If you would, turn with me in your Bibles to the Gospel of John. One last time here in this series. Gospel of John, chapter 21. We'll be finishing out this gospel in Lord Willing next week in the evening. I'll start a new series in 1 John, so same author, different work. We'll be going through 1 John, Lord Willing next week. I look forward to that series and do hope that you can keep coming out for that. It should be good. I've been teaching 1 John over at Hal and Mary Lou's place for a while now, so I've gotten into it a little bit already. That's what we'll be doing next week. So John chapter 21, beginning in verse 15 through the end of the chapter. And before we hear God's word, let's go to him in prayer. Please pray with me. Lord our God, how can a man keep his way pure but by guarding it according to your word, which is finer than gold? Lord, we ask that you would, by your Spirit, cause us to treasure up this word that we hear and the word that is preached, that we would treasure it up in our hearts, that we might not sin against you. Help us, O God, to be doers of the word and not hearers only, that we may love in word and in deed. To the praise of your glory, we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. John 21, beginning in verse 15, beloved, this is God's holy word. 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, feed my lambs. He said to him 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, tend my sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon, son of 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 everything. You know that I love you. Jesus said to him, feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted. But when you were old, you will stretch out your hands and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go. This, he said, to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God. And after saying this, he said to him, follow me. Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them, the one who had been reclining at table close to him and had said, Lord, who is it that is going to betray you? When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, Lord, what about this man? Jesus said to him, if it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me. So the saying spread abroad among the brothers that this disciple was not to die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but if it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true. Now there are also many other things that Jesus did where every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. This is God's holy word. On this last chapter of the gospel, we are looking at what is its epilogue, the epilogue of this entire work. John's gospel has a wonderful prologue, a first word about the word who was with God and was God in the beginning. And now we come to the last word and we have already seen that this word became flesh, that he lived and that he died and he has now been raised from the dead at this point in history. It was this resurrected Christ that the apostles would proclaim faithfully and boldly in the power of the Spirit in the book of Acts. But before this, we see a group of disciples who are still afraid, locking themselves in rooms, not recognizing the risen Christ. And still it seems somewhat unsure of what it is they are to be doing. And we have one disciple in particular, Peter, who had denied Christ three times, three times to save his own life. And at this point, Christ had breathed on the disciples, including Peter, his Holy Spirit. He had breathed on him his Holy Spirit and authorized them to forgive sins in the gospel. And yet the blatant denial of his Lord that Peter had uttered not once, but three times was still left kind of in the air. This sin had not yet been dealt with by Christ. Was Peter then still an apostle at this point? We could be asking, was he still fit for ministry? If he denied Christ, how could he possibly persuade others to embrace Christ? Or how could he teach others about Christ, one who had denied him three times? John's hearers would have already been familiar with both the ministry of Jesus and the ministry of the apostles. Therefore, one would have to wonder how it was that Peter, who denied his faith when put to the test, a test that came about partly through a question from a servant girl, how it was that this Peter here in this gospel at this point could become the Peter we read about in the book of Acts and the author of two New Testament letters. Well, very much like other epilogues we read in other books, they are often written to tie up loose ends and provide for a transition to later works to come. And we've already seen in this last section that the resurrected Christ, feasting with his disciples, gave us somewhat of a picture of what was to come. Christ and the power of his resurrection would be present with his disciples in their mission. They themselves would participate in that resurrection. They enjoyed a resurrection meal on the shores of the sea with the living Savior, they would proclaim. A meal that confirmed the certain ongoing presence of Christ with his own and the sure bodily resurrection his own would experience in him. So we have there somewhat of a preview of what was to come, a transition as it were. What was to come? Well, here in this section of John, in this epilogue, we are surely seeing the tying up of a loose end. The focus of this passage is on the restoration of Peter, and the point of this evening's passage is this. Jesus commands Peter to show his love for him by following him in cross bearing as he feeds and shepherds Christ's flock. On the previous section, John sets up this encounter between Jesus and Peter for us somewhat. Upon learning that it was Jesus on the shore who had been talking to them, Peter, in characteristic fashion, immediately jumps into the water to be with the Lord. John gives us a detail that upon first glance might seem either unnecessary or unimportant. In verse 9, we are told that when the disciples got on land, there was a charcoal fire in place. So then this was not just a fire that was set by Jesus to make the meal for his disciples, but it was a charcoal fire. Now, where is the only other place in this gospel where a charcoal fire is mentioned? Well, it is mentioned in chapter 18 after Peter had denied Christ for the first time to the face of that young servant girl. The servant girl at the door said to Peter, we read this in chapter 18, you also are not one of this man's disciples, are you? Peter said, I am not. Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves. Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself." So we have another charcoal fire. We have Peter who has distanced himself from the disciples, at least momentarily with his impulsive plunge into the sea. So then there is a preview somewhat here of the one-on-one that we have There's a preview there of the one-on-one we have here between Peter and Jesus. And then, of course, it is with this charcoal fire that Jesus serves Peter and provides a meal for him, whereas Peter had used the earlier charcoal fire to serve himself. Friends, this is who our resurrected Savior is. He comes to serve us, to show us His love, to comfort us, even in our sins, even in our failures. He is our advocate. He is our Redeemer, our Friend. He is gentle. He is kind and merciful. We need not be afraid to cast all of our anxieties upon Him, knowing that He cares for us. This is who He is. It is precisely in His death and resurrection that Jesus shows us, and He had shown Peter, that He is for us. He is not against us. And He would continue to teach Peter this lesson here. When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon, Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? So then Jesus, after having served Peter a meal with fish and bread he provided for him, begins to speak with Peter after they had finished breakfast. With Jesus addressed to Peter as Simon, son of John, he takes him back to the beginning, back to the beginning of their relationship when Jesus had first called Peter. I remember Andrew, Peter's brother, had told Peter that they had found the Messiah, had found the Messiah. And so Andrew brought his brother to Jesus. Then Jesus looked at him and said, so you are Simon, the son of John. You shall be called Cephas, which means Peter, Peter being the Greek equivalent of the Aramaic Cephas, both of the terms meaning rock. And of course, in Matthew's gospel, we learn that it was on the rock of Peter's confession and based upon his apostolic authority that Christ would build his church. He said to Peter, the rock, you are Peter. And on this rock, I will build my church. Simon, the son of John and a fisherman upon his coming into contact with Christ had become Peter, the rock upon which Christ himself would build his church. And this rock, this Peter, he had spent three years with Christ training for this very mission and yet ended up in what looked to be like total failure. He had confessed Christ in private. He had confessed Christ in private, but when it came time to confess him publicly and potentially risk his life, he strictly denied him three times. That was right before Christ himself was crucified. But now he stands, that is Christ, now he stands raised and alive, victorious. And he begins with Peter by taking him back to the beginning. Simon, son of John. You see here, Jesus and Peter must start over essentially in order to begin again. Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? Jesus makes mention of Peter's love for him. And in this first question, he adds to it more than these. Remember on the night of Jesus' arrest, Peter had professed to love Christ more than the other disciples. Jesus then prophesied that they would strike the shepherd and the flock and his disciples would be scattered. But Peter said, they will all fall away because of you, but I will never fall away. And in this gospel, you've seen Peter say, I will lay down my life for you. When he very easily could have said, could have used the word, we, we will lay down our lives for you, Jesus. No, Peter said, I will lay down my life for you. We are shown here that the apostles ministry and Jesus question immediately to Peter and based upon Peter's history with Jesus and with the other apostles, we are shown here that the apostles ministry to the church must begin with love for Christ above all else. Paul said that it was the love of Christ that constrained him, that constrained him and the other pastors in their calling. Peter had thought that this calling meant self-exaltation, at least in some form. Peter would be a leader in the church, but he must first learn what it means to love Christ in order to be that leader. And so Jesus addresses him in this way. So Jesus asked, do you love me? Twice he puts forth this question, twice Peter replies simply with, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. Now notice here in Peter, notice how the bravado is gone in Peter's reply from his earlier expressions in Jesus' ministry. I will lay down my life for you, Peter said. Now bravado is gone here, yes, you know that I love you, Lord. No longer is he exalting himself over against the other disciples. Instead, he appeals to what Jesus as Lord knows of Peter's own heart. Instead of appealing like he had done before, instead of appealing to what Peter thought he could do of his own power. You love me, Peter says, you know that I love you twice. Jesus here commands him to care for the flock, feed my lambs and shepherd my sheep if you love me. Now, notice how Jesus substitutes himself with the flock. The question put to Peter was this, do you love me? The question had to do with Peter's love for Christ. And Jesus responds, show your love for me then by caring for the flock. The same principle was taught by Christ when he taught about the end of the age. He told his disciples that anything one did for the least of those in his kingdom, they did for him. When were you hungry and when did we feed you? They ask him. Jesus responds, you fed me when the least in the kingdom were hungry and you fed them. Jesus confronts Peter with the same question for the third time, which puts an arrow in Peter's heart. Do you love me? Feed my sheep. Do you love me? Shepherd my sheep. And he presents the same question to him a third time. And Peter is struck in the heart. He is grieved, we are told. He knows what this third question means. Jesus told Peter he would deny him three times, and Peter did just that. And now Jesus is questioning Peter about his love for him three times. Peter here can only submit to the Lord's knowledge of all things. You know all things, Lord. Peter stands here convicted of his sin. Jesus had drawn it out. Jesus did not need to hear Peter's denials in order to know about them. Indeed, he knows our sins even before we commit them. And he knows our hearts. Notice how Jesus did not argue with Peter's claim about the knowledge of his love for Christ. You know everything. You know that I love you. Jesus knew this. Jesus had put that love in his heart. Rather, he calls Peter to act on that love, something that Peter had not understood until now. Act on that love, Peter, by feeding and shepherding my flock, feeding and shepherding, as it were, me. You feed and shepherd me when you feed and shepherd the flock. What Jesus was doing here in this response, though, friends, what Jesus was doing here was recommissioning and reconfirming Peter's calling as an apostle. Remember, that was still in the air. And the other thing that Jesus was doing here in that recommissioning and in that reconfirming of Peter as an apostle was that he was abolishing that former sin. He was doing away with it. They were moving forward. Not forgotten necessarily, but dealt with. This is how Jesus deals with our sins, friends. He forgives us of our sins and he sets us on the right trajectory. He renews us. He restores us. So he was recommissioning Peter as an apostle. He was reaffirming the fact that he had called him as an apostle despite this egregious sin against his Lord. And it was imperative that Peter, as a restored apostle, understand what this calling entailed. Jesus invariably defines this calling with two actions, feeding and shepherding. The minister in Christ's church is called to feed the flock the word of God and to shepherd them in love. Peter was not being specially singled out here as a chief shepherd, as the Roman Catholics have it, whose popes trace their lineage to this Peter and to this event between Peter and Jesus. Peter himself in his first letter called in the New Testament calls Christ the chief shepherd. Jesus is the chief shepherd and he calls himself a fellow elder with the other elders. He's not singling Peter out to be the chief shepherd, among other shepherds, other vicars, as it were, under Christ, as the Roman Catholics have it. Rather, this moment with Peter is significant, and it's detailed for us by John here because of Peter's earlier significant moment of denying Jesus three times. Though Peter had demonstrated a rather terrible moment of self-love in his denials, Jesus comes to him to forgive him and restore him with gentleness and meekness. Now, this gentleness that Jesus shows Peter does not take away from the seriousness of what Jesus is commissioning he and the other apostles to do. The next thing that Jesus tells Peter, in fact, shows him the price that he would pay to carry out this mission, the price he would pay to carry out this mission of feeding and shepherd the sheep, and it would cost nothing less than his life. Jesus tells him, truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted. But when you were old, you will stretch out your hands and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go. This, he said, to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God. And after saying this, he said to him, follow me. That Peter's hands would be stretched out is another prophecy from the Lord Jesus about Peter's life. In the beginning, Jesus had said Peter would openly deny him, which he did. Here, Jesus says that Peter will be openly executed, not for the denial of Christ, but for his confession of him. Now, it's ironic here to think about how Peter had sought, in the beginning, to avoid possible execution with a thrice-fold denial of Christ. Here, Jesus guarantees it. He guarantees his execution as a result of his feeding and shepherding. The way Jesus describes this death is not simply to show that Peter can't dress himself because of old age. Rather, it was meant to show that in his old age and with the restrictions that come along with it, he would also be led where he did not want to go. And that place where he would be led was martyrdom. John confirms this with the parenthetical marker, which alludes to the way in which the son himself glorified God in his death. We see this in the parentheses. He said this to show by what kind of death Peter was to glorify God. Jesus said this in the 12th chapter of this gospel. He says, And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself. He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. Jesus also says, follow me, which alludes to his words earlier with Peter and the disciples. When Jesus says where I'm going now, you cannot follow, but you will follow after. And remember, it was there as well. We see Peter's initial bravado come out. Lord, I will follow you to the death. And it was there, too, that Jesus predicted his threefold denial. It was necessary that Jesus lead the way from death to glory for the salvation of his people and for the salvation of the disciples, including Peter. Peter could not follow then, but he would follow now. Peter would bear his cross for the sake of the gospel and in his service of feeding and shepherding the sheep. But first, Jesus must go that way. He must lead the way to death in order to save Peter, but Peter would follow him now in the power of the Spirit. Our Church Fathers confirm that this is, in fact, what happened to the Apostle Peter. Clement of Rome, writing in the first century, said that he was martyred. And later, Tertullian, writing in the third century, claims that Peter was crucified even. Peter himself makes mention of it in 2 Peter when he says, Since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. So Peter would be martyred for his faith, he would be martyred as a result of this feeding and shepherding the flock. Though Jesus here guarantees Peter's kind of death, it is not a hopeless prophecy for him. Jesus gives this prophecy to Peter as the resurrected one who had left the tomb forever and who had just served Peter a resurrection meal. For Peter, then, that kind of death, he would die, would lead also to his resurrection, just as Jesus had been raised. This, too, was true for the other apostles, and it's true for all of his followers, for you and for I. Let us know then, friends, that whether we live or whether we die, we are Christ, so that we may bring glory to God in our lives and in our death. For Peter, The glory that he would bring to God in his death was the glory of dying as a martyr. Jesus guarantees this with his words to his beloved disciple. Peter here had been recommissioned. He had been forgiven by Jesus. He had been restored. Jesus continues to teach him. Now Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. The one who had also had leaned back against him during the supper and had said, Lord, who is it that is going to betray you? When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, Lord, what about this man? And we're not sure of the context of this next conversation. Perhaps it was the case that Peter and Jesus go for a walk while John was following behind. But John is referred to as the disciple whom Jesus loved. And we are told he was the one at the Last Supper who had asked about the betrayer, who later turned out to be Judas. Now there, too, John is referenced in that interaction. There, too, John is referenced as the disciple whom Jesus loved. And we have identified him as the writer of this gospel. Verse 24 makes this clear. This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things and who has written these things. We know that his testimony is true. So the we in this verse is the confession of the church that the disciple whom Jesus loved is one and the same person with the author of this book. And we have identified this author as traditionally as John. For several reasons we do this. Our church fathers ascribe this gospel to John, the son of Zebedee. He's not named in this gospel while others are. And he and Peter are found repeatedly in the company of one another throughout the ministry of Jesus in the Gospels and in the rest of the New Testament." So this beloved disciple is none other than the Gospel writer, John. So then, if this is the case, then why does he refer to himself like this? Well, it's clear that John prefers this designation to show not his pride, perhaps, as one who is loved above others, but to show the personal friendship and the intimacy he had with Jesus as one who had in fact leaned against his breast at supper. He stuck close to him, as it were, and therefore he had special insight into the person of Jesus, which is exactly what we get in this gospel. A very special insight into the person of Jesus. He calls himself the beloved disciple in this gospel. He also does this to show, perhaps in humility, that John is grateful that he too is included in the group of countless children who are loved by Jesus. This disciple whom Jesus loved apparently had been following Jesus and Peter wherever they were. And with the attachment that is evident between Peter and John, and given the fact that they did in fact become pillars in the New Testament community, it's not a surprise that we find the Apostle John tailing behind, perhaps thinking to get a hold on what was going to happen with Peter. Remember, his sin is still hanging in the air. Peter sees him and in due form, even though he had just been forgiven and just been restored, he provides another teaching moment for his Lord. What about him? Peter asked. What place does he have? Will he too die like I have been destined to die? Jesus said to him, if it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me. The apostle Peter, having learned so much here and yet with still was so much to learn. There are two things here that come out in Jesus response. First, we see that the lives from beginning to end for these two apostles are determined not by their will, but by the will of Jesus. We have here two times a reference to Jesus' will in verses 22 and 23. If it is my will, David, the psalmist, praises God for the comprehensive knowledge he has of his entire life. My frame was not hidden from you. When I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed substance. In your book were written every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. Jesus had shown this kind of knowledge in the beginning when he called Nathanael. Then he told Nathanael, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you revealing a knowledge of his life that communicated to Nathanael he was dealing with the divine Son of God. And of course, Peter had already heard and experienced how Jesus knows every detail of every one of our moments he gives to us on earth when he told him that the rooster would crow a third time after Peter's denial. And that, in fact, did happen. It was according to the will of Christ that these men were called, and it was according to the will of Christ that they would continue in their mission, and it was according to the will of Christ that Peter would die in a self-offering for the sake of the gospel, and it was according to the will of Christ that John's testimony in this gospel would continue on until the end of the age when Jesus comes again. Apparently, word had circulated among the brothers that Jesus had guaranteed John an ongoing life until he returned. You can imagine the talk around the water well. Hey, I heard that John was going to remain alive in this age until Jesus comes again. Well, here our gospel writer puts that story to rest for us in verse 23. He says, Yeah, Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die. But if it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? So again, the emphasis is on the will of Christ for these apostles, for these pillars in the New Testament church. Not your will, Peter. It is not your will to determine another's destiny, nor should it have any bearing on what you do. You follow me, Peter. I have already shown you that you are not free to do as you please, apart from my will. You had every intention of following me, no matter where that took you, Peter. And you denied me, just like I told you that you would. Jesus was essentially here telling him, then submit them to my will, have no concern for what I do with the others. Now, Paul, the apostle Paul understood the sovereign sway that Jesus had over his life and calling him as an apostle. He says in Galatians that Jesus is he who set him apart before he was born and called him by his grace to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. So the Apostle Peter, the Apostle John, the Apostle Paul were to submit to the Lord's will. It was by his grace that he had set them apart before they were born. It was by his will that they had been called. It was by his will that they would carry on in their mission. It was by his will that Peter would die for that mission. And so too, friends, we should humble ourselves before this teaching, before the will of Christ, knowing that he has ordained each one of our days for his glory, each one of our moments. Even each one of our sins have been written in his book. He knows them all together. Each one of our days have been assigned and written in his book for his glory. He has given each one of us certain gifts to be used in following him. So we should humble ourselves before his will and submit to his lordship. Now, the other thing that comes out in Jesus' response is his emphatic call to Peter to follow him. This command is repeated twice in this last part of the chapter in verses 19 and 22. He addresses Peter with this command so that he would hone in on Jesus and his will, which for Peter meant martyrdom. He says this to Peter so that he would hone in on Jesus and his will on the specific call he placed upon Peter as an apostle. Peter and John would, in fact, remain closely tied to one another in each of their ministries, for such was the will of Christ. But for Peter, And really, for each one of us, the call from Christ is to follow Him, follow Him in cross-bearing. Each one of us must take up his own cross and follow Christ. We are each one of us to have a single-minded devotion to Christ above all things and a love for Him above all things in order that we might know how to properly love our brothers. Jesus said, whoever does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life cannot be my disciple. Peter was learning this lesson. That is to say, in comparison to all the good gifts Jesus gives us, we must place him as our most valued treasure. Peter turned his eyes off of Christ to consider his brother. And Jesus reminded him of the cost of discipleship. Now in this command, Jesus also was not calling Peter to follow him in his suffering and death only, as we have already mentioned. A cruel dictator will oppress his subjects to the point of death to get what he wants out of them. Jesus, the righteous king here, calls Peter to follow him in death and in his resurrection. The words, follow me, after all, were coming from the mouth of now risen Christ. Friends, we will, each one of us, participate in Christ's resurrection so long as we suffer with Him. We should not then find ourselves looking over our shoulder, as Peter did. We should rather use the graces God has given each one of us in our own capacity and for the furtherance of the kingdom. Peter finally learned this lesson and later taught the church to do the same. We see this in his first letter in chapter four. He says to the church as each has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's varied grace. John ends this gospel in hyperbole. He says, Now there are also many other things that Jesus did, were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. John, the gospel writer, he says a similar thing at the end of chapter 20. He says, To put it simply here, at the end of his gospel, he points us to Christ. in whom are found all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." So much more could be written, so much more could be said about this Christ. It would fill the entire world, and yet this was given so that you may believe. And friends, by God's grace, may we continue to believe that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God, and that in Him are the infinite treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And friends, by God's grace, may we also follow Him in His suffering and in His resurrection.