And Peter

So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also, do you?” Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” John 6:67-69

Peter's confession. "We have believed and have come to know." Faith = what we know about Jesus. Not wishful thinking or feel-good fuzzies, but facts about the God-Man, the Messiah. Very early on, Jesus' disciples had made the decision to believe and follow Him. Where else would they go? Nobody else had what Jesus offered: eternal life. Boisterous, volatile Peter did not hesitate to state that sentiment for the whole group. He saw no other way.

And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” Matthew 16:17-Only God could reveal the truth of Jesus to the ones He came to save. Human intellect cannot grasp spiritual truth. Jesus named him Peter (petros: a little rock). "Upon this rock (Petra: a mass of rock; faith in Jesus Himself) I will build My church (assembly of called-out ones)." Nothing can overcome the corporate faith of believers in Jesus Christ.

We have examined Peter's miserable failure on the night of Jesus' arrest. That was in Luke 22:54-65, posted on January 1, 2012 as The Denial. It is interesting, then, to see the announcement of Jesus' resurrection to the women, specifically notifying Peter:

And he *said to them, “Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’” Mark 16:6-7

How like our Lord to add "and Peter"--knowing
That one would walk the world in cruel shame,
Forever haunted by a far cock crowing,
An idle boast, and eyes that held no blame
But looked with grave compassionate reminding
Into his own. How like our Lord, to know
That somewhere Peter, stumbling through blinding
And bitter tears, would need that message so.

That somewhere Peter, all his spirit broken,
Past pride, past fear, past all save grim regret,
Would find in two small words a tender token
That all his lifetime he would not forget:
The sweet assurance that he still belonged,
In spite of all, unto the Lord he wronged.

by Helen Frasee-Bower


Then there was the morning by the lake:

This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after He was raised from the dead. So 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, “Tend My lambs.” He *said to him again 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, “Shepherd 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 all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus *said to him, “Tend My sheep.” John 21:14-17

Jesus was asking Peter (please notice: three times) if he loved Him in a Godly way, unconditionally (agapao). Peter kept answering that he loved Jesus in a brotherly, familial way (phileo). Well, if you do, Peter, you will tend My lambs (baby believers). If you do, Peter, you will shepherd My (hard-headed, rebellious) sheep. If you do, Peter, you will tend My (mature) sheep. Pastor them, feed them, teach them.

J. C. Metcalfe faithfully writes: "It is more than comforting to realize that it is those who have plumbed the depths of failure to whom God invariably gives the call to shepherd others. This is not a call given to the gifted, the highly trained, or the polished as such.
"Without a bitter experience of their own inadequacy and poverty they are quite unfitted to bear the burden of spiritual ministry. It takes a man who has discovered something of the measures of his own weakness to be patient with the foibles of others. Such a man also has a first-hand knowledge of the loving care of the Chief Shepherd, and His ability to heal one who has come humbly to trust in Him and Him alone. Therefore he does not easily despair of others, but looks beyond sinfulness, willfulness, and stupidity, to the might of unchanging love. The Lord Jesus does not give the charge, 'Be a shepherd to My lambs ... to My sheep,' on hearing Peter's self-confident affirmation of undying loyalty, but He gives it after he has utterly failed to keep his vows and has wept bitterly in the streets of Jerusalem.

-from The Complete Green Letters by Miles J. Stanford

Peter got that message: I Peter 5:2-4 "shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.