Feed My Lambs

John 21:1-15

Key Verse 21:15

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Thus far we studied two lectures: “Have Faith in God” (Mark 11:22) and “He Preached the Kingdom of God” (Acts 28:30-31). Today we would like to study John 21 where our Risen Jesus commands us to feed his lambs. In the passage we see the author of the Bible repeating three points: the fact that the Risen Jesus appeared to the disciples three times; three times Jesus asked the apostle Peter, “Do you truly love me”; and three times the Risen Jesus asked Peter to feed his sheep. In view of this repetition it can be easily seen that feeding sheep (or lambs) mean three things; No. 1, to help people have resurrection faith; No. 2, to help people develop a love relationship with Jesus Christ; and No. 3, to help people feed sheep.

First, helping people to have resurrection faith.

“This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead” (14). 

The event that is described in vs. 1-14 is marvelous. As marvelous as it is, it is a reality – a new reality, or the reality beyond reality. If anyone has been distracted, or distressed, or depressed for reasons whatsoever, I would suggest that he must calm down, go to a quiet place, open the Bible to John 21:1-14 and read it prayerfully. With a believing mind, read the passage word by word and line by line. In so doing imagine yourself there in Galilee. Have you have been to the Sea of Tiberius? I have been there once. It is a beautiful place. The hills are still gradual and green. The sea is still friendly. Most likely, the surrounding areas of Jesus’ day were not as busy as in the 21^st Century Galilee. Yet, most of the topography remains well preserved. The birds, the sky, the Jordan River entering the Sea of Galilee are still there. 

In this beautiful atmosphere our Risen Jesus appeared to his disciples. And he did it the third time. In the previous passage, he appeared to his disciples the second time, particularly to Thomas. At first when others said of Jesus, “He is risen!” Thomas said, “You are kidding. Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.”  The Risen Jesus did not want to leave Thomas unconvinced. So he appeared to Thomas as well, and said, “Thomas, put your finger here; see my hands, my side. Stop doubting and believe.” How did he respond? He believed. He said, “My Lord and my God!” 

After this event Jesus appeared to the seven disciples the third time. He did this to not just one, two, or three, but seven. And it was the third appearance. The third appearance was particularly heart warming, for the Risen Jesus comforted the disciples by helping them to make a huge catch of fish. Plus, with the fish they caught Jesus fixed a breakfast for them. “Come, and have breakfast!” None of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” They knew that it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread. He gave it to them. He did the same with the fish. Remember that the previous night the disciples tried to catch some the whole night. But they caught nothing. Then the next morning the Risen Jesus helped them catch fish, 153 of them. All seven worked to draw the net in. I think of all the breakfast they ate, that day’s breakfast must have been the most delicious of all. The breakfast with the Risen Jesus must have been truly unforgettable. The point is that the Risen Jesus planted in the hearts of the disciples the resurrection faith. 

The Bible states, “As in Adam all die, so in Christ all will live”. Jesus also said to his disciples, “Because I live you will also live.” Listen to this also: “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” In this hope, the Apostle John says, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.” 

The Bible says that faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. So, to live with the resurrection faith means to be certain that all the problems we have had so far have already been fully resolved. 

The resurrection faith then comes with the truth that Jesus did not come to fix our problems partially. He came to resolve all of our fundamental problems in a fundamental way. He is God with us. As God he must do the works which do not need further improvement. To mean business in resolving all of our problems in a fundamental way, he shed his blood. He then rose again. To assure the disciples of the true victory he came to bestow upon them, Jesus appeared to them the third time. 

Second, helping people to develop a love relationship with Jesus.

In the passage the second reason why the Risen Jesus bothered to appear to his disciples, especially to Simon Peter, was to mend the relationship between him and Peter. What binds the relationship between the two parties is the love of God. In regard to our relationship with Jesus, on Jesus’ part, he always approaches us with the perfect love for us. The problem is on our part. In Peter’s case, he had denied Jesus three times. Yet, Jesus still approached him with the same love. Can you possibly do that? But our Risen Jesus did. This is truly amazing. 

In the same way we need to work on our relationship with the Lord. We might have suffered from set backs on our part by sinning. But each time this happens we must quickly repent and come back to him, making confession of faith in the Lord. And we must do this remembering the kind of love he has for us, for the Bible says, “He demonstrated his own love in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Being firmly grafted into Christ’s love and thereby maintaining a solid relationship with Jesus is the key for stability. If a man behaves like a lamb or sheep, it is because he is not incorporated in the love relationship with the Lord. So feeding Jesus’ lambs means helping people to be built up in the relationship with Jesus Christ. 

In a way, our duty as a servant of God can be seen as a matchmaker. The Apostle Paul set an example on this when he said, “I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him” (2Co 11:2). Similarly, in Ephesians 5 he compares the relationship between Christ and the members of the church to a marriage relationship between a wife and a husband. 

This year we are glad to begin John’s gospel. One of the key thoughts of John’s gospel is couched on the expression “complete unity”. In the Bible when two are married they are no longer two but one. We call Jesus as the Lord and Savior. And yet our relationship with the Lord and Savior will never become complete unless we as the bride come to form the perfect unity of love. When this happens, we no longer are like a sheep or a lamb. We attain to the maturity of our Lord Jesus.

Third, helping people to feed sheep.

In the passage the call for Peter to feed Jesus’ sheep is also repeated three times.  “Feed my lambs.” “Take care of my sheep.” “Feed sheep.” A lamb is a relatively young sheep. A sheep is sheep. We know what taking care of or what feeding means. But in Peter’s case, it represented Jesus’ call for him to graduate from being a lamb or sheep and to rise to the level of a shepherd.  

The call for a sheep to grow up to a shepherd’s level represents God’s wisdom to help people grow to God’s level in practical terms. In Peter’s case, since Jesus challenged him to live as a shepherd rather than as a mere sheep, Peter began to register the real growth. We can see the difference between Peter before living as a shepherd and Peter after living as a shepherd by comparing his actions in the four gospels and to his actions in the book of Acts or his words his two epistles 1 & 2 Peter. 

While he was living as a mere sheep he indeed behaved as sheep. He was largely unstable. But the Peter in 1 & 2 Peter is totally different. He truly became the rock on which Jesus built his church. 

Helping people to feed sheep and thereby live as shepherds and shepherdesses is also the way to participate in God’s plan to build the family of God together with his children. Right before his suffering, Jesus shared the same plan when he said to his disciples, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him”  (John 14:23). Here ‘we’ refers to Jesus and his disciples. The word “him” refers to God the Father. So Jesus’ idea is that Jesus and his disciples work together with God the Father in building a spiritual home, that is, the kingdom of God. 

This way is consistent with the way of love. Love shares what is good. He shares privileges and responsibilities. We can easily understand this concept when we think about the position of a believer as the “bride”, for the Bible calls the members of the church a “bride” married to one husband called Jesus Christ. And what couple does not build a home together? At my house often times, Rebekah helps me out with the yard work. I also help her out by doing the dishes. Every once in a while I also cook for her and for our children. The same is true with God’s kingdom work. In a way, the kingdom work is like a father desiring to build a large family. With the desire to save all sinners and adopt all of them as his children, he sent His one and only Son Jesus who in turn died for all peoples on earth. So categorically all peoples on earth in all generations are Jesus’ sheep. For all of them Jesus shed his blood. So we who came to the family of Jesus ahead are called to feed the sheep which Jesus had already purchased with his blood sacrifice. And as we do shepherd and help growing sheep to feed the flock of God as well, we all work together to build God’s house. This is the way for us to participate in God’s joy of salvation. This is the way for God to share his love – the love that suffers together. This is the way to share God’s power – the power of the Word, of the gospel, and of the Holy Spirit. 

In conclusion, we learned that in John 21:1-17, the Holy Spirit emphasizes three things as important: resurrection faith, the love relationship with Jesus, and the call to feed sheep. May the Lord bless us to work on these accounts, this year and beyond.

One word: Feed my lambs