Failed Followers (John 21:17,19)
"A third time he asked him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?"
Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, "Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you." Jesus said, "Then feed my sheep...19...Then Jesus told him, "Follow me." John 21:17,19
After Jesus rose from the dead, he appeared to His disciples three different times to show that He was alive. That reality alone changed their lives forever. But Peter was still struggling with the fact that only a few weeks earlier he had betrayed Jesus and virtually abandoned his closest friend- the same guy He just discovered is in fact God! He had not only let himself down, he had failed God- completely and publicly. His reputation was tarnished as a follower of Jesus. His leadership was questionable at best. Yet again, Jesus appears to him and invites this failure of a man to eat as friends and asks Him to continue serving and following Him as before.
Jesus picked the guy who had done the most damage to His message and reputation to be part of and head up the launch team of what was about to become the most important movement in history. Jesus took a huge risk in asking Peter to continue following Him again because He wasn't through with him yet.
For some reason we tend to equate failure as the end when God usually sees it as the beginning. We think our shortcomings disqualify us from following Christ or being useful to God. But God is not looking for people with a flawless record He can use (because there aren't any), He's looking for those who are simply willing to continue following Him despite their failures and be dependent more on His grace than on their own efforts.
No matter who you are, God has called you to follow Him despite your worst failure. All He asks is that we rely fully on His grace for us today and keep following faithfully. For whatever it's worth, be encouraged..."His power works best in your weaknesses, issues, screw-ups, and failures" (2 Corinthians 12:10). If there was hope for a guy like Peter, then there's hope and a place for all of us in God's Kingdom.
Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, "Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you." Jesus said, "Then feed my sheep...19...Then Jesus told him, "Follow me." John 21:17,19
After Jesus rose from the dead, he appeared to His disciples three different times to show that He was alive. That reality alone changed their lives forever. But Peter was still struggling with the fact that only a few weeks earlier he had betrayed Jesus and virtually abandoned his closest friend- the same guy He just discovered is in fact God! He had not only let himself down, he had failed God- completely and publicly. His reputation was tarnished as a follower of Jesus. His leadership was questionable at best. Yet again, Jesus appears to him and invites this failure of a man to eat as friends and asks Him to continue serving and following Him as before.
Jesus picked the guy who had done the most damage to His message and reputation to be part of and head up the launch team of what was about to become the most important movement in history. Jesus took a huge risk in asking Peter to continue following Him again because He wasn't through with him yet.
For some reason we tend to equate failure as the end when God usually sees it as the beginning. We think our shortcomings disqualify us from following Christ or being useful to God. But God is not looking for people with a flawless record He can use (because there aren't any), He's looking for those who are simply willing to continue following Him despite their failures and be dependent more on His grace than on their own efforts.
No matter who you are, God has called you to follow Him despite your worst failure. All He asks is that we rely fully on His grace for us today and keep following faithfully. For whatever it's worth, be encouraged..."His power works best in your weaknesses, issues, screw-ups, and failures" (2 Corinthians 12:10). If there was hope for a guy like Peter, then there's hope and a place for all of us in God's Kingdom.
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