A Question and A Command For Christ's Disciples

Q: What does the Bible say about loving Jesus?

The Bible emphasizes the importance of loving Jesus above all else, as demonstrated in John 21:15-17. In John 21:15-17, Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves Him more than anything else, highlighting that true love for Christ is paramount. This love is demonstrative; it provokes action, as seen when Jesus commands Peter to feed His sheep. Love for Christ is not merely spoken but evidenced through obedience and care for others, reflecting a commitment to His commands over worldly desires.

Q: How do we know if we truly love Christ?

True love for Christ is evidenced by our actions, obedience to His Word, and desire for fellowship with Him. According to the sermon, if we truly love Christ, we will have a profound love for His Word, seek communion with Him in prayer, and demonstrate care for His people. Just as Peter's affirmation of love led to his commission to feed Jesus' lambs, our love for Christ must manifest in tangible expressions of service and worship. Peter, despite his failings, confidently professes his love, and this assurance drives his commitment to Christ’s mission.

Q: Why is feeding the sheep important in Christianity?

Feeding the sheep is vital because it reflects our love for Christ and our responsibility to nurture other believers. In the sermon, feeding the sheep symbolizes the responsibility that comes with following Christ. This act of nurturing fellow believers is a demonstration of our love for Christ and our obedience to His commands. When Jesus instructs Peter to feed His lambs, He emphasizes that a true disciple's love is not self-serving but outward-facing, dedicated to the spiritual well-being of others. This nurturing can take many forms, including teaching, encouragement, and support for the Christian community.

Q: Why does Christ ask Peter about his love three times?

Christ's threefold question to Peter underscores the seriousness of love and repentance following Peter's denial. Jesus asks Peter, 'Lovest thou me?' three times as a direct response to Peter's earlier three denials of Him. This repetition serves to reinforce that true love requires affirmation and commitment, especially in light of past failures. It also signifies the forgiveness available through Christ, emphasizing that despite our sins, we can be restored to a place of service and leadership in His kingdom. This moment is a critical point of restoration for Peter, as it invites believers to acknowledge their failings and recommit to their love for Christ.

Q: What does it mean to follow Christ?

To follow Christ means to actively obey His commands and prioritize Him above all else. Following Christ entails a continuous commitment to embrace His teachings and live in accordance with His will, regardless of the actions or beliefs of others around us. In the sermon, Jesus tells Peter to follow Him without concern for John's fate, emphasizing that individual faithfulness is paramount. This directive calls each believer to focus on their personal relationship with Christ and their responsibility to follow His path, irrespective of any distractions or comparisons with others. Following Christ requires a willingness to prioritize the divine over the earthly, resting in the assurance that His plan is sovereign.

Sunday morning. We'll be dealing
with revelation twenty. I want you to take time this
week to read that revelation chapter twenty. And then maybe
no promises but maybe Isaiah chapter fifty. So if you want
to jot that down and I want to preach from Isaiah
50 at some point in the near future, and maybe this Sunday.
Ever since I heard Brother Chapman deal with it and Ashlyn, I wanted
to do it myself. All right, John 21, tonight. Title of this message is Last Words for Disciples. last words for disciples or could
be entitled a question and a command for disciples. Our Lord had risen from the dead after
being crucified and now appears to his disciples a third and
last time. And so these are his parting
words to them immediately well a little before he. Ascends back
to the father. These are the last words of our
Lord for his disciples and their words for us all the time. Not just these apostles. All right you read it with me
the apostles have been out fishing And the reason that they went
fishing remember Peter said I'm going fishing. The Lord had already appeared
to them twice and they know he's alive and yet they were unsure
of what the future held for them without the Lord. They knew he
was going back to the father, and they were in doubt and confusion
and afraid, not knowing what to do, where to go. So Peter
said, as Peter always did, he spoke out. He said, I'm going
fishing. And the other disciples, not
knowing what to do, they said, well, we'll go too. So they all
went fishing. Now, you know the story here
that they fished all night long. All of this is a picture, a beautiful
picture, which I did not plan on dealing with, all of it. It's a picture of man trying
to save himself by his own works. You know, he goes, he fishes
all night and he catches nothing. And the Lord has to direct him. When a man sees Christ from afar
off, he, like Peter, naked. Peter was naked. Peter, when
he saw Christ, though sinful, sinful as he was, having just
denied the Lord, he dove in. He girded himself and dove in
to get to Christ. Now, that's a picture of a sinner
who has tried to save himself by all of his works and obtains
nothing. No peace, no joy, no comfort,
no nothing. But he sees Christ though a far
off, though feeling far off and sinful and naked, exposed And
he hears about that robe of Christ's righteousness that will cover
everyone, no matter how sinful. Oh, he lays hold on it, cover
me, and dives in, sink or swim, I've got to get to him, and comes
to Christ for salvation. Well, the Lord, now here's the
story, this is what I want to deal with, what our Lord said
to Peter. The Lord, they'd been fishing.
And the Lord, you know, beckoned them from afar off, from the
shore, as he does still. The Lord is in heaven. We're on the earth,
right? He's on the other shore. That
song we sing, on the other shore, Canaan's fair and happy shore. Well, he beckons us, doesn't
he? He beckons us. And so they come
to land, and they hear him say these precious words, verse 12,
Come and dine. Come and dine. And this is why we're here tonight.
We come to dine on what our Lord has prepared for us. The feast
on the flesh and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Feast and
fellowship with our Lord. And verse ten, he said, bring
the fish you've caught. And all that they did was the
Lord's doings, wasn't it? They tried and couldn't catch
a thing. But the Lord said, he directed
them and they filled their nets. Then he said, bring your fish.
Bring your fish, not that you'll need it. I'm going to provide
for you. Why did he tell them to bring those fish in? It had to be for other people.
Didn't it? Lord already had food for them.
They didn't need that. And they weren't going to be
fishing anymore. They didn't need to sell that. It had to
be for others, but he said, bring your fish. Well, look at verse 12. You don't
need those fish. I've got something here for you.
Come and dine. And the disciples, none of the
disciples asked him, who art thou? Knowing that it was the
Lord. They all knew it was the Lord. There's not a new person in here. There's not a person in here
who hasn't heard this gospel at least once, twice, at least
a few times or more. There's not a person in here. So there should not be any doubt
in anyone's mind in here, anyone from the youngest to the oldest,
especially the oldest, that this is the gospel. that this Lord,
this Lord Jesus Christ that we preach is indeed the Lord. There should be no doubt, none
whatsoever. Who Christ is, who Christ is, who is he? Sovereign,
reigning, ruling, Lord, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Master, Messiah, Christ, the only mediator
between God and men, the only redeemer, the only substitute,
the only righteousness that God will accept for sinners, the
only sin offering, the only lamb, the only atonement, the only
place God will meet with sinners, the only tabernacle, the one
true God, God manifest in the flesh. Any doubt in your mind?
Is there any doubt in your mind? Now, our young people may not
all know Him personally, but I believe they know and believe
and understand that this Jesus Christ is the true Christ, that
He is alive and reigning and ruling. And what Paul said of
the Galatians, Paul said Paul asked the Galatians, he
said, who hath bewitched you? Who hath bewitched you? Before whose eyes Jesus Christ
hath been so evidently set forth. And I don't think that should
be, could be or should be asked of this congregation. Who or
what could bewitch us? before whose eyes Jesus Christ
has been so evidently, so clearly, so really set forth. Huh? Who or what? Well, some have. Some have. Amazingly so, some
have. Well, so the Lord provides for
them. As always, he said, Bring your fish, but you don't need
it. Give it to others. Verse 13 and
14, Jesus then cometh and taketh bread and giveth them and fish
likewise. This is now the third time that
he showed himself to disciples. After that, he was risen from
the dead. And now he says something to
Peter, ask a question, and this is what I want to dwell on these
next few verses. Verse fifteen, I think there
was a little pause, but they'd been eating, you know, they're
eating, and the disciples, I don't know if they'd said much between
then and this verse, but when they'd dined, Jesus saith to
Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, I don't know how he said this,
and I don't want to try to imitate his voice. No man can. But perhaps
he said it very slowly. Simon? And Peter may have thought,
oh, what's he going to say? Son of Jonas? Now remember, Peter... Proud, presumptuous, outspoken,
braggadocious Peter. You know how Peter liked to speak
up, speak his mind. Peter, who said, everybody here
is going to leave you but me. The Lord said, you'll deny me
more than them all, three times. The Lord said, Simon, son of Jonas. Now, Peter was the chief of sinners,
wasn't he? Among these apostles, he could be called the chief
of sinners, the worst of the bunch. Nobody denied the Lord
as openly as Peter did, did they? Remember the last time Peter
cussed at that young girl and said, cussed, and I don't even,
I don't know that man. And he was the first to say,
I'm leaving, I'm going fishing. And he drug the rest of those
fellows with him. Later on, now, later on, Peter,
Paul had a confrontation with Peter. Do you remember? That
was in Galatians also. Paul confronted Peter one time,
and this is another story, but Peter was sitting with the Gentile
believers, like us, sitting there eating a ham sandwich. Or bacon
and eggs. Something like that. Pork. Something
unclean, you know, the Jews. And here come the Jews. The Jews
came from in. James and some of them from the
Church of Jerusalem. Peter. They will see me with
all these sinners eating ham. And Peter jumped up and said,
Hey, James, how are you doing? And got with all those fellows
from, you know, those leaders of the church and all sat over
there with the Jews. And Paul came in and saw that and confronted
him to the face. In front of everybody, embarrassed.
Well, Peter embarrassed himself. But Paul confronted him before
everybody and says, Are we saved by grace or are we not? Does it really matter what goes
into these mouths, or does it not, like the Lord says? We're
saved by grace, but the Jews are saved one way, by keeping
the law, and we're saved by not keeping the law. Gentiles? Which
is it, Peter? We're telling these Gentiles
we're saved 100% by grace, and here come the Jews, and you side
with the Jews, and you don't want to live like a Gentile.
He says, which is it, Peter? And Peter had to hang his head
in shame. You get a law, no matter how
you side with the law, it'll make you guilty. Well, Peter, old Peter, can you
side with Peter here? You find yourself, they remind
you of you. So he says Simon, that's significant.
Our Lord calls him Simon. You remember he changed his name.
Our Lord's the one that changed his name, Peter. But he's reminded
Peter of where he found him. He's reminded Peter where he
found him. He was a nothing from nowhere
in a little two-bit boat out in the Sea of Galilee hauling
nets. He didn't have a clue who God
was and he didn't care. And Christ walked by that sea
and said, First thing you said to him, John, is going to be
the last thing you said to him. So he reminds him. Simon, son
of Jonah. And we need reminding, don't
we? Who we are and where we come from. Remember the pit from which
we were digged. Never rise above that. Never rise above. Never think more highly of yourself
than you ought to. How highly should we think of
ourselves? Nothing. Sinners. Center his name is changed by
the Lord Peter which means rock. Our names have been changed by
the Lord to Israel which means France. But through the preaching the
gospel your mind is we're just sinners. We're just sinners saved
by grace. Simple sinful Simon son of Adam. Here's what he asked him verse
15. Son of Jonas. And I believe he was pointing
now, I believe he points at the boats he just got out of. And
the net and the fish he just drug to that shore. Listen now,
this is very important. He says, Lovest thou me more
than these. He's not pointing at the other
disciples, the Lord wouldn't do that. Huh? He wouldn't pit
us against one another. You remember, Peter's the one
that said that before. Peter's the one that said, they
may leave you, I won't. Who did? Peter did. Our Lord's not doing that. Plus,
Peter spoke right up, didn't he? He's pointing at those boats
and those nets, that ocean, shore and sea. You see, before Christ,
Before Peter, before Christ came to Peter, this sea was his life. Those boats, those nets, he came
up and that was his family business. His dad, Andrew and Peter, you
know, their dad owned this fishing business, cousins of James and
John, whose dad also fished. He was born and raised around
that ocean, fishing from a buoy. He had salt in his veins. He
loved that ocean. The first opportunity he got,
Rick, he said, I'm going fishing. That was his life. He ate, drank,
slept, lived and breathed fishing. And the Lord points at all those
things and says, Simon, you loved me, wasn't you? Now, folks, turn with me to 1
Corinthians chapter 16. 1 Corinthians 16. You know, the Lord gives us all
things richly to enjoy, the Scripture says. Doesn't it? He giveth us
all things richly to enjoy, the Scripture says. There's nothing
wrong with it. Read the book of Ecclesiastes
for yourself. The whole book of Ecclesiastes
tells us that it's okay to enjoy the things of this world. Yes,
it is. Don't let any ultra-pious, self-righteous
Pharisee tell you it's not. Read God's Word. Forget him or
her. Read God's Word. Ecclesiastes. God giveth us all things richly
to a joy. When God created this world,
He saw it and said it was good, didn't it? And what He's cleansed,
what He calls good, don't let any man call unclean. Didn't
our Lord say there's nothing unclean of itself? Romans 14,
14. But when it becomes unclean to
us and hurtful to us is when it consumes us, when it becomes
our life, when we forsake the Lord in favor of these things. And this is what John said, if
any man loved the world, the love of the Father is not end.
Love not the world, nor the things of the world. To love something
or someone means you can't live without. That's the best definition
of love. You cannot live without something.
Something or someone you just absolutely cannot live without. All right, now look at this,
1 Corinthians 16, this is a serious verse of scripture, verse 22.
If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ. Now wait a minute,
that doesn't just mean men, it means, man means mankind. Man, woman, boy or girl, if anyone
loves not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him, let her be anathema
maranatha. That means cursed when the Lord
comes. So this question to Peter, to
Simon, is pretty important. It's a question for all disciples,
not just Simon, not just Peter. But all disciples, lovest thou
me more than these. More than what, Lord? It doesn't
matter. You remember when he said, Any
man love anything, husband, wife, father, mother, husband, wife,
son, daughter, his own life. All right, true love now. True
love is most definitely known and
felt. It's a mute point. Is it not?
True love is most definitely known and felt. All right? How do you know if you love Christ?
Well, it's a mute point. Like I said, it really shouldn't
need answering. But let me give you some of these
things. To love Christ is to love to hear of Christ. To love
to hear about him. Love to hear some preaching.
His character. His character. Don't you love
someone to stand up and talk about the sovereign Lord? It's
my favorite subject. If anything I love more than
preaching is hearing somebody preach. the sovereignty of my
Lord, His mercy, His grace, His love, His character, His compassion,
His kindness, His power, His work. You know, we brag on the
virtues and accomplishments. You know, it's like a child growing
up. Was your dad bigger than everybody else's dad? Was he
stronger than everybody else was when you were a boy? He could
whip a small army, one hand behind his back, leap tall buildings. Right? My big brother. You know,
brag on the virtues and accomplishment of your father, your big brother,
your mother, or even now, brag on your children. Don't you love
to hear people brag on you? children or your spouse or someone,
don't you? How much more? Your Lord. Would you love to hear someone
brag on your Lord, talk about His character, His work? To love
Christ is to love to be with Him. To love to be with Him. Now,
understand that this is not some mystical thing Christ said, though, where two
or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst. In worship,
have you not been in worship services where he most assuredly
was present, where you felt like he's speaking to me? I know that's
a man up there, but Christ is speaking through him. through
his work. Have you not? And you thought,
this is for me. As if no one else were around.
I've given that illustration before, you know, I own two dogs. Well, now I've got three. You know that dog I keep trying to
run off? She won't leave. So you know what I'm going to
do? I'm just going to keep her. I'm going to save her that was
not mine, you're mine. If that isn't a picture of importunity. But I sure didn't need another
dog. But here's the point I was going
to try to make. One man can own many dogs. One master can own
many dogs, many animals. He can own too many. But the
fact of the matter is, a dog will only have one master. Is that right? Those of you who
have dogs, you know what's up. Those dogs of mine, they won't
listen to those men in your hand. They won't listen to anybody
but me. And you know the times I go out in the morning, the
first thing I have to do is love on Abner and Annie and now Heidi. But I can make those dogs feel
like that I'm loving each one of them personally. The other
ones aren't even around. I've got two legs and arms. Seriously,
they think I'm giving them personal, all my undivided, each one of
them. That's exactly the way the Lord,
He can do that. He can do that, and He does that
at times. Love to be with Christ and worship. This is where Christ says it's
promised to be every single time, where to appear again. Those
that love Him. I go home every night. Why? It's
where my wife is, where my daughter is. Why? I love Him. I don't have
any place else to go? No. Where I want to go. Who I
want to be with. Do I love Christ? New point. I want to be where He is. I'd
love to be with Him and talk with Him in private. Prayer is a mystery. It's a private
thing. Don't let anybody try to dictate
to you how to pray. But let me just say this about
prayer. Prayer is communicating with
your Lord. And you don't have to have words.
You don't have to be in a certain position on your knees or even
with your eyes closed and that sort of thing. But just know
this. It's communicating with your
Lord. And most especially, it is a
private thing. It is a private thing. When you
talk to the one you love, don't you? If you're not on speaking
terms, something's wrong. Well, to love Christ is to love
His Word. To love His Word, His commandments,
is far from grievous. Don't you just love this book?
We don't love it like we ought to. We don't read it like we
ought to. We don't pay attention to it like we ought to. We don't
need it like we ought to do it, huh? But don't you love it? Can
you imagine? My wife and I were, I asked her
the other day, I said, if you were stranded on a desert island
and could only take, I think it was five things, I said, what would you take?
You know, I thought of several things, you know, matches. You know, fishing line, knife,
a good knife. There's one good warm blanket.
You got your food, you got some warmth, you got your fire. Anything else? Anybody? You better say that. This is life. This is warmth.
This is fire. This is food, right? This is
it. Go crazy like this world is without
this. God's Word, Christ's Word. Far
from being grievous, the Scripture says His commandments, His Word
is perfect. It's good, it's right, it's just,
it's true. It's clean, it's pure, it's sweet. David said it's sweeter than
honey. Do you ever get a taste of it? Oh, he said, that's good. Oh,
that's good. Never tasted anything better.
To love Christ is to love his family. My wife has made this comment
before that she esteems my father just as much her own father as
she does her own. She loves my father just as much
as her own father. My mother. My sister became my
wife's absolute dearest, closest friend. My sister, my sister,
she didn't have a sister. And God's family, Christ's family,
they become, those that love Him, they become their family.
And they love them. Yes, they do, just as much, even
more, than their own flesh and blood relations. Is that possible? Is it possible? Our Lord said
it better be certain. Didn't He? Lovest thou me more
than these? Huh? More than these? And now that's the question for
all of us, isn't it? Why God gave them to us richly
to enjoy, but they better not come between the one thing and
the other. They better not hinder my relationship
with Christ. Any person, anything, any possession
in this world that you love more than me, anything, you would
not be willing to part with. given a choice. Well, Peter, now, what does Peter
do? How does Peter answer? Well,
I don't know what to think about this, Lord. No hesitation. If your wife asks
you, do you love me? Let me ask you, if your wife
asks you, honey, do you love me? And you went, Well, sometimes I think I do. I'm supposed to. I guess I do. Is that love? Either you do or
you don't. Don't you? You don't have to
hesitate. You don't have to hesitate. Oh,
I know we're sinners. Peter knew what he was. Didn't
he? Peter knew he was the most unworthy,
unfit, Shouldn't he have been called a disciple? Failed miserably,
just the worst of all the disciples, yet he didn't have to. Yes, Lord.
You know. That's the way it played it in.
Thou knowest. Why? Because if we love him,
he'd put it in there. Right? Scripture talks about
God shedding The love of God abroad in our heart, God shedding
his love abroad in our heart. If we love him, John, it's because
he put it there. There was a time when you didn't
give God a thought. There was a time when I didn't
give God a thought. I didn't love God. I didn't love
Christ. I was embarrassed. Church is repugnant to me, repulsive
to me. If you'd asked me then, are you kidding? And now I say, Thou knowest.
Yes, Lord. You know, I don't love you like
I want to, like I ought to, like I'm going to, but yes, I do. Based upon those things that
I just mentioned, can you, without hesitation, now understand this, that it's not really as important
to know you love Him has to know that He loves you, that He knows
you. Remember that. And He said, All
that come to me. Well, thou knowest, Lord. Then prove it, Simon. Now, you can say you love somebody
all day long. You can say it without hesitation. You can say it just as meaningfully
as you can. Oh, I love you, brother. And it not mean a thing. And
how do you know? Paul talked about one time in
the first Corinthians, prove the sincerity of your love, didn't
he? You know what he was talking
about then? Giving. Not just money, but yourself,
time, and so forth. Well, here's what our Lord said
to Peter. Simon, your Lord thou knowest I love
thee. Prove it. Feed my lamb. Here we go again. Here we go again. This keeps
coming up, doesn't it? You just don't know possible.
You just open to preachers. Yeah, this is a word for me.
I'll take this. I'll take this. He tells me a preacher. I'm not
going to take it alone, but I will take it. He tells me a preacher
feed my sheep. Study, prepare, feed, feed them
a steady diet of tender grass. Feed them, don't beat them. Don't beat the sheep, feed the
sheep. Don't fleece the sheep, feed
the sheep. Don't get fat off the sheep,
fatten the sheep. Feed my lamb, Zoe said. My lamb, that's little ones,
that's tender ones, that's the ignorant ones, that's the young
ones. They don't know much. I've told
you before how much I love to feed. Oh, Molly's over at Charles's
house now. It's love at first sight, wasn't it, Charles? He's
in love with that big blonde named Molly. I knew that would
happen, Stan. Stan comes over and he was talking
to me about, he's easy, you know, he's talking to me about feeding
her apples and all that and rubbing on her backside. It's a horse. Nobody knows we're talking about
a horse here. But he's fell in love with her. It's a pleasure
to feed someone that's hungry. There's nothing I like better
than going out there in the morning. Dogs, cats, horses, they're going
to come running. Master, we're hungry. Good. Here, take a scoop. Have another
scoop. Here's some fresh water. Rub
them down. There's only one thing I like
better. When you come in here hungry,
I say I've got something good. I've got something real good.
Tender grass, you're going to love. Homemade bread, you're
going to love. Water, sweet water, spring water.
And so he tells the preacher, feed my lambs, feed them. Tender
grass, bread, lots of honey, lots of honey. A little bit of
salt, every now and then, a little salt. Need salt. Right? But lots of honey. Lots of honey. But to all the
disciples, it's not just to me, not just to a preacher, is it? Feed my lambs, entertain them,
care for them, exhort them, encourage them, young believers especially.
Verses 16 and 17, he continues, and I've got to hurry. I want
to get to a point here. Verses 16 and 17, he said to
him again a second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?
And Peter saith unto him, Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love
thee. Again, no hesitation. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. 17 He saith unto him a
third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter's grieved now because he
said this the third time. Now, he's bound to be thinking
about how he denied the Lord three times. It's bound to come to his mind
how he denied the Lord three times. Don't know it. Don't know
it. Don't know it. And now the Lord asked him three
times. And he said, Lord, now this time
he doesn't say I. He just says, God knows all things. You know all things. This is
our final appeal. This is not our final appeal
to the Lord. Not so much gay Lord, but Lord,
you know all things. Sometimes I do wonder, but you
know all things. I'm just going to leave it right
there. Thou knowest all things. Thou knowest that I love thee.
Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep. And then verse. And one more point on this feeding.
This means literally feed with them. speak with them and feed
them. Feed them. We'd all have something
to offer the sheep. Something. You know, it's evident we love
our flesh and blood. We give no thought, really. We
don't give any thought whatsoever to, we give great, it gives us
our great joy to care for and do for and delight in doing for
our flesh and blood. Well, if you love me, feed my
sheep. All right, our Lord then tells
Peter what he's going to suffer for Christ's sake. He got to turn with me. He's
got to turn with me. This is too important. Galatians
chapter 2, all right? He tells Peter he's going to
be crucified, doesn't he? Where they got that he's crucified
upside down, I don't know. That's an old... At any rate,
He was crucified, Peter was crucified. That's what the Lord told him
when he said you're going to stretch forth your hands and
they're going to carry you on a cross like they did Christ.
Drop you down the hole and crucify you. And you know that believers,
all believers are going to be crucified. Yes sir. Look at Galatians 2 verse 20,
Paul said, I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Look at chapter 6, Galatians
chapter 6. Like I said, this is just too
important to pass up. Verse 14, Galatians 6 verse 14,
God forbid that I should glory Saving the cross, that is glory
in anything me, mine, any of my works, my morality, anything
about me. No, my glory, my salvation, my
everything is in the cross, the person, the work of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Is that your confession of faith?
Is that your hope of heaven? What's your hope of heaven? Do
you hope to get to heaven? What is it? Let me ask you that question.
If you hope to get to heaven, why? You better say this. It's only by the blood and the
righteousness of Jesus Christ. The cross, that's what the cross
means. Now look at this, verse 14. By whom the world is crucified
unto me, and I unto the world. So we're called to do no less
than Peter, aren't we? Consider yourself dead to the
world. Like Noah that went in that ark,
shut off. You don't close, you don't separate
yourself, you don't try to live off, apart from the world. Our
Lord didn't tell us to do that. No, no, no, no, no. He sent them
out into the world, the salt of the earth. John 17, he said,
I pray not that you take them out of the world, but that you
keep them from it. We live in the world, we must. But yet there's still a sense
in which the world cannot have, it's got to be dead to it, deadened
to its thoughts, its opinions, its ways, its direction, its
beliefs. Right? That's what that means.
And if you are that way, they'll crucify you too. You'll be dead
to them. They'll blackball you, so to speak. They won't want
anything to do with you, especially religious people. Well, look
at this now. Here's the last word. Verse 19,
John 21, 19. Now, I think the Lord got up
now. They were sitting, they were eating, because it's evident
they start walking. The Lord got up and said to Peter, When he's spoken
this, I believe he rose and he said unto him, verse 19, follow
me. First thing he said to Peter,
first time Peter met him, follow me. And then the Lord turned
and started walking. Well, then Peter, you know, started
following him. In verse 20, Peter turning about, he started
walking behind the Lord or beside him or whatever. And Peter turned
around and it says, verse 20, he saw the disciple whom Jesus
loved following. Now this is John. Remember, John
won't even speak his own name. John, he's too humble, he's too
meek. He didn't want his name known.
His name's not important to him, to John. The disciple whom Jesus
loved. Well, Christ loved all his disciples.
Well, John had to go on and say, well, the disciple who leaned
on his breast at suffering said, Lord, which is he that betrayed
thee? John. Now everybody knows it's John.
Well, Peter, they're walking along. Peter said unto Jesus,
Lord, What's this man going to do?
He just told him he's going to be crucified. And he said, Lord,
what shall this man do? I believe the Lord stopped. And he said this to him, verse
22. Jesus said unto him, If I will,
that he tarry till I come. that he lived till I come, carried
till I come. What is that to you? Follow me. In other words, he said, our
Lord said, in a kind way, it's none of your business, Peter.
What I do with anybody, what's that to you? Cannot I do with
my own what I will? Now, he could not tell
us anything more important right here. Now, you listen very carefully.
Do not we excuse ourselves from doing what we know to do by pointing at somebody else.
They're not. They're not. Well, maybe you don't. I do. Well, look at him. He's not. Follow me. Rather than follow Christ implicitly,
we look at others and say, well, what about them? Don't we? And this and look at it in this
way. Whatever our Lord chooses to
do with my. Whoever. Whatever our Lord chooses to
do with your husband. What if your husband is not interested
in the gospel? Or your wife? Or your parents? Or your son or your daughter?
What's that to us? That's his business, isn't it?
Whatever our Lord does with my husband, my wife, my father,
my mother, my son, my daughter, that's his business. We don't enter heaven on the
body system. Salvation is a thing between
us and our Lord. I can't believe for my husband,
he can't believe for me. My wife, my son, my daughter. Is that not right? What if? What
if? What if? What's that to you?
What's that to me? What if? What's that to you? What business is that of yours?
You follow me. Though none of these follow me,
you follow me. Right, Barton? What if the preacher
turns out to be false? Does that change the truth? Follow
me. What if the leading member of
the church has a terrible thought? Follow me. follow anybody else's mistakes,
don't follow anybody else's opinions, don't follow anybody. You know,
generally we like to bring up people's bad points. Men, when
men imitate other men, they generally imitate their weak points. I
remember my pastor saying that to me, and I heard so many preachers
quote different preachers. Well, so-and-so said, this CH
person said, well, who cares? Who cares what John Gallagher
who cares. How they were. OK. Follow me. If the dearest person you know
is not following. You. Have. Lord, what about him or her?
Verse 22, our Lord said, If I will, if I will, whatever I will, what's
that to you? Whatever Christ does and whosoever
he saves or whatever is his will and his business, not ours. Our
business is to follow him. Right? If he saves everyone we know,
we'll praise him. If he doesn't save anybody we
know, Praise him. We went up. I love
what old John Calvin did say to me. He said, somebody asked
him one time, you believe the only elect are saved, don't you,
John Calvin? He said, yes. Don't you? That's
what God's Word said. Well, they said, you know, trying
to catch him, he said, well, what if you could see the Lamb's
Book of Life And you can see the names in it, and you did
not find your name there. You were not one of the elect.
Would you still be praising God? John Calvin said without hesitation,
yes. The men said, well, why? Calvin
said, because he's worthy. That's why he's worthy. He saves
anybody. He's worthy of all praise. He
saved no one. He saved many bodies. And anybody. But it's none of our business. Follow me. Do you love me? Yeah, Lord, I know. Feed my lambs. Feed my sheep. No, nothing else is in your business,
but the following. That's what Christ said. All
right, stand up. Our heavenly father, we, our
Lord, we thank you for this word, plain, simple, easy to understand,
and not difficult to abide by, by your spirit. Without your
spirit, it's impossible. So we ask for your spirit that
you would lead us and guide us. Don't let us fall away. Keep
us, hold us up. Keep us by your power. Lord,
we believe. Help our unbelief. Lord, we love
you because you first loved us. Thank you for that. And Lord,
increase our love. Gather us together again, those
that love you and those whom you love, that we might feed
again from the same source. In Christ's name, amen.

A Question and A Command For Christ's Disciples

What does the Bible say about loving Jesus?

How do we know if we truly love Christ?

Why is feeding the sheep important in Christianity?

Why does Christ ask Peter about his love three times?

What does it mean to follow Christ?

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A Question and A Command For Christ's Disciples

What does the Bible say about loving Jesus?

How do we know if we truly love Christ?

Why is feeding the sheep important in Christianity?

Why does Christ ask Peter about his love three times?

What does it mean to follow Christ?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

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