Amen Pastor Sean. What a promise for poor erring man. Christ will finish the work in each of us which He has begun, if we want Him to. We must come to Him just as we are. We must continue to behold Him.
And, He will use us to help in that work. We must cease working against Him. How so? Listen to the great lesson given in this chapter. The denial of Jesus by Peter revealed Peter's great need. How did the One betrayed deal with His disciple?
The Saviour's manner of dealing with Peter had a lesson for him and for his brethren. It taught them to meet the transgressor with patience, sympathy, and forgiving love. Although Peter had denied his Lord, the love which Jesus bore him never faltered. Just such love should the undershepherd feel for the sheep and lambs committed to his care. Remembering his own weakness and failure, Peter was to deal with his flock as tenderly as Christ had dealt with him.
We must have the love of Jesus in our hearts in order to do this work. How did Jesus deal with Peter in order to help him, and to restore him in ministry? We must learn the lesson.
Peter's denial of his Lord had been in shameful contrast to his former professions of loyalty. He had dishonored Christ, and had incurred the distrust of his brethren. They thought he would not be allowed to take his former position among them, and he himself felt that he had forfeited his trust. Before being called to take up again his apostolic work, he must before them all give evidence of his repentance. Without this, his sin, though repented of, might have destroyed his influence as a minister of Christ. The Saviour gave him opportunity to regain the confidence of his brethren, and, so far as possible, to remove the reproach he had brought upon the gospel.
This explains why Jesus dealt so strongly with Peter by asking him, not once, not twice, but three times if he loved Jesus.
Three times Peter had openly denied his Lord, and three times Jesus drew from him the assurance of his love and loyalty, pressing home that pointed question, like a barbed arrow to his wounded heart.
Many pass over this as if Jesus meant not to press home this question "like a barbed arrow to his wounded heart." Poor Peter. He hurt to have Jesus question His love. But, we never hear this from the pulpit. For what purpose did Jesus press this question home to the One who have denied Him in the presence of both enemy and friend?
When we have sinned before others, when we have served Satan's work by teaching error, as had Job, what is our duty? When we have "darkened" God's Word it leads others astray. Do we not have a responsibility to God to undo the reproach we have brought upon Him and His Word? When Moses sinned his great sins of pride and anger in front of His nation, what did God do? He laid Moses to rest, He took his life. Why? Because the reproach Moses had brought upon God and His truth could not be removed any other way. God had to show His nation whom Moses had been teaching and leading, that what Moses had been teaching was true, and there are consequences to sin. None today will dare say "even Moses sinned," when making excuses for sin.
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God wanted to remove the reproach, as far as possible, that Peter had brought upon Him, His church, and Peter himself. He gave Peter an opportunity to give evidence He was converted, transformed, repentant of his sin. The disciples must see that Peter could remain in the ministry. Thus, Christ in His wisdom, brought to Peter this painful experience. It was for His good, as well as God's glory that his heart was so painfully wounded.
Before the assembled disciples Jesus revealed the depth of Peter's repentance, and showed how thoroughly humbled was the once boasting disciple.
Peter was naturally forward and impulsive, and Satan had taken advantage of these characteristics to overthrow him. Just before the fall of Peter, Jesus had said to him, "Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." Luke 22:31, 32. That time had now come, and the transformation in Peter was evident. The close, testing questions of the Lord had not called out one forward, self-sufficient reply; and because of his humiliation and repentance, Peter was better prepared than ever before to act as shepherd to the flock.
The first work that Christ entrusted to Peter on restoring him to the ministry was to feed the lambs. This was a work in which Peter had little experience. It would require great care and tenderness, much patience and perseverance. It called him to minister to those who were young in the faith, to teach the ignorant, to open the Scriptures to them, and to educate them for usefulness in Christ's service. Heretofore Peter had not been fitted to do this, or even to understand its importance. But this was the work which Jesus now called upon him to do. For this work his own experience of suffering and repentance had prepared him.
Before his fall, Peter was always speaking unadvisedly, from the impulse of the moment. He was always ready to correct others, and to express his mind, before he had a clear comprehension of himself or of what he had to say. But the converted Peter was very different. He retained his former fervor, but the grace of Christ regulated his zeal. He was no longer impetuous, self-confident, and self-exalted, but calm, self-possessed, and teachable. He could then feed the lambs as well as the sheep of Christ's flock.