Sermon Index
May 5, 2019, Easter 3C, Joint Worship
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John 21: 15-19 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.” Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!” |
The Resurrected Lord met the Disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, which is also known as the Lake of Galilee. At the trial of Jesus, Peter had denied Jesus three times, but now Jesus gives Peter three chances to confess his faith. Three times Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” Three times Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” And upon this confession, Jesus said to Peter three times, “Feed my sheep.”
Today we will look at three questions: who are the sheep, how are they fed, and who is Peter.
The sheep, of course, are the believers in Christ. They are the ones who follow him who is their Good Shepherd. Basically, the sheep are Christians who are in the flock of the church. They are the sheep and the lambs, the old and the young. We are the sheep and lambs of Christ. To bring more sheep into the flock is called evangelism and this too is part of the work of a shepherd. After Jesus ascends to heaven, Peter will have responsibility for the believers.
How are the sheep fed and tended and taken care of? Sheep eat grass in the pasture, but people cannot eat grass, we need different food. We need a balanced diet. In the Lord’s Prayer we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” In the Small Catechism, Martin Luther explains that daily bread is everything we need to live. It is first food, then clothes and home and family and good government and good weather and all the rest that we personally need for our modern daily life. So Peter has a huge responsibility. The early church in Jerusalem took this to heart. In the Book of Acts we are told that the believers ate together and no one went hungry. The disciples were so busy feeding people that they need the help of seven deacons. Many churches today also have the ministry of feeding the hungry. They collect food and distribute it to the poor, both the poor of their congregation and the poor of the neighborhood, or even people on the other side of the world.
Jesus said, “Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Mt. 4:4). Jesus said, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35). So Peter must nourish the sheep with the Word of God. This is preaching and teaching the Law of God and the Gospel of Christ. It is proclaiming the meaning of the cross and the blessings of the resurrection. It is exposing sin and forgiving sin. It is giving comfort and relief to hearts and souls that are troubled by sin and grief. This is Sunday morning in church and whenever and wherever the Gospel is needed.
Finally, who is Peter? The disciple Peter, Simon son of John, was the leader of the Disciples and so was the shepherd of the early church. But the job of Peter has been passed down through the years to all the leaders of the church who have the job to feed the sheep and lambs of Jesus. It is the pastors, congregation leaders and the workers and helpers in the church, also Sunday school teachers, mothers and fathers in the home, and the like. In other words, it is all of us. That is because like Peter we too love Jesus. Through the words of today’s Gospel reading, Jesus speaks to us, too. Peter denied Jesus three times, but how many times have we not made a full confession of our faith? How many times like Peter have we felt our sin? And so Jesus speaks to us, not three times, not seven times nor seventy times seven, but countless times throughout our lives, because we like sheep wander off and need a Peter to take care of us.
Today Jesus asks each of us, “Do you truly love me?” And because we know the love of Jesus for us, we can truly answer, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus has fed us richly with faith and love and forgiveness, and now he says to each of us, “Feed my sheep.”
Amen.
Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church