Seeking The Lost

Jesus is constantly seeking the lost. No matter how great our sins are, they are never greater than God’s mercy. At the hour of his passion, Peter denies Christ three times. This man, who was the first to profess that Christ is the Son of God, was the first to set him aside. Yet after the resurrection, Christ came looking for Peter. Sit with that thought as you read this Gospel.

Gospel - John 21:15-19

After Jesus had revealed himself to his disciples and eaten breakfast with them,

he said to Simon Peter,

“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?”

Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.”

He then said to Simon Peter a second time,

“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”

Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

He said to him, “Tend my sheep.”

He said to him the third time,

“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time,

“Do you love me?” and he said to him,

“Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.

Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger,

you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted;

but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands,

and someone else will dress you

and lead you where you do not want to go.”

He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God.

And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”

Scriptural Analysis

This exchange between Jesus and Peter is perhaps one of the most famous exchanges in the entire Gospel. It takes place in the morning, on the shore of the sea, where breakfast is cooking on a charcoal fire. This fire is reminiscent of the night of Jesus’s arrest: "Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire. (John 18:18) It was that evening when Peter would deny Jesus three times.

Jesus addresses him as Simon. This is an important detail. Through his threefold denial of Jesus, Peter not only rejects Jesus but also rejects his status as a disciple and thus is not entitled to the name Jesus had given him, Peter. When Jesus asks Peter if he loves him more than these, that is not just a question but also a reminder of Peter’s previous boast of his willingness to lay down his life for Jesus.

Jesus will provide Peter with an opportunity to repent and to restore his relationship with Jesus. He will ask Peter three times if he loves him. Peter will respond each time, stating, “You know that I love you.” After each profession of Love, Jesus assigns Peter, as the chief shepherd, a task to do: feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep. This usage of the shepherd metaphor has a twofold significance. First, through the Old Testament, those appointed to govern God’s people are spoken of as shepherds. Second, in John’s gospel, Jesus is described as the Good Shepherd, and thus Jesus gives Peter a share in that work.

Peter’s office of shepherd is to be one of self-sacrifice. This includes the willingness to lay down his own life for the sheep; something that will happen as Peter is martyred. Peter had previously told Jesus he was willing to lay down his life for Jesus and was told that he would follow him later. Jesus then uses an analogy of someone who used to dress themselves and conduct their life independently, contrasted with an old man who is dependent upon someone to lead them. This signifies that Peter will no longer do as he pleases but will follow God’s will completely. This includes stretching out his hands and being crucified for Christ.

Finally, Jesus closes with the comment, “Follow me.” This signifies that one’s relationship with Christ is at the core of what it means to be a shepherd. For Peter to be that Shepherd, he must follow Jesus completely, even to the point of death.

Daily Application

When Jesus first encounters Peter at the Lake of Gennesaret, Peter’s first instinct is to say to Jesus, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” (Luke 5:5) Jesus knew Peter’s past, and he knew his future. Jesus knew that on the eve of his crucifixion, Peter would deny him three times. Despite this, Jesus called Peter and made him the rock upon which He would build His Church.

After Jesus’s crucifixion, Peter knew he had messed up. So he returned to the life he had known; he returned to fishing. Yet everything that had transpired before still mattered, and Jesus still desired for Peter to be the rock. So Jesus provides Peter with an opportunity to repent of his sins and to make right the wrong that he had done.

The same holds for us. Sin destroys our relationship with God, and we become lost. We can easily return to our old ways of living before we encountered the Lord. But just as with Peter, Jesus does not give up on us. He calls us, calls us back to himself. Through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we can receive forgiveness of our sins and receive God’s mercy.

An important detail of this encounter is Peter’s response to the Lord. Peter sinned. Despite his sins, the Lord called him back. However, he did not force him back. He did not tie Peter up and force him to follow. Peter had to choose to repent and return to the Lord. The same scenario applies to all of us. When we sin, the Lord calls us back. He gives us every opportunity to repent and return to him. Yet the decision to do so is ours. We must respond as Peter did, “You know that I love you.”