we turn again to God's Word in
the last chapter in the Gospel according to Mark turning to
Mark chapter 16 Mark chapter 16 and I'll read the first seven verses
and when the Sabbath was passed Mary Magdalene And Mary the mother
of James and Salome had bought sweet spices that they might
come and anoint him. And very early in the morning,
the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the
rising of the sun. And they said among themselves,
Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre? And when they looked, they saw
that the stone was rolled away, for it was very great. And entering
into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right
side, clothed in a long white garment, and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not
affrighted. We see Jesus of Nazareth, which
was crucified, He is risen, He is not here. Behold the place
where they laid Him. But go your way, tell His disciples
and Peter that He goeth before you into Galilee. There shall
ye see Him as He said unto you." Our text this evening really
is just those two words Here in verse 7, the words, and Peter. But go your way, says the angel. The young man, clothed in white,
was an angel. Go your way, tell his disciples,
and Peter. Now we see the significance of
those two words from what we read previously here. back in
chapter 14 and there at verse 27 following we are told how
the Lord said unto them all ye shall be offended because of
me this night for it is written I will smite the shepherd and
the sheep shall be scattered but after that I am risen I will
go before you into Galilee. This is the word of course that
the angel is reminding them of. He goeth before you into Galilee. We read there in verse 7 of chapter
16. It's this word back in the 14th
chapter. After that I am risen I will
go before you into Galilee. But Peter said unto him, Although
all shall be offended, yet will not I. And Jesus said unto him,
Verily I say unto thee that this day, even in this night, before
the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. But he spake
them all vehemently, If I should die with thee, I will not deny
thee in any wise. Likewise also said they all. Although they all said the same,
it was Peter who was so vehement. And yet it was Peter of course
who fell so sadly and denied his Lord the significance then
of those two words and Peter. The other disciples are spoken
of, yes, tell his disciples it says and Peter. He's not set apart here because
in some way he is superior to the other disciples. The Church
of Rome, of course, claims that he was the first pope, the first
bishop of Rome, although there is no historical evidence to
support that claim. But they put Peter in that preeminent
place. but he's not being spoken to
or not to be spoken to because he was in any sense above or
superior to the other disciples what we do see is something of
the tenderness of the grace of God in our Lord Jesus Christ
how God deals with individuals and how God deals with people
in a particular fashion William tipped off a great friend of
course of J.C. Philpott, each of them seceders
from the Church of England and Tiptoe was well known for his
aphorisms, those pithy statements, short pointed sentences that's
the manner of his preaching really And amongst other things, Mr
Tiptoe said, religion is a personal thing. And how true it is. There
is a place, of course, For the public worship we are not to
forsake the assembling of ourselves together. But doesn't the Lord
God deal with us in a very individual and personal fashion? We think
of the words that the Lord Jesus put to the blind man in John
chapter 9, that man who was born blind. and how the Lord gave
him sight and then how the Jews under the influence of the wicked
Pharisees cast him out of the temple. They excommunicated him.
They put him out of Israel as it were. And the Lord goes to
find the man and puts that question to him there in verse 35 of John
chapter 9. Thus thou believe on the Son
of God. How personal it is. that little
pronoun thou, it's a singular pronoun. It's a very personal
word that the Lord is addressing to that particular man. All religion
is a personal thing and so here we see it with regards to this
man Simon Peter. The angel says, but go your way,
tell his disciples and Peter. Those two words here I want you
to bear in mind as we continue tonight and Peter. First of all
to consider something of the way in which this man was so
favoured of God and he was favoured. there is the matter of his call
by grace. He had a very definite and distinctive
call to be a follower of the Lord Jesus. We're told, are we
not, in John's Gospel that it was his brother Andrew who was
one of those who was a disciple of John the Baptist who first
brings his brother Peter to the Lord. There in verse 40 of John
chapter 1, one of the two which heard John, that is John the
Baptist, speak, John had said, Behold the Lamb of God. One of the two which heard John
speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first
findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found
the Messiah, which is being interpreted the Christ. And he brought him
to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he
said, Thou art Simon, the son of Jonah. Thou shalt be called
Cephas, or Peter, which is by interpretation a stone. This is how he is first brought
to the Lord. And we see there, from the context
in verse 39, that they only abode with the Lord that died. only
abode with him for that single day. It would appear at a later
time that Peter with the others was called to be a follower of
the Lord Jesus, a disciple of the Lord Jesus and Mark records
it here in the opening chapter of this Gospel. There, at verse
16, we're told how, as Christ walked by the Sea of Galilee,
he saw Simon and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the
sea, for they were fishers. He was already, it would appear,
familiar with these men. Andrew, as I say, had been a
disciple of John the Baptist. But now Jesus says unto them,
Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of
men. And straightway they forsook
their nets and followed Him. These are men who had that very
definite and distinctive call, the call of Christ. And that promise that we have
of course back in the 110th Psalm, Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power. Is it not Peter who, writing
in his second epistle, speaks of the importance of giving due
diligence and attendance to our call by grace. He says, wherefore
the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling and election
sure. For if ye do these things ye
shall never fall. And the order, the significance
of it, of course in The outworking of the great purpose of God,
we see quite clearly that election stands before effectual calling.
From eternity God made choice of a people. It is here in time
that those people are effectually called by the grace of God. But
what does Peter say? We are to give diligence to make
our calling. Calling comes first. We make
our calling and election sure, those who are troubled over the
doctrine of election. And there are some who are greatly
perturbed, fearful, wanting to know whether or not they are
of the election of grace, where we know that the secret things
belong unto the Lord our God. And that decree of election is
secret to God, the Lord knows them that are His. but we can
attend to calling, are we those who have heard that call, that
effectual call, this was Peter's experience the Lord called him
to forsake all and to follow him and that was the very thing
that Peter did, that call was efficacious in his experience. Now five of these manuals And
we see him making those great confessions of his faith recorded
for us here in Scripture. Remember there in Caesarea Philippi,
in Matthew chapter 16, when the Lord asks that question, Whom
say ye that I am? He'd asked what others were saying,
they gave answer to what was the opinion of many amongst the
multitudes. But then the Lord asked the disciples
very specifically concerning what they considered to be the
truth. Whom say ye that I am? And it's Simon Peter. Thou art
the Christ, he says, the Son of the living God. Oh, what a
confession! And the Lord answers him, flesh
and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which
is in heaven." This man's eyes had been sovereignly opened.
He was able to discern the truth concerning this man, Jesus of
Nazareth. He knew that this was the Christ,
he knew that this was the Son, or the Eternal Son of the Eternal
Father, he confessed it. Again there, at the end of that
sixth chapter of John, The chapter of the blessed diminishings.
That was how our late dear friend Sidney Norton would speak of
John chapter 6. We made some reference to it this morning.
There we see the winnowing nature of the Lord's ministry. How at
the beginning there are multitudes. He performs the miracle. The
feeding of the 5,000. And they want to take him and
make him king. But then in the course of that
long chapter we see how Christ with his ministry is so discriminating
and so distinguishing and they're all beginning to fall away and
it seems that even those who were his disciples would depart
from him. But again it's Peter who speaks
out at the end of the chapter, to whom shall we go? To whom
shall we go? We believe and are not sure that
thou art that Christ, the Son of the Living God. He makes these
great confessions in. He is persuaded. He is so favoured
in his soul. There has been such a glorious
revelation in the heart of this man. And he was one of course
who was particularly close to the Lord Jesus. There were the
disciples and there were many disciples, there were twelve
whom Christ chose and appointed them to be his apostles but then
amongst the twelve there were those three the sons of Zebedee,
James and John and the third was Simon Peter and remember
when the Lord raises the daughter of Jairus to life, it's those
three whom He takes with Him, when He performs that great miracle. Again, we see how it's those
three who are there with Him on the Mount of Transfiguration. Here in the 9th chapter of this
Gospel, verse 2, after 6 days, Jesus
takes us with Him, Peter and James and John, and leadeth them
up into a high mountain apart by themselves, and was transfigured
before them. And his raiment became shining,
exceeding white as snow, so as no fuller on earth can white
them. And there appeared unto them Elias with Moses, and they
were talking with Jesus. He had said it in office, at
the beginning of the chapter, "...there be some of them that
stand here which shall not taste of death, for they have seen
the kingdom of God come with power." And that's what they
witnessed. They see through the veil of the Lord's human nature,
they see something of the power and the glory of His deity as
He is transfigured before them. But it's these three, Peter and
James and John And then again it's the same three who are there
with him in the garden of Gethsemane. Again back in chapter 14 verse
32, they came to a place which was
named Gethsemane and he said to his disciples, sit you here
while I shall pray and you take us with him, Peter and James
and John and began to be SOROMIZED and to be very HEAVENLY and they
witness these things they hear his prayer my soul is exceeding
sorrowful unto death he says tell you here and watch and they
hear him praying to the father there in all the agonies of of
Gethsemane how how intimate this man was how close he was to the
Lord Jesus he was so five Oh, he was favoured with that efficacious
grace. He knew that sovereign call of
God, constraining him to be a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, and
with boldness he makes those great confessions of his faith. Thou art the Christ, the Son
of the living God. The Lord is pleased to take him
with him on those various occasions to witness things. that so many
even of the apostles did not witness. He was a favorite. He was a man then who was much
blessed and yet the faithfulness of the record that we find here
in Holy Scripture because we also read of the failings. We read of the sins of Peter.
In a sense he is such an impetuous character, is he not? Even when
we see him there in the Mount of Transfiguration, he speaks
foolish words, he doesn't really know what he's saying. There
in verse 5 of chapter 9, he says, Master, it is good for us to
be here, let us make three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses,
and one for Elias, for he wish not what to say. for they were
sore afraid." Such an impulsive character and sometimes he speaks
proud words. He's guilty alas of that awful
sin of pride. There in that passage that we've
already referred to in chapter 14, when the Lord speaks of them
being offended, how does he object? Although all shall be offended,
he says, yet will not I. All the others might fail thee,
Lord, never me. Never me. In Luke's account,
in Luke 22, 33, he says, Lord, I am ready to go with thee both
into prison and to death. And yet the Lord tells him plainly
before the cock crow twice, Lord Peter, thou shalt deny me three
times. Not so, we'll contradict the
Lord. This is the pride of the man's heart, you see. What an
accursed thing pride is. Of course, it's bound up with
our sinful natures, is it not? We see it there, alas, in the
fall of Adam and Eve in the garden. Yes, they're full of unbelief,
they embrace the lie of Satan, they reject the truth of God.
Unbelief is the root of all our sins, the sin which doth so easily
beset us. And yet, there in the garden
we see something of their pride. How subtle is the serpent, ye
shall be as gods. Ye shall be as gods. They were
creatures. Oh yes, they were creatures,
but they were made in the image. They were created after the likeness
of God, the most noble of all God's creatures. God's image
bearers, but they're not gods. But it's pride, you see. It's
pride that's so attractive, is it not? To be something more
than we are. What is pride? It's a cursed pride that's been,
by God, abhorred. Do what we will. It haunts us
still and keeps us from the Lord. We have to learn that we're safest
when we feel ourselves to be nothing at all. When we're nothing
at all. It's saying that the Lord to
us is all in all, with all that pride. And how it comes into
our heart, it's there all the time, really, it manifests itself.
Joseph Hart says, against its influence, pray, it mingles with
the prayer. Against it, preach, it prompts
the speech, be silent, still it's there. Bunyan, was a great
preacher of the gospel. The great Dr. Owen used to say
that he would forgo all his great learning if he could but preach
like the Tinker of Bedford. He was a great preacher was John
Bunyan. The occasion is told you're probably
familiar with it when he'd been preaching in London on one occasion
and afterward as he came away from the pulpit someone came
up and and congratulated him on the wonderful discourse, the
great sermon that he had just preached. And he turned and he
said, ah, he said, Satan has already whispered that in my
ear. He was proud, you see. It is an accursed thing and we
see it in this man. What a mercy, God favours sinners. Even proud sinners. This man,
Simon Peter, who was so full of himself, I am readily I am
ready to go with them, both into prison and to death. They'll
all be offended, not I, not I. And yet this is the very man
who denied his Lord, and denies him with terrible curses. There's pride, but there's more
than that, there's unbelief. There's unbelief. And we see
something of that unbelief immediately after that great confession that
he makes in Caesarea Philippi. Remember how he said, Thou art
the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and the Lord pronounces
him blessed. Blessed art thou. Flesh and blood
hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. But what follows? What follows
there in Matthew chapter 16? Verse 21, "...from that time
forth began Jesus to show unto his disciples there that he must
go unto Jerusalem." Here his piety is acknowledging the great
mystery of the person of Christ. in his confession, and now Christ
goes on to speak more specifically of the work. These two things,
of course, are really our salvation, the person of Christ, the work
of Christ. And it's after that confession,
thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. From that
time forth, began Jesus to show unto his disciples how that he
must go unto Jerusalem and suffer many things of the elders and
chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised again
the third day then Peter took him and began to rebuke him saying
be it far from thee Lord this shall not be done unto them he
will contradict the will of God Oh, this is awful unbelief! And
then the Lord turns and addresses Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan.
Oh, this man who just a moment previously was so blessed, Get
thee behind me, Satan! Thou art an offence unto me,
for thou savest not the things that be of God, but those that
be of men. Oh, that we might savour the
things of God and not the things of men. that we might savour
the things of faith and not the things of unbelief. How we see unbelief in this man
and we see it even here in this portion at the end of Mark when the women return and report
that the Lord is risen What are we told, verse 11? And they,
when they had heard that he was alive and had been seen of her,
believed not. They did not believe what Mary
Magdalene said, and Peter amongst them. They believed not. Oh it is, alas, it's unbelief. It's unbelief that we see. Even in Simon Peter. And we see
it various times in the course of his life as
it's unfolded to us here in the scriptures. Many times we see
unbelief. Remember that occasion when he's
walking on the water. The Lord is coming to them on
the waters himself. and they're in the boat and when
Peter recognizes it's the Lord he clambers out of the boat and
he begins to walk towards the Lord but then we're told how
that he saw the wind boisterous and he was afraid and he begins
to sink and he cries out Lord save me well that's a great prayer
that's the prayer of faith surely Lord save me, but when the Lord
does save him and take him into the boat, what does he say? Oh
thou of little faith. Wherefore didst thou doubt? It's unbelief you see, we see
a man so favoured of God. Wonderful really the things that
we read in Holy Scripture. Can we not identify with this
man? We may not be able to identify with him altogether in those
great favours, or that we could. or that we know that blessed
closeness that he enjoyed with the Lord and to walk with him
and to witness those things that Peter witnessed but surely we
can identify with him when we see him as a man of little faith
or do we grieve sometimes over our little faith Wherefore didst
thou doubt?" says the Lord. How he is one who doubts. He's
full of unbelief. He denies the Lord. And how does
he deny Him? Terrible really what we read
at the end of chapter 14. He began to curse and to swear
saying, I know not this man of whom you speak. And the second
time the cock crew and Peter called to mind The word that
Jesus said unto him, before the cock crowed twice, thou shalt
deny me thrice. And when he thought thereon he
wept. Always the denial of the Lord
and yet it's evident, is it not, that there's a grace of God in
the heart of this man, how he weeps over his sins, how he weeps
after the Lord Jesus Christ. There's faith, you see. Faith
is a remarkable thing, is it not? The Hymn writer says, true
faith is the life of God, deep in the heart it lies, it lives
and labours, under load, though damped, it never dies. And the faith of Peter never
died. Amidst all his pride and all his unbelief and all his
denials of the Lord Jesus, his faith never died. It was real faith. Where there's
real faith, it can never die. Why? Because real faith has to
do with a great saving. And faith survives because of
its object. That's a great thing for us,
is it not, tonight. The great objectivity of faith.
What is faith? It's looking. It's looking onto
Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. And so, turning
from what we've said with regards to Peter, how he was in many
ways so favoured of God and yet, time and again we see his failures,
we see something of his sins. Let us turn from that and consider
something of the Lord Jesus. This is the Lord's word, is it
not? that is being sent to these disciples
by this messenger, this angel. Go your way, tell his disciples
and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee. There shall
you see him as he said unto you. or the faithfulness of the Lord
Jesus Christ and as we begin to draw to a conclusion tonight
I just mentioned five aspects in which we see something of
the gracious faithfulness of the Lord Jesus. First of all
we know that the Lord Jesus prayed and prayed very specifically
for Peter. Those words in Luke 22 verse
31 The Lord addresses him, he says,
Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he
may sift you as wheat, but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith
fail not. When thou art converted or restored,
strengthen thy brethren. Christ is particular, you see.
Christ prays for all his people. He is that faithful high priest
in the presence of God. But there we see how the Lord
is very mindful of one who is in the gravest of danger. He is addressing Peter quite
specifically, Simon, Simon he says. But how important are the
pronouns there in those verses in in Luke chapter 22, Satan
hath desired to have you, that's a plural, that's all, the disciples,
Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you, all of
you as wheat, but I have prayed for thee, that's singular. The
Lord prays for Peter because he is in such grave danger He
is the one, you see, who is very much in the sieve of Satan. Satan has him in that sieve. And is he going to come forth
from that terrible sifting only by the grace of the Lord Jesus
Christ, only through the prayers of the Lord Jesus Christ? We
see Peter then in the sieve of Satan we see Paul as one who
is boffeted by Satan. Different figure, but is it not
exactly the same truth that we see in the experience of the
Apostle Paul? He speaks of that thorn in the
flesh. In 2nd Corinthians chapter 12
Remember how he speaks, how he'd been favoured with visions and
revelations? Lest I should be exalted above
measure, he says, through the abundance of the revelations
there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of
Satan, to Buffetman. Lest I should be exalted above
measure. For this thing I besought the
Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me,
My grace is sufficient for thee, for my strength is made perfect
in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I
write a glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may
rest upon me." Oh, he was boffeted, just as Peter was sifted. But in each case it's the grace.
It's the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ that becomes so preeminent
in the lives of these men. They're taught in their experience
of it, are they not? Something of the richness and
the wonder of that grace of God. How the Lord prays for them. And isn't this the way in which
the Lord resists Satan? This is how the Lord deals with
Satan, you see. The wondrous power of prayer. Look at what's recorded there
in the prophets, Zechariah. In Zechariah chapter 3, the prophet says, And he showed
me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord,
and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. And the Lord
said unto Satan, The Lord rebuked thee, O Satan, even the Lord
that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuked thee. Is not this a brand plucked
out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy
garments and stood before the angel. And he answered and spake
unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy
garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold,
I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee. and I will
clothe thee with change of raiment. And I said, Let them set a fair
mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon
his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the
Lord stood by. Oh, he showed him Joshua the
high priest standing before the angel of the Lord. Who is the
angel of the Lord? That's Christ. And here is Satan
seeking to resist him. But he is able to overcome That
strong man armed is the Lord Jesus Christ. And he is able,
is he not? Able to save all that come unto
God by him. Isn't that our comfort, friends?
The Lord Jesus is that one who is yet a great high priest. And now he is in heaven, and
there he ever lives to intercede. His very presence in heaven is
a constant plea on behalf of His people. He has fulfilled
His priestly work upon the earth. He has made the one sacrifice
for sins forever. He has entered into that within
the veil. What a privilege of prayers! This is the way in which this
man, Peter then, is favoured. The Lord Jesus was mindful of
him, the Lord Jesus prayed for him. I have prayed for thee,
that thy faith fail not. But then secondly, what does
the Lord do? He doesn't only pray for him, the Lord looked
upon him. The Lord looked upon him. That's
how it's recorded in Luke's accounts. after he had made those denials,
after he had filled his mouth with foul cursings in Luke chapter
22 verse 60 Peter said, man I know not what
thou sayest and immediately while he had spake the cock crew and
the Lord turned and looked upon Peter and Peter remembered the
word of the Lord and we had said unto him before the cock crow
thou shalt deny me thrights and Peter went out and wept bitterly
all what were those tears they came they were the fruit of the
Lord's look he's not weeping for himself he's weeping over
his Lord and we grieved him that he should die his Lord It was
such a gracious look that the Lord gave to him. Oh, that the
Lord might be pleased to look upon us, to look upon you, to
look upon me. The Psalmist says in his prayer,
there be many who say, who will show us any good Lord? lift thou
up the light of thy countenance upon us. That's the great thing,
greater than anything else is it not, when the Lord lifts up
the light of his countenance. Remember the lines in John Berridge's
hymn, that little couplet, Jesus cast a look on me, give me sweet
simplicity, or to have that simplicity of faith, the Lord looking upon
us. Isn't that from where faith comes
really? That's how the Lord works faith
in our hearts, when He looks upon us. When we see Him by the
eye of faith. The Lord prayed for Peter, the
Lord looked upon Peter. Thirdly, it is the Lord who sends
this message unto him. This message here at the end
of Mark. the one in the white garments,
says to these women, verse 6, Be not affrighted, ye seek Jesus
of Nazareth which was crucified, he is risen, he is not here,
behold the place where they laid him, but go your way, tell his
disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee, there
shall ye see him as he said unto you. All the message is sent
and that's the force really of the text those two words and
Peter this is a message very specifically for this man it's
a message for all the Lord's disciples they are going to be
the ones who will bear witness to the truth of his resurrection
from the dead without the Lord is so mindful of Peter and his
needs of those restoring mercies there is a message there the
Lord sends a message to him but then also the Lord does something
more, the Lord appeared unto him the Lord appeared unto him
and we have the record, do we not, in the Gospels at the end
of Luke when those two on the road to Emmaus meet with the
Lord and yet their eyes are holden and they don't recognize him
until he enters in wisdom and he breaks bread and then he's
gone and they hurry back to Jerusalem and what is the message that
they receive from the other disciples? The Lord is risen indeed they
say and that appeared to Simon he appeared to Mary Magdalene
but he appeared also then to Simon Peter and when Paul in
that great chapter of 1 Corinthians chapter 15, that chapter that
deals with the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. And he
speaks of all those who were witnesses of the truth. Amongst
them he specifically mentions this man. He was seen of Cephas. That is Peter. Then of the Twelve. Or the Lord, you see, he deals
with this man. so graciously, so faithfully.
He assures him that he is praying for him. He looks upon him. He sends a message to him. He
comes and he appears to him. He shows himself. to Simon Peter
and then of course in that portion that we read at the end of John's
Gospel we see him as he comes now to complete that gracious
ministry in the experience of Peter. He questions him. He questions
him. And what remarkable questions
they are that the Lord puts to Simon. verse 15 there in chapter 21
of John. When they had died Jesus said
to Simon Peter, Simon son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than
these? He said unto him, Yea, Lord.
Thou knowest that I love thee. He said unto him, Feed my lambs.
He said to him again the second time, Simon son of Jonas, lovest
thou me? He said unto him, Yea, Lord.
Thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.
He saith unto him the third time, Simon son of Jonas, lovest thou
me? Peter was grieved because he
said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto
him, Lord, thou knowest all things. Thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my
sheep. Three times, three times he had
denied the Lord. and three times that question
is put to him Simon Peter love us though me now it's interesting
there is a certain subtle difference really in those questions it's
not really brought out of course in the in the translation but
when the Lord asked that question in verses 15 and 16 love us though
me the verb that he uses is that great Greek words for love agape such is the richness of that
language that there are some three words that he used in relation
to love there's the word agape which is the highest form of
love then there's the word philo and then there's the other word
eros but when the Lord asked those questions in those two
verses 15 and 16 he says agape But when Peter answers, he doesn't
use that word. He says, thou knowest that I
love thee, but he uses the word philo. It's a different word.
It's not such a strong word. The agape is the strongest love
possible. This word philo speaks of very
real affection. But then, when the Lord comes
a third time, He also uses that lesser word, the word philo,
and that's why Peter is grieved, because the Lord is even questioning
the reality of that love. He was grieved that he said unto
him the third time, love is a bad word. No more you see, do we
see any manifestation of pride, when he said before, I'll never
deny thee, no more of that spirit now. How this man was humbled,
how the Lord ministered to him and the Lord restored him, because
what does the Lord say to him? Follow me. Oh, he takes him back
to his beginning, does he not? When he was walking there by
the Sea of Galilee and the Lord, as he walks, sees Simon Peter
and his brother Andrew at their fishing boats, and he says to
them, follow me, I will make you fishers of me. And so, when
he comes there at the end of John's Gospel and speaks to him,
it's all to that end that there might be a full restoration.
He finishes up by saying to him those two words again, follow
me. Or that the Lord might be pleased
to come and deal with us in that personal way. and to say to you
and to say to me tonight follow thou me or that we might be those
who are true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ whom we see
here in all the tenderness of that gracious minister that he
exercises towards poor needy sinners when he sends this message
go your way tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before
you into Galilee, there shall you see him, as he said unto
you. Amen.