Jesus Himself said “everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33). His disciples should be willing to identify with Him no matter who badmouths or threatens to beat them (Matthew 10:24-28). Jesus also said, “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:37-38).

So what about Peter? Peter did not sell Jesus as Judas did but he did sell out. Once the soldiers took Jesus into custody, Peter denied Him three times. What’s worse, Jesus told Peter that he would do it (John 13:38); he should have seen it coming. Even worse, Peter asserted that he would never deny Jesus. Peter said, “I will lay down my life for you” (John 13:37). He claimed, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away” (Matthew 26:34). He spoke too certainly.

So what about Peter? His denials were well-known, but Peter did at least have the audacity, or the humility, to show up among the disciples as soon as the Sunday after the crucifixion. Actually, except for John, all the disciples had scattered but were back together when the resurrected Jesus showed Himself on that first Sunday night. And Jesus announced “Peace” to them. What a relief! He even reaffirmed that He was sending them into a ministry of forgiveness going forward (John 10:21, 23). But what about Peter in particular?

He was still loud, still a leader. When he said that he was going fishing, more than half of the remaining disciples went with him (John 21:3). But had they lost any respect for Peter? Did they wonder if he had lost his position as a representative for Christ? How was Peter going to urge others to be faithful when he hadn’t been? Did Peter himself wonder? Had he lost confidence in his calling?

Jesus met the men in the boat and made breakfast for them in John 21:1-14. Through a miracle (or three) and through a hot meal, Jesus manifested Himself for the third time. In John 21:15-23, Jesus restores Peter to his calling in front of the other disciples. Peter’s three denials by a charcoal fire (see John 18:18) are paralleled by three more questions around another charcoal fire. This time Peter answers better, more humbly, more honorably. And then three times Jesus calls Peter to care for His sheep. Jesus also forewarns Peter about his martyrdom, leading Peter to ask questions, in verses 18-23 which we’ll study next time.

This morning we’ll see if Peter does, in fact, love Jesus. The question, “Do you love me?” is found four times in three verses as Jesus reinstates Peter as a shepherd to care for the fold.

Round One: Is your love better? (verse 15)

Jesus asks basically the same question three times with only minor variations. There are slight differences, but that doesn’t keep John from summarizing the heart of the question in verse 17: “this was the third time Jesus said to him, ‘Do you love me?‘” The first round is in verse 15.

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.” (John 21:15)

Jesus didn’t make Peter answer His catechism correctly before giving him food, but after breakfast Jesus began to pepper Peter with questions in front of the other disciples. John calls him Simon Peter, Jesus calls him Simon, son of John. Jesus had given Simon the name “Peter” in Matthew 16:13-18, but he hadn’t acted much like a rock.

Do you love me more than these? Two questions come up about this question: 1) what kind of love is Jesus asking about? and 2) what or who are these?

The Greek words for love used by Jesus and Peter have been the subject of some fascinating sermons. If you’ve listened to much preaching then I’m sure you’ve heard the argument based on two different verbs for love used in these verses: ἀγαπάω (agapaō) and φιλέω (phileō). The usage is as follows (I’m giving the lexical form, not the conjugated form):

verse 15: Jesus: Do you agapaō me?
Peter: You know I phileō you.

verse 16: Jesus: Do you agapaō me?
Peter: You know I phileō you.

verse 17: Jesus: Do you phileō me?
Peter: You know I phileō you.

Usually preachers say that agapaō describes the highest love, God-like love, love of choice rather than love of emotion. They compare agapaō to phileō which describes the love of association, such as a brotherly love, a natural affection based on relationship. So Jesus asks if Peter has the full, spiritual agapaō love and all Peter can assert is that he has the lower, human phileō love. Then, supposedly, Jesus gets irritated and finally asks, “Then do you at least phileō me?”

But a couple things from this paragraph push the evidence off of taking the word variation as the main point. First, Jesus accepts Peter’s answer all three times. He doesn’t give Peter any grief for saying phileō as if Peter was trying to dodge commitment. All three times Jesus gives Peter great responsibility to care for His sheep. If Peter was answering poorly, would Jesus keep lifting him up from his humiliation?

Second, and I mentioned this above, John summarizes all three rounds under one question in verse 17: Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and John used the word phileō. If John intended to make a strict distinction between agapaō and phileō then he was wrong. Jesus asked twice with agapaō and only once with phileō, not three times the same question.

Add to those observations that the original conversation took place in Aramaic. Also, throughout John’s Gospel (let alone the rest of the Greek New Testament) the verbs themselves do not distinguish divine from human love. God phileō His Son (5:20) as well as the world. And men agapaō the glory that comes from of man more than the glory the comes from God (John 12:43). It is difficult to build a clear wall between these synonyms.

Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him. Did Peter have affectionate desire for and commitment to Jesus? And in round one, the question also included a comparison: do you love me more than these? The these are “these other disciples.” Peter professed to Jesus in front of them that he would remain faithful. He didn’t, and Jesus puts Peter on the hot seat in front of them.

Peter gave one of his best answers ever with the gist, “Of course I do.” Yes, Lord; you know that I love you. He affirmed his love for Jesus without putting his love above that of the other disciples. He also affirmed that he loved Jesus by appealing to the Lord’s omniscience and not his own behavior. Peter knew that Jesus knew hearts. Peter answers humbly, with humility in front of the other men he previously bragged in front of and in humility before the One he had denied.

Jesus replied, “Feed my lambs.” The response was restoration to responsibility. Peter was forgiven and called to feed others. The lambs and sheep (verse 16 and 17) are all one fold. Perhaps lambs stresses the youngest ones and sheep is a description of them all. Peter was told to feed them, to bring them to pasture for sake of providing nourishment, even as Jesus had given them food.

Round Two: Is your love real? (verse 16)

Though Jesus didn’t question Peter’s answer, He does ask Peter a second question.

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.” (John 21:16)

Again Jesus calls Peter Simon, son of John, and the question this second time is simply, “Do you love me?” Jesus does know Peter’s heart, but did Peter actually know his own, especially after such disastrous denials?

Peter answered the same way, though probably with an increasing sense of heaviness while the Lord was lifting him up. “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Tend my sheep.” Jesus called Himself the Good Shepherd (John 10:11, 14). Peter would call Jesus the Chief Shepherd in his first letter (1 Peter 5:4). Jesus doesn’t give Peter a title, He gives him a charge. Watch and protect and guide and care for my sheep. Shepherd them.

Round Three: Is your love loyal? (verse 17)

Jesus wasn’t finished with the reinstallation process.

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. (John 21:17)

One last time Jesus calls Peter Simon, son of John. But for the first time, Jesus asked, “Do you phileō me?” This change from agapaō provokes a lot of comment but, again, if the change is so important, then why did John say, He said to him the third time? If there is a significant difference, then this is actually the first time. And again, John summarizes Peter’s sorrow over the discussion: Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” That’s not true if agapaō and phileō are meant to be strictly different.

Peter wasn’t offended by the question, he was distressed. And he was not distressed because Jesus changed words but because the Lord asked three times. “Peter experienced a major ‘undoing’ (cf. Isa 6:5, KJV) of his self-assertiveness” (Borchert). Jesus brought him back one step at a time.

Peter answered more fully, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” For what it’s worth, Peter (as John records it) uses two different words for know: οἶδα (oida) and γινώσκω (ginosko). Many preachers play the nuances of these two verbs against each other as well, saying that oida refers to knowledge of the intellect and reason compared to ginosko which is knowledge from experience. But again, while there may be a bit of nuance between the English words “understand” and “comprehend,” we can also use them interchangeably. The point Peter makes is that he cannot defend himself before the One who knows all things. He can’t convince Christ of something that isn’t true.

Jesus receives the humble answer and for a third time restores responsibility: “Feed my sheep.” The way that Peter will demonstrate that he loves Jesus is by serving Jesus’ fold. In fact, the way that any man prepares to serve the sheep is by loving the Chief Shepherd.

Conclusion

Jesus restored Peter, He did not elevate Peter. The notion that Peter was put over the other apostles cannot be found in this passage. He was given a charge, not supremacy. Jesus did not put Peter above the other apostles or above the sheep, though He did restore Peter to the work of an apostle which included serving the sheep.

Peter’s motivation to shepherd was not that Christ gave him authority over sheep, but rather that he loved the sheep’s Good Shepherd.

Paradoxically, one who loves Jesus supremely will love those entrusted into his charge more, not less. (Köstenberger, 596).

Verses 15-17 apply uniquely to Peter, as does the prophecy about his death in verses 18-19. But the verses do have application to many who have denied their Lord. Can they be restored? Or is that something only for Peter?

How about those professing Christians in the first few centuries, or even in other parts of the world today, who, in the face of torture and life-threats, renounce Christ? Dealing with those who deny Christ is a pastoral problem. Some have gone to their deaths boldly, even joyfully. Others have denied Him. Can they be received back? Without getting into the processes and wisdom required to consider it, grace means that it is not impossible. Peter’s three denials are as humbling as could be and yet the Lord used that humility to prepare Peter to serve His sheep.

How about us? Have we ever been silent when we should have spoken? Have we ever been ashamed of the Lord? Does that mean, by itself, that we are not true disciples? It depends. If denial is the pattern, if we are not humbled by our cowardice, then there should be no assurance. But have you been humbled? Have you come back to the fold even though embarrassed by your lack of boldness? Do you love Jesus? Then be encouraged by His grace.