on the lake fishing, and dragging
to land a multitude of fishes. They have all come on shore, and their faces are
turned to the pastures on the hillside. Herein lieth a parable. The first work of
Christ's servants is comprised in that commission, "Go ye into all the world,"
&c.;or, parabolically, "Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a
draught." After this is done, souls converted, and brought up from the depths
of sin, the scene changes:we see a flock, "the Church of God which He hath
purchased with His own blood." This shepherd work is so important that
three times the Saviour bids us attend to it. We must never so evangelize the
outside mass as to forget to fold and feedthose within. Concerning this
shepherdizing let us note —
I. THE SPHERE. To whom does He refer?
1. To such as are little in grace. Theyhave but a grain of mustard seedof faith
as yet: their love is not a flame, but a spark apparently in dangerof being
suddenly blown out, and there-fore needing greatcare.
2. To the weak in grace. All such as are doubting, slenderly instructed, easily
bewildered, castdown in spirit. If our kindness should neglectthe strong it
would be a sadpity, but it might not entail so much damage as if we neglect

42. the weak. "Comfortthe feeble-minded; support the weak."I think the reason
why the weak were committed to Simon Peterwas because he had been very
weak himself. He who is himself compassedwith infirmities knows the heart
of the weaklings.
3. To the young in grace. Theymay be old in years, and yet they may be mere
babes as to the length of their spiritual life, and therefore they need to be
under a goodshepherd. As soonas a person is convertedand added to the
Church he should become the object of the care and kindness of his fellow
members. Young converts are too timid to ask our help, and so our Lord
introduces them to us with an emphatic command. This shall be our reward,
"Inasmuch as ye have done it," &c.
4. To those who have been converted while young in years. How much there is
of brightness and trustfulness about children which is not seenin elder
converts!Our Lord evidently felt deep sympathy with children, and he is but
little like Christ who looks upon them as a trouble, and treats them as if they
must needs be either little deceivers or simpletons.
5. These are to be fed because —(1)They need it. The second"feed" means
exercise the office of a shepherd, but this means distinctly feed, and it directs
teachers to the duty of instructing children in the faith. The lambs do not so
much need keeping in order as we do who know so much, and yet know so
little. Christian children mainly need to be taught the doctrine, precept, and
life of the gospel. If there be any doctrine too difficult for a child, it is rather
the fault of the teacher's conceptionof it than of the child's powerto receive it.
A child has not only to live as you and I have, but also to grow; hence he has
double need of food. Whether we teachyoung Christians truth or not, the
devil will be sure to teachthem error. The only way to keepchaff out of the
child's little measure is to fill it brimful with goodwheat.(2)They are so likely
to be overlooked. Our sermons often go over the heads of the younger folk.
Blessedis he that can so speak as to be understanded of a child!(3) This work
is so profitable. Do what we may with persons converted late in life, we can
never make much of them. Train up a child, and he may have fifty years of
holy service before him. It is also most beneficialwork to ourselves. It
exercises ourhumility and trains our patience;let those who doubt this try it.
II. THE MAN. Not Peteronly, but those who are like Peter. Christ selected
him as —
1. A leading man. He was one of the triumvirate that led the van. But though a
leading man, he was to feed the lambs, for no man may think himself too great
to care for the young. The best of the Church are none too goodfor this work.

43. 2. A warmheartedman. Simon Peterwas not a Welshman, but he had a great
deal of what we know as Welsh fire. He was just the sortof man to interest the
young. Children delight to gather round a fire, whether it be on the hearth or
in the heart. Certain persons appearto be made of ice, and from these
children speedily shrink away.
3. An experiencedman. He had sinned much and had been much forgiven. We
want experiencedmen and women to talk to children, and to tell them what
have been their dangers, their sins, their sorrows, and their comforts. The
young are glad to hear the story of those who have been further on the road
than they have.
4. A greatly indebted man. He owedmuch to Jesus Christ, according to that
rule of the kingdom — he loveth much to whom much hath been forgiven.
III. THE PREPARATION. Peterwas preparedfor feeding Christ's lambs —
1. By being fed himself. The Lord gave him a breakfastbefore giving him a
commission. It is quite right for you to be teaching a greatpart of the Lord's
Day; but I think a teacheris very unwise who does not come to hear the gospel
preachedand get a meal for his own soul.
2. By being with his Master. I commend the study of instructive books, but
above all the study of Christ. An hour's communion with Jesus is the best
preparation for teaching either the young or the old.
3. By self-examination. "Lovestthou Me?" Often the vesselwants scouring
with self-examinationbefore the Lord canfitly use it to convey the living
waterto thirsting ones. Mainly that examination should be exercised
concerning our love; for the bestpreparation for teaching Christ's lambs is
love — love to Jesus and to them. We cannotbe priests on their behalf unless
like Aaron we weartheir names upon our breasts. A shepherd that does not
love his sheep is a hireling and not a shepherd. Our subject is the love of God
in Christ Jesus. How canwe teachthis if we have no love ourselves?
IV. THE WORK. Every lessonshould be a feeding lesson. It is of little use to
thump the Bible and call out, "Believe!" when nobody knows whatis to be
believed. I see no use in fiddles and tambourines; neither lambs nor sheepcan
be fed upon brass bands. Feedthe lambs; you need not pipe to them, nor put
garlands round their necks;but do feed them. This feeding is —
1. Humble, lowly, unostentatious work. Shepherds are generally quiet,
unobtrusive people. They are never made knights or peers, albeit they do far
more useful work than those who are floated into rank upon their own beer
barrels. So in the ease ofmany a faithful teacherof young children; you hear

44. but little about him, yet his Masterknows all about him, and we shall hear of
him in that day; perhaps not till then.
2. Careful work;for lambs cannotbe fed on anything you please. You can
soonhalf poisonyoung believers with bad teaching. It is carefulwork the
feeding of eachlamb separately, and the teaching of eachchild by itself the
truth which it is best able to receive.
3. Continuous work. Lambs could not live if the shepherd only fed them once
a week;therefore goodteachers ofthe young look after them on week days,
and are careful about their souls with prayer and holy example when they are
not teaching them by word of mouth.
4. Laborious work. Nothing so exhausts a man as the care of souls;so it is in
measure with all who teach — they cannotdo goodwithout spending
themselves. You must study the lesson, &c.
5. All this has to be done in a singularly choice spirit; the true shepherd spirit
is an amalgamof many precious graces. He is hot with zeal, but not fiery with
passion;gentle, and yet rules his class;loving, but does not wink at sin; he has
powerover the lambs, but he is not domineering or sharp; he has
cheerfulness, but not levity; freedom, but not license;solemnity, but not
gloom. He who cares for lambs should be a lamb himself; and there is a Lamb
before the throne who cares forall of us, and does so the more effectually
because He is in all things made like unto us.
V. THE MOTIVE.
1. The motive was to be his Master's self. Had Peterbeen the first Pope of
Rome, surely Christ would have said to him, "Feedyour sheep." The work
that you have to do is in no sense for yourselves. Your classesare not your
children, but Christ's.
2. Yet while this is a self-denying occupation, it is one of the noblestforms of
service. How wonderful that Jesus should commit them to us! Jesus in effect
says, "I love you so that I trust you with that which I purchased with My
heart's blood."
3. We are to feed Christ's lambs out of love.(1)As a proof of love. If ye love
Me, feed My lambs.(2) As an inflowing of love. If you love Christ a little when
you begin to do good, you will soonlove Him more. Love grows by active
exercise.(3)As an outflow of love. A person may go home and sit down and
groanout, "Tis a point I long to know, Oft it causesanxious thought," &c.,
but if he will rise up and work for Jesus, the point he longs to know will soon
be settled.

45. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
FeedMy lambs
NewmanHall, LL. B.I. WHY ARE CHILDREN COMPARED TO LAMBS?
1. The first idea suggestedis that of innocence. There is something
inexpressibly pure and inoffensive in these little creatures. Notin allusion to
His sacrifice only, but to His characteralso, Jesusis describedas the "Lamb
of God," "a lamb without blemish and without spot." And little children are
thus lamb-like. We do not forgetthe sadfact of man's degeneracy. But we are
not to make our theologyhideous by violating nature and common sense in
regarding children as greatsinners. Look at this new born infant. It has no
powerto exercise repentance,nor has it any guilt of which to repent. The
attempt to induce remorse for imaginary faults renders more difficult the task
in the ease offaults which are actual. And as regards these, we should treat
little children in accordance withfact and not with theory. When they ceaseto
be infants and actually do wrong, it should be borne in mind that they are still
necessarilyincapable of many kinds of sin. Comparatively they still are
"lambs." Let them not be induced to make confessionswhichin their lips are
absurd; to sing hymns or say prayers which to them are untrue; to profess
emotions which it is impossible for them to feel. Let us also keepthem
ignorant of sin as long as possible. Very injurious are many books, pictures
and exhibitions which render children familiar with evil before the time. We
should be cautious even in selecting their Bible lessons.Batherlet us adapt
our teaching to their innocence. Let us not tell them how attractive are the
forbidden pastures, and run the risk of impressing them more with the
charms than the perils of going astray. Rather let us show them the beauty of
the pastures where the Shepherd is now leading them, the security of the fold,
the happiness of the flock. Let the positive teaching of goodness fortify them
againstthe evil when it comes.
2. This thought reminds us that they are errant. Lambs venture from their
mother's side, and in playful troops wander hither and thither. However
innocent at first, children have within them the seeds of evil which only need
favouring circumstances to develop. Inclination within is responded to by
opportunity without "A roaring lion" watches forthe lambs. Look at these
little children to whom robbery and adultery and murder are words without a
meaning. Think now of the criminals in our gaols. They were once innocent as
lambs. Alas! how thoughtless, or heartless, orboth, are some parents. Young
girls and boys of the poor rove through the streets as if no danger threatened
them; and the children of the wealthierare often sentto schools withoutany
caution respecting associatesalreadyold in sin.

46. 3. Lambs are playful. What sight is more pleasantin the spring-time than the
merry gambols of a young lamb. How kind is the Creator!He has made all
things to be glad! Children, too, are joyous. How quickly they dry their tears!
How little delights them! Religious teachers shouldcultivate this gladness.
They will have sadness enoughsome day. Let them be merry while they can.
Let not religion frown on their happiness. God made laughter as surely as He
made tears. Joyfulness, too, should characterize their religion. Nature, God's
open book, is full of delight for them. The Bible is storedwith amusement for
them. Guide the lambs through the greenand pleasantpastures, not up
craggyrocks too steepfor their tiny feet. Especiallylet Jesus, in all the
loveliness of His human character, be the teacher's constanttheme. Let the
hymns they sing be joyous like themselves, and let the tunes express their own
gladness ofheart. Let the public services to which they are takennot be so
long and unsuitable to their comprehensionas to link ideas of weariness with
worship. And let Sunday be a day of specialpleasure.
4. A lamb is an emblem of weaknessand gentleness.The GoodShepherd was
Himself brought "as a lamb to the slaughter;" and He is representedas
gathering the lambs into His bosom. He gently leads those that need gentle
treatment. Be gentle with the lambs. They cannotrun far nor run long. They
may be seriouslyinjured "if men should over-drive them one day." Some
goodpeople are not wise in this respect. Theymay be very conscientious in
bringing up their children; but they are very strict. What wonder if such
children have been repelled rather than attracted!It is so mysterious that they
have gone wrong?
II. THESE LAMBS ARE CHRIST'S.
1. The "Word," who became "flesh," createdeverylittle lamb. Their Maker
who knows all their wants bids us care for them as His own.
2. They are Christ's because He redeemedthem. If Jesus died for the whole
world who will venture to exclude those to whom He said, "Of such is the
kingdom of heaven?" Born into a redeemedworld, they are the purchased
possessionofits Lord.
3. Children are Christ's peculiar treasure. A large proportion of His own life
was spent in childhood. He often showedHis love for children. Children loved
Him, and sang hosannah to Him when Scribes and Pharisees insultedHim. He
took their part and said, "Have ye not read, Out of the mouth of babes and
sucklings Thou hastperfected praise." He said to Peter, "FeedMy lambs."
How richly has His grace beenoften poured forth on children! And in heaven
children constitute the greatestportion of its multitude and the brightest jewel

47. in the mediatorial crown. Let us treat them as such. They are not the devil's,
and must not be left to him.
III. CHRIST'S LAMBS ARE TO BE FED.
1. They must be taken to the only true pasture. Jesus is "the Breadof Life."
They will starve on mere ceremonies andChurch rules. Even doctrine,
howeverscriptural, is not enough.
2. They are to be fed; not taken to the pasture merely that they may see it; nor
driven to it and over it and then from it; but induced to lie down there and
make it their home and the habitual nourishment and joy of their souls. They
are to be fed, not crammed; but the truth is to be given them in such measure
and at such times that they may digestit and grow thereby.
3. They must be fed while they are lambs. The first infant-class should be at
home, and the mother the first teacher. The instructions of the church and the
schoolare subsequent and auxiliary.
(NewmanHall, LL. B.)
Christ's sympathy with the lambs of His flock
J. Mood.I. THE OBJECTS OF THE SAVIOUR'S CARE — "My lambs."
1. Young Christians. By these we mean all, in youth or riper years, who are
young in Christianity. Are you such? Then you are wise to salvation, and
walking in wisdom's "ways ofpleasantness,"and"paths of peace." Your
knowledge, however, is not perfect, and your faith is not yet confirmed and
steadfast.
2. Mourners in Zion. Penitent sinners seeking salvation, with hearts "broken
and contrite." The GoodShepherd loves you, seeksyea saves you. "Blessed
are they that mourn for they shall be comforted."
3. Little children. How greattheir number! How important their position!
How perilous their circumstances!How lovely, lively, tender, erring, sinful!
Think of —
(1)Their hereditary guilt and depravity.
(2)Their capacityand need.
(3)Their position and influence.
(4)Their danger and
(5)duty. Their redemption and recover.
(6)Their destiny.

48. II. THE IMPORT OF THE SAVIOUR'S CHARGE
1. Foodis provided and prepared. Are they ignorant, and in a state of
intellectual destitution? This is met in the Bible. Are they condemned, and in a
state of judicial destitution? This is met by the Atonement. Are they depraved,
and in a state of spiritual destitution? This is met in the gift of the Spirit. Are
they sinners, and in a state of moral destitution? This is met in the provision
of the Gospel. Are they in a state of physical destitution? This is met in "the
resurrectionof life." Are they, in short, in a state of destitution which nothing
less than Deity can satisfy? Here is food —
(1)Suitable and sufficient.
(2)Exhaustless and free.
(3)Satisfying and sustaining.
(4)Nearand necessary.
2. The food provided and prepared is to be given to lambs.(1) Teachthem
"the Holy Bible" and all you can of its genuineness and inspiration; its
doctrines, duties and institutions; its Author, origin, and end. Here is the
SchoolBook, the manual of children, the treasury of young men, and the
profound text-book of fathers, the "Encyclopedia" ofsalvation. The Bible is
the oldest, wisest, bestbook in the world.(2) Train and tend them —
(a)In the regularhabit of reading, revering, believing, and loving the Bible.
(b)To believe, and trust, and rest in the atonement of the Saviour.
(c)To receive and obey, to follow and honour, the Spirit of Christ.
(d)In the duty of submission to the gospellaw.
(e)To live in reference to the judgment.
3. But how is all this to be accomplished? We venture to propose the following
system: Let it be —
(1)Various in adaptation.
(2)Uniform in tendency.
(3)Kind, but firm, in application.
(J. Mood.)
Tending the lambs
Union Magazine.Manyyears ago, whentaking my morning walk along the
base of Schiehallion, one of our loftiestHighland mountains, I met a
Shepherd, a regular attender at my sabbath meetings. He had his plaid closely

49. wrapped round him, and had evidently something in it that he was carrying
with unusual care. After a friendly salutation, I said, "What is this, Malcolm,
that you have in your plaid?" He answered, "It is a poor forsakenlamb.
When I was going my rounds this morning, I found it lying on the cold
ground, its mother had left it, and it would soonhave died." "And what do
you intend to do with it?" "I will feedit," saidthe kind shepherd, "and it will
soonbe one of the flock." He did so. The poor forsakenlamb, revived, grew,
and become one of the liveliest and strongestofthe fold, while it must have
pined and died but for the compassionofthe shepherd.
(Union Magazine.)
The shepherding of the lambs
W. G. Horder.I. CHRIST THINKS OF THE CHILDREN AS LAMBS. Of all
the flock the Iambs are most carefully keptwithin the fold. The sheepmay be
allowedto stray, but not the lambs. In such a land as Palestine a lamb outside
the fold would soonfail a prey to wild beasts. Christever regardedchildren as
a part of the kingdom. He might say to His disciples, "I will make you fishers
of men," but He never told them to be fishers of children, they were to be
shepherds to the children, who were already in the fold. Now, that has a very
deep meaning both for the lambs and the shepherds. To the lambs — it means
that Christ loves you — that you are in His greatfold — He is your Shepherd.
If you only knew how much He loved you, you would say, "I love Him because
He first loved me." But it has a meaning for those who feed them. We must
treat them as lambs. They are not yet on the dark mountains of unbelief, or in
the far country of sin. We have not to bring them home, but to keepthem at
home. If we are to do this, we must always speak ofGod as their best friend. If
thus they think of Him, then they will never desire to leave the blessed
enclosure.
II. CHRIST SAYS THEY MUST BE FED. Do not think they are too young to
be fed. They will soonbe sheep. The flocks ofthe future will be largely
determined by the treatment the lambs now receive. We see this clearly
enough in other realms. If a child be stinted in food, he will suffer in body all
his days. No after plenty will remedy the neglect. If a child be not taught the
elements of knowledge, it will be difficult to acquire them afterwards. But we
do not see so clearly(would that we did!) the immense importance of
providing spiritual food. Neglectofthis can never be remedied. Later in life
the child may be brought to the knowledge of the truth, but even then the
characterwill not be what it might have been if it had been in early days fed
after the manner of Christ. You may take a tree which has grown for some
years in one place or direction, and move it to another place or give it another

50. direction; but it will never have the vigour or grace ofa young tree planted in
the right place, and trained from the first in the direction you wished. "Those
that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our
God," &c. It is easyto see why it should be so. The bent of life is determined
in early days, then habits are formed, and the generaltone and characterof
the soulare fixed.
III. THEY MUST HAVE FOOD CONVENIENTFOR THEM. Hidden in the
word is surely the idea that the food must be simple. Lambs will not thrive on
the food of the sheep. They need the milk, and not the hard hay, the tender
herb, and not the coarseroots. It is almost as bad to give them what they
cannot digestas to give them nothing to digestat all. There is in this book an
abundance of provision, but we must see to it that we make a right selection
therefrom. Many parts of Holy Scripture are not suited to the capacityor
calculatedto meet the wants of a child. They will only puzzle and perplex. Our
Lord's words are bestsuited to the children. He so often spoke in parables
that there is nearly always a picture for them to look upon as they read His
words. Then, too, our Lord is ever telling of a Father, and His great love; ever
revealing Him in words of tenderness and grace. Now, the main thing is for
the child to be drawn to God — to know Him in Jesus Christ — to think of
Him as the best Friend. If we can fix the young heart upon God, then our
work is well-nigh done.
IV. THEY MUST BE FED BY THOSE WHO LOVE THE GOOD
SHEPHERD. The naturalist must do his work by keenobservation;the
philosopher by the dry light of reason;the poet's chief ally is imagination; but
love is the supreme thing in the kingdom of God. Our Lord's anxiety is all
concerning Peter's love. If his heart be right, Christ knew that all else would
come right.
(W. G. Horder.)
Care for the children
W. Baxendale.PresidentHarrisontaught for severalyears in a Sabbath school
on the banks of the Ohio, and the Sunday before he left home for Washington
to assume the duties of chief magistrate of the nation, he met his Bible class as
usual; and his lastcounselon the subject to his gardenerat Washington, it
may be hoped, will never be forgottenby his country. When advised to keepa
dog to protect his fruit, he replied, "Ratherseta Sunday-schoolteacherto
take care of the boys."
(W. Baxendale.)
Care for children

51. Preacher's Lantern.An Englishman, visiting Sweden, noticing the care taken
in that country for educating children, who are rescuedfrom the streets and
placed in specialschools, inquired if it was not costly. "Yes, but not dear. We
Swedes are not rich enough to let a child grow up in ignorance, misery, and
crime, to become a scourge to societyas well as a disgrace to himself."
(Preacher's Lantern.)
Ministering to children
J. Houghton, D. D.It was beautifully saidof one minister, "With the youth he
took greatpains, and was a tree of knowledge,with fruit that the children
could reach."
(J. Houghton, D. D.)
Claims of children
JosephCook.Edmund Burke once was obligedto oppose in Parliament an
unfortunate marriage law. He closeda passageofmarvellous eloquence by
these words: "Why do I speak ofparental feeling? The children are parties to
be consideredin this legislation. The mover of this Bill has no child."
(JosephCook.)
The claims of children
Socrates.CouldI climb to the highestplace in Athens, I would lift up my voice
and proclaim, "Fellow citizens, why do ye turn and scrape every stone to
gather wealth, and take so little care of your children, to whom you must one
day relinquish it all."
(Socrates.)
Children a trust from God
Dr. Potter.The sonof a man very eminent in the legalprofessionwas once
standing in a felon's dock awaiting a sentence of transportation. Said the
judge, who knew his parentage and history, "Do you remember your father?"
"Perfectly," saidthe youth. "WheneverI entered his presence he said, 'Run
away, my lad, and don't trouble me.'" The greatlawyer was thus enabled to
complete his greatwork on "The Law of Trusts;" and his son in due time
furnished a practical commentary on the way in which a father had
dischargedthe most sacredof all trusts committed to him in the person of his
own child.
(Dr. Potter.)
Importance of children

52. Family Treasury.Agentleman was walking overhis farm with a friend,
exhibiting his crops, herds of cattle, and flocks of sheep, with all of which his
friend was highly pleased, but with nothing so much as his splendid sheep. He
had seenthe same breed frequently before, but never such noble specimens,
and with greatearnestnesshe askedhow he had succeededin rearing such
flocks. His simple answerwas:"I take care of my lambs, sir."
(Family Treasury.)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(15)Jesus saithto Simon Peter,
Simon, son of Jonas.—Thebettertext here and in John 21:16-17, is, Simon,
son of John. The contrastof the name by which the Evangelistdenotes, and
with that by which the Lord addresses Peter, atonce strikes us as significant,
and the more so because it comes in a context containing severalsignificant
verbal contrasts. Our Lord’s words would seemto address him as one who
had fallen from the steadfastnessofthe Rock-man, and had been true rather
to his natural than to his apostolic name. (Comp. Note on John 1:42, and
Matthew 16:17.)
Lovest thou me more than these?—i.e.,than these disciples who are present
here with thee. It seems unnecessaryto add this explanation, but not a few
English notes on this verse explain the word “these” ofthe fishes, or of the
boats and nets, as though the question was, “Lovestthou Me more than thy
worldly calling? Art thou willing to give up all for Me?” The obvious
reference is to Peter’s owncomparisonof himself with others in the
confidence of love which he thought could never fail. (Comp. Matthew 26:33;
Mark 14:29.)
The thrice-askedquestionhas been generallyunderstood to have specialforce
in the restorationof him who had thrice denied his Lord, and now thrice
declares his love for Him, and is thrice entrusted with a work for Him; and we
feel that this interpretation gives a natural meaning to the emphasis of these
verses. It may not be fanciful to trace significance, evenin the external
circumstances under which the question was asked. Bythe side of the lake
after casting his net into the sea had Peterfirst been calledto be a fisher of
men (Matthew 4:19). The lake, the very spot on the shore, the nets, the boat,
would bring back to his mind in all their fulness the thoughts of the day which
had been the turning-point of his life. By the side of the “fire of coals” (see
Note on John 18:18, the only other place where the word occurs)he had

53. denied his Lord. As the eye rests upon the “fire of coals” before him, and he is
conscious ofthe presence of the Lord, who knows all things (John 21:17),
burning thoughts of penitence and shame may have come to his mind, and
these may have been the true preparation for the words which follow.
Yea, Lord; thou knowestthat I love thee.—Peteruses a less strong expression
for love than that which had been used by our Lord. The question seems to
ask, “Dostthou in the full determination of the will, in profound reverence
and devotion, love Me?” The answerseems to say, “Thou knowestme;I dare
not now declare this fixed determination of the will, but in the fulness of
personalaffectionI dare answer, and Thou knowestthat evenin my denials it
was true, ‘I love Thee.’”
He saith unto him, Feedmy lambs.—More exactly, little lambs.
MacLaren's ExpositionsJohn
‘LOVEST THOU ME?’
John 21:15.
Peterhad already seenthe risen Lord. There had been that interview on
Eastermorning, on which the sealof sacredsecrecywas impressed;when,
alone, the denier poured out his heart to his Lord, and was takento the heart
that he had wounded. Then there had been two interviews on the two
successive Sundays in which the Apostle, in common with his brethren, had
received, as one of the group, the Lord’s benediction, the Lord’s gift of the
Spirit, and the Lord’s commission. But something more was needed; there
had been public denial, there must be public confession. If he had slipped
againinto the circle of the disciples, with no specialtreatment or reference to
his fall, it might have seemeda trivial fault to others, and even to himself. And
so, after that strange meal on the beach, we have this exquisitely beautiful and
deeply instructive incident of the specialtreatment needed by the denier
before he could be publicly reinstated in his office.
The meal seems to have passedin silence. That awe which hung over the
disciples in all their intercourse with Jesus during the forty days, lay heavy on
them, and they sat there, huddled round the fire, eating silently the meal
which Christ had provided, and no doubt gazing silently at the silent Lord.
What a tension of expectationthere must have been as to how the oppressive
silence was to be broken! and how Peter’s heartmust have throbbed, and the
others’ ears been prickedup, when it was brokenby ‘Simon, son of Jonas,

54. lovestthou Me?’We may listen with pricked-up ears too. For we have here, in
Christ’s treatment of the Apostle, a revelationof how He behaves to a soul
conscious ofits fault; and in Peter’s demeanour an illustration of how a soul,
conscious ofits fault, should behave to Him.
There are three stages here:the threefold question, the threefold answer, and
the threefold charge. Let us look at these.
I. The threefold question.
The reiteration in the interrogation did not express doubt as to the veracity of
the answer, nor dissatisfactionwith its terms; but it did express, and was
meant, I suppose, to suggestto Peterand to the others, that the threefold
denial needed to be obliterated by the threefold confession;and that every
black mark that had been scoreddeep on the page by that denial needed to be
coveredover with the gilding or bright colouring of the triple
acknowledgment. And so Peter thrice having said, ‘I know Him not!’ Jesus
with a gracious violence forcedhim to saythrice, ‘Thou knowestthatI love
Thee.’The same intention to compel Peterto go back upon his pastcomes out
in two things besides the triple form of the question. The one is the designation
by which he is addressed, ‘Simon, son of Jonas,’whichtravels back, as it
were, to the time before he was a disciple, and points a finger to his weak
humanity before it had come under the influence of Jesus Christ. ‘Simon, son
of Jonas,’was the name that he bore in the days before his discipleship. It was
the name by which Jesus had addressedhim, therefore, on that never-to-be-
forgottenturning-point of his life, when he was first brought to Him by his
brother Andrew. It was the name by which Jesus had addressedhim at the
very climax of his past life when, high up, he had been able to see far, and in
answerto the Lord’s question, had rung out the confession:‘Thou art the
Christ, the Son of the living God!’ So the name by which Jesus addresseshim
now says to him in effect:‘Remember thy human weakness;remember how
thou wert drawn to Me; remember the high-water mark of thy discipleship,
when I was plain before thee as the Son of God, and remembering all these,
answerMe-lovestthou Me?’
The same intention to drive Peterback to the wholesome remembrance ofa
stained past is obvious in the first form of the question. Our Lord mercifully
does not persistin giving to it that form in the secondand third instances:
‘Lovest thou Me more than these?’More than these, what? I cannotfor a
moment believe that that question means something so trivial and irrelevant

55. as ‘Lovest thou Me more than these nets, and boats, and the fishing?’ No;in
accordancewith the purpose that runs through the whole, of compelling Peter
to retrospect, it says to him, ‘Do you remember what you said a dozen hours
before you denied Me, “Thoughall should forsake Thee, yetwill not I”? Are
you going to take that stand again? Lovestthou Me more than these that
never discredited their boasting so shamefully?’
So, dear brethren! here we have Jesus Christ, in His treatment of this penitent
and half-restoredsoul, forcing a man, with merciful compulsion, to look
steadfastlyand long at his past sin, and to retrace step by step, shameful stage
by shameful stage, the road by which he had departed so far. Every foul place
he is to stop and look at, and think about. Eachdetail he has to bring up
before his mind. Was it not cruel of Jesus thus to take Peterby the neck, as it
were, and hold him right down, close to the foul things that he had done, and
say to him, ‘Look! look!look ever! and answer, Lovestthou Me?’No; it was
not cruel; it was true kindness. Peterhad never been so abundantly and
permanently penetrated by the sense ofthe sinfulness of his sin, as after he
was sure, as he had been made sure in that greatinterview, that it was all
forgiven. So long as a man is disturbed by the dread of consequences, so long
as he is doubtful as to his relation to the forgiving Love, he is not in a position
beneficially and sanelyto consider his evil in its moral quality only. But when
the convictioncomes to a man, ‘God is pacified towards thee for all that thou
hast done’; and when he canlook at his own evil without the smallest
disturbance rising from slavish fear of issues, then lie is in a position rightly to
estimate its darkness and its depth. And there can be no better discipline for
us all than to remember our faults, and penitently to travel back over the road
of our sins, just because we are sure that God in Christ has forgottenthem.
The beginning of Christ’s merciful treatment of the forgiven man is to compel
him to remember, that he may learn and be ashamed.
And then there is another point here, in this triple question. How significant
and beautiful it is that the only thing that Jesus Christcares to ask about is
the sinner’s love! We might have expected:‘Simon, son of Jonas, are you
sorry for what you did? Simon, sonof Jonas, willyou promise never to do the
like any more?’ No! These things will come if the other thing is there. ‘Lovest
thou Me?’Jesus Christ sues eachof us, not for obedience primarily, not for
repentance, not for vows, not for conduct, but for a heart; and that being
given, all the rest will follow. That is the distinguishing characteristic of
Christian morality, that Jesus seeks firstfor the surrender of the affections,
and believes, and is warranted in the belief, that if these are surrendered, all

56. else will follow; and love being given, loyalty and service and repentance and
hatred of self-will and of self-seeking willfollow in her train. All the gracesof
human characterwhich Christ seeks,and is ready to impart, are, as it were,
but the pages and ministers of the regal Love, who follow behind and swellthe
cortege ofher servants.
Christ asks forlove. Surely that indicates the depth of His own! In this
commerce He is satisfiedwith nothing less, and can ask for nothing more; and
He seeks forlove because He is love, and has given love. Oh! to all hearts
burdened, as all our hearts ought to be-unless the burden has been castoff in
one way-by the consciousnessofour ownweaknessand imperfection, surely,
surely, it is a gospelthat is containedin that one question addressedto a man
who had gone far astray, ‘Simon, sonof Jonas, lovestthou?’
Here, again, we have Jesus Christ, in His dealing with the penitent, willing to
trust discredited professions. We think that one of the signs of our being wise
people is that experience shall have taught us ‘once’ being ‘bit, twice’ to be
‘shy,’ and if a man has once deceivedus by flaming professions and ice-cold
acts, never to trust him any more. And we think that is ‘worldly wisdom,’ and
‘the bitter fruit of earthly experience,’and ‘sharpness,’and ‘shrewdness,’and
so forth. Jesus Christ, even whilst reminding Peter, by that ‘more than these,’
of his utterly hollow and unreliable boasting, shows Himself ready to accept
once againthe words of one whose unveracity He had proved. ‘Charity hopeth
all things, believeth all things,’ and Jesus Christ is ready to trust us when we
say, ‘I love Thee,’even though often in the past our professedlove has been all
disproved.
We have here, in this question, our Lord revealing Himself as willing to accept
the imperfect love which a disciple can offer Him. Of course, many of you well
know that there is a very remarkable play of expressionhere. In the two first
questions the word which our Lord employs for ‘love’ is not the same as that
which appears in Peter’s two first answers. Christasks forone kind of love;
Peterproffers another. I do not enter upon discussionas to the distinction
betweenthese two apparent synonyms. The kind of love which Christ asks for
is higher, nobler, less emotional, and more associatedwith the whole mind and
will. It is the inferior kind, the more warm, more sensuous, more passionate
and emotional, which Peter brings. And then, in the third question, our Lord,
as it were, surrenders and takes Peter’s ownword, as if He had said, ‘Be it so!
You shrink from professing the higher kind; I will take the lower;and I will
educate and bring that up to the height that I desire you to stand at.’ Ah,

57. brother! howeverstained and imperfect, howeverdisproved by denials,
howevertainted by earthly associations, JesusChristwill acceptthe poor
stream of love, though it be but a trickle when it ought to be a torrent, which
we can bring Him.
These are the lessons whichit seems to me lie in this triple question. I have
dealt with them at the greaterlength, because those whichfollow are largely
dependent upon them. But let me turn now briefly, in the secondplace, to-
II. The triple answer.
‘Yea, Lord! Thou knowestthat I love Thee.’Is not that beautiful, that the
man who by Christ’s Resurrection, as the last of the answers shows, hadbeen
led to the loftiest conceptionof Christ’s omniscience, and regardedHim as
knowing the hearts of all men, should, in the face of all that Jesus Christknew
about his denial and his sin, have dared to appeal to Christ’s own knowledge?
What a superb and all-conquering confidence in Christ’s depth of knowledge
and forgivingness of knowledge thatanswershowed!He felt that Jesus could
look beneath the surface of his sin, and see that below it there was, evenin the
midst of the denial, a heart that in its depths was true. It is a tremendous piece
of confident appealto the deeper knowledge,and therefore the largerlove and
more abundant forgiveness, ofthe righteous Lord-’Thou knowestthat I love
Thee.’
Brethren! a Christian man ought to be sure of his love to Jesus Christ. You do
not study your conduct in order to infer from it your love to others. You do
not study your conduct in order to infer from it your love to your wife, or
your husband, or your parents, or your children, or your friend. Love is not a
matter of inference;it is a matter of consciousnessand intuition. And whilst
self-examinationis needful for us all for many reasons, a Christian man ought
to be as sure that he loves Jesus Christ as he is sure that he loves his dearest
upon earth.
It used to be the fashion long ago-this generationhas not depth enough to
keepup the fashion-for Christian people to talk as if it were a point they
longed to know, whether they loved Jesus Christ or not. There is no reason
why it should be a point we long to know. You know all about your love to one
another, and you are sure about that. Why are you not sure about your love to
Jesus Christ? ‘Oh! but,’ you say, ‘look at my sins and failures’; and if Peter
had lookedonly at his sins, do you not think that his words would have stuck

58. in his throat? He did look, but he lookedin a very different way from that of
trying to ascertainfrom his conductwhether he loved Jesus Christ or not.
Brethren, any sin is inconsistentwith Christian love to Christ. Thank God, we
have no right to sayof any sin that it is incompatible with that love! More
than that; a great, gross, flagrant, sudden fall like Peter’s is a greatdeal less
inconsistentwith love to Christ than are the continuously unworthy, worldly,
selfish, Christ-forgetting lives of hosts of complacentprofessing Christians to-
day. White ants will eat up the carcaseofa dead buffalo quicker than a lion
will. And to have denied Christ once, twice, thrice, in the space ofan hour,
and under strong temptation, is not half so bad as to call Him ‘Master’and
‘Lord,’ and day by day, week in, week out, in works to deny Him. The triple
answerdeclares to us that in spite of a man’s sins he ought to be conscious of
his love, and be ready to profess it when need is.
III. Lastly, we have here the triple commission.
I do not dwell upon it at any length, because in its original form it applies
especiallyto the Apostolic office. But the generalprinciples which underlie
this threefold charge, to feed and to tend both ‘the sheep’ and ‘the lambs,’
may be put in a form that applies to eachof us, and it is this-the best tokenof
a Christian’s love to Jesus Christ is his service of man for Christ’s sake.
‘Lovest thou Me?’‘Yea! Lord.’ Thou hast said; go and do, ‘FeedMy lambs;
feed My sheep.’ We need the professionof words;we need, as Peterhimself
enjoined at a subsequent time, to be ready to ‘give to every man that askethus
a reasonof the hope,’ and an acknowledgmentofthe love, that are in us. But
if you want men to believe in your love, however Jesus Christmay know it, go
and work in the Master’s vineyard. The service ofman is the garb of the love
of God. ‘He that loveth God will love his brother also.’Do not confine that
thought of service, and feeding, and tending, to what we callevangelistic and
religious work. That is one of its forms, but it is only one of them. Everything
in which Christian men can serve their fellows is to be takenby them as their
worship of their Lord, and is takenby the world as the convincing proof of the
reality of their love.
Love to Jesus Christ is the qualification for all such service. If we are knit to
Him by true affection, which is basedupon our consciousness ofour own falls
and evils, and our receptionof His forgiving mercy, then we shall have the
qualities that fit us, and the impulse that drives us, to serve and help our
fellows. I do not say-Godforbid!-that there is no philanthropy apart from
Christian faith, but I do say that, on the wide scale, and in the long run, they

59. who are knit to Jesus Christby love will be those who render the greatesthelp
to all that are ‘afflicted in mind, body, or estate’;and that the true basis and
qualification for efficient service of our fellows is the utter surrender of our
hearts to Him who is the Fountain of love, and from whom comes allour
powerto live in the world, as the images and embodiments of the love which
has savedus that we might help to save others.
Brethren! let us all ask ourselves Christ’s question to the denier. Let us look
our past evils full in the face, that we may learn to hate them, and that we may
learn more the width and the sweepofthe powerof His pardoning mercy.
God grant that we may all be able to say, ‘Thou knowestallthings; Thou
knowestthat I love Thee!’
BensonCommentaryHYPERLINK "/john/21-15.htm"John21:15. When they
had dined — On the kind provision wherewith Jesus had supplied them, and,
it is likely, had been edified with such discourse as Jesus had generallyused
when eating with them; Jesus saidto Simon Peter — Who, by his late denial
of him, had given him great reasonto call in question the sincerity of his love;
Simon, son of Jonas, lovestthou me? — He speaks to him by name, the more
to affecthim, as he did (Luke 22:31)when he warnedhim of a great
approaching trial. He doth not call him Cephas, or Peter, a name signifying
strength or stability, for he had lostthe credit of that; but gives him his
original name, Simon, adding, however, Song of Solomon of Jonas, as he had
calledhim when he pronounced him blessed, Matthew 16:17. And the
question he askedhim is, of all others, one of the most important, and on
which we should frequently and especiallyask ourselves:for, on the one hand,
if any man love not the Lord Jesus he is anathema, that is, exposedto the
wrath and curse of God, 1 Corinthians 16:22; whereas the grace and blessing
of God is the portion of all those who love him in sincerity, Ephesians 6:24.
Observe, reader, the question is not, Dostthou know me? Dostthou believe in
me? Dostthou admire, honour, or fear me? but, Dostthou love me? Give me
but proof of that, as if Jesus had said, and I will acknowledge thatthy
repentance is sincere;that thy backslidings are healed, and that thou art
recoveredfrom thy fall. Peter had professedhimself a penitent, had wept
bitterly for his sin, had returned to the societyof the disciples, and had taken
greatinterest in the death and resurrectionof Christ; deeply mourning for the
former, and greatly rejoicing at being assuredof the latter: but still this is not
sufficient: the question is, Lovest thou me? Nay, further, Lovest thou me more
than these? — More than thou lovestthese persons, James or John, thy
intimate friends, or Andrew, thy own brother and companion? Those do not

60. love Christ aright, who do not love him better than the best friend they have
in the world, and make it appear so wheneverthere is a comparisonor
competition betweenthese objects of their love. Or, more than thou lovest
these things, these boats and nets, and the other implements of fishing, by
which thou earnesta livelihood: that is, more than thou lovestthy occupation
and the gains of it. So Dr. Whitby. And the question, thus interpreted, “is
neither so cold nor so foreign,” says Dr. Campbell, “as some have represented
it. This was probably the last time that Peterexercisedhis professionas a
fisherman. Jesus was about to employ him as an apostle;but as he disdained
all forced obedience, and would acceptno service that did not spring from
choice, and originate in love, he put this question to give Peteran opportunity
of professing openly his love, (which his late transgressionhad rendered
questionable,)and consequentlyhis preference of the work in which Jesus was
to employ him, with whatever difficulties and perils it might be accompanied,
to any worldly occupation, howevergainful.” The sense, however, in which the
words are more commonly takenis, Lovestthou me more than these men [thy
fellow-disciples]love me? Thus interpreted, the question must be considered
as having a reference to the declarationformerly made by Peter, (Matthew
26:33,)when he seemedto arrogate a superiority to the rest, in zeal for his
Masterand steadiness in his service;Though all men should be offended
because ofthee, yet will I never be offended. This gives a peculiar propriety to
Peter’s reply here. “Convinced, at length, that his Masterknew his heart
better than he himself; conscious, atthe same time, of the affectionwhich he
bore him, he dares make the declaration, [as to the sincerity of his love,]
appealing to the infallible Judge, before whom he stood, as the voucher of his
truth. But as to his fellow-disciples, he is now taught not to assume any thing.
He dares not utter a single word which would lead to a comparisonwith those
to whom he knew his woful defectionhad made him appear so much inferior.”
He only says, Yea, Lord, thou knowestthat I love thee — “And his silence on
this part of the question speaksstronglythe shame he had on recollecting his
former presumption, in boasting superior zeal and firmness, and shows, that
the lessonofhumility and self-knowledgehe had so lately received, had not
been lost.”
He saith unto him, Feedmy lambs — Manifest thy love to me in a way which
will be peculiarly acceptable;administer spiritual food to my people, even to
the weakestandfeeblestof my flock;give milk to babes, explain the first
principles of my doctrine to those who, having but lately believed in me, are
not yet thoroughly instructed in the truths, or establishedin the grace of the
gospel. It may be worth observing here, that the original word αρνια, being

61. the diminutive of αρνα, signifies the leastof my lambs; and if, says Dr.
Doddridge, “we interpret it as an intimation of the care which Peter, as a
minister of Christ, was to take of little children, it seems perfectly congruous
to the wisdom and tenderness of the greatShepherd of the sheep, to give so
particular an injunction concerning it.”
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary21:15-19Our Lord addressedPeter
by his original name, as if he had forfeited that of Peter through his denying
him. He now answered, Thouknowestthat I love thee; but without professing
to love Jesus more than others. We must not be surprised to have our sincerity
calledinto question, when we ourselves have done that which makes it
doubtful. Every remembrance of past sins, even pardoned sins, renews the
sorrow of a true penitent. Conscious ofintegrity, Petersolemnly appealed to
Christ, as knowing all things, even the secrets ofhis heart. It is well when our
falls and mistakes make us more humble and watchful. The sincerity of our
love to God must be brought to the test; and it behoves us to inquire with
earnest, preserving prayer to the heart-searching God, to examine and prove
us, whether we are able to stand this test. No one canbe qualified to feed the
sheepand lambs of Christ, who does not love the goodShepherd more than
any earthly advantage or object. It is the greatconcernof every goodman,
whateverdeath he dies, to glorify God in it; for what is our chief end but this,
to die to the Lord, at the word of the Lord?
Barnes'Notes on the BibleLovestthou me more than these? - There is a slight
ambiguity here in the original, as there is in our translation. The word these
may be in the neuter gender, and refer to these things his boat, his fishing
utensils, and his employments; or it may be in the masculine, and refer to the
apostles. In the former sense it would mean, "Lovestthou me more than thou
lovestthese objects? Art thou now willing, from love to me, to forsake all
these, and go and preachmy gospelto the nations of the earth?" In the other
sense, whichis probably the true sense, it would mean, "Lovestthou me more
than these other apostles love me?" In this question Jesus refers to the
professionof superior attachment to him which Peterhad made before his
death Matthew 26:33;"Thoughall men shall be offended because ofthee, yet
will I never be offended." Compare John 13:37. Jesus here slightly reproves
him for that confident assertion, reminds him of his sad and painful denial,
and now puts this direct and pointed question to him to know what was the
present state of his feelings. After all that Peter had had to humble him, the
Saviour inquired of him what had been the effecton his mind, and whether it
had tended to prepare him for the arduous toils in which he was about to
engage. This questionwe should all put to ourselves. It is a matter of much

62. importance that we should ourselves know what is the effectof the dealings of
divine Providence on our hearts, and what is our present state of feeling
toward the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thou knowestthat I love thee - Peternow made no pretensions to love
superior to his brethren. His sad denial had convinced him of the folly of that
claim; but still he could appeal to the Searcherofthe heart, and say that he
knew that he loved him. Here is the expressionof a humbled soul - soul made
sensible of its weaknessand need of strength, yet with evidence of true
attachment to the Saviour. It is not the most confident pretensions that
constitute the highest proof of love to Christ; and the happiest and best state
of feeling is when we canwith humility, yet with confidence, look to the Lord
Jesus and say, "Thou knowestthat I love thee."
Feedmy lambs - The word here rendered "feed" means the care afforded by
furnishing nutriment for the flock. In the next verse there is a change in the
Greek, and the word rendered feed denotes rather the care, guidance, and
protection which a shepherd extends to his flock. By the use of both these
words, it is supposed that our Saviour intended that a shepherd was both to
offer the proper food for his flock and to govern it; or, as we express it, to
exercise the office of a pastor. The expressionis takenfrom the office of a
shepherd, with which the office of a minister of the gospelis frequently
compared. It means, as a goodshepherd provides for the wants of his flock, so
the pastorin the church is to furnish food for the soul, or so to exhibit truth
that the faith of believers may be strengthened and their hope confirmed.
My lambs - The church is often comparedto a flock. See John 10:1-16. Here
the expressionmy lambs undoubtedly refers to the tender and the young in
the Christian church; to those who are young in years and in Christian
experience. The Lord Jesus saw, whathas been confirmed in the experience of
the church, that the successofthe gospelamong men depended on the care
which the ministry would extend to those in early life. It is in obedience to this
command that Sunday schools have been established, and no means of
fulfilling this command of the Saviour have been found so effectualas to
extend patronage to those schools.It is not merely, therefore, the privilege, it
is the solemnduty of ministers of the gospelto countenance and patronize
those schools.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary15-17. whenthey had dined,
Jesus saith—Silenceappears to have reigned during the meal; unbroken on
His part, that by their mute observationof Him they might have their
assurance ofHis identity the more confirmed; and on theirs, from reverential
shrinking to speak till He did.

63. Simon, son of Jonas, lovestthou me more than these?—referring lovingly to
those sad words of Peter, shortly before denying his Lord, "Thoughall men
shall be offended because ofThee, yet will I never be offended" (Mt 26:33),
and intending by this allusion to bring the whole scene vividly before his mind
and put him to shame.
Yea, Lord; thou knowestthat I love thee—He adds not, "more than these,"
but prefixes a touching appealto the Saviour's ownomniscience for the truth
of his protestation, which makes it a totally different kind of speechfrom his
former.
He saith unto him, Feedmy lambs—It is surely wrong to view this term as a
mere diminutive of affection, and as meaning the same thing as "the sheep"
[Websterand Wilkinson]. It is much more according to usage to understand
by the "lambs," young and tender disciples, whetherin age or Christian
standing (Isa 40:11;1Jo 2:12, 13), and by the "sheep" the more mature. Shall
we say (with many) that Peterwas here reinstated in office? Notexactly, since
he was not actually excluded from it. But after such conduct as his, the deep
wound which the honor of Christ had received, the stain brought on his office,
the damage done to his high standing among his brethren, and even his own
comfort, in prospectof the greatwork before him, required some such
renewalof his calland re-establishment of his position as this.
Matthew Poole's CommentaryLovestthou me more than these? More than
the restof my disciples love me? For so Peterhad professed, whenhe told our
Saviour, Matthew 26:33, Though all men should be offended because ofthee,
yet will I never be offended. Peternow having by his temptation learned more
humility and modesty, doth not reply, Lord, thou knowestthat I love thee
more than these;he only avers the truth and sincerity, not the degree of his
love. Christ replies,
Feedmy lambs: by which he understands his people, his church; not the
pastors of it, (as if Christ by this had made Peterthe chief pastorover the rest
of the apostles), but the community. The papists from this text argue for
Peter’s primacy and authority over his fellow apostles, as wellas over the
members of the church. But Christ said not to Peter only, but to all the rest of
the eleven, Matthew 28:19 Mark 16:15, Go ye, preach the gospelto all
nations; and it was to the rest as well as to Peterthat he said, John 20:23,
Whose soeversins ye remit, they are remitted. So as it is apparent, whether
feeding only signifies instructing, or feeding by doctrine, or (as most judge)
comprehends government, and signifies that universal charge which ministers

64. have over the church, the same powerwhich Peter had was also committed to
the other disciples.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleSo when they had dined,.... The Persic
version adds,
Jesus turned his face to Simon Peter;he did not interrupt them whilst they
were eating; but when they had comfortably refreshed themselves, he looked
at Peter, and singled him out from the rest, and directed his discourse to him;
and saith unto Simon Peter,
Simon, son of Jonas;not John, as the Vulgate Latin, and Nonnus, and some
copies read; for this answers notto the Hebrew word Jochanan, but Jonah,
the same name with the prophet. Some have observed, that Christ spoke to
him particularly by his original name, and not by that which he himself had
given him, with a view to his strong faith, as Cephas, or Peter;but it should be
known that Christ calls him by this name of Simon bar Jonah, when he made
the most ample professionof his faith in him, and was pronounced blessedby
him, Matthew 16:16
lovestthou me more than these? meaning, not than the fishes he had caught,
nor the net and boat, or any worldly enjoyment, nor than he loved the
disciples;but the question is, whether he loved Christ more than the rest of
the disciples loved him: the reasonof which was, becausehe had some time
ago declared, though all the disciples were offended at Christ, and should
deny him, he would not; and had just now thrown himself into the sea to come
to him first, as if he loved him more than they did: which question is put, not
out of ignorance, oras if Christ knew not whether he loved him or not, and
what was the degree of his affectionto him; but because the exercise ofthis
grace, and the expressions ofit, are very grateful to him; and that Peter also
might have an opportunity of expressing it before others, who had so publicly
denied him:
he saith unto him, yea, Lord, thou knowestthat I love thee: not in word and
tongue, but in deed and in truth; in sincerity, and without dissimulation,
fervently and superlatively; for the truth of which he appeals to Christ
himself; for he was so conscious to himself of the reality of his love, and the
sincerity of his affection, that he choosesto make Christ himself judge of it,
rather than say any more of it himself; though he modestly declines saying
that he loved him more than the rest of the disciples did, having had an
experience of his vanity and self-confidence. He was sure he loved Christ
heartily; but whether he loved him more than the rest did, he chose not to say:

65. he saith unto him, feed my lambs; the younger and more tender part of the
flock, weak believers, Christ's little children, newborn babes, the day of small
things, which are not to be despised, the bruised reedthat is not to be broken,
and the smoking flax that is not to be quenched; but who are to be nourished,
comforted, and strengthened, by feeding them with the milk of the Gospel,
and by administering to them the ordinances and breasts of consolation.
These Christ has an interest in, and therefore calls them "my lambs", being
given him by the Father, and purchased by his blood, and for whom he has a
tender concernand affection; and nothing he looks upon as a firmer and
clearerproof and evidence of love to him, than to feed these lambs of his, and
take care of them.
Geneva Study Bible{2} So when they had dined, Jesus saithto Simon Peter,
Simon, son of Jonas, lovestthou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea,
Lord; thou knowestthat I love thee. He saith unto him, Feedmy lambs.
(2) Peter by this triple confessionis restoredinto his former position from
where he fell by his triple denial: and furthermore it is proclaimed that he is
indeed a pastor, who shows his love to Christ in feeding his sheep.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT CommentaryHYPERLINK "/context/john/21-15.htm"John
21:15-17. The thrice-repeatedquestion: “ut illi occasionempraeberet, triplicis
abnegationis maculam triplici professione eluendi,” Wetstein, which
Hengstenberg arbitrarily denies.
Σίμων Ἰωάννου] Thrice the same complete mention of the name with a certain
solemnity of deeply-moved affection. In the use of the name Simon Joh. in
itself, we are not to recognise—sincecertainlyit is not at all susceptible of
proof, that Jesus elsewhere addressedthe apostle by the name Peter or
Cephas—anotherand specialpurpose as in view, neither a reminiscence of the
lost confidence (De Wette), nor of the human presupposition of the apostolical
calling (Luthardt), nor a replacementinto the natural condition for the
purpose of an exaltationto the new dignity (Hengstenberg). The name of Peter
is not refused to him (Hoelemann).
ἀγαπ.]He does not ask after his faith; for this had not become wavering, but
the love proceeding from the faith had not been sufficiently strong.
τούτων]ἢ οὗτοι, than these my other disciples. They are still present; comp.
on John 21:20. Peterhad given expression, in his whole behaviour down to his
fall, to so pre-eminent a love for Jesus (let John 6:68, let the washing of the

66. feet, the sword-stroke,and John 13:37 be borne in mind), and in virtue of the
distinction, of which Jesus had deemed him worthy (John 1:43), as well as by
his postat the head of the apostles (comp. on Matthew 16:18), into which he
was not now for the first time to be introduced (Hengstenberg), so pre-
eminent a love was to be expectedfrom him, that there is sufficient occasion
for the πλεῖον τούτων without requiring a specialreference to Matthew 26:33
(from which, in comparisonwith John 13:37, a conclusionhas been drawn
adverse to the Johanneanauthorship).
Peterin his answerplaces, insteadof the ἀγαπ. (diligis) of the question, the
expressionof personalheart emotion, φιλῶ, amo (comp. John 11:3; John 11:5,
John 20:2), by which he gives the most direct satisfactionto his inmost feeling;
appeals, in so doing, in the consciousnessofthe want of personalwarranty, to
the Lord’s knowledge ofthe heart, but leaves the πλεῖον τούτωνunanswered,
because his fall has made him humble, for which reasonJesus also, in tender
forbearance, is silent as to that πλεῖον τούτωνin the questions that follow—
vivid originality of the narrative, markedby such delicacyof feeling.
βόσκε τὰ ἀρνία μου]Restorationto the previous standing, which the rest of
the apostles did not require, therefore containing the primacy of Peteronly in
so far as it already previously existed; see on Matthew 16:18.
ἀρνία] Expressionof tender emotion: little lambs, without obliteration of the
diminutive significationalso in Revelation5:6; Isaiah40:11, Aq. The
discourse becomes firmer in John 21:16, where πρόβατα, and again, more
touched with emotion in John 21:17, where προβάτια, little sheep(see the
critical notes), is found. By all three words, the ἀρχιποίμην[285]means His
believing ones in general(1 Peter 5:4), without making a separationbetween
beginners and those who are matured (Euth. Zigabenus, Wetstein, Lange, and
severalothers), or even betweenlaity and clergy(Eusebius, Emiss,
Bellarmine). Maldonatus aptly remarks:the distinction is non in re, sedin
voce, where, notwithstanding, he, with other Catholic expositors, erroneously
lays emphasis on the fact that preciselyto Peterwas the whole flock entrusted;
the latter shared, in truth, with all the apostles, the same office of tending the
entire flock.
πάλιν δεύτερον]See on Matthew 26:42.
ποίμαινε]More universal and more expressive of carefully ruling activity in
general(Acts 20:28;1 Peter 5:2; Revelation2:27; Revelation7:17, and see

67. Dissen, ad Pind. Ol. x. 9) than βόσκε, in which rather the specialreference of
nourishing protective activity is brought out (Hom. Od. μ. 97, ξ. 102, etal.;
comp. βοσκή and βόσκημα, victus, and the compounds like γηροβοσκεῖν, et
al.; see also Philo, deter. insid. pot. I. p. 197;Ellendt, Lex. Soph. I. p. 312 f.).
The latter, therefore, corresponds to the diminutive designations.
In His third question, John 21:17, Jesus takes up the φιλῶ σε of Peter, and
cuts, by means of the thus altered question, still more deeply into his heart.
Peterwas troubled about this, that Jesus in this third question appearedto
throw doubt even upon his φιλεῖν. Hence now his more earnestanswer, with
an appeal to his Lord’s unlimited knowledge ofthe heart: σὺ πάντα οἶδας,
κ.τ.λ., which popular and deeply emotional expressionis not to be interpreted
of absolute omniscience (Baur), but according to the standard of John 16:30,
John 2:25, John 4:19, John 6:64, John 1:49 f.
[285]To apply the sense of the thrice-uttered behest so differently: duty of
individuals; care for the whole; leading in of individuals for the whole
(Luthardt),—is a separationof the idea which cannot be proved by the change
of the words, and is entirely out of keeping with the mood of emotional feeling.
In eachof the three expressions lies the whole duty of the shepherd. “Quam
vocum vim optime se intellexisse Petrus demonstrat, 1 Peter5:2,” Grotius.
Expositor's Greek TestamentHYPERLINK"/context/john/21-15.htm"John
21:15-18. Jesusevokesfrom Petera confessionof love, and commissions him
as shepherd, of His sheep.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges15–19. The Commissionto S. Peter
and Predictionas to his death
15. dined] See on John 21:12.
saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas]For‘Jonas’read John here and in
John 21:16-17, as in John 1:42. Note that the writer himself calls him Simon
Peter, but represents the Lord as calling him ‘Simon son of John.’ This is not
only in harmony with the rest of this Gospel, but with the Gospels as a whole.
Although Jesus gave Simon the name of Peter, yet, with one remarkable
exception(see on Luke 22:34), He never addresseshim as Peter, but always as
Simon. Matthew 16:17; Matthew 17:25; Mark 14:37;Luke 22:31. The
Synoptists generallycall him Simon, sometimes adding his surname. S. John
always gives both names, excepting in John 1:41, where the surname just
about to be given would be obviously out of place. Contrastin this chapter

68. John 21:2-3; John 21:7; John 21:11 with 16, 17. Should we find this minute
difference observed, if the writer were any other than S. John? [12]This being
the generalusage ofour Lord, there is no reasonto suppose that His calling
him Simon rather than Peteron this occasionis a reproach, as implying that
by denying his Masterhe had forfeited the name of Peter. That S. John should
add the surname with much greaterfrequency than the Synoptists is natural.
At the time when S. John wrote the surname had become the more familiar of
the two. S. Paul never calls him Simon, but uses the Aramaic form of the
surname, Cephas.
lovestthou me] The word for ‘love’ here and in the question in John 21:16 is
agapân(see on John 11:5). S. Peterin all three answers uses philein, and our
Lord uses philein in the third question (John 21:17). The change is not
accidental;and once more we have evidence of the accuracyof the writer: he
preserves distinctions which were actually made. S. Peter’s preference for
philein is doubly intelligible: (1) it is the less exaltedword; he is sure of the
natural affectionwhich it expresses;he will say nothing about the higher love
implied in agapân;(2) it is the warmer word; there is a calm discrimination
implied in agapânwhich to him seems cold. In the third question Christ takes
him at his ownstandard; he adopts S. Peter’s ownword, and thus presses the
question more home.
more than these]‘More than these, thy companions, love Me.’The A. V. is
ambiguous, and so also is the Greek, but there cannot be much doubt as to the
meaning: ‘more than thou lovestthese things’ gives a very inadequate
significationto the question. At this stage in S. Peter’s careerChrist would not
be likely to ask him whether he preferred his boat and nets to Himself. S.
Peterhad professedto be ready to die for His Master(John 13:37) and had
declaredthat though all the restmight deny Him, he would never do so
(Matthew 26:33). Jesus recalls this boastby asking him whether he now
professes to have more loyalty and devotion than the rest.
Yea, Lord; thou knowest]“We have once more an exquisite touch of
psychology. It is Peter’s modesty that speaks, andhis sense ofshame at his
own short-comings … He has nothing to appeal to, and yet he is consciousthat
his affectionis not unreal or insincere, and He trusts to Him who searchesthe
hearts.” S. pp. 268, 9. Not only does he change the word for ‘love’ from
agapânto philein, but he says nothing about ‘more than these:’ he will not
venture any more to compare himself with others. Moreoverhe makes no
professions as to the future; experience has taught him that the present is all

69. that he can be sure of. The ‘Thou’ in ‘Thou knowest’is emphatic. This time he
will trust the Lord’s knowledge ofhim rather than his own estimate of
himself. Can all these delicate touches be artistic fictions?
Feedmy lambs] Not only is he not degradedon accountof his fall, he receives
a fresh charge and commission. The work of the fisher gives place to that of
the shepherd: the souls that have been brought togetherand wonneed to be
fed and tended. And this S. Petermust do.
Bengel's GnomenHYPERLINK"/john/21-15.htm"John21:15. Ὅτε, when)
During their eating there had been more than usual silence. Silence atthe
beginning of a feastis not only the part of politeness, but even of modesty and
self-control.—ὁ Ἰησοῦς)The Byz. and Lat. formerly omitted these words, as is
evident from Augustine. Nor were they in the cod. Reutlingensis “manu
primâ.”[404]—ἀγαπᾷς με, lovest[amas] thou Me?) Thrice the Lord asks a
question: Lovest thou Me more than these? Lovestthou Me? φιλεῖς [diligis?],
dost thou esteemMe? Thrice Peteranswers, I do esteemThee. Ἀγαπᾶν,
amare, is the part of relationship and affection:φιλεῖν, diligere, is the actof
the judgment. Others make this distinction, that ἀγαπᾶνis simply to love;
φιλεῖν, to love in such a way as that we should evince our love by kissing one:
and this is the distinction which Eustathius upholds; but Peter, to the question
of the Lord ἀγαπᾷς με, does not seemto have been likely to answer
ἐμφατικώτερον, more emphatically, than was the expressionin the question,
φιλῶ. Where the difference is not expressed, the one is included in the
significationof the other.[405]Jesus, now that Peter’s faith was established,
questions him about his love: and this is the distinguishing characteristic of
the Shepherd. On this condition of love depend the things which are
mentioned in John 21:15, etc., and John 21:18-19.—πλεῖοντούτων)more than
these, viz. thy fellow-disciples. So οὗτος,this man, occurs in John 21:21.
Previously Peterhad saidthat he would show more fidelity than these (his
fellow-disciples):Matthew 26:33, “Thoughall[406]shall be offended because
of Thee, yet will I never be offended:” but now he simply says, I love Thee: he
does not add, more than these. Yet he had lately shownhimself most eagerly
desirous of the Lord, in John 21:7 [“He casthimself into the sea,” to reach
Him the sooner].—σὺ οἶδας,Thouknowest)Peterhad given a proof of the
contrary by his late denial of Jesus:now, instead of argument, he makes his
appeal to the knowledge and omniscience ofJesus.—βόσκε, feed)The words,
more than these, serve to indicate that Peteris here restoredto his place,
which he had lostby his denial of Jesus;and at the same time that a
something is assignedto him peculiarly, as compared with the other disciples,

70. but nothing from which the others are to be excluded: for in truth they also
loved Jesus, ch. John 16:27. Let the Pope, in the name of truth, cease,under
the pretext of the successionto Peter, to claim violently this privilege to
himself, and himself alone, seeing that he is one who does not either love or
feed the sheep, but on the contrary feeds upon them. Rome canno more claim
Peteras her own, than Jerusalemor Antioch, or any other place where Peter
actedas an apostle:nay, Rome, as being the capital of the Gentiles, canleast
of all claim him. For Peterwas one of the apostles of the circumcision. There
is one feature peculiar to Rome, that the blood of the apostles, including even
Peter, is to be ‘found’ in her: Revelation18:20; Revelation18:24.—τὰἀρνία
μου, My lambs) Jesus is the Lord of the sheepand of the lambs. He loves His
flock, and commits it to him that loves Him.
[404]But ABDabc and best MSS. of Vulg. support the words.—E. andT.
[405]The Vulg. differs from Bengel, and rightly gives the reverse explanation
to ἀγαπᾶς and φιλεῖς respectively;“diligis, diligis,” twice, to representthe
twice repeatedἀγαπᾶς, the love of choice and judgment, esteem;and “amo,
amo,” to represent φιλῶ, the love of affectionand impulse. The word ἀγαπᾶς
sounds too cold to the ear of Peter, who was now burning with love. He
therefore substitutes in his answerthe word of affection, φιλῶ. At the third
time Peterhas gainedhis point: for the Lord now, instead of ἀγαπᾶς, gratifies
Peterby using φιλεῖς. See Trench, Syn. New Testament—E. andT.
[406]Viz. of the disciples: not “all men,” as Engl. Vers.—E. and T.
Pulpit CommentaryVerses 15-19. -
(2) The revelations to be made in the services dictatedby love and issuing in
martyrdom. The confessionmade by Simon Peter, and the charge given to
him. Verse 15. - When therefore they had breakfasted, Jesussaithto Simon
Peter. His full name and Christ-given appellation is in the mind of the
evangelist;but he, with marked emphasis, shows that our Lord went back to
his relations with Simon before the latter's first introduction to him (see John
1:42, etc.), and recalls the attitude Christ had takento Simon on more than
one memorable occasion(Matthew 16:17;Luke 22:31). On two of these
occasions the simple humanity of the apostle was the basis on which the Lord
proceededto conferupon him the high officialdesignation. The grace ofGod,
in the first instance, selectedSimon of Jonahto be a rock. In the second, "not
flesh and blood," but the Father's grace, revealedthe mystery of the Divine

71. Sonship to him, and won the name of Peter. In the third, the utter weaknessof
Simon's own flesh reveals the power of the prayer of Jesus for him, so that he
might ultimately convert his brethren; and now "Simon" is reinstatedafter
his fall into his apostolic office. Simon, sonof Jona - or, John (see John 1:42,
note) - lovestthou me more than these? i.e. more than these other disciples
love me? Thou hast seenmore of my compassion, fartherinto my heart,
deeper into my Person, my position, and my work, than they have done; thou
hast dared againand again to ask for higher service and more conspicuous
distinction. Thou hast made louder protestations than any of these of thine
unworthiness to serve me, and in the deep consciousness ofhumiliation thou
hast been more emphatic than any of them in refusing grace whichthou
thoughtest it might dishonor me to give. Thou didst indeed say, "Thoughall
men should be offended at me or should deny me," thou wouldst never be
offended and never deny me. "Dostthou love me more than they do?" There
is no positive reference to the denial and fall of Peter;but the implication and
suggestioncannotbe hidden, though Hengstenberg and others fail to
appreciate it. The circumstance that Peterwas "grieved" becausethe Lord
put this question to him a third time makes the reference very little less than
explicit. The real significance ofthe narrative is the reinstitution of Peterin
the position of importance he had filled throughout, and an indication of the
nature and quality of that service. In Simon's reply, Yea, Lord; thou knowest
that I love thee, three things are very noticeable.
(1) Peter says nothing of the superiority of his affectionfor his Lord over that
of his colleagues.Had they not in outward actbeen more faithful than he? He
could not arrogate any sweeter, dearer, more abounding affectionthan he was
willing to believe that they felt for their Master. It is scarcelyworthwhile to
notice the miserable translation that some few commentators have suggested:
"Lovestthou me more than (thou lovest)these fishing-smacks and this
thriving business on the lake?" Observe
(2) Peter's admission that the Lord knew his inmost heart, concedes,
therefore, that the question was merely intended to test his faithfulness, and
force him to a more salutary and binding acknowledgment. Notice
(3) Peter's change of phraseology. The word used for "love" by the Lord is
ἀγαπάω, but that which is used in response by the apostle is φιλῶ, the love of
natural emotion, and even tender, intimate, personalaffection. The Latin
language, by rendering φιλῶ by amo rather than diligo, expressesthe subtle
shades of meaning betweenφιλεῖν and ἀγαπᾶν. There is, however, no English

72. word but "love" for them both. The admirable remarks of Archbishop
Trench ('Synonyms of New Testament,'§ 12.)find special illustration in these
verses. Manypassagesoccurin which amo and φιλέω seemto mean more and
have deeper intensity than diligo and ἀγαπάω. Amari is the affectionwhich a
friend may desire from a friend, even more than diligi; but the latter denotes
choice, mental conviction, and self-recognitionofthe fact. Antony, in his
funeral oration overCaesar(DionCassius, 41:48, quoted by Trench), says,
Ἐφιλάσατε αὐτὸνὡς πατέρα καὶ ἠγαπήσατε ὡς εὐεργέτην. Thus in the New
Testamentwe are continually told of the ἀγαπᾶντὸν Θεόν, but never of the
φιλεῖν τὸν Θεόν. God is himself said to ἀγαπᾶνand φιλεῖν τὸν υἱόν. When,
therefore, the Lord here asks Simon, Ἀγαπᾶς," Dostthou esteemme worthy of
thy love?" Simon, with a burst of personalaffection, says, yet with a certain
humility, "I love thee" - meaning, "Suchlove as I can lavish upon thee, such
as I may dare in my humility to offer thee, O my Master, Brother, Friend!"
This being the case, Jesus saith, Feedmy lambs. Love to Christ is the first,
high, main condition of faithful service. The chief of the apostles will have this
as his prime, chief, and most laudable service. Eachofthe terms of the
commission, in its threefold repetition, resembles the other; and Meyersays
the whole duty of the pastorof souls and earthly shepherd of the flock is
involved in eachof the three expressions. Our Lord commences, however,
with providing true food, seasonable nourishment, for the "lambs" of the
flock. The tender emotion involved in the term cannot be excluded, but it is a
comprehensive and suggestive one, andembraces the young converts, the first
believers, those who with impetuosity and gladness receive the Word; the little
children who will literally crowdinto the Church become the highestand
sacredestcare ofthe chiefestapostles and most honored of pastors. The first,
the main thing they need, is the milk of the Word, and the sweetestpastures.
This considerationof the next generation, and gracious care for the children
and the childlike of every successive age, is one of the sacredsigns of Divine
revelation. Our Lord is representedin the synopties as "suffering the little
children" to "come to" him, as "blessing them," and rejoicing in their
hosannas. St. John preserves and glorifies the whole conceptionby recording
this commissionof the risen Lord to the greatestofthe apostles. If the babes
and sucklings had "held their peace, the stones would have cried out," is the
pathetic approval of the rejectedLord. "Feedmy lambs" is the gracious,
unexpected summons of the triumphant Christ and Lord of all.
Vincent's Word StudiesSimon, son of Jonas
Compare Christ's first address to Peter, John 1:43. He never addresseshim
by the name of Peter, while that name is commonly used, either alone or with

73. Simon, in the narrative of the Gospels, and in the Greek form Peter, not the
Aramaic Cephas, which, on the other hand, is always employed by Paul. For
Jonas readas Rev., John.
Lovest (ἀγαπᾶς)
Jesus uses the more dignified, really the nobler, but, as it seems to Peter, in the
ardor of his affection, the colder word for love. See on John 5:20.
More than these
More than these disciples love me. Compare John 13:37;Matthew 26:33. The
question conveys a gentle rebuke for his former extravagantprofessions.
I love (φιλῶ)
Petersubstitutes the warmer, more affectionate word, and omits all
comparisonwith his fellow-disciples.
Feed(βόσκε)
See on 1 Peter5:2.
Lambs (ἀρνία)
Diminutive: little lambs. Godet remarks:"There is a remarkable resemblance
betweenthe presentsituation and that of the two scenesin the previous life of
Peterwith which it is related. He had been called to the ministry by Jesus
after a miraculous draught of fishes; it is after a similar draught that the
ministry is restoredto him. He had lost his office by a denial beside a fire of
coal;it is beside a fire of coalthat he recovers it."
Do You Love Me?
“Jesus saidto Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, Do you love Me more
than these? He said unto Him, Yes, Lord, You know that I love You. He
said unto him, FeedMy lambs. He saidto him again the secondtime,
Simon, son of Jonas, do you love Me? He said unto Him, Yes, Lord You

74. know that I love You. He said unto him, Feedmy sheep. He said unto
him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, do you love Me? Peterwas
grieved because He said unto him the third time, do you love Me? And
he said unto Him, Lord You know all things. You know that I love You.
Jesus saidunto him, FeedMy sheep.”
John 21:15-17
How very much like Christ before His crucifixion was Christ after His
resurrection!Although He had lain in the grave and descendedinto the
regions of the dead and had retracedhis steps to the land of the living, yet how
marvelously similar He was in His manners and how unchanged in His
disposition. His passion, His death and His resurrectioncould not alter His
characteras a Man any more than they could affectHis attributes as God. He
is Jesus foreverthe same. And when He appearedagain to His disciples, He
had castaside none of His kind manners. He had not lost a particle of interest
in their welfare. He addressedthem just as tenderly as before and calledthem
His children and His friends.
Concerning their temporal condition He was mindful, for He said, “Children,
have you any meat?” And He was certainly quite as watchful over their
spiritual state. Forafter He had supplied their bodies by a rich draught from
the sea, with fish (which possibly He had createdfor the occasion), He
enquires after their souls' health and prosperity. He beganwith the one who
might be supposedto have been in the most sickly condition, the one who had
denied his Masterthrice and wept bitterly–even Simon Peter. “Simon, son of
Jonas,” saidJesus,“Do you love Me?”
Without preface, for we shall have but little time this morning–may Godhelp
us to make gooduse of it!–we shall mention three things. First a solemn
question–“Do youlove Me?” Secondly, a discreetanswer, “Yes, Lord, You
know that I love You.” And thirdly, a required demonstration of the fact. “He
said unto him, FeedMy lambs.” Or again, “FeedMy sheep.”
1. First, then, here was a SOLEMN QUESTION whichour Savior put to
Peter, not for His owninformation, for, as Petersaid, “You know that I
love You,” but for Peter’s examination. It is well, especiallyafter a foul
sin, that the Christian should wellprobe the wound. It is right that he
should examine himself. For sin gives grave cause forsuspicion and it
would be wrong for a Christian to live an hour with a suspicion
concerning his spiritual estate unless he occupies that hour in
examination of himself. Self-examinationshould more especiallyfollow

75. sin, though it ought to be the daily habit of every Christian and should
be practiced by him perpetually.
Our Savior, I say, askedthis question of Peter, that he might ask it of himself.
So we may suppose it is askedofus this morning that we may put it to our
own hearts. Let eachone ask himself, then, in his Savior’s name, for his own
profit, “Do you love the Lord? Do you love the Savior? Do you love the ever-
blessedRedeemer?”
Note what this question was. It was a question concerning Peter’s love. He did
not say, “Simon, son of Jonas, do you fear Me.” He did not say, “Do you
admire Me? Do you adore Me?” Norwas it even a question concerning his
faith. He did not say, “Simon, son of Jonas, do you believe in Me?” But He
askedhim another question, “Do you love Me?” I take it that is because love is
the very best evidence of piety. Love is the brightest of all the graces. And
hence it becomes the best evidence. I do not believe love to be superior to faith.
I believe faith to be the groundwork of our salvation. I think faith to be the
mother grace and love springs from it.
Faith I believe to be the root grace and love grows from it. But then, faith is
not an evidence for brightness equal to love. Faith, if we have it, is a sure and
certain sign that we are God’s children and so is every other grace a sure and
certain one but many of them cannotbe seenby others. Love is a more
sparkling one than any other. If I have a true fearof God in my heart, then
am I God’s child. But since fearis a grace that is more dim and has not that
halo of glory over it that love has, love becomes one of the very bestevidences
and one of the easiestsigns ofdiscerning whether we are alive to the Savior.
He that lacks love, must lack also every other grace in the proportion in which
he lacks love. If love is little, I believe it is a sign that faith is little, for he that
believes much loves much. If love is little, fear will be little and courage for
God will be little. Whatevergraces there are, faith lies at the root of them all,
yet do they so sweetly hang on love, that if love is weak, allthe rest of the
graces mostassuredlywill be so. Our Lord askedPeter, then, that question,
“Do you love Me?”
And note, again, that He did not ask Peteranything about his doings. He did
not say, “Simon Peter, how much have you wept? How often have you done
penance on accountof your greatsin? How often have you on your knees
sought mercy at My hand for the slight you have done to Me and for that
terrible cursing and swearing wherewithyou did disownyour Lord, whom
you had declaredyou would follow even to prison and to death?” No. it was
not in reference to his works but in reference to the state of his heart that

76. Jesus said, “Do you love Me?” He did this to teach us that though works do
follow after a sincere love, yet love is more excellentthan works.
And works without love are not evidences worth having. We may have some
tears. But they are not the tears that God shall acceptif there is no love to
Him. We may have some works. But they are not acceptable works ifthey are
not done out of love to His Person. We may perform very many of the
outward, ritual observances ofreligion. But unless love lies at the bottom, all
these things are vain and useless.The question, then, “Do you love Me?” is a
very vital question–farmore so than one that merely concerns the outward
conduct. It is a question that goes into the very heart and in such a way that it
brings the whole heart to one question. For if love is wrong, everything else is
wrong. “Simon, sonof Jonas, do you love Me?”
Ah, dear Beloved, we have very much cause for asking ourselves this question.
If our Saviorwere no more than a man like ourselves, He might often doubt
whether we love Him at all. Let me just remind you of sundry things which
give us very greatcause to ask this question–“Do youlove Me?” I will deal
only with the last week. Come, my Christian Brothers and Sisters, look at
your own conduct. Do not your sins make you doubt whether you love your
Master? Come, look overthe sins of this week–whenyou were speaking with
an angry word and with a sullen look, might not your Lord have touched you
and said, “Do you love Me?”
When you were doing such-and-such a thing, which you right well know in
your consciencewas notaccording to His precept, might He not have said,
“Do you love Me?” Can you not remember the murmuring word because
something had gone wrong with you in business this week and you were
speaking ill of the God of Providence for it? Oh, might not the loving Savior,
with pity in His languid eyes, have said to you, “Do you love Me?” I need not
stop to mention the various sins of which you have been guilty. You have
sinned, I am sure, enough to give goodground for self-suspicion, if you did not
still hang on this–that His love to you, not your love to Him, is the sealof your
discipleship.
Oh, do you not think within yourselves, “If I had loved Him more, should I
have sinned so much? And oh, can I love Him when I have broken so many of
His Commandments? Have I reflectedHis glorious image to the world as I
should have done? Have I not wastedmany hours within this week that I
might have spent in winning souls to Him? Have I not thrown awaymany
precious moments in light and frivolous conversationwhichI might have
spent in earnestprayer? Oh, how many words have I uttered, which if they

77. have not been filthy (as I trust they have not) yet have not been such as have
ministered grace to the hearers?
Oh, how many follies have I indulged in? How many sins have I winkedat?
How many crimes have I covered over? How have I made my Savior’s heart
bleed? How have I done dishonor to His cause? How have I in some degree
disgracedmy heart’s professionof love to Him?“ Oh, ask these questions of
yourself, Belovedand say, "Is this your kindness to your Friend?” But I hope
this week has been one wherein you have sinned little openly as to the world,
or even in your ownestimation, as to open acts of crime.
But now let me put another question to you, Does notyour worldliness make
you doubt? How have you been occupiedwith the world, from Monday
morning to the last hour of Saturday night? You have scarcehad time to
think of Him. What corners have you pushed your Jesus into to make room
for your bales of goods? How have you stowedHim awayinto one short five
minutes, to make room for your ledgeror your day-book? How little time
have you given to Him! You have been occupiedwith the shop, with the
exchange and the farmyard. And you have had little time to commune with
Him!
Come, just think! Remember any one day this week–canyou say that your
soul always flew upward with passionate desires to Him? Did you pant like a
hart for your Savior during the week? No, perhaps there was a whole day
went by and you scarcelythough of Him till the winding up of it. And then
you could only upbraid yourself, “How have I forgottenChrist today? I have
not beheld His Person. I have not walkedwith Him, I have not done as Enoch
did! I knew He would come into the shop with me. I knew He is such a blessed
Christ that He would stand behind the counter with me. I knew He was such a
joyous Lord Jesus that He would walk through the market with me! But I left
Him at home and forgot Him all the day long.” Surely, surely, Beloved, when
you remember your worldliness, you must sayof yourself; “O Lord, you
might well ask, ‘Do you love Me?’”
Consideragain, I beseechyou, how cold you have been this week atthe mercy
seat. You have been there, for you can not live without it. You have lifted up
your heart in prayer, for you are a Christian and prayer is as necessaryto you
as your breath. But oh, with what a poor asthmatic breath have you lived this
week!How little have you breathed? Do you remember how hurried was your
prayer on Monday morning, how driven you were on Tuesday night? Can you
not recollecthow languid was your heart, when on another occasionyouwere
on your knees? You have had little wrestling this week–little agonizing. You
have had little of the prayer which prevails.

78. You have scarcelylaid hold of the horns of the altar. You have stoodin the
distance and seenthe smoke at the altar but you have not laid hold of the
horns of it. Come, ask yourself, do not your prayers make you doubt? I say,
honestly before you all, my own prayers often make me doubt and I know
nothing that gives me more grave cause ofdisquietude. When I labor to pray–
oh, that rascallydevil–fifty thousand thoughts he tries to inject to take me off
from prayer. And when I will and must pray, oh, what an absence there is of
that burning fervent desire!And when I would come right close to God, when
I would weep my very eyes out in penitence and would believe and take the
blessing, oh, what little faith and what little penitence there is!
Verily, I have thought that prayer has made me more unbelieving than
anything else. I could believe over the tops of my sins but sometimes I can
scarcelybelieve over the tops of my prayers–foroh, how cold is prayer when it
is cold! Of all things that are bad when cold, I think prayer is the worst, for it
becomes like a very mockery–insteadof warming the heart, it makes it colder
than it was before. It seems evento dampen its life and spirit and fills it full of
doubts whether it is really a heir of Heaven and acceptedofChrist. Oh, look
at your cold prayers, Christian! And say is not your Saviorright to ask this
question very solemnly, “Simon, son of Jonas, do you love Me?”
But stop. Again–just one more word for you to reflectupon. Perhaps you have
had much prayer and this has been a time of refreshing from the presence of
the Lord. But maybe you know you have not gone so far this week as you
might have done in another exercise ofgodliness that is even better than
prayer–I mean communion and fellowship. Oh, Beloved, you have this week
had but little sitting under the apple tree and finding its shadow greatdelight
to you. You have not gone much this week to the banquet house and had its
banner of love over you. Come, think about it, how little have you seenyour
Lord this week?
Perhaps He has been absent the greaterpart of the time. And have you not
groaned? Have you not wept? Have you not sighedafter Him? Surely, then,
you cannot have loved Him as you should, else you could not have borne His
absence. Youcould not have endured it calmly if you had the affectionfor
Him a sanctifiedspirit has for its Lord. You did have one sweetvisit from
Him in the week and why did you let Him go? Why did you not constrainHim
to abide with you? Why did you not lay hold of the skirts of His garment and
say, “Why should You be like a wayfaring man and as one that turns aside
and tarries for a night? Oh, my Lord, You shall dwell with me. I will keep
You. I will detain You in my company. I cannot let You go. I love You and I

79. will constrainYou to dwell with me this night and the next day. As long as I
can keepYou, I will keepYou.”
But no. You were foolish. You did let Him go. Oh, Soul, why did you not lay
hold of His arm and say, “I will not let You go”? Butyou did lay hold on Him
so feebly, you did suffer Him to depart so quickly, He might have turned
round and said to you, as He said to Simon, “Simon, son of Jonas, do you love
Me?”
Now, I have askedyou all these questions because Ihave been asking them of
myself. I feel that I must answerto nearly every one of them, “Lord, there is
greatcause for me to ask myself that question,” and I think that most of you,
if you are honest with yourselves, will say the same. I do not approve of the
man that says, “I know I love Christ and I never have a doubt about it.”
Becausewe often have reasonto doubt ourselves, a Believer’s strong faith is
not a strong faith in his own love to Christ–it is a strong faith in Christ’s love
to him. There is no faith which always believes that it loves Christ. Strong
faith has its conflicts and a true Believerwill often wrestle in the very teeth of
his ownfeelings.
Lord, if I ever did love You, nevertheless, if I am not a saint, I am a sinner.
Lord, I still believe. Help You mine unbelief. The disciple can believe when he
feels no love. For he can believe that Christ loves the soul. And when he has no
evidence he can come to Christ without evidence and lay hold of Him, just as
He is, with naked faith and still hold fast by Him. Though he sees not His
signs, though he walk in darkness and there is no light, still may he trust in
the Lord and stay upon His God–but to be certain at all times that we love the
Lord is quite another matter. About this we have need continually to question
ourselves and most scrupulously to examine both the nature and the extent of
our evidences.
II. And now I come to the secondthing which is A DISCREET ANSWER.
“Simon son of Jonas, do you love Me?” Simongave a very goodanswer. Jesus
askedhim, in the first place, whether he loved Him better than others. Simon
would not say that–he had once been a little proud–more than a little–and
thought he was better than the other disciples. But this time he evadedthat
question. He would not say that he loved better than others. And I am sure
there is no loving heart that will think it loves even better than the leastof
God’s children. I believe the higher a man is in grace, the lowerhe will be in
his ownesteemand he will be the lastperson to claim any supremacy over
others in the Divine Grace oflove to Jesus.

80. But mark how Simon Peter did answer–he did not answeras to the quantity
but as to the quality of his love. He would aver that he loved Christ but not
that he loved Christ better than others. “Lord, I cannot say how much I love
You. But You know all things. You know that I do love You. So far I can
aver–as to the quantity of my love, I cannot saymuch about it.” But just
notice, again, the discreetmanner in which Peteranswered. Some of us, if we
had been askedthat question, would have answeredfoolishly. We should have
said, “Lord, I have preachedfor You so many times this Week. Lord, I have
distributed of my substance to the poor this week. Blessedbe Your name, You
have given me grace to walk humbly, faithfully, and honestly. And therefore,
Lord, I think I can say, ‘I love You.’ ”
We have brought our goodworks before our Master, as being the evidences of
our love. We should have said, “Lord, You have seenme during this week. I
say as Nehemiahdid of old, ‘Forgetnot my goodworks. O Lord, I thank you.
I know they are Your gifts but I think they are proofs of my love.’ ” That
would have been a very goodanswerif we had been questionedby our fellow
man and he had said, “You do not always love your Savior.” But it would be
foolish for us to tell the Masterthat. Peter’s answerwas wise–“Lord, You
know that I love You.”
You know the Mastermight have said to Peter, had he appealedto his works,
“Yes, you may preach and yet not love Me. You may pray, after a fashion, and
yet not love Me. You may do all these works and yet have no love to Me. I did
not ask you what are the evidences of your love. I askedyou the fact of it.”
Very likely all my dear Friends here would not have answeredin the fashion I
have supposed. But they would have said, “Love You, Lord? Why, my heart is
all on fire towards You. I feel as if I could go to prison and to death for You!
Sometimes, when I think of You, my heart is ravished with bliss. And when
You are absent, O Lord, I moan and cry like a dove that has lostits mate. Yes,
I feel I love You, O my Christ.”
But that would have been very foolish, because althoughwe may often rejoice
in our own feelings–theyare joyful things–it would not do to plead them with
our Lord, for He might answer, “Ah, you feeljoyful at the mention of My
name. So, no doubt, has many a deluded one, because he had a fictitious faith
and a fancied hope in Christ. Therefore the name of Christ seemedto gladden
him. You say, ‘I have felt dull when You have been absent.’ That might have
been accountedfor from natural circumstances. Youhad a headache,
perhaps, or some other ailment. ‘But,’ sayyou, ‘I felt so happy when He was
present that I thought I could die.’ Ah, in such manner Peter had spoken
many a time before. But a sorry mess he made of it when he trusted his

81. feelings, for he would have sunk into the sea but for Christ. And eternally
damned his soul, if it had not been for His grace, when, with cursing and
swearing he thrice denied his Lord.
But no, Peterwas wise. He did not bring forward his frames and feelings, nor
did he bring his evidences–thoughthey are goodin themselves–he did not
bring them before Christ. But, as though he shall say, “Lord, I appeal to Your
omnipotence. I am not going to tell You that the volume of my heart must
contain such-and-such matter, because there is such-and-such a mark on its
cover. For, Lord, you canread inside of it. And, therefore I need not tell You
what the title is, nor read over to You the index of the contents. Lord, You
know that I love You.”
Now, could we, this morning, dear Friends, give such an answeras that to the
question? If Christ should come here. If He were now to walk down these
aisles and along the pews, could we appeal to His own Divine Omniscience,
His infallible knowledge ofour hearts, that we all love Him? There is a test-
point betweena hypocrite and a real Christian. If you are a hypocrite, you
might say, “Lord, my minister knows that I love You. Lord, the deacons know
that I love You. They think I do, for they have given me a ticket. The members
think I love You for they see me sitting at Your table. My friends think I love
You, for they often hear me talk about You.” But you could not say, “Lord,
You know that I love You.”
Your own heart is witness that your secretworks belie your confession, for
you are without prayer in secretand you can preacha twenty minute prayer
in public. You are stingy and parsimonious in giving to the cause of Christ.
But you can sport your name to be seen. You are an angry, petulant creature.
But when you come to the house of God, you have a pious whine and talk like
a canting hypocrite, as if you were a very gentlemanly man and never seemed
angry. You can take your Maker’s name in vain but if you hear another do it
you would be mighty severe upon him. You appear to be very pious and yet if
men knew of that widow’s house that is sticking in your throat and of that
orphan’s patrimony which you have takenfrom him, you would leave off
trumpeting your gooddeeds. Your own heart tells you that you are a liar
before God.
But you, O sincere Christian, you canwelcome your Lord’s question and
answerit with holy fearand gracious confidence. Yes, you may welcome the
question. Such a question was never put to Judas. The Lord loved Peterso
much that He was jealous overhim, or He never would have thus challenged
his attachment. And in this kind does He often appealto the affections of those
whom He dearly loves. The response likewiseis recordedfor you, “Lord, You

82. know all things.” Can you not look up, though scornedby men, though even
rejectedby your minister, though kept back by the deacons and lookedupon
with disesteemby some–canyou not look up and say, “Lord, You know all
things, You know that I love You”?
Do it not in brag and bravado. But if you cando it sincerely, be happy. Bless
God that He has given you a sincere love to the Savior and ask Him to
increase it from a spark to a flame and from a grain to a mountain. “Simon,
son of Jonas, do you love Me? Yes, Lord, You know all things. You know that
I love You.”
III. And now here is a DEMONSTRATIONREQUIRED–“Feedmy lambs–
feed my sheep.”
That was Peter’s demonstration. It is not necessarythat it should be our way
of showing our love. There are different ways for different disciples. There are
some who are not qualified to feed lambs, for they are only little lambs
themselves. There are some that could not feed sheep, for they cannot at
present see afaroff. They are weak in the faith and not qualified to teachat
all. They have other means, however, of showing their love to the Savior. Let
us offer a few words upon this matter.
“Do you love Me?” Then one of the best evidences you can give is to feed my
lambs. Have I two or three little children that love and fear My name? If you
want to do a deed which shall show that you are a true lover and not a proud
pretender, go and feed them. Are there a few little ones whom I have
purchased with My blood in an infant class?Do you went to do something
which shall evidence that you are indeed Mine? Then sit not down with the
elders, dispute not in the temple. I did that Myself–but go and sit down with
the young orphans and teachthem the way to the kingdom. “Feedmy lambs.”
Dearly Beloved, I have been of late perplexing myself with one thought–that
our Church government is not Scriptural. It is Scriptural as far as it goes. But
it is not according to the whole of Scripture. Neither do we practice many
excellentthings that ought to be practiced in our Churches. We have received
into our midst a large number of young persons. In the ancient churches there
was what was calledthe catechismclass–Ibelieve there ought to be such a
class now. The Sabbath-School, I believe, is in the Scripture. And I think there
ought to be on the Sabbath afternoon, a class ofthe young people of this
Church, who are members already, to be taught by some of the elder
members.
Nowadays, whenwe getthe lambs, we just turn them adrift in the meadow
and there we leave them. There are more than a hundred young people in this

83. Church who positively, though they are members, ought not to be left alone.
But some of our elders, if we have elders and some who ought to be ordained
elders, should make it their business to teach them further, to instruct them in
the faith and so keepthem hard and fastby the Truth of Jesus Christ. If we
had elders, as they had in all the Apostolic Churches, this might in some
degree be attended to. But now the hands of our deacons are full, they do
much of the work of the eldership but they cannot do any more than they are
doing, for they are toiling hard already.
I would that some here whom God has gifted and who have time, would spend
their afternoons in taking a class ofthose younger Brethren who live around
them, to their houses for prayer and pious instruction. That the lambs of the
flock may be fed. By God’s help I will take care of the sheep. I will endeavor
under God to feedthem, as well as I canand preach the Gospelto them.
Yonder that are older in the faith and strongerin it need not that careful
cautious feeding which is required by the lambs. There are many in our midst,
goodpious souls who love the Savioras much as the sheepdo. But one of their
complaints which I have often heard is, “Oh, Sir, I joined your Church. I
thought they would be all Brothers and Sisters to me and that I could speak to
them and they would teachme and be kind to me. Oh, Sir, I came and nobody
spoke to me.”
I say, “Why did you not speak to them first?” “Oh,” they reply, “I did not
like.” Well, they should have liked, I am well aware. But if we had some
means of feeding the lambs, it would be a goodway of proving to our Savior
and to the world that we really do endeavorto follow Him. I hope some of my
friends will take that hint. And if, in concertwith me, my Brethren in office
will endeavorto do something in that way, I think it will be no mean proof of
their love to Christ. “FeedMy lambs,” is a greatduty–let us try to practice it
as we are able.
But, Beloved, we cannot all do that. The lambs cannotfeed the lambs. The
sheepcannot feed the sheep exactly. There must be some appointed to these
offices. And therefore, in the Savior’s name, allow me to sayto some of you
that there are different kinds of proof you must give. “Simon sonof Jonas, do
you love Me? He says unto Him, Yes, Lord, You know that I love You.” Then
preserve that Prayer Meeting. Attend to it–see that it is kept going and that it
does not fall to the ground. “Simon son of Jonas, do you love Me?” See to your
servants–see thatthey go to the house of God and instruct them in the faith.
There is a Sister_____.Do you love Christ? “Yes, Lord.” Perhaps it is as
much as you can do–perhaps it is as much as you ought to do–to train up your
children in the fear of the Lord. It is of no use to trouble yourselves about

84. duties that God never meant you to do and leave your own vineyard at home
to itself. Just take care of your own children. Perhaps that is as gooda proof
as Christ wants of you that you are feeding His lambs. You have your own
office, to which Christ has appointed you–seek notto run awayfrom it but
endeavorto do what you canto serve your Mastertherein. But, I beseechyou,
do something to prove your love. Do not be sitting down doing nothing. Do not
be folding your hands and arms, for such people perplex a minister most and
bring the most ruin on a Church–such as do nothing.
You are always the most ready to find fault. I have marked it here, that the
very people who are quarrelling with everything are the people that are doing
nothing, or are good for nothing. They are sure to quarrel with everything
else, because theyare doing nothing themselves. And therefore they have time
to find fault with other people. Do not, O Christian, saythat you love Christ
and yet do nothing for Him. Doing is a goodsign of living. And he canscarce
be alive unto God that does nothing for God. We must let our works evidence
the sincerity of our love to our Master. “Oh,” you say, “but we are doing a
little.” Can you do any more? If you can, then do it. If you cannot do more,
then God requires no more of you. Doing to the utmost of your ability is your
best proof.
But if you cando more, inasmuch as you keepback any part of what you can
do, in that degree you give cause to yourselves to distrust your love to Christ.
Do all you canto your very utmost. Serve Him abundantly. Yes and
superabundantly–seek to magnify His name. And if ever you do too much for
Christ, come and tell me of it. If you ever do too much for Christ, tell the
angels of it–but you will never do that. He gave Himself for you–give
yourselves to Him.
You see, my Friends, how I have been directing you to searchyour own hearts
and I am almost afraid that some of you will mistake my intention. Have I a
poor soul here who really deplores the listlessness ofher affections? Perhaps
you have determined to ask yourself as many questions as you canwith a view
of reviving the languid sparks of love. Let me tell you, then, that the pure
flame of love must be always nourished where it was first kindled. When I
admonished you to look to yourself it was only to detect the evil. Would you
find the remedy, you must direct your eyes, not to your own heart but to the
blessedheart of Jesus–to the BelovedOne–to my gracious Lord and Master.
And would you be ever conscious ofthe sweetswellingsup of your heart
towards Him, you can only prove this by a constantsense of His tender love to
you.

85. I rejoice to know that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of love and the ministry of
the Spirit is endearedto me in nothing so much as this–that He takes ofthe
things of Jesus and shows them to me, spreading abroad the Savior’s love in
my heart, until it constrains all my passions, awakensthe most tender of all
tender emotions, reveals my union to Him and occasions my strong desire to
serve Him. Let not love appear to you as a stern duty, or an arduous effort.
Rather look to Jesus, yield yourself up to His gracious charms till you are
ravished with His beauty and preciousness.But ah, if you are slack in the
proofs you give, I shall know you are not walking with Him in holy
communion.
And allow me to suggestone profitable way of improving the ordinance of the
Lord’s Supper. That is–while you are partaking of it, my Friends, renew your
dedication to Christ. Seek this morning to give yourselves over afreshto your
Master. Saywith your hearts, what I shall now say with my lips–“Oh, my
precious Lord Jesus, I do love You. You know I have in some degree given
myself to You up to this time, thanks to Your grace!Blessedbe Your name,
that You have acceptedthe deeds of so unworthy a servant. O Lord, I am
conscious thatI have not devoted myself to You as I ought. I know that in
many things I have come short. I will make no resolution to live better to Your
honor but I will offer the prayer that You would help me so to do.
“Oh, Lord, I give to You my health, my life, my talents, my power and all I
have! You have bought me and bought me wholly–then, Lord, take me this
morning, baptize me in the Spirit. Let me now feel an entire affectionto Your
blessedPerson. MayI have that love which conquers sin and purifies the soul–
that love which can dare dangerand encounter difficulties for Your sake. May
I henceforth and forever be a consecratedvesselofmercy, having been chosen
of You from before the foundation of the world! Help me to hold fast that
solemn choice ofYour service which I desire this morning, by Your grace to
renew.” And when you drink the blood of Christ and eat His flesh spiritually–
in the type and in the emblem, then I beseechyou, let the solemn recollection
of His agonyand suffering for you inspire you with a greaterlove, that you
may be more devoted to His service than ever.
If that is done, I shall have the best of Churches. If that is done by us, the Holy
Spirit helping us to carry it out, we shall all be good men and true, holding
fast by Him and we shall not need to be ashamedin the awful day.
As for you that have never given yourselves to Christ, I dare not tell you to
renew a vow which you have never made. Nordare I ask you to make a vow,
which you would never keep. I can only pray for you, that God the Savior
would be pleasedto revealHimself unto your heart, that “a sense of blood-

86. bought pardon” may “dissolve your hearts of stone.” Thatyou may be
brought to give yourselves to Him, knowing that if you have done that, you
have the bestproof that He has given Himself for you. May God Almighty
bless you–those of you who depart, may He dismiss with His blessing–and
those who remain, may you receive His favor, for Christ’s sake. Amen
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
BRUCE HURT MD
John 21:15 So 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." He said to him, " Tend My lambs.":
• son of: Jn 21:16,17 1:42, Jona, Mt 16:17, Bar-jona
• Do you love: Jn 8:42 14:15-24 16:27 Mt 10:37 25:34-45 1Co 16:21,22 2Co 5:14,15 Ga
5:6 Eph 6:24 1Pe 1:8 1Jn 4:19 5:1
• more: Jn 21:7 Mt 26:33,35 Mk 14:29
• You know: Jn 21:17 2Sa 7:20 2Ki 20:3 Heb 4:13 Rev 2:23
• Feed: Ps 78:70-72 Jer 3:15 23:4 Eze 34:2-10,23 Ac 20:28 1Ti 4:15,16 Heb 13:20 1Pe
2:25 5:1-4
• lambs: Ge 33:13 Isa 40:11 Mt 18:10,11 Lk 22:32 Ro 14:1 15:1 1Co 3:1-3 8:11 Eph 4:14
Heb 12:12,13 1Pe 2:2
• John 21 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
PETER'S
RESTORATION
John MacArthur gives us the context for the following dialogue between Jesus and Peter…
since his denials were public knowledge, he needed to be publicly restored. The other
disciples needed to hear Peter’s reaffirmation of his love for Christ and Christ’s
recommissioning of him, so they would be willing to loyally support his leadership. As
soon as they had finished breakfast (cf. Jn 21:12,13), Jesus initiated the restoration by
confronting Peter. (MacArthur, J: John 12-21. Chicago: Moody Press)
John Montgomery Boice (source of the "title" above) has a superb, practical introduction to this
concluding section of John's Gospel…
If each of us knew how sinful we really are, we would not be so shocked or subdued by
our failures. But most of us do not know the depths of our own depravity. So we are
shocked, particularly by a fall into serious moral sin or by our surprising ability to deny

87. Jesus Christ. When we sin in such ways, it is a tactic of the devil to argue that, having
sinned, we have forfeited our chance for a successful and happy Christian life and that we
might as well go on sinning. Like most of the devil’s statements this is untrue. Though
we sin, we have nevertheless not forfeited our chances for a full Christian life, nor dare
we go on sinning. Instead, the Christian way is that of repentance and restoration. This is
the point of the story of Peter’s restoration by Jesus in John 21. Peter had failed the Lord
in his hour of apparent need. He had abandoned him and had compounded his cowardice
by a threefold denial that he had ever known him. Yet Jesus loved Peter, and Peter knew
that he loved Jesus. To understand the story of Peter’s restoration we need to understand
something about Peter’s fall. Its cause was self-confidence… (Boice, J. M. The Gospel of
John: An Expositional Commentary. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books)
Ed: See Jesus' command to the 12 - Jn 13:34, prompting Peter to declare Jn 13:37 to
which Jesus replied Jn 13:38, and on the way to the Garden of Gethsemane Peter's self-
confidence again came through - Mt 26:33 rebutted by Jesus Mt 26:34 prompting Peter to
respond Mt 26:35!
APPLICATION QUESTIONS
RELATED TO JOHN 21:15-25
Note: These application points are not in order (they don't necessarily go from verse 15 to
verse 25). Some of the points of application overlap.
• Peter was grieved by the Lord's third question - Have you ever felt grief and pain like
Peter felt, a pain directed by the Lord to the very core of your being, deep down in the
most sensitive area of your life?
• How does Jesus speak to our heart today? The Word of God ("reproof, correction," etc)
• The probable meaning of what Jesus meant by “more than these” is discussed below.
We could apply this question by personalizing it and asking “Who (what) do I love more
than Jesus?”
• One lesson which our Lord teaches us here by His own example is, that we ought to
take great pains in rebuking a friend for his fault (referring to Peter's denial). (Broadus)
• Jesus' piercing questions to Peter's surely are applicable to each of us today -- Jesus
might ask this same question of each of us. Simply put, do you love the Lord Jesus
Christ? Do you love Him? How do you know? Jesus said "if you love (agapao) Me, you
will (not "might") keep My commandments" (Jn 14:15) Those who claim assurance yet
have no desire to go on in obedience to the command of Christ are still dead in their sins.
"He who has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me; and he who
loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I will love him, and will disclose (emphanizo
= manifest openly, allowing Himself to be intimately known and understood) Myself to
him." (Jn 14:21 cp Jn 14:23, 24, Jn 15:10)
• Have you like Peter "failed to stand by your Lord" at some moment of crisis? Perhaps
you think you have sinned against Him so horribly that He would never forgive you. Are
you in need of restoration of fellowship with Jesus? Then Peter's story in John 21 is
your story. Observe the Master's restoring touch in this section. Note especially the
absence of harsh censure (Words like "I told you so!", "How could you do that to Me
Peter?", etc).

88. • Beware of spiritual self-confidence; self-righteous; believing you’re spiritually stronger
or more devoted. Or because you’ve been on a missions trip; because you go door to door
and evangelize; because you don’t own a TV set; because you drive a “humble mobile”
Beware! (Brian Bell)
• Before we are sent for service, the Lord Jesus wants to ask us one question "Do you
love Me?" When we can answer this question affirmatively without hesitation or
equivocation, we are ready to hear His call to service.
• Are you motivated by love for Christ? What will keep you serving the Lord when the
going gets tough? Although you may be sensitive to the needs of others, that alone isn’t
enough. Nor should we be driven by a need that we have—a desire to be appreciated or
loved by others. Our needs are deep, and only God can satisfy them. The more we try to
satisfy them with anything else—even God’s work—the more dissatisfied we will
become. In short, even love for God’s people, His sheep, won’t keep us going, because
"sheep" can often be unlovable and insufferable and we may come to resent them.
Oswald Chambers wrote “If we are devoted to the cause of humanity, we shall soon be
crushed and brokenhearted,… but if our motive is to love of Christ, no ingratitude can
hinder us from serving our fellowmen.” (Cp Paul's great motive for service - 2Co 5:14-
note )
• Do you have John's way of viewing your Christian life? John 21:20 gives us one of the
deepest truths of Christian life, one of the great secrets of Christian peace, an essential
quality of faith: that our hope does not rest in our love for Christ--but in His love for us.
People are often discouraged when they find in themselves so little that is good and
beautiful. They cannot see that they love Christ any more this year, than they did last.
They do not find in themselves the beautiful fruits of the Spirit which they wish they
could find. But there is another way to look at our lives, which gives us more hope. It is
John's way--not our love for Christ--but Christ's love for us! (J. R. Miller)
• We too like the early disciples are to be fishers of men - Are you engaged in winsome
evangelism with friends, family, co-workers? If some have become believers (little
lambs), are you seeking to shepherd them - feeding, guiding, protecting, as they take their
first steps on yet slightly wobbly spiritual legs? While doubtless this charge speaks
primarily to pastors, there is surely personal application for all followers of Christ,
because Jesus' last command was to make disciples (learners) (Mt 28:18, 19, 20). Are
you heeding our Chief Shepherd's call?
• Does your spiritual service proceed from your love and devotion to Christ? Love of
Christ should always be the primary motivation for our service. Or are you placing
service to Christ ahead of love to Christ? (See Oswald Chambers Devotional)
• Aren't we all a lot like Peter in Jn 21:21 asking "What about this man?" It is so
easy to let our relationship with the Lord be overly influenced by the behavior and
experiences of others. But we must not be concerned with what God has planned for
anyone else. Through the conflicting voices that surround us, we must keep hearing the
Savior’s clear command: “You follow Me.” Are you fixing your eyes on Jesus or on His
work in and through other saints? The former focus will assure a race well done, while
the latter focus often leads to frustration, envy, jealousy and failure to finish your (own,
not someone else's) race.

89. • Take a moment to express your love to Jesus by playing (and singing) the beautiful old
Maranatha chorus I Love You Lord
• Lessonfrom Jn 21:21, 22 - Resentment comes from looking at others. Contentment
comes from looking to Jesus.
• What is the word for the church from Jn 21:15-17? Love Christ! We, as a church,
must move beyond the phileo love that says, "I am fond of you, I live you like a brother",
and must come to the place where we love the Lord with a genuine agape love. That is,
we need a self-sacrificing, self-denying, unconditional, unchanging, unending love for
Christ that pervades every area of our lives. When we come to this point, Mt 22:39 will
pose no problems for us. Then we will be in a place to demonstrate to the lost world
around us that Jesus is all that He claims to be - John 13:35 (Alan Carr)
• When you read the Words of Jesus and hear Him asking "Do you love Me?" how do
you answer? 'Jesus, I admire You. Jesus, I think you are fascinating. Jesus, I have a great
respect for You'? Or can you say with Peter, 'Lord, you know what is in my heart, You
know that I love You'?
• Many can identify with Peter over their own sense of spiritual faltering and falling.
How many have made good confessions, committed to firm resolutions of faithfulness,
then have fallen into sin, spiritual coldness, and barrenness? How often have we done the
very thing we said that we would not do in terms of spiritual commitment? The
encouragement for all of us in this passage is that there is mercy with the Lord! He alone
can restore the fallen to usefulness… The most striking element of this whole scene is
that we see Jesus Christ pursuing the fallen. You make think "He would never pursue
me." Then you don't understand the loving heart of Jesus to continually seek those who
deny Him with their thoughts, words and actions… people just like Peter! (Phil Newton -
The Fallen Restored)
• To follow (akoloutheo Jn 21:19, 20) is intimately linked to the life and ministry of
Jesus. Indeed, He is the only One we should follow. Who are you following? A pastor, a
sports hero, a famous writer, a successful relative, etc? May God grant us wisdom and
grace that by His Spirit we may follow Jesus all the days of our life and unto a death that
glorifies His Holy Name. Amen
• Have you heard and heeded Jesus' command "Follow Me?" Do you understand
what it means to follow Jesus? Jesus' call to follow Him is in essence His call to be His
disciple. (Study the verb "follow" in the Gospels - Mt 4:19, Mk 1:17, Mt 8:19, 20, 21, Mt
9:9, Lk 5:27, 28, Mt 10:37, 38, 39; Mt 16:24, 25, 26; Mk 8:34, 35, 36, 37, 38; Mt 19:21,
22, 23, 24; Lk 9:23, 24, 25, 26; Lk 9:59, 60, 61, 62; Lk 18:22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27; Jn 10:4,
5, 27; Jn 12:26
• "Follow Me" are not the last words of Jesus before His ascension (see Acts 1:7, 8) but
they are Jesus' last words in the Gospel of John (Jn 21:22). It is interesting that Jesus
issued the same command (Follow Me) at the beginning of this Gospel (Jn 1:43). Clearly
Jesus wants us to remember that being a Christian is not just believing in Him in an
abstract sense, but that it constitutes believing in the Person of Jesus to the point that we
turn our back on all else and choose to follow Him all the days of our life!

90. /files/images/Feed%20my%20sheep%201.jpg
/files/images/Feed%20my%20sheep%201.jpg
Feed My Sheep
(click to enlarge)
Background: Matthew records Simon Peter's first sea side encounter with Jesus, a memory
which Peter surely must have recollected…
And walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter,
and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said
to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they immediately left the
nets, and followed Him. (Mt 4:18, 19, 20)
Comment: Imagine Peter's thoughts - This same seaside is where Jesus called Peter to
follow Him. And he had left all to follow Him. And then he had declared his
"unshakeable" loyalty. But then he failed and denied Him three times. And now he was
back where he had began the journey with Jesus. Was this the end of the journey for
Peter? Would He ever accept Peter? Would He ever forgive Peter? Could He ever
use a failure like Peter? If we have followed Jesus for more than a few years, these are
questions we've all probably mulled over in our mind at one time or another, which is
why this personal, poignant interaction between Jesus and Peter is so powerful and so
pertinent to our lives -- because we have all failed our Lord in one way or another and our
failure has left us downcast and grieved in spirit. Go back and read the questions in green,
this time substituting your name for Peter's!
Son of the living God! Oh, call us
Once and again to follow Thee;
And give us strength, whate’er befall us,
Thy true disciples still to be.
—Martin
Jesus calls us to follow Him—
and repeats His call when necessary!
PROPHECY& PRAYER
FOR PETER'S FAITH
Recall that Jesus had prophesied of Peter's fall in Luke 22, but He also prophesied His return and
that is part of what Jesus is doing now in this interchange with Peter…
Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; 32 but I
have prayed for you (singular pronoun), that your faith may not fail; and you, when once
you have turned again, strengthen (sterizo in the aorist imperative = command issued
with a sense of urgency) your brothers (Note: Once he had been emptied of his self-
confidence)." (Lk 22:31, 32)
Luke records Peter's denial of Christ…
And having arrested Him (Jesus), they led Him away, and brought Him to the house of
the high priest (Caiaphas); but Peter was following at a distance (Ed: All backsliding

91. begins this way - instead of staying close to Jesus, we begin to follow from afar! We
don't read the Word as often we once did. We seldom pray, etc. Do you need to rekindle
the flame?) And after they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat
down together, Peter was sitting among them. And a certain servant-girl, seeing him as
he sat in the firelight, and looking intently at him, said, "This man was with Him too."
But he denied it, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him." And a little later, another saw
him and said, "You are one of them too!" But Peter said, "Man, I am not!" And after
about an hour had passed, another man began to insist, saying, "Certainly this man also
was with Him, for he is a Galilean too." But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you
are talking about." And immediately, while he was still speaking, a cock crowed. And the
Lord turned and looked (Not just a passing, chance look for the Greek verb = emblepo =
to turn one's eyes on, to look straight at someone, to look in the face, to fix one's gaze
upon, to look at someone directly and intently) at Peter. And Peter remembered the word
of the Lord, how He had told him, "Before a cock crows today, you will deny Me three
times." And he went out and wept bitterly (Ed: And so it is with every true child of God
who walks away from the perfect will of God. Gone is the sense of God's presence, the
peace of God and the power of God! Sin will make you miserable, and if it doesn’t, then
you probably aren’t saved, Heb. 12:8-note!) (Lk 22:54, 55, 60, 61,62)
Comment: So Peter who had claimed extreme devotion to Jesus (Jn 13:36, 37), denies
Him when the "chips were down." Peter's failure emphasizes that the best marker of
genuine love is not our words but our obedience (cp Jn 14:15, 2Jn 1:6).
Peter's weeping marks the beginning of his return to restoration. The way back to God
begins with a broken heart. God's forgiveness always comes with another chance.
Preacher George Duncan said, “I don’t think many church-vacancy committees would
have considered Peter a suitable candidate for a church!” Duncan pointed out that at
Pentecost, however, God chose Peter to deliver the most vital sermon in church history.
“It would seem,” Duncan said, “that some Christians have a message of forgiveness for
the unbeliever, but no message of forgiveness for the believer. I’m glad that God does!”
Because of that forgiveness, a new day of service dawned for Peter.
We’re thankful, Lord, that when we fall
We can begin anew
If humbly we confess our sin,
Then turn and follow You.
—Sper
In this last half of John 21, Jesus changes His metaphorical (figurative) description of His
disciples from fishermen (think evangelism) to shepherds (think pastor/equipper/teacher)
Alan Carr describes Jn 21:15-17…
In these verses, we find the Lord Jesus re-commissioning Simon Peter for service. I am
sure that Peter felt that his work and ministry was forever gone, but Jesus came to call
him back into the fight! This was a time of unique fellowship and restoration between
Jesus and Simon Peter. In these few verses, Jesus freed Peter from the bondage of his sin
and failure and set him back about the business of serving the Lord and His church.
The same will be true for every backslidden child of God who returns to the Father’s
house today. Not only will He forgive your sins, but He can restore you to a place of

92. service for His glory. He will put you back on the battle field. He longs to meet with you
today and to put you back into that place of service. You still have a Friend in Jesus
regardless of how far you have fallen! (Tender Moment)
G Campbell Morgan…
Feed My Lambs… Tend My sheep… Feed My sheep. John 21:15, 16, 17
These words constitute our Lord's final commission to Peter, and as Peter stands ever
before us as the representative man, the words were spoken through him to the Church.
We need to rescue these words from an altogether too narrow interpretation. It has been
said that, on the shores of the lake in the flush of the early morning, Jesus handed Peter
the crozier, the staff of the pastoral office, and thus entrusted to him the oversight of the
saints of God. This is undoubtedly true, but the whole truth is more than this. That narrow
view of our Lord's meaning is due largely to the fact that our minds are obsessed almost
by one particular utterance of our Lord, in which He drew a clear and sharp distinction
between sheep and goats. It is well to remember that Christ only once made such
distinction. (G. Campbell Morgan - My Lambs-My Sheep)
J Vernon McGee…
Jesus must have looked across the dying embers of that fire upon which He had prepared
their breakfast and straight into the eyes of Simon Peter as He said, 'Simon, son of Jonah,
do you love Me more than these?' (J. Vernon McGee - The Secret of Service)
Brian Bell's Outline of this John 21:15-25…
3 Lessons on the Beach!
Past Failure can be Forgiven in Love (Jn 21:15-17)
Present Lifestyle is no guarantee of the Same Future (Jn 21:18,19)
Personal Obedience is an Individual Matter (Jn 21:20-23)
Wrap up: There is so much More! (Jn 21:24,25)
(John 21:15-15 Three Lessons on the Beach)
F B Meyerintroduces this next section with these comments…
THAT miraculous catch of fish on which we have dwelt was a parable to the disciples of
the kind of work in which they were thenceforward to be engaged. They were to catch
men. But there was one amongst them who must have wondered much how he would
fare, and what part he would take when that work was recommenced. Might he have a
share in it? He would seem to have forfeited all right. With oaths and curses he had thrice
denied that he belonged to Jesus. He had given grievous occasion to the enemy to
blaspheme. He had failed in a most important part of an apostle's character.
True, he had repented with bitter tears, and had received a message from the empty tomb;
on that Easter morn he had heard his forgiveness spoken by the lips of his Lord, and he
would not have exchanged that forgiveness for an imperial crown: but he was not quite at
ease. His uneasiness betrayed itself in his plunge into the water to swim to Christ's feet,
and in his rush to drag the net to the shore. He wished to be restored to the position in the
Apostolate which his sin had forfeited; not because of the honour which it would bring,

93. but because nothing less would assure him of the undiminished confidence and the entire
affection of Jesus.
The Lord read his heart; and when the morning meal was done, He singled him out from
the rest of his disciples, and asked him three times if he loved Him, and then thrice gave
him the injunction to feed his flock. In addressing him our Lord calls him by his old
name, Simon Bar Jonas, not by his new name, Peter; as if to remind him that he had been
living the life of nature rather than of grace. (John 21:15 Peter's Love and Work)
PETER'S 3 DENIALS OF CHRIST
FOLLOWED BY
3 AFFIRMATIONS OF LOVE FOR CHRIST
So when they had finished breakfast - The context = Jesus Grilling the Fish (Read John 21:1-
14 for part 1 of Peter's restoration by His Lord!) Ron Teed comments…
Think about what was going on here. Here is the God of the universe serving breakfast to
His apostles. It was kind of like a cookout with Jesus working the grill. (Lesson) Jesus
never considered any kind of service to others to be humiliating. In fact, He
thoroughly enjoyed serving. Anyone who claims to be a follower of Christ should also
enjoy serving others. (John 21 Commentary)
Jesus said to Simon Peter - Was this conversation in private or in the hearing of all the
disciples? Also place yourself in Peter's position. What might Peter be expecting to hear from
Jesus that he did not hear? How had Peter responded in the heat of the moment when His Lord
was being falsely tried?
Simon Peter - Several have commented on Jesus' use of Peter's name before his call to follow
Jesus. Several times Jesus referred to Peter as "Simon" when he did something that needed
correction (see Mt 17:25, Mk 14:37, Lk 22:31). It is as if Jesus reverts to Peter's former name
when he begins to act like his former self (self confident, impetuous, etc). Simon's old name
meant something like "pebble" whereas his new name Peter meant "a rock." Using his old name
would remind Peter of his weakness (see Jn 1:42KJV - Simon the "jellyfish" would be changed
by Jesus into Peter the courageous rock. Little did Peter understand the fires of testing he must
pass through to remove the old Simon and bring forth the new Peter! A similar rite of passage is
seen in most of God's children. Message? Don't fight the fires of testing!)
Plumptre remarks…
Our Lord's words would seem to address him as one who had fallen from the
steadfastness of the "Rock-man" and had been true rather to his nature than to his
apostolic name. (cp Jn 1:42 and Mt 16:17). (A New Testament commentary for English
readers)
J Vernon McGee…
Note the significance of his name. To begin with He called him Simon. That is interesting
- Simon son of Jonah - why did He call him Simon? You may recall that when the Lord
Jesus first met this man, his brother Andrew had brought him to Jesus, and when Jesus
looked at him, He said in effect, 'You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called
Cephas.' Cephas is the Aramaic word for 'Rock Man.' In Greek it is Petros, and that name
clung to him. We find that over in Caesarea Philippi, when he gave that marvelous

94. testimony concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the
living God,' the Lord Jesus said in effect, 'Blessed are you, Simon [He goes back to his
old name] … you will be called Peter because you are going to be a Rock Man from here
on. You will be a man who will stand for something, but right now there is still a
question.' And so the Lord reminds him of his old name.
If you and I today think that we are somebody important, perhaps He would like to tell us
just who we really are! Perhaps we are like Simon, the wishy-washy, mollycoddle fellow
who tried to please everybody, who attempted to boast and was filled with pride. Our
Lord dealt with him and settled him quietly when He said, 'Simon [his old name], do you
love Me more than these?' (J. Vernon McGee - The Secret of Service)
Do you love Me more than these? - What or who is these? Fishing, fish breakfast (doubtful).
More than you love these other disciples? Probably not. More than these (other disciples love
Me)? That is probably the thrust of His intent.
G V Wigram…
Our Lord searched the heart of Peter (in John 21:15-17) with three questions, which
brought up to Peter's mind the roots of his failure, rather than the overt act of denial.
And He graciously closed up each probing with a word of comfort: Feed my lambs (v.
15); Shepherd my sheep (v. 16); Feed my sheep (v. 17); thus breaking the self-
confidence of His servant, both in himself and man, ere He confided the sheep and
lambs of Israel to his care. (John 21:15-17 The Assembly of God and the Table of the
Lords)
COMPARISON
OF
John 21:15-17
NASB
Jesus'
Question
Peter's
Answer
Jesus'
Response
John 21:15 Love - agapao
Know - oida
Love - phileo
Tend - bosko
Lambs - arnion
John 21:16 Love - agapao
Know - oida
Love - phileo
Shepherd - poimaino
Sheep - probaton
John 21:17 Love - phileo
Know - oida
Know - ginosko
Love - phileo
Tend - bosko
Sheep - probaton
Note: Verbs for "know" = oida (know intellectually) and ginosko (know experientially).
For background recall Peter's bold claim not that many days prior…
But Peter answered and said to Him, "Even though all may fall away because of You, I
will never fall away." Jesus said to him, "Truly I say to you that this very night, before a
cock crows, you shall deny Me three times." Peter said to Him, "Even if I have to die

95. with You, I will not deny You." All the disciples said the same thing too. (Mt 26:33, 34,
35, parallels passage = Mk 14:29, cp Jn 13:37)
TWO WORDS
FOR LOVE
Summary of the two words for "love" - Agapao is the word that describes God's love (Jn 3:16,
1Jn 4:8), the highest love, what might be referred to as "100% love" (from Boice), so that Jesus
was asking Peter "Do you love Me with a 100% love?". The other word for love is phileo ,
human love as expressed in friendship, love we are incapable of apart from the New Birth and
the Spirit's energizing effect, what might be referred to as "60% love" (from Boice). In the first
query, Jesus adds more than these, undoubtedly referring to the disciples. Peter had once claimed
he loved Jesus more than the others and would prove his love by his willingness to die for Him.
So Peter answers saying that he loves Jesus with 60% love. This is the same Peter who had once
boasted of a 100% love for Jesus. Peter has been greatly humbly by his denial which explains his
refusal to claim 100% love. Jesus again asks if Peter loved Him with 100% love, mercifully
leaving off the comparison with the other disciples. Again Peter answers that he loves Jesus with
a 60% love. And then on the third query, Jesus drops down to Peter's level and asks him if he
loves Him with a 60% love. Clearly this threefold repetition is a response to Peter's threefold
denial. Boice comments on the threefold question, one which obviously grieved Peter…
Does it seem cruel to you that the Lord asked Peter three times in front of the others
whether he loved Him, in clear reference to his earlier threefold denial? It seemed to be;
it was certainly painful. Yet in the ultimate analysis it was not cruel. The truly cruel thing
would have been to let the matter go on festering in Peter so that throughout his entire life
both he and the others would think that he was somehow inferior and unworthy of office
though he had undoubtedly repented of the sin with weeping, as the Bible tells us. The
kind thing was the public restoration so that Peter and the others would henceforth know
that Peter’s past was past and that the Lord had himself commissioned him to further
service. That is why the Bible calls for public confession of sin. God does not wish to be
cruel to us, though the experience of confession is painful. It is to end the matter so that
we can pick up and go on with Jesus. (Boice, J. M. The Gospel of John: An Expositional
Commentary. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books)
Love (25)(agapao - see related study of noun agape) means to love unconditionally and
sacrificially as God Himself loves sinful men (John 3:16), the way He loves the Son (John 3:35,
15:9, 17:23, 24). Agapao is a verb which by its nature calls for action. Agapao is the purest,
noblest form of love, which is volitionally driven, not motivated by superficial appearance,
emotional attraction, or sentimental relationship.
In short, agapao is the highest love of one's will and a love that implies total commitment (cp
Paul's "definition" in 1Cor 13:4-8). Peter fully aware of his recent failure (denial), refused to
claim this high quality of love. Peter was now a broken man, humbled by his denial after
boasting so strongly that he would never deny His Lord. And so he uses phileo (see below), the
less lofty term for love. He was willing to say he had at least that quality of love and he even
appealed to Jesus' omniscience ("You know that I love You") to support his affirmation of love
(phileo type).
Vine writes that "Love can be known only from the actions it prompts. God’s love is seen in the
gift of His Son, 1John 4:9, 10. But obviously this is not the love of complacency, or affection,

96. that is, it was not drawn out by any excellency in its objects, Ro 5:8 (note). It was an exercise of
the divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the
nature of God Himself, cp. Deuteronomy 7:7, 8. Love had its perfect expression among men in
the Lord Jesus Christ, 2Co 5:14-note; Ep 2:4 (note); Ep 3:19 (note); Ep 5:2 (note); Christian love
is the fruit of His Spirit in the Christian, Galatians 5:22 (note). Christian love has God for its
primary object, and expresses itself first of all in implicit obedience to His commandments, John
14:15, 21, 23; 15:10; 1Jn 2:5; 5:3; 2Jn 6. Self-will, that is, self-pleasing, is the negation of love to
God. (Vine, W. Collected writings of W. E. Vine. Nashville: Thomas Nelson)
Vine goes on to offer a cogent explanation of why the two verbs agapao and phileo are used in
this context "As to the change of verb in Peter’s reply to the Lord’s question (See preceding
table), “Lovest thou Me?” Christ uses agapao in His first two questions; Peter uses phileo in all
three answers. Phileo expresses a natural affection, and in this Peter is perfectly sure of himself
and is keenly desirous of stating his affection, particularly after his denials. This the Lord fully
appreciates; but He is thinking of the practical manifestations and effects as well, as is evident
from His commands. And the verb agapao combines the two meanings: it expresses a real
affection, but likewise raises it to the thought of an active and devoted exercise of it on behalf of
others. Accordingly He first says “Feed My lambs” (showing that the love is the expression of
mind in action). So again, when Peter adheres to phileo, Christ replies, “Tend My sheep.”
Shepherd work (all that is involved in tending sheep) must exhibit the love. The commands
show how fully reinstated Peter was. (Vine, W. Collected writings of W. E. Vine. Nashville:
Thomas Nelson)
While not all see a clear significance in the change of verbs for "love", John MacArthur feels
the change is significant…
The word Jesus used for love is agapao, the highest love of the will, love that implies
total commitment (cf. 1Co 13:4–8). Peter, painfully aware of his disobedience and
failure, felt too guilty to claim that type of love. The brash pronouncements were a thing
of the past; broken and humbled and fully aware that his action precluded him from a
believable claim to the highest love, Peter answered by using the word phileo, a less lofty
term that signifies affection. He also appealed to Jesus’ omniscience, reminding Him,
“You know that I love You.” Accepting Peter’s humble acknowledgement that his love
was less than he had claimed and Christ deserved, Jesus still recommissioned him,
graciously saying to him, “Tend My lambs.”
Thomas Watson relates our love of Jesus to our service for Jesus writing…
Love makes all our services acceptable, it is the musk that perfumes them. It is not so
much duty, as love to duty, God delights in; therefore serving and loving God are put
together. Isa 56: 6. It is better to love Him than to serve Him; obedience without love, is
like wine without the spirit. O then, be persuaded to love God with all your heart and
might.
It is nothing but your love that God desires. The Lord might have demanded your
children to be offered in sacrifice; he might have bid you cut and lance yourselves, or lie
in hell awhile; but he only desires your love, he would only have this flower. Is it a hard
request, to love God? Was ever any debt easier paid than this? Is it any labour for the
wife to love her husband? Love is delightful. Love must by definition be sweet --
Bernard. What is there in our love that God should desire it? Why should a king desire

97. the love of a woman that is in debt and diseased? God does not need our love. There are
angels enough in heaven to adore and love Him. What is God the better for our love? It
adds not the least cubit to His essential blessedness. He does not need our love, and yet
He seeks it. Why does He desire us to give Him our heart? Pr 23:26. Not that He needs
our heart, but that He may make it better…
Our love to God is a sign of His love to us. We love him because he first loved us.' 1John
4: 19. By nature we have no love to God; we have hearts of stone. Ezek 36: 26. And how
can any love be in hearts of stone? Our loving Him is from his loving us. If the glass
burn, it is because the sun has shone on it; so if our hearts burn in love, it is a sign the Sun
of Righteousness has shone upon us. (Thomas Watson - The Ten Commandments 2.
Introduction Love)
Phil Newton comments on why Jesus would ask Peter something about which He knew the
answer…
The question to Peter and to any of us who struggle with our relationship to Christ is
meant to bring us to the place of recognizing the reality of the divine love placed within
us through the new birth (Ro 5:5). This kind of love is unnatural to the sinner. It is a gift
of grace born by the Holy Spirit within us. So, when our Lord asks, "Do you love Me?"
He is pointedly asking whether there is the reality of the new birth in your life.
But we also see this question humbling us. We can only imagine the depth of humility
cast upon Peter when he was questioned by Christ. Is that not what we need when in
pride we have gone our own way and rebelled against the will of Christ? Do we not need
to be humbled and broken in conviction concerning our own sinfulness? Jesus' question is
meant to clear away the rubbish in our lives, to get down to the rock bottom of our
affections. Do you love Jesus Christ?
The question examines us in our motives. It searches the true intentions of our hearts.
Charles H. Spurgeon wrote,
It is well, especially after a foul sin, that the Christian should well probe the wound. It is
right that he should examine himself; for sin gives grave cause for suspicion, and it would
be wrong for a Christian to live an hour with a suspicion concerning his spiritual estate,
unless he occupy that hour in examination of himself. Self-examination should more
especially follow sin, though it ought to be the daily habit of every Christian, and should
be practiced by him perpetually [New Park Street Pulpit, vol. III, 81].
"Do you love Me?" Jesus asked Peter. He sought through this question, pointedly asked
three times, to arouse, awaken, and stir Simon Peter to see the gravity of his sin, while at
the same moment resting in the greatness of Christ's mercy. When we fall into sin and
come to the place of admitting our wretchedness, it should serve to keep us out of the
same quicksand again… The searching question, "Do you love Me?" causes you to wring
your heart out before the Lord, to see your own unworthiness, to feel the horror of your
sin; yet to know that in spite of it all because He has given grace to you, you love Him.
(Sermon)
H A Ironside…
The outstanding theme of this chapter is the public restoration of the Apostle Peter. He
who had failed the Lord so sadly in the hour of need might have thought he would never

98. again be recognized as one of the apostles. But he was just as tenderly loved by the Lord
after his failure as before. I wish we could take that in.
I contact so many people who tell me more or less the same story. In some way or other
they failed to stand the test, and they are conscious of having sinned against the Lord and
though truly penitent, they feel that it is all over with them, that the Lord has given them
up and that they are hopelessly lost. Some say,
“I wonder if I have committed the unpardonable sin? I cannot get the witness of the spirit
any more. I have prayed and prayed but do not get peace.”
Such souls forget that the witness is the testimony of Holy Scripture and that the Word of
God has told us that if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1Jn 1:9). That is the witness of the Spirit
given through the Word of God, and no matter who the sinner is, when he comes to God
confessing his failure, acknowledging and judging it ("owning it" like David as a sin
against God and God alone, cp Ps 51:4-note) he may be absolutely certain that God will
never go back on His declaration that the sin is put away, that the failing believer who has
confessed his sins is cleansed from all unrighteousness, and that communion is restored.
Happy is the soul who enters into that by faith and goes on rejoicing in fellowship with
his Saviour. (Ironside, H. A. 1942. Addresses on the Gospel of John. Neptune, NJ:
Loizeaux Brothers)
Plumptre…
Lovest thou Me more than these? -- i.e., (more) than these disciples who are present
here with thee. It seems unnecessary to add this explanation, but not a few English notes
on this verse explain the word "these" of the fishes, or of the boats and nets, as though the
question was, "Lovest thou Me more than thy worldly calling? Art thou willing to give up
all for Me?" The obvious reference is to Peter's own comparison of himself with others in
the confidence of love which he thought could never fail. (Compare Mt 26:33, Mark
14:29). (A New Testament commentary for English readers)
John Broadus writes…
Simon Peter also gives us a lesson here, a lesson in humility to this effect. When a man is
in a right mood about spiritual things he will shrink from all comparison between himself
and others. Jesus said to him, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these?"
You know there is an ambiguity in this expression, and it exists in the Greek exactly as in
the English. It may mean, more than these love, more than you love these men, or more
than you love these pursuits.
But the circumstances of the story leave no doubt as to what is meant. Peter had
professed a few weeks before that he did love the Lord more than the other disciples.
He had distinctly declared it, and no doubt he was sincere. When Jesus predicted that
they would forsake Him, Peter said, "Though all men forsake thee yet will I never forsake
thee." (Mt 26:33) And so he singled himself out above the other disciples, as loving the
Lord more than any of them. And of that he is here reminded.
But when Peter comes to answer, he leaves the comparison (more than) out this time.
He says, "Lord, you know that I love You." He is in no mood for comparisons now. A
truly humble man never is. He will be the last person to be thinking of such a thing, and

99. if forced to make comparisons he will tell you that he is less than the least of all disciples
(cp Paul's ever growing humility 1Co 15:9 [55AD], Eph 3:8 [61AD], 1Ti 1:15 [63-
66AD]), but that he does love the Lord, and the Lord does love him and he means to be a
better servant. (John A. Broadus - Loving Jesus Christ)
Brian Bell explains it this way…
Peter had boasted of his love for Christ and had even contrasted it with that of the other
men. “I will lay down my life for Your sake!” (Jn 13:37) “Even if all are made to stumble
because of You, I will never be made to stumble.” (Mt. 26:33)
1. There is more than a hint in these boastful statements that Peter believed that he loved
the Lord more than did the other disciples. {as if to say, “I can see James/ John falling
away; Thomas for sure; But not me! - I’m spiritually stronger & more devoted to you
than they are. I can see their commitment won’t hold up, but mine will.”}
2. Beware of: spiritual self-confidence; self-righteous; believing you’re spiritually
stronger or more devoted. Or because you’ve been on a missions trip; because you go
door to door and evangelize; because you don’t own a TV set; because you drive a
“humble mobile” Beware! (John 21:15-15 Three Lessons on the Beach)
Plumptre remarks on the thrice asked question…
The thrice-asked question has been generally understood to have special force in the
restoration of him who had thrice denied his Lord, and now thrice declares his love for
Him, and is thrice entrusted with a work for Him; and we feel that this interpretation
gives a natural meaning to the emphasis of these verse. It may not be fanciful to trace
significance, even in the external circumstances under which the question was asked. By
the side of the lake after casting his net into the sea had Peter first been called to be a
fisher of men (Mt 4:19). The lake, the very spot on the shore, the nets, the boat, would
bring back to his mind in all their fulness the thoughts of the day which had been the
turning point of his life. By the side of the "fire of coals" (See note on John 18:18 [note],
the only other place where this Greek word occurs - in the Greek this phrase is expressed
by one word… it means a glowing fire) he had denied his Lord. As the eye rests upon the
"fire of coals" before him, and he is conscious of the presence of the Lord, Who knows
all things (Jn 21:17), burning thoughts of penitence and shame may have come to his
mind, and these may have been the true preparation for the words which follow. (A New
Testament commentary for English readers)
J C Ryle comments on Jesus' question and Peter's response…
Ask him whether he is converted, whether he is a believer, whether he has grace, whether
he is justified, whether he is sanctified, whether he is elect, whether he is a child of God--
ask him any one of these questions and he may perhaps reply that he really does not
know! But ask him whether he loves Christ and he will reply, 'I do.' He may add that he
does not love him as much as he ought to do, but he will not say that he does not love him
at all. The rule will be found true with very few exceptions...
Wherever there is true grace,
there will be a consciousness of love towards Christ
Yes, Lord; You know that I love You - Unlike our English language, the Greeks had more than
one word for "love" and Peter responded with the verb phileo [word study], a "weaker" verb

100. than the one His Lord had used (agapao [word study]). In this conversation between our Lord
and Peter (John 21:15-19), our Lord uses agapao twice and phileo the third time, while Peter
uses phileo three times.
Plummer on "You know"…
Peter will not venture anymore to compare himself with others (He drops the "more than
these"). Moreover he makes no professions as to the future. Experience has taught him
that the present is all that he can be sure of. The 'You' in 'You know' is emphatic. This
time Peter will trust the Lord's knowledge of him rather than his own estimate of himself.
Love (5368) (phileo from phílos = loved, dear, friend) has to do with the affection and the
emotion in a human relationship at its best usage. We get our word philanthropic from it, and
Philadelphia comes from it - Philadelphia, the 'city of brotherly love.' Phileo means to be a friend
to another, to be fond of (have a liking for) an individual or an object, to have or show affection
for. In some contexts it means to kiss another as a mark of tenderness for that person. Phileo
denotes personal attachment and is more a matter of sentiment or feeling. It is devotion based in
the emotions distinguished from agapao which represents devotion based in the will. Stated
another way phileo is chiefly of the heart whereas agape is chiefly of the head. Phileo is a love
which is the response of the human spirit to what appeals to it as pleasurable. Phileo is a love
which consists of the glow of the heart kindled by the perception of that in the object which
affords us pleasure.
Phileo is the response of the human spirit to what appeals to it as pleasurable. The Greeks made
much of friendship. Phileo was used to speak of a friendly affection. Phileo is a love called out of
one in response to a feeling of pleasure or delight which one experiences from an apprehension
of qualities in another that furnish such pleasure or delight.
Phileo is friendship love, this "friendship factor" sadly often missing in marriages. In Scripture
phileo is used to describe the love of God the Father and the Son, of Jesus and Peter, and of
Jonathan and David. Phileo love is basically emotional. Phileo cannot be commanded but it can
be developed in relationships. Phileo is based on the qualities in another person that you find
admirable or attractive. Phileo is a fellowship type love manifested in a living and growing
relationship between two friends. Phileo love does feed on response, and it cannot survive long
without response from the other. Friendship love requires attention. Phileo describes a warm
affection which exists between those who are near and dear. It describes a fondness, a responsive
type love. One might picture phileo by the declarations "I love you because you love me" or "I
love you because you are a joy", both of these showing the reciprocal nature of phileo love.
Phileo love gives as long as it receives and thus is a conditional love.
W A Criswell explains the changing of the verbs for love this way…
Important wordplay seems to have been introduced by John into his narrative at this
point. Perhaps the exchange between Jesus and Peter can best be illustrated by examining
the different Greek words used. Philos may be defined as "esteem" or "high regard," and
in that sense, even "love." It contemplates a value in the object loved. Agape, however, is
a self-giving, concerned commitment. The object of love need not yield pleasure to the
lover… Peter's caution about his avowals has been bitterly learned from his promise
never to deny the Lord, followed immediately by a succession of three repudiations. The
point of the entire dialogue is to question not the extent of Peter's love for the Master, but
the nature of his love. The Lord seeks to impress upon Peter the diverse responsibilities

101. ("feed" and "tend") and the tenderness (for "sheep" and "lambs") demanded by his love
for Jesus.
Plummer comments that phileo…
is the less exalted word. Peter is sure of the natural affection which it expresses. He will
say nothing about the higher love implied in agapao.
As Plumptre explains…
Peter uses a less strong expression for love than that which had been used by our Lord.
The question seems to ask, "Dost thou in the full determination of the will, in profound
reverence and devotion, love Me?" The answer seems to say, "Thou knowest me; I dare
not now declare this fixed determination of the will, but in the fulness of personal
affection I dare answer, and Thou knowest that even in my denials it was true, 'I love
Thee.'" (A New Testament commentary for English readers)
Ron Teed writes…
Some commentators maintain that after breakfast Jesus probably took Peter aside away
from the others to talk privately with him, or perhaps took him for a walk along the
beach. But we do not see that. We have checked a number of Bible translations and there
is not a hint in any of them that Jesus took Peter away from the group to speak with him
privately. We must take the Bible for what it says and never try to add anything to it.
There are occasions, however, when we need to look at everything the Bible has to say
about a specific subject or event, and then come to a conclusion based on all the evidence
within the context in which it was presented. (John 21 Commentary)
JESUS
RECOMMISSIONS
PETER
Tend My lambs - This call to service after his time of failure indicates that Jesus accepted
Peter's affirmation of phileo love. Perhaps you have failed your Lord and feel you are no longer
of any use to him (so like Peter you have returned to "fishing", doing what you did before He
called you). This interchange between Jesus and Peter however teaches that although we might
feel like we are useless failures, Jesus is willing and able to take broken hearts, and restore them
to His vital service. He is the Potter and we are the clay. Sometimes the Potter has to break the
first molding in order to remold the clay into a vessel of honor, sanctified, useful to the Master
and prepared for every good work (2Ti 2:21-note).
With what are we to feedthe lambs and sheep? The only spiritually nutritious meal is the
Word of God proclaimed and taught in the power of His Spirit. Not funny stories. Not
testimonies. Not our our personal experiences (cp 2Co 4:5-note) Dear undershepherd, how are
you doing? Are you preaching and teaching His supernatural Word which won't return void?
Remember one day soon we will all give an account to the Chief Shepherd (2Co 5:10-note)
Illustration of Jesus Restoring Peter to Useful Service - There was a certain man who had
been faithful in worshiping with other believers for many years. Then he became lax and stopped
coming to the services. The pastor was burdened for his spiritual welfare, so one day he called in
his home. The man invited him in and offered him a chair by the fire. The Pastor mentioned to
the man how much missed seeing him in the worship services. The man replied that he was

102. saved and saw no need to go to church. He felt that he could worship just fine at home. For
several long moments they sat in silence and watched the burning embers. Then, taking the
tongs, the pastor removed a hot coal and laid it by itself on the hearthstone. As it began to cool,
its red glow soon faded. The man, who had been expecting a verbal rebuke, quickly caught the
message. He was at church for the next service! Its tough being out of the Lord’s will, but it is
possible to make things right again!
Tend (1006) (bosko) is used only in the Gospels and most often describe literal feeding of
animals (especially the feeding of the swine) and twice is used figuratively where people are
compared to lambs and sheep (Jn 21:15, 17).
The present imperative calls for this to be the "shepherds" lifestyle. He is to continually be
about the business of feeding the lambs. Earlier Jesus had called Peter to evangelism (Lk 5:10),
but now (even in the face of his triple denial) Jesus gives Peter an even greater responsibility of
teaching those who have been caught. Why? What was the prerequisite? Moral perfection?
Clearly not. An academic degree? No, none were available from the "University of the Sea of
Galilee"!) The answer is clear in triplicate - Peter loved Jesus. Peter's loved issued forth in a
desire to serve His Master, even as John described in his first epistle…
Little children, let us not love (agapao) with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.
(1Jn 3:18)
Bosko - 9x in 9v - feed(1), feeding(3), herdsmen(3), tend(2).
Mt 8:30 Mt 8:33 Mk 5:11 Mk 5:14 Lk 8:32 Lk 8:34 Lk 15:15 Jn 21:15 Jn 21:17
Bosko - 25v in the non-apocryphal Septuagint -
Ge 29:7, 9; 37:12, 16; 41:2; 1Ki 12:16; Job 1:14; Isa 5:17; 11:6, 7; 14:30; 30:23; 34:17;
49:9; 65:25; Jer 31:10; Ezek 34:2, 3, 8, 10, 13, 14,1 5, 16; Da 4:16
Isaiah 11:7 Also the cow and the bear will graze (Lxx = bosko), their young will lie
down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox… Isaiah 65:25 The wolf and the
lamb will graze (Lxx = bosko) together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox; and dust
will be the serpent's food. They will do no evil or harm in all My holy mountain" says the
LORD.
Comment: The two preceding passages are descriptive of that glorious future time of
worldwide peace, even in the animal kingdom, in the coming Millennium.
Jeremiah 31:10-note Hear the word of the LORD, O nations, and declare in the
coastlands afar off, and say, "He who scattered Israel will gather him and keep him as a
shepherd keeps (Hebrew = raah = pasture, tend, graze, feed; Lxx = bosko) his flock."
The prophet Ezekiel uses bosko in Jehovah's indictment of the Jewish "shepherds" who had
failed to feed God's sheep…
Ezekiel 34:2 "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say to
those shepherds, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Woe, shepherds of Israel who have been
feeding (Hebrew = raah = pasture, tend, graze, feed; Lxx = bosko) themselves! Should
not the shepherds feed(Hebrew = raah = pasture, tend, graze, feed; Lxx = bosko) the
flock. 3 (Explains with what the "shepherds" were feeding themselves) You eat the fat
and clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat sheep without feeding (Hebrew
= raah = pasture, tend, graze, feed; Lxx = bosko) the flock.

103. Ezekiel 34:13 "I (Jehovah) will bring them (His sheep "Israel") out from the peoples and
gather them from the countries and bring them to their own land; and I will feed(Lxx =
bosko) them on the mountains of Israel (This will be fulfilled in the coming Millennium),
by the streams, and in all the inhabited places of the land (of Israel). 14 "I will feed(Lxx
= bosko) them in a good pasture, and their grazing ground will be on the mountain
heights of Israel. There they will lie down on good grazing ground and feed(Lxx =
bosko) in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.15 "I will feed (Lxx = bosko) My flock
and I will lead them to rest," declares the Lord GOD. 16 "I will seek the lost, bring back
the scattered, bind up the broken and strengthen the sick; but the fat and the strong
(Those in Israel who refuse to receive Messiah as their Chief Shepherd) I will destroy. I
will feed(Lxx = bosko) them with judgment.
Thayer writes bosko in the figurative sense portrays…
the duty of a Christian teacher to promote in every way the spiritual welfare of the
members of the church
Liddell-Scott…
I. of the herdsman, to feed, tend, Lat. pasco, Od. 2. generally, to feed, nourish, support, of
earth, Ib.; of soldiers = to maintain (Hdt., Thuc). Metaphorically, to feed up troubles, i.e.
children.
II. Pass., of cattle, to feed, graze, to feed on. 2. metaphorically to be fed or nurtured
Notice that Jesus thrice states that the lambs and sheepare "my" possession (doubly) first by
creation (Col 1:16-note, Heb 1:2-note) and then by redemption (1Pe 1:18-note), cp His purchase
Acts 20:28). And so those of us who have any shepherding role in the lives of other believers are
simply stewards who are to faithfully represent their Master and we will be held accountable (cp
Heb 13:17-note)
Augustine quipped "Feed my sheep as mine and not as yours."
Clearly Peter got the message that he was merely an undershepherd of Christ's sheep writing
years later…
Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the
sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd
(aorist imperative = command to do this effectively; poimaino) the flock of God among
you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of
God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted
to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd
appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. (1Pe 5:1, 2, 3-note, 1Pe 5:4-note)
Jeremias writes…
“My lambs” of Jn. 21:15 are members of the community as the objects of Jesus’ loving
care.
Some commentators interpretative Jesus' use of arnion (little lamb, lambkin) as an allusion to
young converts, which is a reasonable interpretation, for they would certainly need to be fed with
the pure milk of the Word of God in order to grow in grace and the knowledge of our Lord (1Pe
2:2-note, 2Pe 3:18-note).
MacArthur comments…

104. Jesus described believers as His lambs, emphasizing not only their immaturity,
vulnerability, and need, but also that they are His (cf. Matt. 18:5-10). It is the same
responsibility given to every pastor, as Paul pointed out in Acts 20:28 and as Peter
himself exhorted in 1Pe 5:2-note. Paul instructed the young pastor Timothy that the
means to doing this was to “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season;
reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction” (2Ti 4:2-note). (MacArthur,
J: John 12-21. Chicago: Moody Press)
Lambs (721)(arnion = diminutive form of aren = sheep, lamb, a word that speaks of the
harmless nature of the animal) in simple terms means "a little lamb." Jesus describes believers as
"little lambs" (Jn 21:15) but most often in Scripture, Jesus Himself is referred to as arnion! In is
fascinating "paradox" that Jesus is called arnion most often in Revelation which chronicles His
victorious return to defeat the devil and the forces of evil forever. In Revelation John records the
picture of the risen, glorified Christ, who was slain as the sacrificial lamb on Calvary (cp Jn 1:29
which uses amnos), Who therefore is worthy to open the seals of the Revelation Scroll and
worthy to be worshipped forever…
And I saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb
(arnion) standing, as if slain (perfect tense = past completed slaying, with ongoing effect
~ permanence of Jesus' sacrifice), having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the
seven Spirits of God, sent out into all the earth. (Rev 5:6)
(Voices… Rev 5:11) saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain
(perfect tense speaks of permanent, efficacious effect of His slaying/crucifixion) to
receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing."
NIDNTT - In the ancient world sheep together with other small livestock were kept in herds, and
for that reason are usually referred to in the plural. The word probaton, which is relatively
frequent in the NT, was originally a generic term for all four-legged animals, especially tame
domestic animals, only later was it restricted to sheep. amnos denoted from the outset a young
sheep, frequently a one-year-old lamb, especially as used for sacrifice on numerous cultic
occasions. In non-sacrificial contexts, the lamb as an animal for slaughter was called arēn. The
diminutive form arnion originally meant lambkin, but later simply a lamb. In a figurative
theological context (especially in Matt. and Jn.) Israel and the Christian church are often referred
to as sheep (probata), and occasionally (in Jn. and 1 Pet.) Jesus is likened to a lamb, amnos (in
Jn.), arnion (in Rev.).
Gess writes - It is important to note the observation by J. Jeremias (TDNT I 340) that by the NT
period this word was no longer thought of as a diminutive. There is therefore no biblical basis for
referring to Christ as a “lambkin”, however endearing the idea may be. The thought is rather that
the judge of all the earth is he who died for us, and even as sovereign Lord he still bears the
marks of his passion (Rev 5:6).
The use of arnion in Jn 21:15 conveys the implication of a follower of Christ who is helpless
and dependent, like a little lamb!
Arnion - 30x in 28v - NAS = Lamb(27), lamb(1), Lamb's(1), lambs(1).
John 21:15; Rev 5:6-note, Rev 5:8-note, Rev 5:12-note, Rev 5:13-note; Rev 6:1-note,
Rev 6:16-note; Rev 7:9, 10-note, Rev 7:14-note, Rev 7:17-note; Rev 12:11-note; Rev
13:8-note, Rev 13:11-note; Rev 14:1, 4-note, Rev 14:10-note; Rev 15:3-note; Rev 17:14-

105. note; Rev 19:7-note, Rev 19:9-note; Rev 21:9-note, Rev 21:14-note, Rev 21:22, 21-note,
Rev 21:27-note; Rev 22:1-note, Rev 22:3-note.
Arnion - 4x in the non-apocryphal Septuagint - Ps 114:4, 6; Jer 11:19; 50:45;
As noted, the Revelation repeatedly refers to Jesus as arnion, Tony Garland writing…
“When John turned, he saw, not a Lion, according to the Elder’s announcement, but a
Lamb, according to the prior historical fact.” For the Lion of Judah must first be the
Lamb of God in order to purchase redemption and earn the right to go forth as a Lion in
judgment. Here we see the character of God—grace and mercy preceding judgment. “In
one brilliant stroke John portrays the central theme of NT revelation—victory through
sacrifice.”
Arnion originally meant little lamb or young sheep. “The imagery derives from the
Passover, when Jewish families were required to keep the sacrificial lamb as a household
pet for four days before sacrificing it (Ex 12:3, 4, 5, 6).” The only other occurrence of
arnion in the entire NT is John’s gospel, where it is used of the Christian community (Jn
21:15)… “In Revelation the name ‘Lamb’ (arnion, literally, ‘little lamb’) is used more
often than any other name or title of Christ. John called Him the Lamb twenty-eight
times.”
Twice in John’s gospel, John the Baptist refers to Jesus as “the Lamb of God,” referring
to His impending sacrifice which will atone for the sins of the world (Jn 1:29, 36). Isaiah
also described the Messiah as a sacrificial lamb, a passage which Philip explained to the
Ethiopian eunuch (Isa 53:7; Acts 8:32, 33, 34, 35). Peter describes the precious, sinless
blood of Christ “as of a lamb without blemish and spot,” an allusion to the Passover lamb
whose blood “covered” the Israelites from the destroying angel in the plague which took
the firstborn of Egypt (1Pe 1:19 cf. Ex 11:5, 6; 12:3-13). In fulfillment of the requirement
that no bones of the lamb may be broken (Ex. 12:46; Ps. 34:20), the Roman soldiers
found Jesus already dead and did not break his legs as they did those of the thieves
crucified beside him (John 19:33, 34, 35, 36). Paul clearly understood Jesus to be the
Passover lamb. “For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us” (1Co 5:7). It is by
“the blood of the Lamb” that believers overcome the diabolos who “throws-against” them
accusations (Rev 12:11), for it is the blood which cleanses them of sin and provides their
white robes. It is the blood of Christ which provides for their eternal life as those who are
written in the “Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev.
13:8).
The Lamb is to be contrasted with the beast throughout the Revelation. (See A Lamb and
a Beast) (A Testimony of Jesus Christ - Revelation 5:6)
METAPHOR OF
LAMBS & SHEEP
Longman notes that…
Sheep (See also several other Bible Dictionary discussions on Sheep) are the most
frequently mentioned animal in the Bible, with nearly 400 references if we include
references to flocks. Additionally, the figure of the shepherd receives approximately 100
references. This prominence grows out of two phenomena—the importance of sheep to

106. the nomadic and agricultural life of the Hebrews, and the qualities of sheep and
shepherds that made them particularly apt sources of metaphor for spiritual realities…
A lamb is simply a young and therefore small sheep. Many of the nearly 200 biblical
references to lambs are therefore synonymous with those for the broader category.
Lambs are associated with gentleness, innocence and dependence…
The helplessness of sheep helps to explain the actions and qualities of a good shepherd,
who in the Bible is a case study in care and compassion. It was the task of a shepherd to
lead sheep from nighttime protection in a sheepfold on safe paths to places of grazing
and watering. After morning grazing and watering, sheep typically lie down for several
hours at midday in a shady or cool place (Song 1:7), returning at night to the sheepfold,
where the shepherd would attend to fevered or scratched sheep. To protect sheep against
predators, shepherds would carry two pieces of equipment, the "rod and staff" of Psalm
23:4, one of them a club-like weapon and the other the familiar crook used for protection,
rescue and placing across the backs of sheep to count them as they entered the sheepfold
(a process known as “the rodding of the sheep”; see Lev 27:32). Psalm 23, built around a
typical day in the life of a shepherd, is a virtual handbook of these shepherding
practices…
The metaphor of people as sheep draws in specific ways on the traits of sheep, which
may be negative or positive. As sheep often do, the people are said to have gone astray,
each one wandering in the direction he or she chooses (Is 53:6; 1 Pet 2:25). The passivity
of sheep and their use in sacrifice make them metaphors of persecution and martyrdom
(Ps 44:22; cf. Rom 8:36). In a typical flock of sheep there are domineering sheep who
push the weaker sheep away from water and food, who tread the pasture down and foul
the water. All of this enters Ezekiel’s picture of life in the religious community gone
awry (Ezek 34:17-23)…
Shepherds were thus providers, guides, protectors and constant companions of sheep.
They were also figures of authority and leadership to the animals under their care. So
close is the connection between shepherd and sheep that to this day Middle Eastern
shepherds can divide flocks that have mingled at a well or during the night simply by
calling their sheep, who follow their shepherd’s voice. Shepherds are inseparable
from their flocks, and their work is demanding, solitary and sometimes dangerous
(Gen 31:38-40; 1Sa 17:34, 35). Shepherds were aided by their sons or daughters (Ge
37:12; 1Sa 16:11) or hired help (Jn 10:12,13), again placing them in a position of
authority and responsibility. (Dictionary of Biblical Imagery)
Plummer on "Tend my lambs"…
Not only is Peter not degraded on account of his fall (thrice denial), but here he receives a
fresh charge and commission. The work of the fisher gives place to that of the shepherd:
the souls that have been brought together and won need to be fed and tended. And this
Peter must do.
Alan Carr elaborates on Tend My lambs…
Supply The Saints - Peter is told to feed "my lambs", v. 15, these are the "little ones."
Then, he is told to feed "my sheep.", v. 16. These would be those who are more mature.
The point is clear. Jesus expected Peter to communicate the mind of God to all ages.
Herein lies a problem that is ever growing in our churches. We have men who

107. communicate their opinions. Men who communicate the course of politics and society.
Men who communicate the mind of the Convention or denomination. There are those
who communicate the mind of their favorite preacher. However, if we are going to feed
the lambs and the sheep, then we must open the Word of God and communicate the mind
of God to His people. When they receive a steady diet of "thus saith the Lord." They will
grow! Some might say, "That is the preacher's job! What does that have to do with me?" I
would answer, "Everything!" The duty of the child of God in this matter cannot be over
stated. After all, there are many of you who teach in the church. When you stand before
that Sunday School class or that Disciple Training class, have a word from God! For the
rest, hold up the hands of those who are standing forth and communicating truth to the
flock of God. Pray for God's men and for those who teach in our churches. May I remind
you this evening that it takes every member of the body functioning in its appointed place
to get the job done for Jesus? Let's do our duty! (How to Change Your Church Forever)
We may have denied Jesus exactly like Peter, but we have all failed Him many times in our
spiritual lives. Our tendency is to grow downcast and feel He can no longer use us for His
redemptive work. To the contrary, Jesus is willing to forgive our failures and call us into His
service. After all, if only perfect people qualified to serve Him, He wouldn’t have anyone to
choose from!
Although we are imperfect,
The Lord can use us still,
If we confess our sins to Him
And seek to do His will.
—Sper
Being imperfect doesn’t disqualify us from serving God;
it just emphasizes our dependence on His mercy.
Oswald Chambers - Service Of Passionate Devotion - 'Lovest thou Me? … Feed My sheep.'
John 21:16
Jesus did not say - Make converts to your way of thinking, but look after My sheep, see
that they get nourished in the knowledge of Me.
We count as service what we do in the way of Christian work;
Jesus Christ calls service what we are to Him, not what we do for Him.
Discipleship is based on devotion to Jesus Christ, not on adherence to a belief or a creed.
"If any man come to Me and hate not… , he cannot be My disciple." (Lk 14:26) There is
no argument and no compulsion, but simply -
If you would be My disciple,
you must be devoted to Me.
A man touched by the Spirit of God suddenly says - "Now I see Who Jesus is," and that is
the source of devotion.
Today we have substituted creedal belief for personal belief, and that is why so many are
devoted to causes and so few devoted to Jesus Christ. People do not want to be devoted to
Jesus, but only to the cause He started. Jesus Christ is a source of deep offence to the
educated mind of today that does not want Him in any other way than as a Comrade. Our
Lord's first obedience was to the will of His Father, not to the needs of men; the saving of

108. men was the natural outcome of His obedience to the Father. If I am devoted to the cause
of humanity only, I will soon be exhausted and come to the place where my love will
falter; but if I love Jesus Christ personally and passionately, I can serve humanity though
men treat me as a door-mat.
The secret of a disciple's life is devotion to Jesus Christ,
and the characteristic of the life is its unobtrusiveness.
It is like a corn of wheat, which falls into the ground and dies, but presently it will spring
up and alter the whole landscape (John 12:24). (Oswald Chambers - Service Of
Passionate Devotion)
Payson has an interesting message on why the love of Christ is indispensable, for example
writing that…
Love to Christ is indispensably necessary, because without it we cannot perform those
duties which he requires of his disciples and which are necessary to salvation. For
instance, we are required to repent of the sin we have committed against him; but to do
this without love is evidently impossible. Can you, my hearers, mourn, can you feel truly
grieved, in consequence of having offended a person whom you do not love? You may,
indeed, feel a selfish sorrow, if you fear that punishment will follow the offence; but this
is not that godly sorrow which works repentance, and which Christ requires. No; when a
child mourns that he has grieved his parents, it is because he loves them. When you feel
grieved in consequence of having offended a friend, it is because he is your friend. Love
then, love to Christ, is an essential part of those emotions which the inspired writers call a
broken heart and contrite spirit. (Love to Christ Indispensable - he lists 3 main reasons)
Illustration of Restoring the Fire (As Jesus Was Doing with Peter) - A pastor decided to visit a
member who had stopped attending services. It was a chilly evening. The pastor found the man
at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire. Guessing the reason for his pastor's visit, the man
welcomed him, led him to a big chair near the fireplace and waited. The pastor made himself
comfortable but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the play of the flames around
the burning logs. After some minutes, the pastor took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a
brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone. Then he sat back in his
chair, still silent. The host watched all this in quiet fascination. As the one lone ember's flame
diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and
"dead as a doornail." Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting. Just before the pastor
was ready to leave, he picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the
fire. Immediately it began to glow once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals
around it. As the pastor reached the door to leave, his host said, "Thank you so much for your
visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday." - Jesus is ready
to rekindle Peters ember!
Pour It Out! - The first youth group I attended was led by a woman who loved every one of us.
She prayed for us by name every day. She tracked us down if we started to miss meetings. She
advised us when our behavior became inappropriate and confronted us when we sinned. She was
our advocate and confidante, and more than once she spoke up for us at church business
meetings.

109. To me, she put into practice the principle taught in John 21:15-17. Three times the Lord asked
Peter if he loved Him, and three times Peter answered that he did. Then Jesus said, “Feed My
sheep.” This suggests that as we are filled with love for Christ, that love will pour out to others.
It will be demonstrated in acts of compassion.
It does little good to tell the Savior we love Him if we never show any love for His sheep. It
means little to say we have a burden for Christian prisoners, for example, if we never have any
contact with them.
If we truly love Jesus, we will show it in deeds of compassion for His people. If we say that we
love Christ and do nothing to serve other believers, the reality of our love must be called into
question. Do you love Him? Then pour it out!— by David C. Egner (Our Daily Bread, Copyright
RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
Love demands a loving deed
When you see someone in need;
Don't just say you love him true,
Prove it by the deeds you do.
—Anon.
They truly love who show their love.
Turkish Delight - In C. S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the White Witch
needed to know only one thing about Edmund to get him to betray his siblings. By asking a few
simple questions, the witch learned that Edmund’s weakness was his love for a candy called
Turkish Delight. The piece she gave to Edmund was more delicious than anything he had ever
tasted. Soon Edmund could think only about “trying to shovel down as much Turkish Delight as
he could, and the more he ate the more he wanted.”
Each of us has a vulnerability like Edmund’s that Satan is eager to exploit. It may be something
addictive like drugs or alcohol, or it may be something seemingly harmless and perhaps even
good like food, friendship, or work.
After His resurrection, Jesus asked Peter this personal and probing question: “Do you love Me
more than these?” (John 21:15). Many have speculated as to what Jesus meant by the word
“these,” but it’s probably better that we don’t know. It allows each of us to personalize the
question and ask ourselves, “What do I love more than Jesus?”
When Satan finds out what we love more than God, he knows how to manipulate us. But he loses
his power over us when we delight in the Lord. — by Julie Ackerman Link (Our Daily Bread,
Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
God takes delight in us—
how can we help but delight in Him?
Truth that Transforms - Truth is truth even if it doesn’t seem to affect our lives directly. But
the truth that God gives us in the Bible not only opens heaven’s door for us, it also changes our
lives.

110. Ron Sider, a leading evangelical advocate for the poor, tells about a conversation he had with
German theologian Wolfhart Pannenberg. As they were discussing the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead, the theologian emphatically declared, “The evidence for Jesus’ resurrection
is so strong that nobody would question it except for two things: It is a very unusual event, and
second, if you believe it happened, you have to change the way you live.”
That’s a challenging statement. If we really believe Jesus rose again, that belief mandates a
change of life. Peter’s life was turned upside-down after he saw the resurrected Christ. Once an
impetuous fisherman-disciple who denied even knowing Christ after His arrest, he became a bold
witness for Him (John 18:17,25,27; Acts 2:14-36).
Has belief in Jesus’ resurrection changed your life? Are your goals and priorities different than
they were? Are you kinder, more patient, more forgiving? Ask God what He wants to do in you,
and then cooperate with Him in that change. — by Vernon C. Grounds (Our Daily Bread,
Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
We want to do great things, O Lord,
To glorify Your name;
When You transform us by Your power,
We’ll never be the same. —Sper
The power that God used to raise Jesus from the dead
is the same power at work in you.
Lovest Thou Me'
Hark, my soul! it is the Lord;
‘Tis thy Saviour, hear His word;
Jesus speaks, and speaks to thee,
“Say, poor sinner, lovest thou me'
“I deliver’d thee when bound,
And when bleeding, heal’d thy wound;
Sought thee wandering, set thee right,
Turn’d thy darkness into light.
“Can a woman’s tender care
Cease towards the child she bare'
Yes, she may forgetful be,
Yet will I remember thee.
“Mine is an unchanging love,
Higher than the heights above.
Deeper than the depths beneath,
Free and faithful, strong as death.

111. “Thou shalt see my glory soon,
When the work of grace is done;
Partner of my throne shalt be;—
Say, poor sinner, lovest thou me?”
Lord, it is my chief complaint,
That my love is weak and faint;
Yet I love Thee and adore,—
Oh! for grace to love Thee more!
Olney Hymns, by William Cowper
John 21:16 He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" He
said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, " Shepherd My sheep
.":
• Second: Jn 18:17,25 Mt 26:72
• My sheep: Jn 10:11-16,26,27 Ps 95:7 100:3 Zec 13:7 Mt 25:32 Lk 15:3-7 19:10 Ac
20:28 Heb 13:20 1Pe 2:25
• John 21 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
Simon, son of John, do you love Me? - Now just drops the comparison "more than these" but
otherwise the question is identical to the first. Jesus is asking "Do you love with an unconditional
commitment, "higher" kind of love?”
Alfred Plummer on the name Simon Peter…
Although Jesus gave Simon the name of Peter, yet, with one remarkable exception (see
on Luke 22:34), He never addresses him as Peter, but always as Simon. Matt. 16:17,
17:25; Mark 14:37; Luke 22:31. The Synoptists generally call him Simon, sometimes
adding his surname. John always gives both names, except in John 1:41, where the
surname just about to be given would be obviously out of place. Contrast in this chapter
Jn 21:2, 3, 7, 11 with Jn 21:16, 17. Should we find this minute difference observed, if the
writer were any other than John? This being the general usage of our Lord, there is no
reason to suppose that His calling him Simon rather than Peter on this occasion is a
reproach, as implying that by denying his Master he had forfeited the name of Peter. That
John should add the surname with much greater frequency than the Synoptists is natural.
At the time when John wrote the surname had become the more familiar of the two. Paul
never calls him Simon, but uses the Aramaic form of the surname, Cephas.
Yes, Lord; You know that I love You - Peter again responds with the weaker type of love using
phileo [word study] and not agapao [word study] which Jesus had used.
Boice comments that there is joy in the awareness of Christ's omniscience…
First, God knows the worst about us and loves us anyway. If God did not know all things,
we might fear that someday something evil in us would spring up to startle God and turn
His affection from us. He would say, “Oh, look at that horrible sin! I didn’t know that
was there. How terrible! That changes everything. I won’t have anything to do with that
person anymore.” If God were not omniscient, that might well happen. But God knows
all things. He knows the worst about us and loves us anyway. The Bible teaches that it

112. was “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Ro 5:8-note - Ed: It is interesting
that "demonstrates" is present tense = God continually demonstrates this quality of love
for sinners even after they are saved!).
Second, since God knows all things He also knows the best about us, though others do
not. The disciples might have been startled by Peter’s defection. They might have said,
“If Peter is capable of denying Jesus like that, who knows what other sins are lurking
within him. He might even be a false disciple.” But Jesus knew better. He knew Peter’s
heart and love. It is not surprising in view of this knowledge that Peter appeals to Him.
Never say, “I can do it, Lord. I know I can. I know my heart.” Say rather, “Lord, you
know what is there. You put it there. You know what love I have for you. Take it and
make it into something that will abound to Your glory.” (Boice, J. M. The Gospel of
John: An Expositional Commentary. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books)
Take a moment to express your love to Jesus in song. Play the beautiful old
Maranatha chorus I Love You Lord
Shepherd My sheep- Note that the verb changes from bosko as in Jn 21:15, 17 (which
emphasizes the feeding aspect of shepherding) to poimaino. It is notable that some writers feel
the change is significant, while others do not.
W E Vine writes that…
In John 21:15, 16, 17, the Lord, addressing Peter, first uses bosko (Jn 21:15) then
poimaino (Jn 21:16), and then returns to bosko (Jn 21:17). These are not simply
interchangeable (nor are other variations in His remarks); a study of the above notes will
show this. Nor, again, is there a progression of ideas. The lesson to be learnt, as Trench
points out (Syn. Sec.xxv), is that, in the spiritual care of God’s children, the “feeding” of
the flock from the Word of God is the constant and regular necessity; it is to have the
foremost place. The tending (which includes this) consists of other acts, of discipline,
authority, restoration, material assistance of individuals, but they are incidental in
comparison with the “feeding.”
MacArthur comments that Jesus' use of poimaino…
is likely a synonym for the previous verb (bosko), both of which are suitable to express
the full scope of responsibility that pastoral oversight entails (cf. Acts 20:28; 1Pe 5:2-
note).
Shepherd (4165) (poimaino from poimen = take care of sheep) means to tend flocks like a
shepherd - oversight, protecting, leading, guiding, feeding. I like to sum up the meaning of this
verb as a call to "Graze, Guide, Guard". Poimaino is a comprehensive term encompassing the
entire task of a shepherd.
MacArthur comments that…
the primary task of an undershepherd of the Lord’s flock is to feed the sheep. Sadly,
many undershepherds today fail to do that, seemingly content to lead their sheep from
one barren wasteland to another. The tragic result is a spiritually weak flock, ready to eat
the poisonous weeds of false doctrine, or to follow false shepherds who deceitfully
promise them greener pastures, while leading them to barren desert. Since sheep are
followers, the shepherds’ task also involves leading the flock. They must set the direction
for the sheep to follow. The New Testament knows nothing of congregational rule;

113. instead it commands believers to “obey your leaders, and submit to them” (Heb. 13:17).
(MacArthur, J: Acts 1-12; Acts 13-28 Moody Press)
The shepherd’s task is not to tell people only what they want to hear (2 Tim. 4:3–4), but
to edify and strengthen them with the deep truths of solid spiritual food that produces
discernment, conviction, consistency, power, and effective testimony to the greatness of
the saving work of Christ. No matter what New Testament terminology identifies the
shepherd and his task, underneath it all is the primacy of biblical truth. He is to feed the
sheep. (MacArthur, J. 1 Peter. Chicago: Moody Press)
Poimaino - 11x in 11v in NT - Poimaino describes literal tending of sheep in Lk 17:7 and 1Co
9:7. Most of the NT uses are figurative - Mt 2:6 (prophecy to be fulfilled at the Second Coming
of Messiah [Rev 2:27 is similar] combining quotes from Micah 5:2, 2Sa 5:2); Acts 20:28; 1Pe
5:2, Jude 1:12, Rev 2:27-note, Rev 7:17-note, Rev 12:5-note, Rev 19:15-note. Poimaino implies
more guidance and government than feeding does (bosko Jn 21:15, 17).
NAS Translates poimaino - caring(1), rule(3), shepherd(5), tending sheep(1), tends(1).
Paul uses of poimaino in a similar sense as used in John 21…
(Paul is giving his last instructions and warnings to the Ephesian elders) Be on guard
(present imperative = make this your habitual practice to be on high alert of danger to the
flock, because if undetected it is very harmful to the spiritual health of the sheep) for
yourselves (Note: Elders must FIRST be careful to guard their own spiritual health) and
for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd
(poimaino in the present tense = calls for continual attention to this duty!) the church of
God which He purchased with His own blood. (Acts 20:32)
Clearly Peter understood Jesus' command in John 21:16, for he uses the same verb poimaino in
this first epistle in his instructions to the elders to…
Shepherd (aorist imperative = command issued with even a sense of urgency) the flock
of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according
to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness (1Pe 5:2-note)
Comment: As an aside note what transpires when sheep have no shepherd or when the
shepherd is not fulfilling his God ordained duty - Read Mt 9:36, Ezekiel 34:4, 5, 6.
Revelation 2:27-note AND HE SHALL RULE (poimaino) THEM WITH A ROD OF
IRON, AS THE VESSELS OF THE POTTER ARE BROKEN TO PIECES, as I also
have received authority from My Father;
Revelation 7:17-note for the Lamb (Glorified Lord Jesus Christ) in the center of the
throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and
God will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Revelation 12:5-note And she (In context ~ Nation of Israel) gave birth to a son, a male
child (Messiah - fulfilled in His first coming), Who is to rule (poimaino) all the nations
with a rod of iron (To be fulfilled at His Second Coming and establishment of the
Millennial Kingdom); and her child was caught up to God (Ascension of glorified Jesus -
Acts 1:9) and to His throne.
Revelation 19:15-note From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may
strike down the nations, and He will rule (poimaino) them with a rod of iron; and He

114. treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. (To be fulfilled at His
Second Coming and establishment of the Millennial Kingdom)
Poimaino - 52v in the non-apocryphal Septuagint -
Ge 30:31, 36; 37:2, 13; Ex 2:16; 3:1; 1Sa 16:11; 17:34; 25:16; 2Sa 5:2; 7:7; 1Chr 11:2;
17:6; Ps 2:9; 23:1; 28:9; 37:3; 48:14; 49:14; 78:71, 72; 80:1; Pr 9:12; 22:11; 28:7; 29:3;
Song 1:7, 8; 2:16; 6:2, 3; Isa 40:11; 61:5; Jer 3:15; 6:3, 18; 22:22; 23:2, 4; Ezek 34:10,
23; Hos 13:5; Mic 5:4, 6; 7:14; Zech 11:4, 7, 9, 17.
Below are some representative uses of poimaino in the Septuagint.
Psalm 23:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd (Hebrew = raah = to pasture,
tend, graze; Lxx = poimaino in the present tense = continually shepherds), I shall not
want.
Psalm 78:71 From the care of the ewes with suckling lambs He brought him (David - see
Ps 78:70). To shepherd (Hebrew = raah = to pasture, tend, graze; Lxx = poimaino)
Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance. So he (David) shepherded (Hebrew = raah
= to pasture, tend, graze; Lxx = poimaino) them (Israel) according to the integrity of his
(David's) heart, and guided them with his skillful hands.
Psalm 80:1 For the choir director; set to El Shoshannim; Eduth. A Psalm of Asaph. Oh,
give ear, Shepherd (Hebrew = raah = to pasture, tend, graze; Lxx = poimaino) of Israel,
You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who are enthroned above the cherubim, shine
forth!
Hosea 13:5 I cared (Hebrew = yada = knew intimately; Lxx = poimaino) for you (Israel)
in the wilderness, In the land of drought.
Alan Carr notes that in Jesus' use of the verb poimaino, He is saying…
Peter, the sheep need more than food. They are to be looked after and all their needs are
to be supplied. Again, there is a message to Pastors here, but there is also an application
to all the saints of God. This thought reminds us that Gal 6:2, "Bear ye one another's
burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ." needs to become a reality in the modern church.
When people enter the church they should know that they are part of a group that cares
for them an that they are loved. We need to take every possible step to ensure that Mt
22:39 is fully realized. Illustration - A Zulu proverb says that when a thorn pierces the
foot, the whole body must bend over to pull it out. This kind of interdependence is a basic
characteristic of the church. That may mean putting aside petty differences and pointless
squabbles, but when we genuinely love one another, the world will notice and God
Himself will manifest His power and presence among His people once again. (How to
Change Your Church Forever)
J Vernon McGee…
The third interrogation reveals an interesting dealing of the Lord with Simon Peter. Our
Lord dropped down and used the same word that Simon had been obliged to use and said,
'simon, son of Jonah, do you have a human affection for Me?' It grieved Peter because the
Lord asked him this for the third time, and with a burst of emotion he said in effect, 'You
know that I love You. I wish with all my heart I could say that I have a divine love for
You, and I think I do. But I have found out that I cannot trust myself anymore, for I make

115. such big statements but do so little. Lord, I am sorry that it is necessary for You to come
down to my plane of phileo love, but it is the best I can do. You know my heart. You
know all things. You know I love You.' Then the Lord Jesus gives him the third
imperative: ' Be grazing My sheep.
There is much church activity today, but why is there so little Bible study in the pulpit?
Do not misunderstand me when I say this, but my conviction is that there is little study of
the Word of God because we must first answer Christ's question, 'Do you love Me?' Until
that is answered in the affirmative, the commission 'Feed My sheep' will not be given to
us. We must remember that the Lord Jesus commissioned Simon Peter on one basis alone
- 'Do you love Me?' This is the badge of Christianity. The Roman officials sent men to
spy out the Christians, and Tertullian writes that when the spies returned, their report was
that the Christians were strange folk; they had no idols, but they spoke of One who was
absent by the name of Jesus, and how they loved Him! And how they loved one another!
That is the report made of the Christians of that day. I wonder how a report made of the
people in your church and my church would compare.
Listen to Paul writing to the Corinthians: 'If any man love not the Lord Jesus, let him be
anathema. I can have all knowledge, but if I have not love, I am nothing' (1 Corinthians
16:22 and 13:2 KJV). You and I are under this acid test: Do we love Him?
The greatest drives in the world are not intellectual. Rather, they are drives of the heart.
Christianity is a matter of the heart. And we must start right --'with the heart one believes
unto righteousness.' The church today needs a baptism of emotion; it needs real and
genuine tears coming from the heart that can say, 'Lord Jesus, You know that I love You.'
Christianity is a love affair. Peter wrote, 'Whom having not seen, you love.'…
My friend, loving Him is a wonderful experience. It is, as Peter wrote in his first epistle,
'joy inexpressible and full of glory!' And it is the secret of having a ministry that God can
and will use. (J. Vernon McGee - The Secret of Service)
G Campbell Morgan comments on Jesus' uses of the term sheep…
The note that first impresses the heart is that of infinite and tender compassion: "My
lambs… My sheep." Let me illuminate this by reference again to the passage in Matthew.
When He saw the multitudes, what effect did the vision produce upon Him? As God is
my witness, I hardly know how to cite these words to you. I am afraid of harshness of
tone. Yet I am also afraid that if I attempt to do other than recite them with the natural
harshness of tone, I may but libel the exquisite tenderness that ought to be heard in them.
"He was moved with compassion for them." (Mt 9:36KJV) How familiar we are with the
words. Would that in the quiet hush of this moment, they might come to us with all their
infinite meaning. "He was moved with compassion." The final outcome of that
compassion was the cross.
Why was He moved with compassion? Because He saw them "distressed and scattered."
Take the words and let them be pictures, as they really are, and in a moment we discover
their true significance. I do no violence to them if I say that our Lord saw the sheep
harried by wolves, bruised, wounded, flung to the ground, faint and weary; and it was
that vision of humanity in its degradation, spoiled and ruined, that moved His heart with
compassion. "My lambs… My sheep." We cannot hear these words, interpreted by the

116. declaration of the Gospel of Matthew, without discovering in them the note of infinite
tenderness and compassion.
Yet, there is infinitely more in them than the note of compassion. There is that of
supremacy. It was Homer who once said that kings are the shepherds of the people.
Perhaps it would have been more correct to have said kings ought to be the shepherds of
the people. It is at least perfectly true that the master figure of kingship in the Old
Testament is that of the Shepherd. All God's chosen, ordained kings and leaders were of
the shepherd heart. If Moses was to lead the people, he had to learn the art of leading
them by being a shepherd for long years. If David was to come to the throne, he had to
discover the secrets of victory by slaying the lion and the bear that came against the sheep
of his father's flock. The idea of kingship in the economy of God is always that of the
shepherd, who feeds rather than is fed, who guards rather than seeks to be guarded. It is
the true ideal of kingship.
'Twas a sheep, not a lamb, that strayed away,
In the parable Jesus told;
A grown-up sheep, that had gone astray,
From the ninety and nine in the fold.
Out on the hillside, out in the cold,
'Twas a sheep the Good Shepherd sought;
And back to the flock, safe into the fold,
'Twas a sheep the Good Shepherd brought.
Why for the sheep should we earnestly long,
And as earnestly hope and pray?
Because there is danger, if they go wrong,
They will lead the lambs astray.
For the lambs will follow the sheep, you know,
Wherever the sheep may stray;
When the sheep go wrong, it will not be long
Till the lambs are as wrong as they.
And so with the sheep we earnestly plead,
For the sake of the lambs today;
lf the sheep are lost, what terrible cost
Some lambs will have to pay.
- Author unknown
John 21:17 He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" Peterwas
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, "Tend My
sheep:
• third (KJV): Jn 13:38 18:27 Mt 26:73,74 Rev 3:19
• grieved: 1Ki 17:18 La 3:33 Mt 26:75 Mk 14:72 Lk 22:61,62 2Co 2:4-7 2Co 7:8-11 Eph
4:30 1Pe 1:6

117. • Lord: Jn 2:24,25 16:30 18:4 Jer 17:10 Ac 1:24 15:8 Rev 2:23
• You know: Jn 21:15 Jos 22:22 1Ch 29:17 Job 31:4-6 Ps 7:8,9 17:3 2Co 1:12
• Feed: Jn 21:15,16 12:8 14:15 15:10 Mt 25:40 2Co 8:8,9 2Pe 1:12-15 3:1 1Jn 3:16-24 3Jn
1:7,8
• John 21 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
Simon, son of John, do you love Me? - Instead of agapao [word study] Jesus now uses Peter's
own word phileo [word study] which Plumptre paraphrases as "Dost thou, in personal affection
and devotion, really love Me?" and adds that
"this time the love which Peter knows has ever filled his soul (phileo) seems to be
doubted. The question cuts to the very quick, and in the agony of the heart smarting
beneath the wound, he appeals in more emphatic words to the all-seeing eye that could
read the very inmost secrets of his life, "Lord, Thou knowest all thing; Thou knowest that
I love Thee." (A New Testament commentary for English readers)
David Roper comments…
Was Jesus unaware of Peter’s love? Of course not. His threefold question was not for
Himself, but for Peter. He asked His questions to underscore the essential truth that only
love for Christ would sustain Peter in the work that lay ahead—that arduous, demanding
work of caring for people’s souls—perhaps the hardest work of all. Jesus did not ask
Peter if he loved His sheep, but if he loved Him. Affection for God’s people in itself will
not sustain us. His sheep can be unresponsive, unappreciative, and harshly critical of our
efforts to love and to serve them. In the end, we will find ourselves defeated and
discouraged. The “love of Christ”—our love for Him—is the only sufficient motivation
that will enable us to stay the course, to continue to feed the flock of God. Thus Jesus
asks you and me, “Do you love Me? Feed My sheep.” (Feed My Sheep)
Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time - John MacArthur explains that..
The reason for Peter’s grief was a change in the Lord’s vocabulary. Unlike His two
previous questions, this third time Jesus used Peter’s word for love, phileo. He called into
question even the less than total devotion Peter thought he was safe in claiming. The
implication that his life did not support even that level of love broke Peter’s heart. All he
could do was appeal even more strongly to Jesus’ omniscience, saying to Him, “Lord,
You know all things (cf. Jn 2:24, 25; 16:30); You know that I love You.” For the third
time Jesus accepted the apostle’s recognized failure and imperfection (cf. Isa. 6:1-8-
notes) and graciously charged Peter to care for His flock, saying to him, “Tend My
sheep.” Peter’s restoration was thus complete. (MacArthur, J: John 12-21. Chicago:
Moody Press)
Oswald Chambers - The Undeviating Question - John 21:17 "Do you love Me?"
Peter’s response to this piercing question is considerably different from the bold defiance
he exhibited only a few days before when he declared, "Even if I have to die with You, I
will not deny You!" (Mt 26:35 ; also see Mt 26:33, 34). Our natural individuality, or our
natural self, boldly speaks out and declares its feelings. But the true love within our inner
spiritual self can be discovered only by experiencing the hurt of this question of Jesus
Christ. Peter loved Jesus in the way any natural man loves a good person. Yet that is

118. nothing but emotional love. It may reach deeply into our natural self, but it never
penetrates to the spirit of a person. True love never simply declares itself. Jesus said,
"Whoever confesses Me before men [that is, confesses his love by everything he does,
not merely by his words], him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God"
(Lk 12:8).
Unless we are experiencing the hurt of facing every deception about ourselves, we have
hindered the work of the Word of God in our lives. The Word of God inflicts hurt on us
more than sin ever could, because sin dulls our senses. But this question of the Lord
intensifies our sensitivities to the point that this hurt produced by Jesus is the most
exquisite pain conceivable. It hurts not only on the natural level, but also on the deeper
spiritual level. "For the Word of God is living and powerful … , piercing even to the
division of soul and spirit … "— to the point that no deception can remain (Hebrews
4:12). When the Lord asks us this question, it is impossible to think and respond properly,
because when the Lord speaks directly to us, the pain is too intense. It causes such a
tremendous hurt that any part of our life which may be out of line with His will can feel
the pain. There is never any mistaking the pain of the Lord’s Word by His children, but
the moment that pain is felt is the very moment at which God reveals His truth to us. (The
Undeviating Question)
Grieved (3076) (lupeo from lupe = sorrow) signifies pain, of body or mind and means to cause
one to experience severe mental or emotional distress or physical pain which may be
accompanied by sadness, to feel or cause to feel great sorrow or distress. To grieve means to feel
pain of mind or heart; to be in pain on account of an evil; to sorrow; to mourn. The King James'
sometimes translates lupeo as heaviness which parallels our colloquial sayings such as "It
weighs heavy on my soul" or "My soul is weighed down with affliction." or "My soul is so
burdened." Lupeo is the verb Matthew used to describe the disciples grief when Jesus told them
about His coming death and resurrection (Mt 17:22, 23). The rich young ruler was "grieved" (Mt
19:21) when Jesus explained what it would "cost" to truly follow Him (Mt 19:22, Mk 10:22 --
note that Jesus was [is] not teaching salvation is achieved by divesting oneself of his possessions
[nothing can ever substitute for the precious blood of the Lamb], but he was teaching that if the
ruler desired earthly riches over eternal life, he had not yet come to a point of genuine repentance
and faith in Jesus.) At the last supper when Jesus prophesied that one of the 12 disciples would
betray Him (Mt 26:21), they became grieved (Mt 26:22, Mk 14:19 -- If Judas Iscariot "grieved",
his grief was doubtless a sham, a charade and not indicative of a broken heart.) Lupeo describes
the grief of our Savior in the Garden of Gethsemane just prior to His arrest, mock trial and
crucifixion (Mt 26:37). Jesus predicted His disciples would be sorrowful (lupeo) after His
crucifixion. (Jn 16:20). Lupeo is a component of genuine repentance (2Co 7:9, 10). Lupeo is the
effect sinning believers can have on the Holy Spirit of God (Eph 4:30-note). The sure truth of a
future Rapture was Paul's "antidote" for the Thessalonian believers who were grieving (lupeo)
over their fellow believers who had already "fallen asleep" (died) (1Th 4:13-note). Peter used
lupeo in his first epistle to describe the effect of trials on believers (1Pe 1:6-note).
I would imagine Peter would have loved the words of the old favorite hymn by Elizabeth P
Prentiss…
More Love to Thee, O Christ
More love to Thee, O Christ, more love to Thee!
Hear Thou the prayer I make on bended knee;

119. This is my earnest plea: More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!
Once earthly joy I craved, sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek, give what is best.
This all my prayer shall be: More love, O Christ to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!
Let sorrow do its work, come grief or pain;
Sweet are Thy messengers, sweet their refrain,
When they can sing with me: More love, O Christ, to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!
Then shall my latest breath whisper Thy praise;
This be the parting cry my heart shall raise;
This still its prayer shall be: More love, O Christ to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!
Lord, You know all things - Peter fully acknowledges Jesus' divine omniscience with this
statement (see below for more on the verb he used - eido/oida).
You know (1492) (eido) speaks of absolute knowledge (which is without a doubt true) rather
than a progress in knowledge or knowledge that one obtains by experience (as with the following
verb ginosko). Eido/oida speaks of knowledge with is more of an intuitive knowledge which in
the case of believers can only be given by the Holy Spirit. In the case of Jesus it most likely
alludes to His divine (supernatural) omniscience, certainly now that He had fulfilled His role as
the perfect God-Man and was preparing to ascend to the right hand of His Father in heaven.
You know (1097)(ginosko) generally refers to knowledge obtained by experience or
"experiential knowledge".
Vine notes that…
The third time the Lord adopts Peter’s word (phileo), and this grieved Peter. It was not
that Christ had asked three times, but that now the third time, in using Peter’s word, He
should even seem to question the deeply felt, genuine (phileo) affection he felt for Him.
This is confirmed by the statement Peter makes, “You know all things [“You know
intuitively,” = eido]; You know [ginosko = “You recognize”, know from experience] that
I love You [phileo]. (Vine, W. Collected writings of W. E. Vine. Nashville: Thomas
Nelson)
Andreas Köstenberger comments that…
Perhaps at long last Peter has learned that he cannot follow Jesus in his own strength and
has realized the hollowness of affirming his own loyalty in a way that relies more on his
own power of will than on Jesus’ enablement…Likewise, we should soundly distrust
self-serving pledges of loyalty today that betray self-reliance rather than a humble
awareness of one’s own limitations in acting on one’s best intentions [cf. 2Cor 12:9-note,
2Co 12:10-note]. (John, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament [Grand
Rapids: Baker, 2004], 598)
Oswald Chambers asks "Does He know me?"…

120. When I have sadly misunderstood Him? (John 10:17) It is possible to know all about
doctrine and yet not know Jesus. The soul is in danger when knowledge of doctrine
outsteps intimate touch with Jesus. Why was Mary weeping? Doctrine was no more to
Mary than the grass under her feet. Any Pharisee could have made a fool of Mary
doctrinally, but one thing they could not ridicule out of her was the fact that Jesus had
cast seven demons out of her; yet His blessings were nothing in comparison to Himself.
Mary "saw Jesus standing and knew not that it was Jesus . . ;" immediately she heard the
voice, she knew she had a past history with the One who spoke. "Master!"
When I have stubbornly doubted? (John 10:27) Have I been doubting something about
Jesus - an experience to which others testify but which I have not had? The other
disciples told Thomas that they had seen Jesus, but Thomas doubted - "Except I shall see
. . , I will not believe." Thomas needed the personal touch of Jesus. When His touches
come, or how they come, we do not know; but when they do come they are in describably
precious. "My Lord and my God!"
When I have selfishly denied Him? (John 21:15-17) Peter had denied Jesus Christ with
oaths and curses, and yet after the Resurrection Jesus appeared to Peter alone. He restored
him in private, then He restored him before the others. "Lord, Thou knowest that I love
Thee."
Have I a personal history with Jesus Christ? The one sign of discipleship is intimate
connection with Him, a knowledge of Jesus Christ which nothing can shake. (Does He
Know Me)
G Campbell Morgan comments on Christ's commission noting first that our Lord says…
I am King. You have crowned Me King. They are My lambs, My sheep. My work as
Shepherd is to feed them and gather them. Share it with me. Do it by My side. Prove your
loyalty by fellowship in the exercise of My royalty.
Oswald Chambers - Tend My lambs John 21:17
This is love in the making. The love of God is not created--it is God's nature. When we
receive the Holy Spirit He unites us with God so that His love is manifested in us. When
the soul is united to God by the indwelling Holy Spirit, that is not the end; the end is that
we may be one with the Father as Jesus was. What kind of oneness had Jesus Christ with
the Father? Such a oneness that the Father sent Him down here to be spent for us, and He
says - "As the Father hath sent Me, even so send I you." (Jn 20:21)
Peter realizes now with the revelation of the Lord's hurting question that he does love
Him (at least with agapao love); then comes the point - "Spend it out (Pour yourself
out)." Don't testify how much you love Me, don't profess about the marvelous revelation
you have had, but - "Feed My sheep."
And Jesus has some extraordinarily funny sheep, some bedraggled, dirty sheep,
some awkward, butting sheep, some sheep that have gone astray!
It is impossible to weary God's love, and it is impossible to weary that love in me if it
springs from the one centre (His Spirit in me). The love of God pays no attention to the
prejudices caused by my natural individuality. If I love my Lord I have no business being
guided by natural temperament--I have to feed His sheep. There is no relief and no
release from this commission to us. Beware of counterfeiting the love of God by working

121. along the line of natural human sympathy (your own natural human emotions,
sympathies, or understandings), because that will end in blaspheming ( revile and abuse)
the love of God. (The Unrelieved Quest)
Feed My Sheep - Just before Jesus left this earth, He instructed Simon Peter to care for the
dearest object of His love—His sheep. How could anyone care for them as Jesus cares? Only out
of love for Him. There is no other way.
Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love Me?” Peter answered, “Yes, Lord; You know that I
love You.” Each time, Jesus answered, “Feed My sheep.”
Was Jesus unaware of Peter’s love? Of course not. His threefold question was not for Himself,
but for Peter. He asked His questions to underscore the essential truth that only love for Christ
would sustain Peter in the work that lay ahead—that arduous, demanding work of caring for
people’s souls—perhaps the hardest work of all.
Jesus did not ask Peter if he loved His sheep, but if he loved Him. Affection for God’s people in
itself will not sustain us. His sheep can be unresponsive, unappreciative, and harshly critical of
our efforts to love and to serve them. In the end, we will find ourselves defeated and
discouraged.
The “love of Christ”—our love for Him—is the only sufficient motivation that will enable us to
stay the course, to continue to feed the flock of God. Thus Jesus asks you and me, “Do you love
Me? Feed My sheep.” — by David H. Roper
More about Jesus would I know,
More of His grace to others show,
More of His saving fullness see,
More of His love who died for me.
—Hewitt
It is love for Christ
that will enable us to love His children.
Oswald Chambers "Have You Felt The Hurt Of The Lord?"…
'Jesus said unto him the third time, Lovest thou Me?' John 21:17 Have you felt the hurt of
the Lord to the uncovered quick, the place where the real sensitiveness of your life is
lodged? The devil never hurts there, neither sin nor human affection hurts there, nothing
goes through to that place but the word of God. "Peter was grieved because Jesus said
unto him the third time… " He was awakening to the fact that in the real true centre of his
personal life he was devoted to Jesus, and he began to see what the patient questioning
meant. There was not the slightest strand of delusion (or doubt) left in Peter's mind, he
never could be deluded again. There was no room for passionate utterance, no room for
exhilaration or sentiment. It was a revelation to Peter to realize how much he did love the
Lord, and with amazement he simply said - "Lord, You know all things." Peter had begun

122. to understand how much he did love Jesus; but he did not say - "Look at this or that to
confirm it or as proof of my love." Peter was beginning to discover within himself how
much he did love the Lord, and that there was no one in heaven above or upon earth
beneath beside Jesus Christ. But he did not know it until the probing, hurting questions of
the Lord were asked. The Lord's questions always reveal the true me to myself.
Oh, the wonder of the patient directness and skill of Jesus Christ with Peter! Our Lord
never asks questions until the right time. Rarely, but probably once in each of our lives,
He will get us into a corner where He will hurt us with His piercing questions. Then we
will realize that we do love Him far more deeply than any profession can ever show.
My Jesus, I Love Thee
by William R Featherston
My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine;
For Thee all the follies of sin I resign.
My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
I love Thee because Thou has first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree.
I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
I’ll love Thee in life, I will love Thee in death,
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath;
And say when the death dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I’ll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
RON AND BETTY TEED
HOW MUCH DO YOU LOVE JESUS?
John 21:15-19

123. This passage gives us an opportunity to look closely at the meaning of the
Resurrection for the Apostle Peter and how his particular circumstances are
so closely related to ours.
It is said that the young son of Bishop Berkeley once asked him the question,
“Papa, what do the words, ‘Cherubim and Seraphim’ mean?” The bishop
took time to tell the little questioner that Cherubim was a Hebrew word
meaning knowledge, and the word Seraphim stood forflame, explaining that
it is commonly supposedthe Cherubim are angels that excel in knowledge
and the Seraphim are those who excel in love for God. “Then I hope,” the
boy said, “that when I die I will be a Seraphim. I’d a lot rather love God than
to know everything.”1
How much do you love God and Jesus? Well that is the question Jesus asked
Peter shortly after Peter had denied the Lord when He was arrested. Peter’s
answer and Jesus’ responseprovides one of the greatest examples of love in
all history. Let us listen in on the beginning of their conversation.
John 21:15-17 (NASB): 15 So 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." He said to him, "Tend
My lambs." 16 He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of John, do
you love Me?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He
said to him, "Shepherd My sheep." 17 He said to him the third time,
"Simon, sonof John, 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, "Tend My
sheep.
Think about what was going on here. Here is the God of the universe serving
breakfast to His apostles. It was kind of like a cookoutwith Jesus working
the grill. Jesus never considered any kind of service to others to be
humiliating. In fact, He thoroughly enjoyed serving. Anyone who claims to
be a follower of Christ should also enjoy serving others.

124. 1 Tan, Paul Lee: Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations : A Treasury of
Illustrations, Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations for Pastors, Teachers and
Christian Workers. Garland TX : Bible Communications, 1996, c1979.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 2
Some commentators maintain that after breakfast Jesus probably tookPeter
aside away from the others to talk privately with him, or perhaps took him
for a walk along the beach. But we do not see that. We have checked a
number of Bible translations and there is not a hint in any of them that Jesus
took Peter away from the group to speak with him privately. We must take
the Bible for what it says and never try to add anything to it. There are
occasions, however, when we need to look at everything the Bible has to say
about a specific subject or event, and then come to a conclusion based on all
the evidence within the context in which it was presented.
You may recall that at the Last SupperJesus and Peter had the following
conversation:
Luke 22:31-34 (NASB): 31 "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded
permission to sift you like wheat; 32 but I have prayed for you, that your
faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen
your brothers." 33 But he said to Him, "Lord, with You I am ready to go
both to prison and to death!" 34 And He said, "I say to you, Peter, the
rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know
Me."
It would certainly seem that Jesus knew that Satan was going to be allowed
to tempt Peter into betraying Jesus, and that Peter would actually give into
that temptation because Jesus had been praying for Peter that after such a
cowardly failure, Peter would come back stronger than ever to strengthen his
brothers, Jesus’ followers. And this is exactly what is about to happen at this
very moment. Jesus was simply about to prove to the other apostles that
Peter was now well qualified to lead them. What a marvelous story.
Something only God is capable of coming up with. That is yet another
reason we believe Jesus addressed Peter in the presence of the others, just as
He had done at the Last Supper. All of these men would benefit to see the

125. transformation of the man who would now lead them when Jesus had
returned to Heaven.
Peter very likely was still feeling some guilt about betraying the Lord when
Jesus was arrested and tried. Add to that the fact that Jesus must have been
recognizably different and perhaps even somewhat intimidating to Peter
because of Jesus’ resurrected appearance. How would you feel if Jesus came
along and sat down with you and your friends and began questioning you
about the worst sin you ever committed? I would be a wreck thinking that I
might do something to displease Him while also thinking about the boatload
of sins I have committed that I know He knows about. Then there would be
the shame I would feel in front of my friends thinking that perhaps Jesus
would humiliate and punish me for my cowardice and betrayal of Him.
However, remember that Peter and the others had not been given the Holy
Spirit as yet, and without the power of the Holy Spirit at work in any
believer, we are defenseless against a frontal assault by Satan. What, then,
does Jesus do?
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 3
Well, they were all sitting around the fire after breakfast, when Jesus said to
Peter, "Simon.” (This was the name that Peter had before Jesus made him an
apostle.) It seems that Jesus was reminding him in a not too subtle way that
his behavior the night Jesus was arrested was very much like that of a person
who is not a follower of Jesus. “Simon, do you love me more than these?"
What does Jesus mean here by “these?” Is He referring to the boat, the net,
and everything that is connected with Peter’s love for fishing? Is Jesus
referring to whether Peter loves Him more than he loves the other apostles?
Or could He mean, “Do you love me more than these other men love me?”
We believe it is the latter, that Jesus is asking Peter if he loves Him more
than the others do. Jesus is setting the stage here for Peter’s forgiveness and
for him to be entrusted with caring for the others after Jesus ascends to
Heaven. You see, the old Peter who claimed not to know Christ the night
Jesus was arrested was somewhat of a boastful controller who liked to write
his own press releases. He often boasted of his faith and the things he would
do if ever placed in various kinds of situations. He was what some might call
a braggart.

126. Jesus wanted to see if Peter’s experience and failures had changed him and I
believe he wanted the others to see it as well. You see Peter’s pride had quite
frequently gotten in the way of what all Christ followers are expected to
develop, and that is a sense of humility. This humility was to include a
dependence and trust in Christ in order to accomplish His purposes rather
than their depending on their own ability to do things on their own. Do you
remember what Peter said to Jesus just before Jesus’ arrest? He had affirmed
that he would lay down his life for Christ (John 13:36-38).
At the Last SupperPeter volunteered that he loved Jesus so much that he
would die for Him, but he had not been able to keep that promise when the
chips were down. It was time for Peter to prove he was ready to be the kind
of servant Christ wanted him to be. It was not that Peter needed to prove this
to Jesus because Jesus knew what Peter would do. Jesus knew that Peter had
to prove this to himself and to the other apostles. When Jesus asked Peter if
he loved Him, Peter answered Jesus’ question in John 21:15 by telling Him
that he did love Him. Jesus responded by saying, “Feed My lambs.”
However, there is something quite interesting and worth noting in John
21:15. There are two different Greek words used for love in this verse. One
is the strongest word for love that we have in the Bible, agapao. It is the
word for a love that is absolutely unselfish and is used throughout the New
Testament for God Himself: "God is love." This word is used for the love of
God for this world, and for our love to God and for the people of the Lord. It
is used even for the love which people sometimes put in the place of God,
such as for money, and power. Unfortunately, you can give suchthings the
love that should go to God.2
Then there is another Greek word, phileo, and it means affection such as
exists between good friends. It is used for the love of one friend to another
and for family
2 H. A. Ironside, H. A. Ironside Commentary – John, (San Diego, CA:
Horizon Press, 1942), WORDsearchCROSS e-book, 886-890.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 4

127. affection. It suggests a lower quality of love than the first word. Let us look
at the verse again, this time using the Greek for the words meaning love:3
15 So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon,
son of John, do you love (agapao) Me more than these?" He said to Him,
"Yes, Lord; You know that I love (phileo) You."
Jesus used the word for the strongest kind of love when He asked Peter if
Peter loved Him. Peter responded with a word that meant a somewhat lesser
kind of love.
Jesus then told Peter: “Feed My lambs.” 4 Then Jesus asked Peter the same
question a second time, using the same word for love that He had used the
first time. Peter responded using the same word he had used for love the first
time. Jesus then told Peter to shepherd His sheep.
Now, why has Peter responded to Jesus’ question about his love for Jesus by
using a different word for love than Jesus was using? It seems that Peter had
finally realized that he had been incapable of the highest form of love to
which Jesus was referring. He was now telling Jesus that he definitely loved
Him but he was not about to make the mistake of boasting about capabilities
that he was not sure he could fulfill.
Then Jesus asked Peter a third time if he loved Him, but this time Jesus used
the same word Peter had used the two previous times, and Peter answered by
using the same word he had used the two previous times. He also confessed
to Jesus "Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You." Jesus said
to him, "Tend My sheep.”
Peter was most likely disturbed that Jesus would ask him three times if he
loved Him. But how many times had Peter denied Jesus after His arrest?
And when Jesus made His point the third time, He used the word for love
that recognized Peter’s honesty and humility. In effect, Jesus was telling
Peter that He was pleased that Peter loved Him in the way he did, and that
Jesus was also pleased that Peter knew he had limitations if he did not rely
on the help of Jesus. It was Jesus’ way to show Peter that he was forgiven
and restored to his former position.

128. Attachment to Jesus is an absolute necessity for serving Christ in this world
and the next. And in His mercy Jesus is willing to award this great privilege
to a person who has a very short résumé, listing only that he or she has a
very humble kind of love to offer to his/her Lord.”5 Jesus expects nothing
more.
3 Ibid. 4 Ibid. 5 William Hendriksen, Baker New Testament
Commentary – Exposition of the GospelAccording to John, (Grand Rapids,
MI: Baker Academic, 1953), WORDsearchCROSS e-book, 486-489.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 5
Peter admitted that Jesus knew everything about him including all of his
failures and his denial. He could have been implying that he was not worthy
of Jesus’ trust. Yet in spite of his failures, Jesus gave him the responsibility
to look after the other apostles.6
The key qualification for this responsibility is a love for Jesus that is
characterized by humility, dependence and obedience. Up until this present
time, Peter had loved Jesus, but he was still full of himself and he kept
placing himself at the head of the pack, often trying to controlwhat the
others did, and even what Jesus did. Peter thought of himself as being
number one, or at least certainly wanting to be number one. Such pride in a
leader would spell disaster for the community of believers, as had already
been evident in Israel's history right up to those who had just had Jesus
crucified. Sadly the same thing has been just as evident in the history of the
Church. But Peter himself learned his lesson, as is clear from his first letter.
When he addresses the elders of the communities he does so as a "fellow
elder" and encourages them to "be shepherds of God'sflock that is under
your care, serving as overseers...notlording it over those entrusted to you,
but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you
will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away" (1 Peter 5:1-4).
Here we see Peter exercising authority with a sense of humility, and He is
further conscious of the supreme authority of the Chief Shepherd. Such are
marks of a true shepherd in the service of Jesus Christ.7

129. Rodney Whitacre asks, “Have you ever thought of it, that only the smaller
birds sing? You never heard a note from the eagle in all your life, nor from
the turkey, nor from the ostrich. But you have heard from the canary, the
wren, and the lark. The sweetest music comes from those Christians who are
small in their own estimation and small before the Lord.”8 This is the
attitude Jesus was looking for in Peter, and it is the attitude He is looking for
in us.
Let us think about that amazing conceptfor a minute. In current life, the “big
birds” strut and crow and draw attention to themselves: the rich, the famous,
the movie stars, athletes, politicians, and financial gurus. Yet, who gives you
comfort, encouragement, and inspiration? In our congregation it is the
Kathryns and the Dallases who lift our spirits. How? Because they are the
ones who praise God, no matter what their circumstances. They are the ones
we can count on to pray for us in difficult times. They are the canaries with
beautiful, inspiring songs who lift their hearts, and also ours, in worship to
our great Lord God. I daresay God’s ears are tuned to hear those songs rather
than all the crowing of the so-called “big birds” in the world.
6 op Cit., Ironside. 7 Rodney A. Whitacre, The IVP New Testament
Commentary Series – John, ed. Grant R. Osborne(Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1999), WORDsearchCROSS ebook, 494-497. 8 Tan,
Paul Lee: Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations : A Treasury of Illustrations,
Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations for Pastors, Teachers and Christian
Workers. Garland TX : Bible Communications, 1996, c1979.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 6
At the Last SupperJesus had predicted Peter's denials after Peter had said he
was willing to die with Him (John 13:37-38). Jesus told him, "Where I am
going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later" (John 13:36). Here
now is the call to follow. After Peter professes his obedient love, Jesus spells
out the costof that love.9
So Peter was publicly restored to the position he had before he betrayed
Jesus, and he was given additional responsibility as well. We believe
William Hendriksen puts it very well when he says:

130. “It is as if the Master says to Peter: ‘Simon, you were weak like a lamb,
wandering like a sheep, yet, throughout it all, you, like a dear ("little")
sheep, were the object of my tender and loving solicitude. Now, having
profited by your experiences (because of your sincere sorrow), consider the
members of my Church to be your lambs, and feed them; your sheep, and
shepherd them; yes, your dear sheep, and in feeding them love them! Do not
neglect the work among the flock, Simon. That is your real assignment! Go
back to it! Thus was Peter fully and publicly restored.”10 11
We will now go on to John 21:18-19 (NASB):
18 "Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird
yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will
stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where
you do not wish to go." 19 Now this He said, signifying by what kind of
death he would glorify God. And when He had spokenthis, He said to him,
"Follow Me!"
Now let us also take a look at a more contemporary translation, as this is a
difficult passage to understand.
John 21:18-19 (NLT): 18 “I tell you the truth, when you were young, you
were able to do as you liked; you dressed yourself and went wherever you
wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and
others will dress you and take you where you don’twant to go.” 19 Jesus
said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God. Then
Jesus told him, “Follow me.”
9 Ibid. 10 op Cit., Hendriksen. 11 The metaphorical meaning of
feeding —especially, as far as the character of the food is concerned—is
explained in the following passages:Deut. 8:3; Job 23:12; Ps. 119:103; Isa.
55:1, 2; Jer. 3:15; 15:16; John 6:33-35, 51, 58; I Cor. 3:2; 10:3, 4; I Peter
2:2; and Rev. 2:7, 17.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 7

131. Jesus provided Peter a glimpse into his future. Peter had boasted to Jesus
that he was willing to die for Him (John 13:37) and that is just what he was
going to be required to do. Jesus continued, “When you were young, Peter,
you went your own way, but when you get old you are going to be bound
with chains and taken to prison and put to death for Me." This is just what
happened about the year A.D. 68, for Peter was in prison for Christ's sake
and he was taken out and put to death. Church tradition records that Peter
suffered martyrdom under Nero (around a.d. 67-68).
At the time of the crucifixion, Peter, along with the majority of the disciples,
had fled the scene. Jesus had to bear the penalty of sin on the cross alone.
Now that the penalty had been paid in full, Jesus informed Peter of his own
eventual martyrdom. Peter would be a prisoner, forced to walk a path that he
did not want to walk. He would stretch out his hands, even as Jesus had
done.
William Hendriksen comments, “When they were going to nail him to a
cross, Peter said, ‘No, no! My Lord died like that. I am not worthy to die as
He did.’ And he said, ‘Hang me on that cross head downward.’ Oh, yes;
Peter loved Christ, and he really intended to be true to Him, but he forgot
that the spirit can be willing when the flesh is weak. But in later years he
was given grace to do as he had promised.”12 That grace was provided by
the presence of the Holy Spirit.
From this point on, Peter’s life would glorify his Lord, and his death would
bring glory to the Savior who had bought Him and paid the penalty for His
sin. M.R. DeHaan tells the following story:
“Years ago I was called to the home of a widow whose daughter was the
apple of her eye. When the child was 3 years old she became very ill, and
the doctors said that she would die. We can all understand the shockof this
news, but we cannot justify the mother’s reaction. She rebelled violently and
accused God of cruelty—like the Israelites in Exodus 17:3. She demanded
that the Lord spare her daughter and told Him she could never trust Him
again if He did not do so. Well, God granted the request, in spite of the
doctors’predictions. The child grew up and lived a normal life for 13 years,

132. but then joined with bad companions. Finally, the girl broke her mother’s
heart when at the age of 17 she fell into real trouble.
“The tragic end of the story was told me by the weeping woman when I
arrived at her home that morning. “My Janie is dead—a suicide. Last night
she hung herself in her room!” After minutes of convulsive sobbing she
concluded, “O Doctor, how I wish God had taken her when she was 3 years
old.”13
12 Op. cit., Hendriksen. 13 Tan, Paul Lee: Encyclopedia of 7700
Illustrations : A Treasury of Illustrations, Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations
for Pastors, Teachers and Christian Workers. Garland TX : Bible
Communications, 1996, c1979.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 8
We must submit ourselves to God’s will, not try to change it. This is a tragic
story, but perhaps it answers those who ask the question, “How could God
let little children die?” God knows the future and often He protects the little
ones from later tragedy by taking them home to Heaven at a very early age.
When this girl reached the age of 17 she was on her own, and if she had not
accepted Christ as her Savior, and it sounds like she did not, then she is now
in Hell. But if a child dies before reaching the age of maturity, God takes
that little one to Heaven even if he or she has not yet come to faith in Christ.
How do we know that? Because David made it clear when he was speaking
of his infant son who had died (2 Samuel 12:23).
Peter’s life would demonstrate a complete reversal of the man he was in his
youth. Strong-headed, strong-willed, impetuous Peter would become the
submissive servant of his Lord, enduring ridicule and crucifixion. Only this
time, Peter would not run. He would not hide. He would never again deny
Jesus. He was crucified upside down, because he refused to be crucified like
Jesus.14
Christians sometimes worry about how they might respond under religious
persecution. We may be confident that the Holy Spirit within us has the

133. power to prevent us from caving in to what would be a betrayal and
renunciation of the Lord God, Jesus Christ.
Peter became a changed man and servant of the Lord. Listen to the
instructions he gave others in 1 Peter 5:1-5 NAS:
1 Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness
of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be
revealed, 2 shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not
under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God;and not for
sordid gain, but with eagerness; 3 nor yet as lording it over those allotted to
your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. 4 And when the Chief
Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. 5 You
younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe
yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the
proud, but gives grace to the humble.
Such change can come to all who submit their lives completely to the Holy
Spirit of God. Listen to what the psalmist says in Psalm 103:11-14 NAS:
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His
lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. 12 As far as the east is from the
west, So far has He removed our
14 Easy-to-Read Commentary Series – John: The Word Made Flesh,
(Holiday, FL: Green Key Books, 2004), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, 613-
614.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009
©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 9
transgressions from us. 13 Just as a father has compassionon his children,
So the Lord has compassionon those who fear Him. 14 ForHe Himself
knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.
Jesus had asked Peter twice if his love for Him was all consuming. With his
recent denials still fresh in his own mind, Peter refused to make such a
declaration again. He now knew his own weakness. He knew the hollowness
of such empty boasts that could be shattered to pieces when circumstances
placed him in situations that he had thus far not been able to handle. Finally,
Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him even though he could fall into sin at any

134. time and fail the Lord again. In an emotional outburst, born of guilt and
shame, Peter told Jesus that He was now well aware of his human frailties
that limited him from being what He knew Jesus wanted of him, and in spite
of those frailties, He loved Jesus and was ready to serve Him and obey Him.
Immediately Jesus told Peter to “Tend my sheep.”
With all of the frailty of Peter’s human devotion, Jesus did not hesitate to
trust Him with a valuable role in His kingdom.15
We bet each one of you can identify here with Peter. How many times in our
own lives, have we boasted about something and then been humiliated
because we could not accomplish what we said we could? How many times
have we said, “Please Lord, if you get me out of this mess, I will never do it
again?” Just like Peter, our claims about what we will do in any given
situation evaporate before our eyes. In such situations, Jesus comes to us and
says, “Do you love Me?” So we know exactly how Peter felt. We feel the
same way. We answer, “Yes, Lord, I love You!”
But in the corner of our minds we know from experience that we will very
likely again FALL SHORT OF His expectations, and Jesus knows that.
Nevertheless, in spite of that likely possibility, Jesus still invites us to take a
responsible role in His kingdom. “He tells us, ‘Come! Follow Me! Feed My
sheep! Join Me in the work of My kingdom!’ How wonderful it is to
experience the love, grace, and mercy of our Lord. He knows that we are but
dust, yet He stretches forth His hand and invites us to come. There is work to
be done. He then sends us out to share the message of salvation that our
Savior is offering to others.16
Now in no way do we want to suggest that Jesus picks leaders to shepherd
his flock knowing that they will probably fall into sin again and again. That
is not the way it is at all. Jesus makes it clear to all that when they are saved
and have the Holy Spirit residing within them, they have the capability of
not sinning if they allow the Holy Spirit to lead
15 Easy-to-Read Commentary Series – John: The Word Made Flesh,
(Holiday, FL: Green Key Books, 2004), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, 614-
616. 16 Ibid.
Village Church of Wheaton John 21: 15-19 April 12, 2009

135. ©2009 Ron and Betty Teed 10
them. That is what Jesus wants, and each of us should make every effort to
attain that high standard. If we do fail, however, we need to be armed with
the knowledge that we will be forgiven if we take that sin to Him and ask for
that forgiveness.
We have seen in this passage what the Resurrection meant for Peter:
forgiveness, a change of character, and empowerment for ministry in the
power of the Holy Spirit.
So then, we call you to consider this morning: What does the Resurrection
mean for you personally today? Has it purchased your salvation and secured
a place in Heaven for you? Has it changed your character, transforming you
from the old personto a brand new personwith a different set of values and
a different lifestyle? Instead of being weak and sinful, has resurrection
power given you strength to do the right thing? Have you found your
identity in Christ as a result of the Resurrection? Does the Holy Spirit fill
you, guide you, teach you, and give you the peace of Christ each day?
If not, we invite you to make today the bestResurrection Day of your life by
receiving Christ as your personal Savior. Or, if you have received Christ but
feel you are faltering and falling short, then renew your commitment to Him
and let yourself be filled totally with the Holy Spirit. In Peter’s words:
2 Peter 1:10-11 NLT: 10 So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove
that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things,
and you will never fall away. 11 Then God will give you a grand entrance
into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
LOVEST THOU ME? NO. 117
A SERMON DELIVERED ON SABBATH MORNING, SEPTEMBER 7,
1856, BY THE REV. C. H. SPURGEON, AT NEW PARK STREET
CHAPEL, SOUTHWARK.

136. “Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, sonof Jonas, lovest thou me more than
these? He said unto him, Yea, Lord; you know that I love you. He said unto
him, Feed my lambs. He said to him again the second time, Simon, sonof
Jonas, lovest thou me? He said unto him, Yea, Lord; you know that I love
you. He said unto him, Feed my sheep. He said unto him the third time,
Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto
him the third time, lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, you know
all things; you know that I love you. Jesus said unto him, Feed my sheep.”
John 21:15-17.
HOW very much like to Christ before His crucifixion was Christ after His
resurrection! Although He had lain in the grave, and descended into the
regions of the dead, and had retraced his steps to the land of the living, yet
how marvelously similar He was in His manners and how unchanged in His
disposition. His passion, His death, and His resurrection, could not alter His
character as a man any more than they could affect His attributes as God. He
is Jesus forever the same. And when He appeared again to His disciples, He
had castaside none of His kind manners, He had not lost a particle of
interest in their welfare, He addressed them just as tenderly as before, and
called them His children and His friends. Concerning their temporal
condition He was mindful, for He said, “Children, have you any meat?” And
He was certainly quite as watchful over their spiritual state, for after He had
supplied their bodies by a rich draught from the sea, with fish (which
possibly He had created for the occasion), He inquires after their souls’
health and prosperity, beginning with the one who might be supposedto
have been in the most sickly condition, the one who had denied his Master
thrice, and wept bitterly—even Simon Peter. “Simon, sonof Jonas,” said
Jesus, “lovest thou me?” Without preface, for we shall have but little time
this morning—may God help us to make good use of it!—we shall mention
three things. First, a solemn question—“Lovest thou me?” Secondly, a
discreet answer, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you,” and thirdly, a
required demonstration of the fact, “He said unto him, Feed my lambs,” or
again, “Feed my sheep.” I. First, then, here was a SOLEMN QUESTION,
which our Savior put to Peter, not for His own information, for, as Peter
said, “You know that I love you,” but for Peter’s examination. It is well,
especially after a foul sin, that the Christian should well probethe wound. It
is right that he should examine himself, for sin gives grave cause for
suspicion, and it would be wrong for a Christian to live an hour with a

137. suspicion concerning his spiritual estate, unless he occupythat hour in
examination of himself. Self-examination should more especially follow sin,
though it ought to be the daily habit of every Christian, and should be
practiced by him perpetually. Our Savior, I say, asked this question of Peter,
that he might ask it of himself, so we may supposeit asked of us this
morning that we may put it to our own hearts. Let each one ask himself then,
in his Savior’s name, for his own profit, “Lovest thou the Lord? Love you
the Savior? Love you the everblessed Redeemer?” Note what this question
was. It was a question concerning Peter’s love. He did not say, “Simon, son
of Jonas, fear you Me.” He did not say, “Do you admire Me? Do you adore
Me?” Nor was it even a question concerning his faith. He did not say,
“Simon, son of Jonas, believe you in Me?” But He asked him another
question, “Lovestthou me?” I take it that is because love is the very best
evidence of piety.
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Love is the brightest of all the graces, and hence it becomes the best
evidence. I do not believe love to be superior to faith, I believe faith to be
the groundwork of our salvation, I think faith to be the mother grace, and
love springs from it, faith I believe to be the root grace, and love grows from
it. But then, faith is not an evidence for brightness equal to love. Faith, if we
have it, is a sure and certain sign that we are God’s children, and so is every
other grace a sure and certain one, but many of them cannot be seen by
others. Love is a more sparkling one than any other. If I have a true fear of
God in my heart, then am I God’s child, but since fear is a grace that is more
dim and has not that halo of glory over it that love has, love becomes one of
the very best evidences and one of the easiest signs of discerning whether we
are alive to the Savior. He that lacks love must lack also every other grace in
the proportion in which he lacks love. If love be little, I believe it is a sign
that faith is little, for he that believes much loves much. If love be little, fear
will be little, and courage for God will be little, and whatsoever graces there
be, though faith lies at the rootof them all, yet do they so sweetly hang on
love, that if love is weak, all the rest of the graces most assuredly will be so.
Our Lord asked Peter, then, that question, “Lovest thou me?” And note,
again, that He did not ask Peter anything about his doings. He did not say,
“Simon Peter, how much have you wept? How often have you done penance

138. on account of your great sin? How often have you on your knees sought
mercy at My hand for the slight you have done to Me, and for that terrible
cursing and swearing wherewith you did disown your Lord, whom you had
declared you would follow even to prison and to death?” No, it was not in
reference to his works, but in reference to the state of his heart that Jesus
said, “Lovest thou me?” To teach us this, that though works do follow after a
sincere love, yet love excels the works, and works without love are not
evidences worth having. We may have some tears, but they are not the tears
that God shall accept, if there be no love to Him. We may have some works,
but they are not acceptable works, if they are not done out of love to His
person. We may perform very many of the outward, ritual observances of
religion, but unless love lies at the bottom, all these things are vain and
useless. The question, then, “Lovest thou me?” is a very vital question, far
more so than one that merely concerns the outward conduct. It is a question
that goes into the very heart, and in such a way that it brings the whole heart
to one question, for if love be wrong, everything else is wrong. “Simon, son
of Jonas, lovest thou me?” Ah! dear beloved, we have very much cause for
asking ourselves this question. If our Savior were no more than a man like
ourselves, He might often doubtwhether we love Him at all. Let me just
remind you of sundry things which give us very great cause to ask this
question: “Lovest thou me?” I will deal only with the last week. Come, my
Christian brother, look at your own conduct. Do not your sins make you
doubtwhether you do love your Master? Come, look over the sins of this
week, when you were speaking with an angry word and with a sullen look,
might not your Lord have touched you, and said, Lovest thou me?” When
you were doing such-and-sucha thing, which you right well knew in your
conscience was not according to His precept, might He not have said,
“Lovest thou me?” Can you not remember the murmuring words because
something had gone wrong with you in business this week, and you were
speaking ill of the God of providence for it? Oh, might not the loving Savior,
with pity in His languid eye, have said to you, “What speak you? Lovest you
Me?” I need not stop to mention the various sins of which you have been
guilty. You have sinned, I am sure, enough to give good ground for self-
suspicion, if you did not still hang on this, that His love to you, not your love
to Him, is the seal of your discipleship. Oh, do you not think within
yourselves, “If I had loved Him more, should I have sinned so much? And
oh, can I love Him when I have broken so many of His commandments?
Have I reflected His glorious image to the world as I should have done?
Have I not wasted many hours within this week that I might have spent in
winning souls to Him? Have I not thrown away many precious moments in

139. light and frivolous conversation which I might have spent in earnest prayer?
Oh! how many words have I uttered, which if they have not been filthy (as I
trust they have not), yet have not been such as have ministered grace to the
hearers? Oh, how many follies have I
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indulged in? How many sins have I winked at? How many crimes have I
covered over? How have I made my Savior’s heart bleed? How have I done
dishonor to His cause? How have I in some degree disgraced my heart’s
professionof love to Him?” Oh, ask these questions of yourself, beloved,
and say, “Is this your kindness to your Friend?” But I hope this week has
been one wherein you have sinned little openly as to the world, or even in
your own estimation, as to open acts of crime. But now let me put another
question to you, Does not your worldliness make you doubt?How have you
been occupied with the world, from Monday morning to the last hour of
Saturday night? You have scarcely had time to think of Him. What corners
have you pushed your Jesus into to make room for your bales of goods?
How have you stowed Him away into one short five minutes, to make room
for your ledger or your day-book?How little time have you given to Him!
You have been occupied with the shop, with the exchange, and the farmyard,
and you have had little time to commune with Him! Come, just think!
remember any one day this week, can you say that your soul always flew
upward with passionate desires to Him? Did you pant like a hart for your
Savior during the week? Nay, perhaps there was a whole day went by, and
you scarcely thought of Him till the winding up of it, and then you could
only upbraid yourself, “How have I forgotten Christ today? I have not
beheld His person, I have not walked with Him, I have not done as Enoch
did! I knew He would come into the shop with me, I knew He is such a
blessed Christ that He would stand behind the counter with me, I knew He
was such a joyous Lord Jesus that He would walk through the market with
me! but I left Him at home and forgot Him all the day long.” Surely, surely,
beloved, when you remember your worldliness, you must say of yourself,
“O Lord, you might well ask, ‘Lovest thou me?’” Consider again, I beseech
you, how cold you have been this week at the mercy seat. You have been
there, for you can not live without it, you have lifted up your heart in prayer,
for you are a Christian, and prayer is as necessary to you as your breath. But

140. oh! with what a poorasthmatic breath have you lived this week! How little
have you breathed? Do not you remember how hurried was your prayer on
Monday morning, how driven you were on Tuesday night? Can you not
recollect how languid was your heart, when on another occasionyou were
on your knees? You have had little wrestling, perhaps, this week, little
agonizing, you have had little of the prayer which prevails, you have
scarcely laid hold of the horns of the altar, you have stood in the distance
and seen the smoke at the altar, but you have not laid hold of the horns of it.
Come, ask yourself, do not your prayers make you doubt? I say, honestly
before you all, my own prayers often make me doubt, and I know nothing
that gives me more grave cause of disquietude. When I labor to pray—oh!
that rascally devil!—fifty thousand thoughts he tries to inject to take me off
from prayer, and when I will and must pray, oh, what an absence there is of
that burning fervent desire, and when I would come right close to God, when
I would weep my very eyes out in penitence, and would believe and take the
blessing, oh, what little faith and what little penitence there is! Verily, I have
thought that prayer has made me more unbelieving than anything else. I
could believe over the tops of my sins, but sometimes I can scarcely believe
over the tops of my prayers—for oh! how cold is prayer when it is cold! Of
all things that are bad when cold, I think prayer is the worst, for it becomes
like a very mockery, and instead of warming the heart, it makes it colder
than it was before, and seems even to dampen its life and spirit, and fills it
full of doubts whether it is really an heir of heaven and accepted of Christ.
Oh! look at your cold prayers, Christian, and say is not your Savior right to
ask this question very solemnly, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” But
stop again, just one more word for you to reflect upon. Perhaps you have had
much prayer, and this has been a time of refreshing from the presence of the
Lord. But yet, perhaps, you know, you have not gone so far this week as you
might have done in another exercise of godliness that is even better than
prayer—I mean communion and fellowship. Oh! beloved, you have this
week had but little sitting under the apple tree, and finding its shadow great
delight to you. You have not gone much this week to the banquet house, and
had its banner of love over you. Come, think yourself, how little have you
seen your Lord this week! Perhaps He has been absent the greater part of the
time, and have you not groaned?
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141. Have you not wept? Have you not sighed after Him? Sure, then, you can not
have loved Him as you should, else you could not have borne His absence,
you could not have endured it calmly, if you had the affection for Him a
sanctified spirit has for its Lord. You did have one sweet visit from Him in
the week, and why did you let Him go? Why did you not constrain Him to
abide with you? Why did you not lay hold of the skirts of His garment and
say, “Why should You be like a wayfaring man, and as one that turns aside,
and tarries for a night? Oh! my Lord, You shall dwell with me, I will keep
You, I will detain You in my company, I cannot let You go, I love You, and
I will constrain You to dwell with me this night and the next day, as long as
I can keep You, I will keep You.” But no, you were foolish, you did let Him
go. Oh! Soul, why did you not lay hold of His arm and say, “I will not let
You go.” But you did lay hold on Him so feebly, you did suffer Him to
depart so quickly, He might have turned round and said to you, as He said to
Simon, “Simon, sonof Jonas, lovest thou me?” Now, I have asked you all
these questions because I have been asking them of myself. I feel that I must
answer to nearly every one of them, “Lord, there is great cause for me to ask
myself that question,” and I think that most of you, if you are honest to
yourselves, will say the same. I do not approve of the man that says, “I know
I love Christ, and I never have a doubtabout it,” becausewe often have
reason to doubtourselves, a believer’s strong faith is not a strong faith in his
own love to Christ—it is a strong faith in Christ’s love to him. There is no
faith which always believes that it loves Christ. Strong faith has its conflicts,
and a true believer will often wrestle in the very teeth of his own feelings.
Lord, if I never did love You, nevertheless, if I am not a saint, I am a sinner.
Lord, I still believe, help You my unbelief. The disciple can believe, when
he feels no love, for he can believe that Christ loves the soul, and when he
has no evidence he can go to Christ without evidence and lay hold of Him,
just as he is, with naked faith, and still hold fast by Him. Though he sees not
His signs, though he walk in darkness and there be no light, still may he trust
in the Lord, and stay upon His God—butto be certain at all times that we
love the Lord is quite another matter, about this we have need continually to
question ourselves, and most scrupulously to examine both the nature and
the extent of our evidences. II. And now I come to the second thing, which is
A DISCREET ANSWER. “Simon, sonof Jonas, lovest thou me?” Simon
gave a very good answer. Jesus asked him, in the first place, whether he
loved Him better than others. Simon would not say that, he had once been a
little proud—morethan a little—and thought he was better than the other
disciples. But this time he evaded that question, he would not say that he
loved better than others. And I am sure there is no loving heart that will

142. think it loves even better than the least of God’s children. I believe the
higher a man is in grace, the lower he will be in his own esteem, and he will
be the last person to claim any supremacy over others in the divine grace of
love to Jesus. But mark how Simon Peter did answer, he did not answer as to
the quantity but as to the quality of his love. He would aver that he loved
Christ, but not that he loved Christ better than others. “Lord, I cannot say
how much I love You, but You know all things, You know that I do love
You. So far as I can aver, as to the quantity of my love, I cannot say much
about it.” But just notice, again, the discreet manner in which Peter
answered. Some of us, if we had been asked that question, would have
answered foolishly. We should have said, “Lord, I have preached for You so
many times this week, Lord, I have distributed of my substance to the poor
this week. Blessed be Your name, You have given me grace to walk humbly,
faithfully, and honestly, and therefore, Lord, I think I can say, ‘I love You.’”
We should have brought forward our good works before our Master, as
being the evidences of our love, we should have said, “Lord, You have seen
me during this week, as Nehemiah did of old, ‘Forget not my good works. O
Lord, I thank you, I know they are Your gifts, but I think they are proofs of
my love.’” That would have been a very good answer if we had been
questioned by our fellow man, and he had said, “You do not always love
your Savior,” but it would be foolish for us to tell the Master that. Peter’s
answer was wise, “Lord, You know that I love You.” You know the Master
might have said to Peter,
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had he appealed to his works, “Yes, you may preach, and yet not love Me,
you may pray, after a fashion, and yet not love Me, you may do all these
works and yet have no love to Me. I did not ask you what are the evidences
of your love, I asked you the fact of it.” Very likely all my dear friends here
would not have answered in the fashion I have supposed,but they would
have said, “Love You Lord? Why, my heart is all on fire towards You, I feel
as if I could go to prison and to death for You! Sometimes, when I think of
You, my heart is ravished with bliss, and when You are absent, O Lord, I
moan and cry like a dove that has lost its mate. Yes, I feel I love You, O my
Christ.” But that would have been very foolish, becausealthough we may
often rejoice in our own feelings— they are joyful things—it would not do

143. to plead them with our Lord, for He might answer, “Ah! you feel joyful at
the mention of My name. So, no doubt, has many a deluded one, because he
had a fictitious faith, and a fancied hope in Christ, therefore the name of
Christ seemed to gladden him. You say, ‘I have felt dull when You have
been absent.’ That might have been accounted for from natural
circumstances, you had a headache, perhaps, or some other ailment.” “But,”
you say, “I felt so happy when He was present that I thought I could die.”
Ah! in such manner Peter had spoken many a time before, but a sorry mess
he made of it when he trusted his feelings, for he would have sunk into the
sea but for Christ, and eternally damned his soul, if it had not been for His
grace, when, with cursing and swearing he thrice denied his Lord. But no,
Peter was wise, he did not bring forward his frames and feelings, nor did he
bring his evidences, though they are good in themselves, he did not bring
them before Christ. But, as though he shall say, “Lord, I appeal to Your
omnipotence. I am not going to tell You that the volume of my heart must
contain such-and-suchmatter, because there is such-and-such a mark on its
cover, for, Lord, you can read inside of it, and, therefore, I need not tell You
what the title is, nor read over to You the index of the contents. Lord, You
know that I love You.” Now, could we, this morning, dear friends, give such
an answer as that to the question? If Christ should come here, if He were
now to walk down these aisles and along the pews, could we appeal to His
own divine Omniscience, His infallible knowledge of our hearts, that we all
love Him? There is a testpoint between a hypocrite and a real Christian. If
you are a hypocrite, you might say, “Lord, my minister knows that I love
You, Lord, the deacons know that I love You, they think I do, for they have
given me a ticket, the members think I love You, for they see me sitting at
Your table, my friends think I love You, for they often hear me talk about
You.” But you could not say, “Lord, You know that I love You,” Your own
heart is witness that your secret works belie your confession, for you are
without prayer in secret, and you can preach a twenty minute prayer in
public. You are niggardly and parsimonious in giving to the cause of Christ,
but you can sportyour name to be seen. You are an angry, petulant creature,
but when you come to the house of God, you have a pious whine, and talk
like a canting hypocrite, as if you were a very gentlemanly man, and never
seemed angry. You can take your Maker’s name in vain, but if you hear
another do it you would be mighty severe upon him. You affect to be very
pious, and yet if men knew of that widow’s house that is sticking in your
throat, and of that orphan’s patrimony which you have taken from him, you
would leave off trumpeting your good deeds. Your own heart tells you that
you are a liar before God. But you, O sincere Christian, you can welcome

144. your Lord’s question, and answer it with holy fear and gracious confidence.
Yes, you may welcome the question. Such a question was never put to
Judas. The Lord loved Peter so much that He was jealous over him, or He
never would have thus challenged his attachment. And in this kind does He
often appeal to the affections of those whom He dearly loves. The response
likewise is recorded for you, “Lord, You know all things.” Can you not look
up, though scorned by men, though even rejected by your minister, though
kept back by the deacons, and looked upon with disesteem by some—can
you not look up and say, “Lord, You know all things, You know that I love
You”? Do it not in brag and bravado, but if you can do it sincerely, be
happy, bless God that He has given you a sincere love to the Savior, and ask
Him to increase it from a spark to a flame, and from a grain to a mountain.
“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Yea, Lord, You know all things; You
know that I love You.”
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III. And now here is A DEMONSTRATION REQUIRED—“Feed my
lambs: feed my sheep.” That was Peter’s demonstration. It is not necessary
that it should be our way of showing our love. There are different ways for
different disciples. There are some who are not qualified to feed lambs, for
they are only little lambs themselves. There are some that could not feed
sheep, for they cannot at present see afar off, they are weak in the faith and
not qualified to teach at all. They have other means, however, of showing
their love to the Savior. Let us offer a few words upon this matter. “Lovest
thou me?” Then one of the best evidences you can give is to feed My lambs.
Have I two or three little children that love and fear My name? If you want
to do a deed, which shall show that you are a true lover, and not a proud
pretender, go and feed them. Are there a few little ones whom I have
purchased with My blood in an infant class? Do you want to do something
which shall give evidence that you are indeed Mine? Then sit not down with
the elders, dispute not in the temple, I did that Myself, but go you, and sit
down with the young orphans, and teach them the way to the kingdom.
“Feed my lambs.” Dearly beloved, I have been of late perplexing myself
with one thought, that our church government is not Scriptural. It is
Scriptural as far as it goes, but it is not according to the whole of Scripture,
neither do we practice many excellent things that ought to be practiced in

145. our churches. We have received into our midst a large number of young
persons, in the ancient churches that was what was called the catechism
class—I believe there ought to be such a class now. The Sabbath school, I
believe, is in the Scripture, and I think there ought to be on the Sabbath
afternoon, a class of the young people of this church, who are members
already, to be taught by some of the elder members. Nowadays, when we
get the lambs, we just turn them adrift in the meadow, and there we leave
them. There are more than a hundred young people in this church who
positively, though they are members, ought not to be left alone, but some of
our elders, if we have elders, and some who ought to be ordained elders,
should make it their business to teach them further, to instruct them in the
faith, and so keep them hard and fast by the truth of Jesus Christ. If we had
elders, as they had in all the apostolic churches, this might in some degree be
attended to. But now the hands of our deacons are full, they do much of the
work of the eldership, but they cannot do any more than they are doing, for
they are toiling hard already. I would that some here whom God has gifted,
and who have time, would spend their afternoons in taking a class of those
who live around them, of their younger brethren, asking them to their houses
for prayer and pious instruction, that so the lambs of the flock may be fed.
By God’s help I will take care of the sheep, I will endeavor under God to
feed them, as well as I can, and preach the Gospelto them. You that are
older in the faith and stronger in it, need not that careful cautious feeding
which is required by the lambs. But there are many in our midst, good pious
souls who love the Savior as much as the sheep do, but one of their
complaints which I have often heard is, “Oh! sir, I joined your church, I
thought they would be all brothers and sisters to me, and that I could speak
to them, and they would teach me and be kind to me. Oh! sir, I came and
nobodyspoketo me.” I say, “Why did you not speak to them first?” “Oh!”
they reply, “I did not like.” Well, they should have liked, I am well aware,
but if we had some means of feeding the lambs, it would be a good way of
proving to our Savior and to the world, that we really do endeavor to follow
Him. I hope some of my friends will take that hint, and if, in concert with
me, my brethren in office will endeavor to do something in that way, I think
it will be no mean proofof their love to Christ. “Feed my lambs,” is a great
duty, let us try to practice it as we are able. But, beloved, we cannot all do
that, the lambs cannot feed the lambs, the sheep cannot feed the sheep
exactly. There must be some appointed to these offices. And therefore, in the
Savior’s name, allow me to say to some of you, that there are different kinds
of proofyou must give. “Simon son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He said unto
him, Yea, Lord; you know that I love you.” Then preserve that prayer

146. meeting, attend to it, see that it is kept going on, and that it does not fall to
the ground. “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” See to your servants, see
that they go to the house of God, and instruct them in the faith. There is a
sister: Lovest thou Christ? “Yea, Lord.” Perhaps it is as much as you can
do—perhaps it
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is as much as you ought to do—to train up your children in the fear of the
Lord. It is of no use to trouble yourselves about duties that God never meant
you to do, and leave your own vineyard at home to itself. Just take care of
your own children; perhaps that is as good a proofas Christ wants of you
that you are feeding His lambs. You have your own office, to which Christ
has appointed you, seek not to run away from it, but endeavor to do what
you can to serve your Master therein. But, I beseech you, do something to
prove your love, do not be sitting down doing nothing. Do not be folding
your hands and arms, for such people perplex a minister most, and bring the
most ruin on a church—suchas do nothing. You are always the most ready
to find fault. I have marked it here, that the very people who are quarrelling
with everything are the people that are doing nothing, or are good for
nothing. They are sure to quarrel with everything else, because they are
doing nothing themselves, and therefore they have time to find fault with
other people. Do not O Christian, say that you love Christ, and yet do
nothing for Him. Doing is a good sign of living, and he can scarcely be alive
unto God that does nothing for God. We must let our works evidence the
sincerity of our love to our Master. “Oh!” say you, “but we are doing a
little.” Can you do any more? If you can, then do it. If you cannot do more,
then God requires no more of you, doing to the utmost of your ability is your
best proof, but if you can do more, inasmuch as you keep backany part of
what you can do, in that degree you give cause to yourselves to distrust your
love to Christ. Do all you can to your very utmost, serve Him abundantly,
ay, and superabundantly, seek to magnify His name, and if ever you do too
much for Christ, come and tell me of it, if you ever do too much for Christ,
tell the angels of it—but you will never do that. He gave Himself for you,
give yourselves to Him. You see, my friends, how I have been directing you
to search your own hearts, and I am almost afraid that some of you will
mistake my intention. Have I a poorsoul here who really deplores the

147. languor of her affections? Perhaps you have determined to ask yourself as
many questions as you can with a view of reviving the languid sparks of
love. Let me tell you then that the pure flame of love must be always
nourished where it was first kindled. When I admonished you to look to
yourself, it was only to detect the evil, would you find the remedy, you must
direct your eyes, not to your own heart, but to the blessed heart of Jesus—to
the Beloved One—to my gracious Lord and Master. And would you be ever
conscious of the sweet swellings up of your heart towards Him, you can only
prove this by a constant sense of His tender love to you. I rejoice to know
that the Holy Ghost is the Spirit of love, and the ministry of the Spirit is
endeared to me in nothing so much as this, that He takes of the things of
Jesus, and shows them to me, spreading abroad the Savior’s love in my
heart, until it constrains all my passions, awakens the tenderest of all tender
emotions, reveals my union to Him, and occasions my strong desire to serve
Him. Let not love appear to you as a stern duty, or an arduous effort, rather
look to Jesus, yield yourself up to His gracious charms till you are ravished
with His beauty and preciousness. But ah! if you are slack in the proofs you
give, I shall know you are not walking with Him in holy communion. And
allow me to suggest one profitable way of improving the ordinance of the
Lord’s Supper. That is, while you are partaking of it, my friends, renew your
dedication to Christ. Seek this morning to give yourselves over afresh to
your Master. Say with your hearts, what I shall now say with my lips, “Oh!
my precious Lord Jesus, I do love You, You know I have in some degree
given myself to You up to this time, thanks to Your grace! Blessed be Your
name, that You have accepted the deeds of so unworthy a servant. O Lord, I
am conscious that I have not devoted myself to You as I ought, I know that
in many things I have come short. I will make no resolution to live better to
Your honor, but I will offer the prayer that You would help me so to do. Oh!
Lord, I give to You my health, my life, my talents, my power, and all I have!
You have bought me, and bought me wholly, then, Lord, take me this
morning, baptize me in the Spirit, let me now feel an entire affection to Your
blessed person. May I have that love which conquers sin and purifies the
soul—that love which can dare danger and encounter difficulties for Your
sake. May I henceforth and forever be a consecrated vessel of mercy, having
been chosenof You
Lovest Thou Me? Sermon #117
Volume 3
8
8

148. from before the foundation of the world! Help me to hold fast that solemn
choice of Your service which I desire this morning, by Your grace to
renew.” And when you drink the blood of Christ, and eat His flesh
spiritually—in the type and in the emblem, then I beseech you, let the
solemn recollection of His agony and suffering for you inspire you with a
greater love, that you may be more devoted to His service than ever. If that
be done, I shall have the best of churches, if that be done by us, the Holy
Spirit helping us to carry it out, we shall all be good men and true, holding
fast by Him, and we shall not need to be ashamed in the awful day. As for
you who have never given yourselves to Christ, I dare not tell you to renew a
vow which you have never made, nor dare I ask you to make a vow which
you would never keep. I can only pray for you, that God the Savior would be
pleased to reveal Himself unto your heart, that “a sense of bloodbought
pardon” may “dissolve your hearts of stone,” that you may be brought to
give yourselves to Him, knowing that if you have done that, you have the
best proofthat He has given Himself for you. May God Almighty bless you,
those of you who depart, may He dismiss with His blessing, and those who
remain, may you receive His favor, for Christ’s sake! Amen.
Taken from The C. H. Spurgeon Collection, Version 1.0, Ages Software.
Only necessary changes have been made, such as correcting spelling errors,
some punctuation usage, capitalization of deity pronouns, and minimal
updating of a few archaic words. The content is unabridged. Additional
Bible-based resources are available at www.spurgeongems.org.
“FEED MY SHEEP” NO. 3211
A SERMON TO MINISTERS AND STUDENTS, PUBLISHED ON
THURSDAY, AUGUST 18, 1910, DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,
AT THE PASTOR’S COLLEGECONFERENCE, ON FRIDAY
MORNING, APRIL 13, 1877.
“He said unto him, Feed My sheep.” John 21:16.

149. THOSE whom the Lord addressed, and especially Simon, had become
fishermen. “Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of great
fishes.” In the early part of your career most of you were fishermen, or men
catchers and, truly, to be fishers of men should be your ambition all your
lives. But you have now becomesomething more—the fisher has developed
into a shepherd. The fisherman represents the evangelist who casts the net
into the waters and draws the fish to land, but it is not to him that Christ
says, “Feed My sheep”—that is reserved for those of greater maturity and
experience. Many of you have now for years been settled in one sphere and
while you will continue to fish, I trust that more and more you will
remember that you now have other duties to perform—you have to feed as
well as to fish, to handle the crookas well as the net. We now leave the sea
wherein we were drifted to and fro, and we abide among our own flocks,
standing and feeding in the strength of the Lord. We cease not to do the
work of an evangelist, but we pay special attention to the duties of the
pastor, for He who once said, “Castthe net on the right side of the ship,”
now says to us, “Feed My sheep.” I am addressing disciples to whom the
Lord has shown Himself—may He now at this happy seasoncommission us
anew and send us home with the word which He spoketo Peter resting in
our hearts! I. This was a sort of ordination of Peter to the pastorate. He
needed to be publicly recognized, for he had publicly offended. And his
ordination commenced with AN EXAMINATION BEARING ON THE
WORK. “Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, do you love Me?”
Our Lord does not admit any to the oversight of His flock without first of all
questioning them as to their inner condition. Neither should any man dare to
acceptsuch an office without great self-examination and searching of heart.
Many questions should be put to our hearts and answered as in the sight of
God, for no man rightly takes this honor upon himself but he that is called
thereunto—neither is every man fitted for the work but he, alone, who is
anointed of the Lord. You will observe that the examination was directed to
the state of Peter’s heart—and so it touched the innermost spring of all his
religion—for if love is absent, all is vain—the heart of godliness is missing
where love is lacking. Love is the chief endowment for a pastor. You must
love Christ if you mean to serve Him in the capacity of pastors. Our Lord
deals with the most vital point. The question is not, “Simon, son of Jonas, do
you know Me?” though that would not have been an unreasonable question,
since Peter had said, “I know not the man.” He might have asked, “Simon,
son of Jonas, do you know the deep mysteries of God?”He did know them,
for his Lord had called him blessed for knowing that which flesh and blood
had not revealed to him. Our great bishop of souls did not examine him with

150. regard to his mental endowments, nor upon his other spiritual qualifications,
but only upon this one, “Simon, sonof Jonas, do you love Me?” If so, then,
“Feed My sheep.” Does not this plainly show us that the chief endowment of
the pastor is to love Christ supremely? Only such a man as that is fit to look
after Christ’s sheep. You will fulfill that office well if you love Jesus—your
love will keep you in your Lord’s company, it will hold you under His
immediate supervision and will secure you His help. Love to Him will breed
a love for all His sheep and your love for them will give you power over
them. Experience testifies that we
2 “Feed My Sheep” Sermon #3211
2 Tell someone today how much you love Jesus Christ. Volume 56
never gain a particle of power for good over our people by angry words, but
we obtain an almost absolute power over them by all enduring love—indeed,
the only power which is desirable for us to have must come in that way! I
have had the high pleasure of loving some of the most objectionable people
till they loved me. And some of the most bitter I have altogether won by
refusing to be displeased, and by persisting in believing that they could be
better. By practical kindnesses I have so won some men that I believe it
would take a martyrdom to make them speak evil of me. This has also been
the experience of all who have tried the sacred power of love! My brothers,
learn the art of loving men to Christ! We are drawn towards those who love
us and when the most callous feel “that man loves us,” they are drawn to you
at once—and as you are nearer to the Savior than they are—you are drawing
them in the right direction. You cannot look after God’s peopleand properly
care for them in all their sins, temptations, trials and difficulties, unless you
love them. You will grow sick and weary of pastoral work unless there is a
fresh spring of love in your heart welling up towards them. A mother tires
not of watching by the bedsideof her sick child because love sustains her—
she will outlast the paid nurse by many an hour! Love props her drooping
eyelids. Even so, “the hireling flees becausehe is an hireling and cares not
for the sheep,” but, “the good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” If you
really love the sheep, you will be ready to spend your life for them or even
to lay it down for their sakes. Love, then, I take to be the chief endowment
of the pastor—although having that, I trust you will not fall short in any
other respect but be thoroughly furnished unto every good work. Do not
forget what you have been told about study and culture, but remember at the
same time that the heart has more power in pastoral work than the head. In
this ministry, a humble, godly, illeducated man with a great, warm, heart
will be blessed far more than the large headed man whose heart is a little

151. diamond of rock ice which could not be discovered without a microscope
even if he were dissected! The Lord Jesus Christ connected His examination
upon the matter of love with the commission, “Feed My sheep,” because our
work in feeding the flock of God is the proofof love to the Lord. Do we not
tell our people that love must be not in word, only, but also in deed? We
judge whether any man has love to Christ by testing what he will do for
Christ. What suffering or reproach will he endure for Him? What of his
substancewill he consecrate to His service? What of himself will he use for
the Lord? We can tell which of us, as a minister, is proving his love to Christ
by ascertaining who is really shepherding Christ’s flock and laying out
himself for the benefit of the Lord’s redeemed. The man to whom Jesus said,
“Do you love Me?” was the same who before had said “Lord, if it is You,
bid me come unto You on the water.” Some among us would readily venture
upon that water walking, for it would be something extraordinary and brief,
and this would suit us, for we are not given to plodding perseverance. Our
zeal is great and we dash off as Peter did, though soon, like he, we begin to
sink! Note well that Christ does not say, “Simon, son of Jonas, do you love
Me? Go and walk the water.” The Master seems to say, “You have done
enough of that in your young days, now go and quietly feed My sheep. It is
hard, tiring, quiet work—and if you have no love to Me, you will soon
weary of it. ‘Feed My sheep,’ ‘Feed My sheep,’ ‘Feed My sheep.’ Three
times I bid you do it, that you may continue in the work as long as you live,
for thus will you have given proofof the reality of your affection for Me.”
Brothers, go back to your flocks and feed them well, and so give fresh
evidences of your love to your Lord! This pastoral work for Christ is the
craving of love in every heart that is set apart for the Lord. Every soul that
truly loves Him longs to do something for Him. It cannot do otherwise—
love must serve its Beloved—it yearns to go and lay its offering at His feet!
No pressure was needed to make the forgiven sinner wash Christ’s feet with
her tears, wipe them with the hairs of her head and anoint them with
precious ointment. Her heart suggested it and she hastened to obey. And if
you, my brothers, are true pastors, you cannot help looking after the
wandering sheep. You naturally care for your people. You have a sacred
instinct which compels you to be lovers of men’s souls. You see how little
girls, as if it were naturally in them to act as nurses, will kiss their dolls and
fondle, caress, dress and care for them as mothers do for their children—and
just so we have seen mere lads converted to Christ and intended by the Lord
Sermon #3211 “Feed My Sheep” 3
Volume 56 Tell someone today how much you love Jesus Christ. 3

152. to become pastors, who, before they have been out of their teens, have begun
to speak of Jesus to their little friends and companions. The Lord has caused
them even from their new birth to feel a shepherd’s propensities strong
within them! It was so with some of us—we could not have helped
preaching even if we could—we were born to preach when we were born
again! Let us, then, indulge the sacred passion to the fullest! Brothers, since
we have been at this work, it has been to us the stimulus of love. The way to
love another more is to do more for Him. When a man has done a kindness
to you, he will love you—the receiver may be unmindful of the favor, but
the giver has a better memory! There is no fear of our Lord’s ceasing to love
us, since for us He has suffered even unto death! The supreme sacrifice
made once for all renders it impossible that He should do otherwise than rest
in His love. Even so, if we labor and pray, and practice self-denial for others,
we are sure to love them all the more. Then, too, as you go on feeding
Christ’s sheep, building up His people and cheering His discouraged ones,
you will love your Master more—and your love for Him will act again upon
you and cause increased love to the people—and so on evermore! Those
over whom you have most agonized have delighted you most when at last
they have been converted. Your joy has been increased as you have waited
for the realization of your hope! This feeding of the sheep is to the love
which is the matter in question, a sphere of communion. “Feed My sheep”
unites us in service with Jesus. Love longs to be with Jesus and in fellowship
with Him. The Lord was about to ascend to heaven when He said to Simon,
“Feed My sheep,” and Simon could not as yet go with Him. But if he would
accompany his Lord while abiding here, he must follow on his Lord’s work
and abide with his Lord’s flocks. If we will undertake labors of love for
those whom He has redeemed. If we will go wherever His sheep are lost,
seeking— “With cries, entreaties, tears, to save, To snatch them from the
fiery wave”— we shall soonfind ourselves where Jesus is! He is always at
that business. He still seeks poorsinners and if we are engaged in the same
search, we shall be with Him—we shall enter into His feelings, we shall
share His desires and feel His sympathies! When thus with Him, we shall
witness His heartbreaking throes and almost see His bloody sweat streaming
down when He was agonizing for souls, for we shall in some feeble measure
feel the same! You cannot understand your Lord till you have wept over
your congregations! You will understand Him then, as you see Him weeping
over Jerusalem. If you feel towards your hearers that you could die to save
their souls, you will then have fellowship with the death of your Lord. In

153. grief over backsliders and joy over penitents you will commune with the
Redeemer in the most practical manner. You must feel a shepherd’s feelings
and give practical proof of it by daily feeding the flock—otherwise your
fellowship with the great shepherd be will mere sentiment and not fact. So
much about the previous examination of the candidate for the pastorate. But
it is worth noting that the examination is often needed in later life, for we
need to be kept right as well as to be made so. Our Lord comes to us, this
morning, with the old question. He pauses at each man and questions Him
just as at the first. He seems to say, “You have read many men’s books, do
you still love Me? You have heard many conflicting opinions, do you still
love Me? You have been very poorand worked, do you still love Me? Your
people have treated some of you very badly, you have had to go from place
to place, you have been slandered, reviled, maligned—do you still love Me?
You have been sorely put to it to find sermons. I have sometimes left you, as
you thought, to make you acknowledge your weakness—do you still love
Me?” Imagine that He changes His tone and says, “Simon, sonof Jonas,
you have not been all that you promised. You thought you would go to
prison and to death with Me, and you never dreamed that you could have
been so cold hearted in My service as you have been—and have lived at so
great a distance from Me as you have done. But do you still love Me? If so,
remember that in going back to your ministry, you must gather renewed
strength from renewed love! Love Me more and then feed My sheep.” We
4 “Feed My Sheep” Sermon #3211
4 Tell someone today how much you love Jesus Christ. Volume 56
rejoice as we listen to His gracious voice! And each one of us answers,
“Lord, You know all things— You know that I love You—and by Your
grace, I will feed Your sheep.” II. Secondly, let us LOOK AT THE
PERSONEXAMINED IN RELATION TO THE WORK. Perhaps he may
bear the same relation to you as he does to me. Painfully do I know myself
to be a successorofone of the apostles—not of Judas, I hope, but certainly
of Peter. I could have wished that it had been John whom I had succeeded,
but although it is only Peter, it is some consolation to know that he was also
“an apostle of Jesus Christ” notwithstanding his terrible fall. Why did the
Savior examine Peter rather than any other? Because Peter was in peculiar
need of a reordination. Had he not received it from his Lord, some would
have asked in later days, “Was he really an apostle?” And others would have
replied, “He thrice denied his Master, surely he is not one of the twelve.” We
cannot help feeling that blindness has seized the Church of Rome when she
boasts of the commission to feed Christ’s sheep having been given to the

154. Apostle Peter, when, with half an eye anyone can see that our Lord
addressed these words to Peter because at that time he was the least of the
twelve! He had denied his Master. The others had not and, therefore, he was
the one concerning whose apostleship distrust was most likely to arise! The
sheep would in all probability have refused to recognize him—they might
have said, “We cannot receive food at your hands, for we remember how
you were frightened by a silly maid, how you denied your Lord and
supported your denial with oaths and curses.”Therefore, came the voice to
Peter, who needed it. If there is one with us now who feels like conscience
stricken Peter, let him hear the text! Dear friend, if you have any doubtabout
your call, and even if there should be as grave cause for that doubtas there
was in Peter’s case, yet still, if you feel that you love the Lord, hear Him
again commission you with, “Feed My sheep.” In your present condition,
which is rather that of the weeping penitent than of the assured believer, it
will be well to go to your work very steadily, for it will comfort you, deepen
your piety and increase your faith. Our Lord called Peter to this work
because it would be peculiarly beneficial to him. He knew how sincere his
repentance was and how hearty was his grief on account of his great sin and,
therefore, lest he should be overtaken with too much sorrow, He said to him,
“Feed My sheep.” If nothing had been spoken personally and especially to
Peter, he might have mourned heavily, saying, “Alas, I denied my Master, I
swore that I never knew Him.” And when the Lord was gone up again into
glory, instead of standing up as he did on the day of Pentecostto preach that
memorable sermon, he might have been found at home weeping. Instead of
going up to the temple with John at the hour of prayer, he might have stayed
in his chamber and there mourned all day. Grief is best expelled by other
thoughts. When you have been cast down, it is well when some important
engagement has called off your attention from your trouble. And I think the
compassionate Master raised Peter out of what might have grown into a
morbid condition of continual grief by bidding him feed His sheep. He
seemed to say, “Come here, My dear disciple. I know you are sincerely
penitent, and I have fully forgiven you for denying Me as you did. Mourn no
longer, but go and feed My sheep.” Then, as the Lord fed the sheep by him
and blessed him to the conversion of others, he would feel certain that his
Lord did not remember his faults—and thus he would learn how perfect was
the pardon he had received! I do not know that there is a brother with us, this
morning, who is in the condition of Peter, but if I did know such an one and
could read his heart, I would go out to him and say, “Come, brother, we are
not going to cast you out—we consider ourselves lest we, also, be tempted.
You have been converted, once, as a sinner—you must now be converted as

155. a minister. And when you are converted, strengthen your brothers. Yes, my
brother, go back to your Lord and Master and then, with all your soul
inflamed with love for Him, feed His sheep and the Lord bless you in so
doing!” Dear brothers, in Peter’s case we see a man zealous for his Lord,
but of imperfect character. And we see how his failure had been overruled
by God to prepare him for his lifework of feeding Christ’s sheep. John did
not need such preparation and the other nine did not require it. It was only
Peter who needed to be thus rebuked by a display of his own weakness. This
man was too great, too self-confident, too much Peter and too little a
disciple—and he must, therefore, come down. Probably nothing could have
brought
Sermon #3211 “Feed My Sheep” 5
Volume 56 Tell someone today how much you love Jesus Christ. 5
him to his true bearings like his being left to see what was in his heart. We
speak with bated breath when we say that to some men, a painful breakdown
has been the making of them. They became, from that time, free from their
former self-esteem and were as cleansed and emptied vessels—fit for the
Master’s use! A deep sense of our weakness and a humbling consciousness
of unworthiness form a considerable part of our qualification for dealing
with Christ’s sheep. Because you are a sinner, you will deal lovingly with
sinners. Because you know what backsliding means, you will be very gentle
and forbearing with backsliders. Because you have broken your own bones,
you will be very careful how you handle those who have broken theirs.
You see, then, that this feeding of the sheep, as I have already shown you,
would benefit Peter in the particular condition in which he then was. And it
is not hard to see that it would benefit him by keeping his rashness in check.
I know some beloved brothers who are impetuous and, God bless them, I
love them none the less for that, especially when they know how to bridle
their impetuous spirits and only allow them to dashout against evil! But
some are rashly impetuous and strong headed—and it will need considerable
discipline to make them into useful, workable men. But when the Lord has
done this, they will become those determined, independent, resolute men of
mark and mind who are so valuable to the church of God!Such brothers
need the education of a pastorate to curb and to develop them. You did not
know how foolish you were till you had to deal with fools and found that
you could not suffer them gladly. You did not know how passionate you
could be till you had to meet with quick tempered people like yourself! You
did not know how rash you could be till you fell into the society of a dozen

156. rash men like yourself who egged you on in your foolhardiness. You have
now discovered that where you fancied there was a great deal of strength,
there was a vast amount of weakness! I believe that the Peter of the epistles
grew out of the Peter of the Sea of Tiberias and the Peter of the denial, by
means of the grace given him while feeding the flock of God. Peter was a
bigoted, narrow minded Jew—he could not readily believe that any others
beyond the chosen nation were to be saved! But when he mixed with
mankind and was sent to the house of Cornelius, his heart grew larger,
although it was not as large as it should have been till Paul boldly withstood
him to his face because he was to be blamed! “Feed My sheep” is, therefore,
Beloved, a commission intended for your own good as well as theirs. It
touched me very much to find our Lord addressing Peter by his old name of
Simon, son of Jonas. I do not know why He should not have said, “Peter, do
you love Me?” John writes, “Jesus said to Simon Peter.” Why did not our
Lord call him so? Was it not, in the first place, to remind him of his natural
weakness? He is not called Petros, the stone, the rock—butthe sonof Jonas,
the son of a timid dove— and it is under that name that he is commissioned
to feed the sheep. Brothers, if this morning you are filled with a
consciousness ofyour own weakness and unworthiness, the Master says to
you, “Still go and feed My sheep.” If you are not, in your own opinion, fit
for the work, still let the sheep be fed! Do not let them suffer because you
are not in a right state of mind and heart. These sheep—what have they
done? Why should they starve? It is only too true that you have sinned, but
let not that sad fact rob the people of a full display of the gospel next Lord’s
day. “Feed My sheep.” Go as Peter, if you can, but when you cannot do so,
go as, “Simon, sonof Jonas.” But I think there was a deeper reason and one
which touched me more, why our Lord said, “Simon, son of Jonas, do you
love Me?” This was his old name before he was converted, for when Jesus
first saw him, He said, ‘You are Simon, the sonof Jonas.’ Nothing will help
you to feed the flock of God, brothers, like recollecting the time and
circumstances when you were first brought to Jesus. If it were possible,
which it is not, I would like to be converted every Sunday morning before
preaching. At any rate, I would like to feel that tenderness of heart, that
admiration for my Savior, that all absorbing love to my Lord—and that
wonderment at the grace of God toward me which I felt when I was
converted! There may have been another reason why Jesus said, “Simon,
son of Jonas, do you love Me?” Perhaps it was because when Simon had
discovered that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God, his Master
said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah; for flesh and blood has not
revealed this unto

157. 6 “Feed My Sheep” Sermon #3211
6 Tell someone today how much you love Jesus Christ. Volume 56
you, but My Father which is in heaven.” By repeating that name, our Lord
made Peter remember, in addition to his conversion, the many happy seasons
which he had enjoyed in which the Lord had manifested Himself to him as
He does not unto the world. We are bound to preach of the things which we
have tasted and handled. If, like John, we have been in Patmos, let us not
cease to talk of Him that walks among the golden candlesticks. Come down
from the mountain to tell of what you have seen there. Be filled with
recollections of all the blessed communion you have enjoyed with Christ and
then speak about Him to others—thus the joy of the Lord shall be your
strength. You will then have no doubtof your call to the ministry, but you
will say, “that which was from the beginning, which we have seen with our
eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the word
of life, declare we unto you.” “We speak what we know and testify what we
have seen.” III. In the third place, I must confine myself to giving you a
mere outline of THE WORKITSELF, as our time is flying so fast. What
have we to do, then? “Feed My sheep.” In the English, you have the
command three times over, “Feed My sheep.” What are we to do with the
sheep? Feed! Feed! Feed! That seems to be the whole of our business, “Feed
My sheep.” Truth to tell, the middle Greek word properly means shepherd
them, guide them, lead them, go before them as a shepherd does. The first
and last words are the same, feed. In each of the three sentences there is a
minute difference, but twice out of three times in the original, the word is
feed. If I mention nothing else but feeding as the pastor’s duty, it will be the
very best lesson I could have given you, even if other valuable duties are
cast into the shade. Wherever you are weak, be strong in the pulpit! Give the
people a good hearty meal whenever you preach! They will put up with a
great many defects if you will only feed them. An Englishman is in a good
condition if he is fed. Feed him and he will be all right. But if you dress him
and do not feed him, he will not care for the clothes you put on him,
however fine they are. You may wash him if you like, but you must feed
him! There is an inward, powerful persuader which convinces a man that to
be happy and healthy, he must be fed! Now, God’s people are the hungriest
people in the world—they never seem to be satisfied! If you watch a flock of
sheep feeding in a clover field, you will be surprised to see how they will
eat. They eat, and eat, and eat—and so God’s peopleare a hungering,
craving people. It is written, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst
after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” They, “shall be filled.” It does

158. not say they shall have a nip and a bite, and then be driven away and,
therefore, we are to treat them as God would have them treated—feed them,
feed them to the fullest! Never be afraid of being too free with the food, or
of giving them too much sound doctrine and gospel food! Some want to
drive the flock, but that will never do. We must feed, not drive. We will lead
them, you say—that is very good but do not lead lean sheep—feed and
fatten them, and then they will gladly follow! Perhaps you wish to govern
them. Well, the middle word does mean govern after the gospel fashion, but
if you somewhat govern, yet give two supplies of feeding for one of ruling!
You will be sure to succeed if you keep to the feeding. Blessed be God, you
have not to invent a new food for His sheep! It is written, “Feed them,” but it
is not written, “invent food for them.” God has appointed the properfood for
His sheep—hand that out to them—and nothing else. The Popeof Rome,
who claims to be the lineal successorofthe apostle of whom we are
speaking, attempts to feed in a strange manner. I wonder how many of the
sheep are able to feed on his formal pronouncement and other specimens of
cursing. He seems to be mainly engaged in uttering maledictions upon the
wolves! I see no food for the sheep. How is it that he has founded no Bible
Societies in Rome for the circulation of the pure Word of God?One of his
predecessorshas called the Protestant version, “poisonous pastures.”Very
well, then, why not circulate a pure version? Why not spend a part of Peter’s
pence in distributing the Epistle to the Romans? Why not exhort priests,
cardinals and bishops to be instant in seasonand out of season, preaching the
gospelaccording to the commission of the Lord? Verily, Peter at this day is
crucified head downwards at Rome! The tradition is symbolic of the fact, for
the apostle is placed in a wrong position and exalted to honors which are a
crucifixion to him.
Sermon #3211 “Feed My Sheep” 7
Volume 56 Tell someone today how much you love Jesus Christ. 7
Brethren, you have to feed Christ’s sheep. Our Lord says, “Feed!Feed!
Feed!” He begins with, “Feed My lambs.” My little lambkins, or young
believers—these need plenty of instruction. “Feed My sheep” comes next.
Feed the middle aged, the strong, the vigorous—these do not require only
feeding— they also need to be directed in their Christian course and to be
guided to some field of earnest service for Christ—therefore shepherd them.
Then in the last, “Feed My sheep,” you have the gray headed believers in
Christ. Do not try to govern these, but feed them! They may have far more
prudence and they certainly have more experience than you have and,

159. therefore, do not rule them, but remind them of the deep things of God and
deal out to them an abundance of consoling truths. There is that good old
man. He is a father in Christ. He knew the Lord 50 years before you were
born—he has some peculiarities and in them you must let him take his own
course—butstill feed him. His taste will appreciate solid meat. He knows a
field of tender grass when he gets into it. Feed him, then, for his infirmities
require it. Feed all classes my brothers—that is your main work—mind that
you not only get good food for the sheep, but feed them with it! A farmer
one day, after he had listened to a simple sermon which was the very
oppositeof what he generally heard, exclaimed, “O Lord, we bless you that
the food was put into a low crib today, so that Your sheep could reach it!”
Some brothers put the food up so high that the poorsheep cannot possibly
feed upon it. I have thought, as I have listened to our eloquent friends, that
they imagined that our Lord had said, “Feed my giraffes.” None but giraffes
could reach the food when placed in so lofty a rack! Christ says, “Feed My
sheep”—place the food among them. Put it close to them. Take care, also,
that you feed yourselves. “Who rules over freemen should himself be free.”
We will alter the line into “Who feeds Christ’s sheep should himself feed on
Christ,.” A preacher who is starved in soul will be likely to starve his
hearers. Oh, fatten yourselves on Christ, dear brothers! Ask to have the
promise fulfilled, “I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and My
people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord.” May the Holy
Spirit work this in you! Having fed them, your work should also
comprehend all the rest that a shepherd does for his flock. Neglect none of
these things. Go before them! Set them an example, encourage them and
direct them in difficulty. Let your voice always be familiar to them. Carry
the lamb in your bosom, gently lead those that are in circumstances of pain
and peril, care for all the flock—be tender with any that may wander, seek
after them—and bring them back! Now what does all this involve?
Knowledge. You must “feed them with knowledge and understanding.”
Watchfulness. No shepherd can afford to slumber and at one part of the year
he must be up all night, for the lambs are being born. When you have a
lambing time on, or, in other words, a blessed revival, you will need to be
especially watchful! And, as the wolf comes not only at lambing time, but at
all other seasons, you should be always vigilant against him. One of the
chief qualifications of a true pastor, and one that is not very common, is a
great deal of patience. Perhaps you say, “These people are so sinful, and
erring, and foolish.” Yes, they are like sheep! And if they were not so, they
would not need you or any other shepherd! Your calling would be abolished
if all Christ’s people were strong and able to instruct others. Be very patient

160. with them, as a nurse is with the child committed to her to watch, and love,
and teach. What an honor this office puts upon you! To belong to the college
of fishermen with Peter, James and John is a great honor. But the work of
the pastor is still nobler. Well did they speak of old of shepherd kings, for
the shepherd’s business is such as is worthy of a king! Indeed, amid his flock
he is the truest of kings. What a line of shepherds can be traced right through
the Word of God!Your business is one which the first martyr followed, for
Abel was a keeper of sheep. Stand like he in the midst of your flock, ready
to sacrifice life, itself, at God’s altar! You are following the business of
Jacob, who said to Laban, “In the day the drought consumed me, and the
frost by night; and my sleep departed from my eyes.” Yours is the calling of
Joseph, who even when exalted to a throne, was still “the shepherd and stone
of Israel.” Whatever your position may be, brothers, be shepherds! You are
following the trade of that noblest of woman
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born, I mean Moses, who kept the flock of Jethro, his father in law, in the
desert and there beheld the bush on fire out of which God spokewith him.
He who led the people like a flock all through the wilderness was ready like
a true shepherd to lay down his life for the flock, even asking to have his
name blotted out of God’s bookif by that means they might live! You are
following the occupationof the men after God’sown heart! If a man in these
days is after God’s heart, let him be a shepherd of the flock. “He chose
David, also, His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds: from following
the ewes great with young He brought him to feed Jacob, His people, and
Israel His inheritance.” I hope, my brothers, that like David, that in your
youth you have slain both the lion and the bear, and that if an uncircumcised
Philistine comes in your path, you will defy and destroy him in the name of
the Lord! You are following the trade of God’s only begotten Son! The Lord
had but one Son and He made a shepherd of Him! Imitate that good
shepherd of the sheep who loved them and laid down His life for them. Trust
that great shepherd of the sheep, whom “the God of peace has brought again
from the dead through the blood of the everlasting covenant” and, by and by
you shall see the chief shepherd and “shall receive a crown of glory that
fades not away.” Never forget that it is Christ’s sheep that you have to
feed! Jesus said, “Feed My sheep.” Many find fault with the churches of the
present day—but the easiest work in the world is to find fault! My dear
brothers, bad as I know some of the churches to be, I know no better people
than God’speople—and with all their faults I still love them! I find my

161. choicest companions and my bosomfriends among them! I love the gates of
Zion, for— “There my best friends, my kindred dwell, There God my
Savior reigns.” I always feel, in reference to my own people, that if they can
put up with me, I can very well put up with them. They are Christ’s
people—therefore love them and feel it to be an honor to do anything for
those who belong to Jesus! Much honor lies in the fact that our Lord says to
each of us personally, “Feed My sheep.” I think that I see Him here among
us. He of the pierced hands and the marred countenance, with the crown of
thorns about His brow stands in this hall and speaks to us. Or, if you will,
with all His glories on, He comes among us! He looks on us all and even on
me, my dear brothers—and He says to each of us, “Do you see those poor
tempted people? They are My sheep. I have loved them from before the
foundation of the world. Will you feed them for Me? I have called them out
of the world by victorious grace, will you feed them for Me? I have provided
abundant pasture for them, will you feed them for Me? I have bought them
with My blood—behold the memorials of My purchase in My hands and My
feet, My head and My side—will you feed them for Me? I have also loved
you, and you love Me—will you feed My sheep for Me? I will feed you, will
you feed them? Your bread shall be given you and your water shall be
sure—will you feed My beloved ones for Me? I have gone to prepare a place
for them in My own sweet pastures on the hilltops of glory. Will you feed
them till I come again? I will feed them through you by the Holy Spirit—
will you be My instruments?” Do we not all reply, “Beloved Master, we
think it our highest honor to be privileged thus and, costus what it may, we
will spend our lives in feeding Your sheep”? Brothers, say not much by way
of a vow, but say much by way of prayer! Lord, help us all henceforth to
feed Your sheep! Amen.
“LOVEST THOU ME?” NO. 1281
A SERMON DELIVERED ON LORD’S-DAY MORNING, FEBRUARY
27, 1876, BY C. H. SPURGEON, AT THE METROPOLITAN
TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON.
“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” John 21:16.

162. This is a very short and simple text, and some would think it very easy to
say all that can be said upon it, but indeed it is a very large text, and too full
of meaning for me to attempt to expound it all. The words are few, but the
thoughts suggested are very man, there are subtle meanings too, in the
original Greek well worth considering, and allusions which deserve to be
followed out. I intend at this time to confine myself to one point, and to ask
your consideration of one thought only. May the Spirit of God prepare our
hearts for our meditation, and impress the truth upon them. My one point is
this, our Lord asked Peter whether he had a love to His person. The inquiry
is not concerning his love to the kingdom of God, orthe people of God, but
it begins and ends with his love to the Son of God. “Simon, sonof Jonas,
lovest thou me?” He does not say, “Do you now perceive the prudence of
My warnings when I bade you watch and pray? Simon, sonof Jonas, will
you henceforth cease from your self-confidence, and take heed to My
admonitions?” It is not even, “Do you now believe My doctrines? Do you
not trust in one whom the other day you denied?” Neither is it asked, “Are
you pleased with My precepts?Are you a believer in My claims? Will you
still confess Me to be the Son of the Highest?” No, these matters are not
brought under question, but the one inquiry is, “Lovestthou me? Have you a
personal attachment for Me, to My very self?” He calls him by his old,
unconverted name, Simon, sonof Jonas, to remind him of what grace had
done for him, and then He asks only about his love. The question deals with
personal attachment to a personal Christ, and that is my sole subject.
Observe that our ever wise and tender Savior questioned Peter about his love
in plain terms. There was no beating about the bush, He went at once to the
point, for it is not a matter about which ambiguity and doubtcan be endured.
As the physician feels his patient’s pulse to judge his heart, so the Lord Jesus
tested at once the pulse of Peter’s soul. He did not say, “Simon, son of Jonas,
do you repent of your folly?” Repentance is a very blessed grace, and very
needful, but it was wiser to look at once to Peter’s love, because it is quite
certain that if a disciple loves his master he will deeply grieve for ever
having denied him. The Lord does not even ask His follower about his
faith, which might well have been put under question, for he had with oaths
said, “I know not the man.” It would have been a highly important question,
but it was answered when Peter avowed his love, for he who loves believes,
and no man can love a Savior in whom he does not believe. The Lord left
every other point out of consideration, or perhaps I ought rather to say
concentrated every other point into this one inquiry—“Lovest thou me?”
Learn from this fact that one thing is needful, love to Jesus is the chief, the
vital point to look to. This question the Lord asked three times, as if to

163. show that it is of the first, of the second, and of the third importance, as if it
comprised all else, and therefore He would again, and again, and again insist
upon it, as orators dwell with repetitions and emphatic sentences upon topics
which they would urge home upon their auditors. This nail was meant to be
well fastened, for it is smitten on the head with blow after blow. With
unvarying tone and look the Lord inquired, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest
thou me?” It shows what weight our Savior attached to the matter of his
love, that He asked him about that, about that only, and about that three
times over. When you are examining yourselves look mainly to
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your hearts, and make thorough inquisition into your love. Is Jesus really
loved by you? Have you a deep attachment to His person?Whatever else
you trifle with, be earnest here. Remember that the Lord Jesus Himself
asked the question, and He asked it until He grieved Peter. So long as he was
but recognized as a disciple Peter must have felt ready to receive the severest
possible rebuke, and think himself gently done by, therefore it was not easy
to grieve him. Our Lord also was slow at all times to cause pain to any true
heart, yet on this occasion, for wise reasons, He reiterated His inquiry till He
touched Peter’s unhealed wounds and made them smart. Had he not made
his Master’s heart bleed, and was it not fit that he should feel heart-wounds
himself? A threefold denial demanded a threefold confession, and the grief
he had caused was fitly brought to his memory by the grief he felt. Now,
this morning, if I press this question until I grieve some of you, till I grieve
myself also, I shall not be censurable for having done so. To comfort you
would be a good work, but sometimes it may be better to grieve you. Not
always is sweet food the best thing we can bring you, bitter medicine is
sometimes more requisite. I shall not have pushed the question beyond its
legitimate sphere if I should so present it as to stir your hearts even to
anguish. True love has more or less of pain about it, only the mere pretender
passes through the world without anxious inquiry and heart-searching. Better
far that you should be grieved today, and be found right at last, than that you
should presumptuously feel yourselves secure, and be deceivers in the end.
We remarked that the question was put by our Lord Himself. What if the
Lord Jesus should meet you today, and should say to each one of you,
“Lovest thou me?” If the question came at the end of one of our sermons, or

164. just as we had done teaching, I should not wonder if it startled us. Found, as
we are, in His house, having just sung sweet hymns in His honor, having
united in prayer, and heartily joined in His worship, it would seem strange to
be questioned as to our love to Him, and yet it would not be unnecessary.
Imagine, then, that your Lord has found you quite alone, and is standing
before you, think of Him touching you with His hand, and gently inquiring,
“After all, lovest thou me?” How would you feel under such a question?
Would you not be struck with it, and perhaps with shame begin to tremble
and think over a dozen reasons why such a searching question was suggested
to you just now? And if the Lord were to repeat it three times, and each
time put it distinctly to you, and to you only, would you not feel great
searchings of heart? Yet would I have you so receive the question. Let it
come to you now as from Jesus. Forget that it is spoken by the minister, or
written in the text. Hear it only as spokenby Jesus, by that same Jesus who
has redeemed you from death and hell by His most precious blood. He
addresses it to you rather than to others—is there not a cause? Singling you
out of the company, He gazes on you fixedly, and says, “Simon, son of
Jonas, lovest thou me?”—you know why there is such cause to question you.
Answer for yourself alone, for He puts the inquiry only to you. Never mind
Nathanael now, nor Thomas, nor the two sons of Zebedee—“Lovestthou
me? Really, truly does your heart beat true towards Jesus of Nazareth?
Come, Peter, yes or no? You say, ‘Yes,’ but is it so?Is it so? Is it so?” I want
the inquiry to come to my own soul and to yours this morning, as if Jesus
really stood before each one of us, and again said, “Lovestthou me?” May
the Lord grant us grace to make solemn inquiry as to this matter, to bear
honest witness, and to give a true deliverance, which shall be the truth, the
whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I. Our first observation shall be
this—LOVE TO THE PERSONOF CHRIST MAY BE ABSENT FROM
OUR BOSOMS. Unhappy thought, and yet most certainly true! Even in
our hearts there may be no love for Christ! I know of nothing which can
screen any one of us from the necessity of the question. Our gifts and
apparent graces may prevent our fellow creatures questioning us, but nothing
should prevent our questioning ourselves, for certainly there is nothing
which will prevent the Lord Himself from putting the inquiry to us. No
outward religiousness renders this inquiry needless. Are we professorsof
religion, are we very constant in attending to outward forms of worship? Do
we enter very heartily into all the public exercises of God’s house?Yes, but
there are thousands who do that, hundreds of thousands who do that
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every Lord’s-day, and yet they do not love Christ! My brethren, are not
multitudes wrapped up in forms and ceremonies? If the service pleases the
eye and the ear are they not quite content? Love to the personof Christ has
not occurred to the mass of avowed worshippers of Jesus. We know others
to whom the end-all and be-all of religion is an orthodoxstatement of
doctrine. So long as the preaching is according to the confessionof faith, and
every word and act is piously correct, they are well pleased, but no love to
Jesus ever stirs their bosoms,religion to them is not an exercise of the heart
at all—it is mere brain work, and hardly that. They know nothing of the
living soul going out towards a living person, a bleeding heart knit to
another bleeding heart, a life subsisting on another life and enamored of it.
We know brethren who carry this very far, and if the preacher differs from
them in the merest shade, they are overwhelmed with pious horror at his
unsoundness, and they will not hear him again, even if he preaches Christ
most preciously in all the rest of his discourse, it is nothing, because he
cannot sound their “Shibboleth.” What is orthodoxywithout love, but a
catacomb to bury dead religion in. It is a cage without a bird, the gaunt
skeleton of a man out of which the life has fled. I am afraid that the general
current of church life runs too much towards externals, and too little towards
deep burning love to the person of Christ. If you preach much about
emotional religion, and the heart-work of godliness, cold-blooded professors
label you as rather mystical, and begin to talk of Madame Guyon and the
danger of the Quietist schoolof religion. We would not mind having a little
spice of that, even if we were blamed for it, for after all the realizing of
Christ is the grand thing. The faith which is most blessed is faith which deals
most fully with the person of Jesus Christ, the truest repentance is that which
weeps at the sight of His wounds, and the love which is most sweet is love to
the adorable person of the Well-beloved. I look upon the doctrines of grace
as my Lord’s garments, and they smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia. I
look upon His precepts as His scepter, and it is a rod tipped with silver, and I
delight to touch it and find comfort in its power. I look upon the Gospel
ordinances as the throne upon which He sits, and I delight in that throne of
ivory overlaid with pure gold, but oh, His person is sweeter than His
garments, dearer than His scepter, more glorious than His throne, He
Himself is altogether lovely, and to love HIM is the very heart’s core of true
religion. But perhaps you may not love HIM after all. You may have all the

166. externals of outward religiousness, and yet the secret of the Lord may not be
with you. It will be vain to reverence the Sabbath if you forget the Lord of
the Sabbath, vain to love the sanctuary but not the Great High Priest, vain to
love the wedding feast but not the Bridegroom. Do you love HIM? that is the
question. “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” Nor, brethren, would the
highest office in the church render it unnecessary to ask the question. Peter
was an apostle, and not a whit behind the very chief of them. In some
respects he was a foundation stone of the church, and yet it was needful to
say to him, “Lovest thou me?” Forthere was once an apostle who did not
love the Lord, there was an apostle who coveted thirty pieces of silver—a
goodly price was that at which he sold his Master. The name of Judas should
sound the death-knell of all presumptuous confidence in our official
standing. We may stand very high in the church and yet fall to our
destruction. Our names may be in the list of religious leaders and yet they
may not be written in the Lamb’s bookof life. So, my brother minister,
deacon, or elder, it is needful to put to ourselves the question, “Lovest thou
the Lord?” The enjoyment of the greatest Christian privileges does not
render this question unnecessary. Peter and James and John were the three
most favored of all the apostles, they witnessed certain of our Lord’s
miracles which were done in secret, and beheld by no other human eyes.
They beheld Him on the mount of transfiguration in all His glory, and they
saw Him in the garden of Gethsemane in all His agony, and yet, though thus
favored, their Lord felt it needful to ask of their leader, “Lovest thou me?” O
my brother, you have had high enjoyments, you have been on Tabor,
illuminated with its transporting light, and you have also had fellowship with
Christ in His sufferings, or at any rate you think you have. You are familiar
alike with inward agonies and spiritual joys, you have been the familiar of
the Lord and eaten bread with Him, and yet remember there was one who
did this and yet lifted up his heel against
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Him, and therefore it is needful to say to you, my brother, “Lovest thou the
Lord?” Do you really love Him after all? for it is not certain that you do so
because of what you have seen and enjoyed. It is easy to invent a remarkable
experience, but the one thing needful is a loving heart. Take heed that you
have this. Nor, my dear brethren, does the greatest warmth of zeal prevent

167. the necessity of this question. Peter was a red-hot disciple. How ready he
was both to do and to dare for his Master. How impetuously he cried when
he was on the lake of Galilee, “Lord, if it be you, bid me come to you on the
water.” What daring! What faith! What vehement zeal! And here, too, in the
narrative before us, when the Lord was by that selfsame sea of Tiberias,
Peter, in his headlong zeal, cannot wait until the boattouches the shore but
he girds on his fisher’s coat and plunges in to meet the Master whom he
loves, and yet, with that headlong zeal before Him, the Lord says, “Lovest
thou me?” Yes, young man, you are earnest in the Sunday school, you have
sought the conversion of the little ones and succeeded abovemany, you
encourage others and give impetus to every movement in which you engage,
and yet you need to inquire whether you do in very deed love the Lord or no.
Perhaps, my dear brother, you stand up in the corners of the streets, and face
the ungodly throng and delight to talk of Jesus, whether men opposeorno,
yet are you sure you love Jesus? My sister, you visit the poorand care for
the needy, you lay yourself out to do good to young people, and are full of
warmth in all things which concern the Redeemer’s cause. We admire you,
and hope your zeal will never grow less, but for all that, even to you must
the question be put, “Lovest thou the Lord Jesus?” Forthere is a zeal which
is fed by regard to the opinions of others, and sustained by a wish to be
thought earnest and useful; there is a zeal which is rather the warmth of
nature than the holy fire of grace, this zeal has enabled many to do great
things, and yet, when they have done all, they have been as sounding brass
and a tinkling cymbal because they did not love Jesus Christ. The most
zealous actions, though they naturally lead us to hope that those who
perform them are lovers of Jesus, are not conclusive evidence thereof, and
therefore we must still inquire, “Lovest thou the Lord?” Ay, dear friends,
and I will go a little further, the greatest self-denial does not prove it. Peter
could say, “Lord, we have left all and followed you.” Though it was not very
much, yet it was all Peter had, and he had left it all for the good cause,
without having gained any earthly good in return. He had been frequently
abused and reproached for Jesus’ sake, and he expected to be reproached
still more, yet he was loyal, and willing to suffer to the end, yet the Lord,
knowing all that Peter had sacrificed for His sake, nevertheless said to him,
“Lovest thou me?” For sadly, strangely true it is, that men have made
considerable sacrifices to become professed Christians and yet have not had
the root of the matter in them. Some have even been put into prison for the
truth, and yet have not been sincere Christians, and it is not for us to say, but
it is to be feared that in the martyr days some have given their bodies to be
burned, yet becausethey had not love, it profited them nothing. Love is

168. essential. Nothing can compensate for its absence. And yet this precious
thing may not be in your hearts! O God, I tremble as I remember that
perhaps it is not in mine. Let each one hear the question, “Simon, sonof
Jonas, lovest thou me?” I must press the point still a little further. It is often
necessary for us to ask this question because there are other points of
religion besides the emotional. Man is not all heart, he has a brain, and the
brain is to be consecrated and sanctified. It is, therefore, right that we should
study the Word of God and becomewell instructed scribes in the kingdom of
heaven. Peter went to college three years, with Jesus Christ for a tutor, and
he learned a great deal, as who would not from so great a teacher? But after
he had been through his course, his Master, before He sent him to his life-
work, felt it needful to inquire, “Lovest thou me?” Brother, you may turn
over the pages of your book, you may digest doctrine after doctrine, you
may take up theological propositions and problems, and you may labor to
solve this difficulty and expound that text, and meet the other question, till,
somehow or other, the heart grows as dry as the leaves of the volume, and
the book-worm feeds on the soul as well as the paper, eating its way into the
spirit. It is,
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therefore, a healthy thing for the Lord to come into the study and close the
book, and say to the student, “Sit still a while, and let Me ask you, ‘Lovest
thou me?’ I am better than all books and studies, have you a warm, human,
living love to Me?” I hope many of you are very diligent students—if you
teach in the Sunday schoolyou ought to be, if you preach in the streets or in
cottage meetings you ought to be. How shall you fill others if you are not
full yourselves? But, at the same time look most of all to the condition of
your heart towards Christ. To know is good, but to love is better. If you will
study, you can solve all problems; yet, if you love not, you have failed to
comprehend the mystery of mysteries, and to know the most excellent of
sciences. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. Look well, then, to the
question, “Lovestthou me?” Much of Christian life also ought to be spent
in active labor. We are to be up and doing. If there was anything to do, Peter
was the man to do it. He had gone forth to preach the Gospel, and even the
devils had been subject to him, Peter had wrought marvels in Jesus’ name,
and he was ordained to work yet greater wonders. Yet, despite all that Peter

169. had done, his love needed to be examined. Even though those feet of Peter’s
had walked the sea, which no other man’s feet had done besides, yet Peter
must be asked, “Lovest thou me?” He had just dragged that huge net to the
shore with all that host of fishes, a hundred and fifty and three. With great
skill and mighty effort he had drawn the whole shoal on shore, yet this did
not prove his love. There are preachers of the Gospelamong us who have
dragged a full net to shore, the great fishes have been many, they have been
great and successfulworkers, but this does not prevent its being needful for
the Lord to examine them as to their hearts. He bids them put by their nets
for awhile and commune with Him. Shut up the church book, fold up the roll
of membership and have done counting your fishes. Come into your
chamber apart. Jesus means to ask you something. “In my name you have
cast out devils, but did you love me? You cast the net on the right side of the
ship, as I told you, but did you love me? You drew to shore that shoal of
fishes, but did you love me?” Brethren, this is the solemn fear, “Lest after
having preached to others I myself should be a castaway.” Lest after
bringing others to Jesus, and serving God well in the school, or in some
other sphere, you should, nevertheless, make a dead failure of it, because
you have not loved Jesus Himself. I must press the question again and again,
and I pray the Holy Spirit to let its power be felt by every one of us.
Possibly we may have been called to contend earnestly for the faith, and we
may have been battling with the King’s enemies on this side and on that, and
standing up for the truth even as for dear life. It is well to be a good soldier
of Jesus Christ, for this age needs men who are not afraid to bear reproach
for speaking out the truth, with strong, stern words, but to this spirit it is
more than ever important that the question should come, “Lovest thou me?”
A man may be a very firm Protestant, but may not love Christ, he may be a
very earnest advocate of divine truth, but he may not love Him who is the
truth itself, he may maintain Scriptural views as to baptism, and yet he may
never have been baptized into Christ. A man may be a staunch
Nonconformist, and may see all the evils against which Nonconformity is a
protest, but still he may be conformed to the world, and be lost
notwithstanding all his dissent. It is a grand thing for every Christian warrior
to look well to this breastplate, and to see that he can promptly reply to the
question, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” Putting all together, let
me say to you—beloved, however eminent you may be in the church of God,
and however distinguished for services or for suffering, yet do not evade this
question. Bare your bosoms to the inspection of your Lord. Answer Him
with humble boldness while He says to you again and again, even till He
grieves you, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” II. We will now turn

170. to a second head. WE MUST LOVE THE PERSONOF CHRIST, OR ALL
OUR PAST PROFESSIONS HAVE BEEN A LIE. It is not possible for
that man to be a Christian who does not love Christ. Take the heart away,
and life is impossible. Your very first true hope of heaven came to you, if it
ever did come at all, by Jesus Christ. Beloved, you heard the Gospel, but the
Gospelapart from Christ was never good news to you,
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you read the Bible, but the Bible apart from a personal Christ was never
anything more than a dead letter to you, you listened to many earnest
entreaties, but they all fell on a deaf ear until Jesus came and compelled you
to come in. The first gleam of comfort that ever entered my heart flashed
from the wounds of the Redeemer, I never had a hope of being saved until I
saw Him hanging on the tree in agonies and blood. And because our earliest
hope is bound up, not with any doctrine or preacher, but with Jesus, our all
in all, therefore I am sure, even if we have only lately received our first
hope, we must love Jesus, from whom it has come. Nor do we merely begin
with Him, for every covenant blessing we have received has been connected
with His person and could not be received apart from Him. You have
obtained pardon, but that pardon was through His blood. You have been
clothed in righteousness, but He is the Lord your Righteousness, He is
Himself your glory and your beauty. You have been cleansed from many
sins by conversion, but it was the water from His riven side which washed
you. You have been made the child of God, but your adoption has only made
you feel more akin to the Elder Brother, through whom you are made heirs
of God. The blessings of the covenant are none of them separate from Christ,
and cannot be enjoyed apart from Him, any more than light and heat can be
divided from the sun. All blessings come to us from His pierced hand, and
hence if we have received them we must love Him, it is not possible to have
enjoyed the golden gifts of His unbounded love without being moved to love
Him in return. You cannot walk in the sun without being warmed, nor
receive of Christ’s fullness without being filled with gratitude. Every
ordinance of the Christian church since we have been converted has either
been a mockery, or else we have loved Christ in it. Baptism, for instance,
what is it but the mere washing away of the filth of the flesh and nothing
more, unless we were buried with Christ in baptism unto death, that like as

171. He also rose from the dead by the glory of the Father even so we also might
rise to newness of life. The Lord’s Supper, what is it? What but a common
meal for the eating of bread and the drinking of wine, unless Christ be there?
But if we have come to the Lord’s Supperas true men, and not as false-
hearted hypocrites, we have eaten His flesh and drunk His blood, and is it
possible to have done that and not to love Him? It cannot be. That
communion with Christ which is absolutely essential to ordinances is also
sure to producein the heart love towards Him with whom we commune.
And so, beloved, it has been with every approachwe have made towards
God in all the long years of our Christian life. Did you pray, my brother? did
you really speak with God in prayer? You could not have done it except
through Jesus the Mediator, and if you have spoken to God through the
Mediator, you cannot remain without love to one who has been your doorof
access to the Father. If you have made a professionof religion, how can it be
a true and honest one unless your heart burns with attachment to the Great
Author of salvation. You have great hopes, but what are you hoping for? Is
not all your hope wrapped up in Him? Do you not expect that when He shall
appear you shall be like Him? You are hoping to die triumphantly, but not
apart from His making your dying bed soft as a pillow of down. You are
hoping to rise again, but not apart from His resurrection, for He is the first
fruits of the resurrection harvest. You expect to reign upon earth, but it is
with Him, you do not expect a millennium apart from the King. You expect
a never-ending heaven, but that heaven is to be with Jesus where He is, and
to behold His glory. Since, then, everything that you have obtained—if
indeed you have received it of the Lord at all—has Christ’s name stamped
on it, and comes to you direct from His pierced hand, it cannot be that you
have received it unless you love Him. Now, when I put the question,
recollect that upon your answer to it hangs this alternative—a hypocrite or a
true man, a false professorora genuine convert, a child of God or an heir of
wrath. Therefore answer the inquiry, but answer it with deliberation, answer
it conscientiously, as though you stood before the bar of Him who now so
tenderly inquires of you, but who will then speak in other tones, and look
with other glances, even with those eyes which are like a flame of fire.
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172. III. Our third consideration is this—WE MUST HAVE LOVE TO THE
PERSONOF CHRIST, OR NOTHING IS RIGHT FOR THE FUTURE.
We have not finished life yet—a long pilgrimage may possibly lie before us.
Now all will go right if we love Christ, but nothing can proceed as it should
do if love to Jesus is absent. Forinstance, Peter is called to feed the lambs
and feed the sheep, but for a true pastor, the first qualification is love to
Christ. I gather from this incident, and I am sure I do not press it unduly, that
Jesus Christ, meaning to make Peter a feeder of His lambs and sheep, acts as
a trier to see whether he has the properqualifications, and He does not so
much inquire about Peter’s knowledge or gifts of utterance, as about his
love, for the first, second, and third qualification for a true pastoris a loving
heart. Now, mark you, what is true of a pastoris true of every useful
worker for Christ. Love is essential, my dear friend, you cannot work for
Christ if you do not love Him. “But I can teach in the school,” says one.
“No, not as schoolshould be taught, without love to Jesus.” “But I am
connected with an interesting society, which is doing much good.”“But you
are not glorifying God unless you are connected with that society because
you love Jesus Christ.” Put down your tools, for you cannot work profitably
in my Lord’s vineyard unless your heart loves Him, His vines had better be
untrimmed than be pruned by angry hands. Let the lambs alone, sir, you will
never rear them if your heart is hard and ungentle. If you do not love the
Master, you will not love His work, or His servants, or the rules of His
house, and we can do better without you than with you. To have an unloving
worker grumbling about the Lord’s houseand vineyard would be distressing
to the whole family. Love must be in the heart, or true service cannot come
from the hands. Then, again, perhaps suffering lies before you, and if your
heart is not true to Christ, you will not be able patiently to endure for His
name’s sake. Before long, the time came for Peter to glorify God by death.
Peter has to be girded and to be taken whither he would not. Now Peter
cannot be fit for martyrdom if he does not love Jesus. Tradition says that he
was crucified with his head downwards, because he felt it too much honor to
be put to death in the same position as his Lord. It may be so, no doubthe
was put to death by crucifixion, and it was his strong deep love which made
him more than a conqueror. Love makes the hero. When the Spirit of God
inflames love He inspires courage. See then, O believers, how much you
need love for the future. Young Christian, you will have to run the gauntlet
before you enter heaven. I do not mind what sphere of life you occupy, you
are very particularly favored if somebodydoes not mock at you, and
persecute you. Between here and heaven you will be tried, and peradventure
your foes will be the men of your own household. Many will watch for your

173. halting, and even place stumbling blocks in your way, to walk steadily you
will need to carry the fires of love in your heart. If you do not love Jesus
intensely sin will get the mastery over you. Selfdenials and humiliations
which would be easy with love will be impossible without it. Rightly to
work or to suffer, or to die, we must love Jesus with all our hearts. Look
you, my brethren, if we have no love for Jesus Christ’s person our piety
lacks the adhesive element, it fails in that which will help us to stick to the
good old way to the end, and hold out to the end. Men often leave what they
like, but never what they love, men can deny what they merely believe as a
matter of mental conviction, but they will never deny that which they feel to
be true, and accept with heartfelt affection. If you are to persevere to the end,
it must be in the power of love. Love is the great inspiriting force. Many a
deed in the Christian life is impossible to everything but love. In serving
Christ you come across a difficulty far too great for judgment, far too hard
for prudence, and unbelief sits down and weighs and calculates, but love,
mighty love, laughs at the impossibility and accomplishes it for Jesus Christ.
Love breaks through troops. Love leaps over walls, and hand-in-hand with
faith she is all but omnipotent, nay, through the power of God which is upon
her, she can do all things for Jesus Christ her Lord. If you lack love your
energy is gone, the force which nerves the man and subdues his foes is
lacking. Without love, too, you are without the transforming force. Love to
Christ is that which makes us like Him. The eyes of love, like windows, let
in the Savior’s image, and the heart of love receives it as upon
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a sensitive plate, until the whole nature bears its impression. You are like
that which you love, or you are growing like it. If Christ be loved you are
growingly becoming like Him, but without love you will never bear the
image of the heavenly. O Spirit of God, with wings of love brood over us,
till Christ is formed in us. My brethren, there is one other reflection—
without love to Christ we lack the perfecting element. We are to be with
Him soon, in a few more weeks or months, none of us can tell how few, we
shall be in glory. Yes, you and I, many of us shall be wearing the white
robes and bearing the palm branches. We shall only buy two or three more
almanacs, at the outside, and then we shall keep no more reckoning of days,
for we shall be where time, with its little eddies and currents, shall be

174. forgotten in the eternal flow of the ages. But if we have not love to Jesus we
shall not be where He is. There are none in heaven that have not first learned
to love Him here below. So we must have love for Jesus, the future
imperiously demands it, and therefore I put the question with all the greater
seriousness and vehemence, “Simon, Son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” IV.
But now I will supposeI have received an answer from you, and you are
able to say you do love Jesus, then my fourth and closing head must be, IF
WE DO LOVE HIM, WHAT THEN? Why then, if we do love Him, let us
do something for Him directly, for Jesus Christ replied to Peter the moment
he said, “You know all things, you know that I love you”—“Feed my
sheep.” Very kind it was of the Savior, becauseHe knew from His own heart
that wherever there is love there is a desire for activity. Because Jesus loved
so much therefore it became His meat and his drink to do the will of His
heavenly Father. So thinks Jesus—“Peterloves me, and his heart will ache if
I do not give him something to do. Go and feed my lambs, go and feed my
sheep.” Brother, sister, if you love Christ, do not idle away this Sunday
afternoon! If you love Christ, get to work. What are you doing? Attending
the means of grace and getting a good feed. Is that all? Well, that is doing
something for yourself. Many people in the world are very busy at feeding,
among the most active with knife and fork, but I do not know that eating a
man’s bread is any proofof love to him. A great many professing Christians
give no proofof love to Christ, except that they enjoy sermons. But now, if
you love Jesus Christ as you say you do, prove it by doing good to others—
“Feed my sheep.” I see a company of brethren met together to hold a
conference and to grow in grace. Very excellent indeed, grow away brethren
as fast as ever you can—I like to see you as a flower garden, all a-growing,
all a-blowing. But when you have done all that, I pray you do not
congratulate yourselves as though you had done a mighty fine thing, because
there is nothing in it unless it leads you to work for others. To publish
accounts of such happy gatherings is like telling the poorpeople of
Whitechapel that the Lord Mayor and Aldermen had a fine banquet of turtle
soup. SupposeIread that you have had a splendid series of meetings, well, I
am glad you enjoyed yourselves, but the point is this—if there is anything in
it, get to work. If you love Christ, feed His sheep and lambs. If it is not all
talk, if it is not all much ado about nothing, if it is not all fuss, get to soul-
winning, get down among the poor and needy, get down among the lost and
wandering, get down among the dark and ignorant, and hold forth Jesus
Christ as the balm of Gilead and the Savior of sinners. After all, this is the
test of how much you have grown in grace—this is the test of your higher
life, this is the proof of how much you have become like Jesus. What will

175. you do for Him? for if you do not go now and feed His sheep, and feed His
lambs, it does not matter what you say or what you think you enjoy, you do
not give that proofof love which Jesus asks for. I put it in this final word—
when next you teach your classes, or your own families, do it for love of
Jesus. Say to your heart, “I do love Christ, and now I am going to teach for
love of Him.” Oh, there will be a grand class this afternoon, my sister, you
will get on mightily if you teach for love of Him, every word you say will be
powerful since it is suggested by love of Him. That girl who makes so much
noise, and troubles you so much, you will bear with her for love of Him.
That restless young urchin, you cannot get the truth into him—you tell him
many tales, and when you have done he wants another, you will patiently
give him another, for the love of Christ. When you pray with the little ones,
pray because
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you love them for Christ’s sake. You are going to preach, do the preaching
for love of Christ. We sometimes do it because it is our turn to do it, but it
should never be so. You know how delightfully servants will wait upon
you if they do it for love. You have been out for a few weeks, and at last you
come home. Look at the room! What a welcome is before you! They have
half devastated the garden to bring in the flowers to make the table look nice
for you. That supper— well, it is just the same supperthat any Mary or Jane
would have cooked, but see how it is put upon the table! Everything seems
to say it is done for love of master and mistress, to show our affection and
respect for them, and you enjoy it indescribably, because it tells of love.
Now, tomorrow, and as long as ever you live, do everything out of love to
Christ. It will spread flowers over your work, and make it look beautiful in
His eyes. Put love’s fingers to work, love’s brains, love’s eyes, love’s hands,
think with love, pray with love, speak with love, live with love, and in this
way you will live with power, and God will bless you for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
“DO I LOVE THE LORD OR NO?”
NO. 3524
PUBLISHED ON THURSDAY, AUGUST 10TH, 1916

176. DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,
AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON,
— John 21:17.
THIS is a pointed question, which demands a personal answer and should, therefore, stir up full
and frequent self-examination. “Lovest thou me?” It is a probing question that is likely to excite
much grief when pressed home to the sensitive, tender-hearted disciple, even as Peter was
grieved because the Lord said unto him the third time, “Lovest thou me?” Yet it is a pleasing and
profitable question to so many of us as can give a like solemn and satisfactory response to that of
Simon Peter, “Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee.”
—————
I. It Is Very Necessary That All Disciples, Even The Most Privileged, The Most Talented,
And The Most Famous, Should Often Be Asked The Question, Hear It In Their Souls, And
Feel Its Thrilling Intensity, “Simon, Son Of Jonas, Lovest Thou Me?”
It must have been momentous indeed, or the Savior would not have repeated it to Peter three
times at one interview. He tarried on earth but forty days after his resurrection. These
opportunities for conference, therefore, with his disciples would be few. On what subjects, then,
should he speak to them but those which appeared to him of the weightiest import? Of the times
or the seasons that must presently transpire, he refrains to divulge a secret. With the fulfillment
of ancient predictions that prompted the curiosity of the Jew, or the solution of metaphysical
problems that harassed the minds of Gentile philosophers, he did not meddle. I neither find him
interpreting obscure prophecy, nor expounding mystic doctrine; but instead thereof I do find him
inculcating personal piety. The question he propounds is of such vital importance that all other
questions may be set aside till this one question is positively settled, “Lovest thou me?”
Hence, beloved, I infer that it is of infinitely more consequence for me to know that I love Christ
than it is to know the meaning of the little horn, or the ten toes, or the four great beasts. All
Scripture is profitable to those who have grace to profit by it; but wouldest thou both save thyself
and them that hear thee, thou must know him and love him to whom patriarchs, prophets, and
apostles all bear witness that there is salvation in none other, and no other name given under
heaven whereby we must be saved. You may whet your appetite for logic, but you cannot with
your heart believe unto righteousness while you occupy your thoughts, your tongues, or your
pens wrangling about Calvinism and Arminianism, sublapsarianism and supra-lapsarianism, or
any of the endless controversies of the schoolmen and sectarians! “Lovest thou me?” that is the
moot point. Canst thou give an affirmative answer? Will thy conscience, thy life, thy God, attest
the verity of thy love to him? then, though thou be no doctor of divinity, though thou canst not
decipher the niceties of systematic theology, though thou art unable to rebut one in a thousand of
the subtleties of the adversary, yet thou hast an unction from the Holy One; thy love approves
thee; thy faith has saved thee; and he whom thy soul loveth will keep thee; for time and for
eternity thou art blessed. To my mind, I say, the gravity of the question is palpable from the time
at which it was put. During the few days of our risen Lord’s sojourn, he would not have given it
such distinct prominence had it not been in Peter’s case the evidence of his repentance, his
restoration, and the full recognition he received.
But, brethren, what question can more closely appeal to ourselves, to each one of us? Love is one
of the most vital of the Christian graces. If faith be the eye of the soul, without which we cannot
see our Lord savingly, surely love is the very heart of the soul, and there is no spiritual life if

177. love be absent. I will not say that love is the first grace, for faith first discovers that Christ loves
us, and shall we love him because he first loved us. Love may be second in order, but it is not
second in importance. I may say of faith and love, that these are like two roes that are twins; or
rather of faith, and hope, and love, that these are three divine sisters, who mutually support one
another; the health of one betokening the vigor of all, or the decline in one the weakness of all.
“Lovest thou me?” Why, the question means, Are you a Christian? Are you a disciple? Are you
saved? For if any man love wife, or child, or house more than Christ, he is not worthy of him.
Christ must have from every one of his disciples the heart’s warmest affection, and where that is
not freely accorded, depend upon it, there is no true faith, and consequently no salvation, no
spiritual life. On thine answer to that question hangs thy present state. Dost thou love Jesus? If
the verdict be “No,” then thou art still in the gall of bitterness and the bonds of iniquity. But if
the truthful answer of thy soul be, “Thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee,” then,
weak as thou art, thou art a saved soul, and with all thy mourning and trembling, thy doubts and
misgivings, the Spirit of God bears witness with thy spirit that thou art born from above. The
sincerity of your love to Christ shows more plainly than aught beside the verity of your relation
to him.
Oh! what searching of heart this question demands! Do not flatter yourselves with any false
confidence. Many persons have been deceived upon this matter. Alas! they are partial judges,
who sit in judgment of themselves; for every defect they have an excuse; they find mitigating
circumstances to palliate their basest crimes. No marvel to me, but infinite pity for them that they
choose their own delusions and become the dupes of their own infatuation. Their feelings,
enhanced by the music of a hymn, or impassioned by the fervor of a sermon, they mistake for an
inspiration of faith and love; and when the emotions pass off, as they quickly do, they grow loud
in their professions. At first their own hearts were deceived; at length they practice deception on
others. O ye church members! I beseech you, do not conclude that you are members of the
invisible Church because you are members of the visible Church. Though your names may be
inscribed on the roll of the faithful here, do not be too sure that they are written in the Lamb’s
Book of Life. Never take your position before God for granted. Do not shrink from a rigid
scrutiny as those who never dare ask the question; do not disparage self-examination like those
who affect to think it is the devil sets them to the task when he would beset them with legal
terrors. Believe me, Satan is too fond of lulling you into presumption to aid or abet in awakening
you to make sure of your condition. There is a gross infatuation which is the counterfeit of faith
in God. Its credulous victims believe a lie, and fondly they cling to it like limpets to a rock. But
sound believers are not afraid of vigilant self-examination; they are prepared to endure a severer
test; they say,
“Search me, God, and try me.”
It is your hollow dissemblers who resent all questionings, and take umbrage at any suspicions.
The man who knows that he has pure gold to sell is not afraid of the aquafortis with which the
goldsmith tests it, nor even of the crucible into which he may cast. Not so the impostor who
hawks a baser metal; he entreats you to be satisfied with his warranty, though it is as worthless as
his wares; search yourselves; examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own
selves; know ye not that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” By yonder wreck, cast
away upon the rocks of presumption; by the cries of souls who, concerning faith, have made
shipwreck, while they dreamed they were sailing gloriously into harbour — I beseech you make

178. sure work for eternity, and take care that your answer to the question, “Lovest thou me,” is well
weighed, truthful, and sincere, lest you should split on the mane reefs and be lost, for ever lost!
And, dear friends, I am sure the more closely we examine ourselves, the more need for self-
examination we shall discover. Can you not recollect much in the tone of your thoughts and the
temper of your actions that might well lead you to suspect that you do not love Christ? If this be
not so with all of you, I know it is so with me. Mournfully must I confess that when I look book
upon my past service for my Master, I could wish to blot it out with tears of penitent
compunction, so far as my share in it has been concerned. Wherein he bath used me let him have
all the glory, for to him it belongs. His be the praise. For me there remaineth shame and
confusion of face, because of the coldness of my heart, the feebleness of my faith, the
presumption with which I have trusted to my own understanding, and the resistance I have
offered to the motions of the Holy Spirit. Alas for the carnality of our minds, the worldliness of
our projects, and our forgetfulness of God in times of ease. It is strange to me if we have not all
cause to mourn over delinquencies like these. And if it be so with those of us who still can
honestly say that we know we love our Lord, what scruples, what perilous scruples might some
of you entertain whose conduct, character, and the tenor of your lives may well raise a graver
question! You imagine that you love Christ. Have you fed his lambs? Have you fed his sheep?
Have you given that proof which our Savior imperatively requires of you? What are you doing
for him now? It is poor love that spends itself in professions and never comes to any practical
result. Let this enquiry, then, pass round: —
“What have I done for him who died
To save my precious soul?”
Alas! then, if instead of having, like the believed Persis, labored much in the Lord (Ro 16:12),
might we not, some of us, suspect ourselves of having so acted as rather to dishonor his name?
Are you not tenderly conscious that Christian people full often lend their sanction, by a loose
conversation and lax habits, to the sins which the world has allowed and applauded? Jerusalem
becomes a Comforter to Sodom when those who call themselves people of God conform to the
usages of society, and of such society as is corrupt at the core. They say, “Ah! you see, there is
no harms in it; for the saints themselves indulge in it. They are of the same mind as we tare; they
make a great presence, but to no great purpose, for they do as we do.” God forgive us if we have
opened the mouths of the lord’s enemies after this fashion. Surely such failures and such offenses
make it necessary for us to ask whether we love the Lord or not. And though we may hesitate to
answer the question, it is well to raise it, lest, closing our eyes in carnal security, we should go on
to destruction. Let us put the question to ourselves again, and again, and again, for the question
will not mar our faith, nor even mar our comfort, so; long as we are able to fall book upon
Peter’s reply, “Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee.” And now,
presuming that we are, all of us, convinced that the question is expedient and becoming, let me
remark that: —
—————
II. It Is A Question Which, When Raised, Often Causes Grief.
Peter was “grieved,” but the Lord Jesus Christ never grieved one of his disciples heedlessly. This
goes again to prove the need of the question. He was rather for comforting, cheering, and
blessing them. He inflicted no needless pain. He shielded them from bootless anxiety. Yet Peter
was grieved. Now why should you and I be grieved when the enquiry turns upon our sincerity?

179. You know that if we do not canvass the matter ourselves, our foes will be prompt enough to
suspect us, especially if we are in a public potion. The clearer your character the keener the
assault. Satan — and he is the accuser of the brethren — said, “Doth Job serve God for nought?
Hast thou not set a hedge about him?” The devil’s taunting question has become a proverb with
the profane. What worse can they say of the Christian minister than this, “Is he zealous for
nought? Has he not a motive? Is there not selfishness in the background?” Base insinuations will,
I suppose, be freely uttered about you whatever may be your position in the world. Of the
tradesman who fears the Lord, they will say, “Of course, he makes it pay.” As for the merchant
who consecrates his wealth for the love of Christ, they ask, “Do not you see that he is seeking
notoriety? Is it not a cheap way of getting up a name?” We are sure to have the question raised.
Sometimes it sorely grieves us, because of our pride.
We do not like to have our feelings chafed in such a manner. I cannot help thinking there was
some sin in Peter’s grief. He was grieved as one who felt himself aggrieved — ”Is it not too bad
to ask me three times! Why should the Lord thus distress me? Surely the blessed Master might
have put more confidence in me than to press a question which stings like a reproach.” Yet what
a poor simpleton he was to think so. How much harm comes from answering in a hurry. When
our profession is canvassed, we ought not to be angry. Did we knew our own hearts, we should
keenly feel the accusations it would be reasonable to lay against us, and the poor defense that
conscience could make. When my enemies are finding fault with me, and forging lies to injure
me, I sometimes think to myself that though I can exonerate myself from their charges, there are
other faults of which they are not cognizant that humble me before God beyond their utmost
surmise. Their conspiracies cannot explore the secret of my confessions when I lay the
imaginations of my heart before him against whom only I have sinned. How dare we whisper
into the ears of our fellowmen the wish, the whim the like, or the hate that haunts one’s breast, or
aught of the multitude of vanities that float along the rapid current of one’s mind? What would
they think of us who do not know how rightly to think of themselves? Surely pride is put out of
countenance, for the worst opinions our enemies can form of us are probably as good as we dare
to entertain of ourselves, taking the evil of our hearts into consideration. The heart is a very sick
of evil; if we have not perceived it, we have it yet to discover. The voice Ezekiel heard speaks to
us: “Son of man, I show thee greater abominations than these.” Little charm ye can find, because
little cheer ye can get out of these sermons, which wither your vain conceit. But they are not the
less profitable. You prefer the small still voice of a kindly promise, or the rich tones of a glorious
prophecy, and then you congratulate yourselves upon the happy Sabbath you have spent. I am
not quite so sure that your emotions are the truest test of your interests. Is that always the most
wholesome food your children get which has most sugar in it? Do they never get surfeited with
luxury till they need medicine? Is comfort always the choicest blessing we can crave? Alas! we
form so high an estimate of our estate, that to question whether we love the Lord Jesus Christ or
not, lowers our dignity, annoys, vexes, and sadly grieves us.
Not that price is the only incentive. Shame crouches full often in the same obscure corner where
pride nestles. Both alike are disturbed by a gleam of daylight. Peter must have felt, when he
heard the question for the third time, “Lovest thou me?” as if he could hear the cock grow again.
He recollected the scene and circumstance of the dark betrayal hour. Doth not the Lord
remember my fear and my cowardice, the falsehood I told, the cursing and swearing I gave way
to, and the paltry excuse that edged me on when the taunt of a poor silly maid was too much for
an apostle? Ah! she annoyed me, she irritated me, I was conquered. I became a traitor, a
blasphemer, almost an apostate. The tears, the bitter tears he wept on the morning of the

180. crucifixion when Jesus looked upon him, welled up again from his heart into his eyes as the risen
Lord looked into his face, and made him conscious how richly he deserved to be asked the
question, “Lovest thou me?” Yes, and like bitter memories may cover some of us with shame.
Bitter as gall must the recollections be to some of you who have so backslidden as to publicly
dishonor Christ. I do not want to say an unkind thing to you, but it is good sometimes to keep a
wound open. The Bible tells of some sins God has freely forgiven and yet fully recorded. It is no
marvel if we cannot forgive ourselves for having in any way brought dishonor and reproach upon
the cross of Christ. The grief is healthy. We sing: —
“What anguish does that question stir, ’if ye will also go?”
But what deeper anguish may that other question stir, “Lovest thou me?” Our cheeks may well
mantle with a crimson blush when we remember what grave cause for suspicion we have given
to our Lord.
Not that wounded pride and conscious shame are the only sensations. Peradventure fear
distressed him. Peter may have thought to himself, Why does my Lord ask me three times? It
may be I am deluded, and that I do not love him. Before his fall he would have said, “Lord, thou
knowest that I love thee; how canst thou ask me? Have I not proved it? Did I not step down into
the sea at thy beck and call? I will go through fire and water for thee.” But Simon, son of Jonas,
had learned to be more sober and less loud in his protestations He had been tried; he had
attempted to stand alone, and he had proved his palpable weakness. He looks dubious, he seems
hesitant, he feels scrupulous. He is alive to the fact that the Lord knows him better than he knows
himself. Hence the diffidence with which he, asserts his confidence — ”Thou knowest all things;
thou knowest that I do love thee.” A burned child is afraid of fire, and a scalded child shudders at
hot water. So a precocious Peter feels the peril of presumption. His timidity troubles him. He
hesitates to give his word of honor. Distrust of self distresses him. He dreams his former
downfall o’er and o’er again. The hypocrisy of his own heart horrifies him. What can he say? He
answers the accuser, or rather he appeals to the appellant, “Thou knowest all things; thou
knowest that I love thee.” His previous guilt causes his present grief. Should like horrors haunt
you, friends, give no, place to grievous misgivings. Do not encourage them. Hie away to the
cross; behold the thorny crown. Fly at once, poor guilty sinner, to the great atonement which was
made by the Lord upon the tree, and let that fear be ended once for all.
Not that it was all pride, or all shame, or all fear; I think there was also love in it. Peter did love
his Master, and, therefore, he did not like to have, a doubt or a dark suspicion cast on his
sincerity. Love is a very jealous emotion, and keenly sensitive when questioned by those on
whom it intensely coats. “Why,” Peter seems to say, “my Lord and Master, what would I not Lo
for thee? Though I was so false, and so faithless in that hour of trial, yet I know that I am true in
the very bottom of my heart. My fall has not been a total one, nor a final one. There is in my
soul, my Lord, a true, deep, and honest love to thee; I know there is.” He could not bear to have
that love questioned. What would the wife say if her husband should ask, “Lovest thou me?” and
after she had given a fond assurance of affection, he should repeat the question solemnly, and
with an earnest and a penetrating look, especially if she had done much to grieve him, and to
make him suspect her? Oh! I can understand how her love at last would make her heart feel as if
it must burst. With what earnestness she would exclaim, “Oh! my husband. If you could see my
heart, you would see your name written there.” It is hard, even in the conjugal relationship, to
have a suspicion cast upon your affection. Because of the tenacity of his love, Peter was grieved.
Had he not loved Christ so ardently he would not have felt the grief so acutely. Had he been a

181. hypocrite he might have fired with anger, but he would not have grieved after this fashion. I tell
some of our dear young people who get into trouble, and say they are afraid that they are
hypocrites, that I never yet knew a hypocrite who said he was afraid he was one, and those who
say that they are afraid they do not love Jesus, and are timid and trembling — though I do not
commend them for their trembling, yet I have a much better hope of some of them than I have of
others who are loud in their protests and vehement in asserting, “Though all men forsake thee,
yet will not I.” One is comforted to hear the confidence with which some of our young brethren
can speak. Their warm expressions of love refresh us. Yet we cannot help feeling that they have
got to be tried. Perhaps they will not be less confident in Christ when trial comes. They will be
less confident in themselves; and it is just possible that, though their voices may be quite as
sweet, they will yet not be quite so loud. Years of trial and temptation, and especially any
experience of backsliding, will pluck some of the feathers out of us, and make us feel humble
before the Lord. This grief of Peter, what a complex passion it was!
—————
III. But If It Has Grieved Us To Hear This Question, It Will Be Very Sweet If We Can
Truly Give The Answer, “Thou Knowest All Things; Thou Knowest That I Love Thee.”
Surely the preacher need not say any more if the hearers would just say what is in their own
hearts. Let the question go round. With all your imperfections and infirmities, your wanderings
and backslidings, can you nevertheless declare that you do love the Lord? Can you join in that
verse: —
“Thou know’st I love thee, dearest Lord;
But, oh! I long to soar
Far from the sphere of earthly joy,
and learn to love thee more?”
If you can say that you love Christ from your very heart, how happy you ought to be! That love
of yours is only a drop from the fountain of his own everlasting love. It is a proof that he loved
you are ever the earth was. It is also a pledge that he always will love you when the heavens and
the earth shall pass away. “I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor powers nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any
other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord.” Jesus’ hand is on thee, or ease thy heart would not be on him, and that hand will never
relax its grip. He himself has said it, “I give unto my sheep eternal life, and they shall never
perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand.” Now let your heart say, “What shall I dot
What shall I render to him whom I love?” And the Savior’s answer to you will be,” If ye love
me, keep my commandments.” You know his “commandments,” as to the holiness of your life,
the nonconformity of your spirit to the world, your private communion with him. You know his
commandment concerning your profession of your faith by baptism. You know his
commandment, “This do ye in remembrance of me,” as often as ye break bread and take the cup
of fellowship. You know his’ commandment, “Feed my lambs; feed my sheep.” Remember this,
“If ye love me, keep my commandments.”
As for you who do not love my Lord and Master, what can I do but pray for you, that his great
love may now overcome your ignorance and aversion — until, having first been loved of him,
you love him in return. Jesus Christ would have you trust him. Faith is the first grace you need.

182. Oh! come and depend upon him who did hang upon the cross. When you rest in him your soul is
saved, and, being saved, it shall become your constant joy to love him who loved you, and gave
himself for you. Amen.
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