Do you love me?
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What is love?
What is love?
An inner quality expressed outwardly as a commitment to seek the well-being of the other through concrete acts of service. Love is a central biblical concept for defining the relationship between God and humans.
Several words are used in the OT to describe various aspects of love. Most common is Heb. ʾāhaḇ and its derivatives, which characterize relationships ranging from the secular to the sacred
Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible Secular Human Relations
Love describes the full range of relations between the sexes (e.g., Gen. 29:18, 20; Judg. 16:4; 1 Sam. 18:20). Physical attraction and sexual love are powerful inner forces (Cant. 8:6–7; Prov. 5:19–20).
Love is the bond between parent and child (Gen. 22:2; 44:20). Parental love always seeks the best for the child, which may include physical discipline (Prov. 13:24; cf. 3:12).
Love is the bond of mutual devotion and commitment expressed in a close friendship such as that between Jonathan and David (1 Sam. 18:1–4; 20:17; 2 Sam. 1:26) and the devotion of Ruth, who sought the welfare of Naomi beyond all cultural expectations or legal requirements (Ruth 4:15).
when you search the Bible we are overwhelmed with verses that speaks about God’s love for us, our love for our fellow men and how we should respond to the love of God.
verses such as .......................
You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.
when we read the Bible, it us of Jesus’s encounter with peter in
John 21:15-19
15 So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love (Agapeo) Me more than these?”
He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love (Philo) You.”
He said to him, l“Feed My lambs.”
16 He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love (Agapeo) Me?”
He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love (Philo)You.”
He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love (Philo) Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love (Philo) Me?”
And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love (Philo) You.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep. 18 Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”
what is John trying to tell us from these verses, because nowhere else in the entire Gospel do we have words such as these.
In verse 15 Jesus confronts peter on the real issue. Do you love me more than these.
Note: The disciples after the crucifixion went back to their normal duties, fishing and so when Jesus confronts Peter he ask him one question in three different context.
first he ask Peter if he love him more than these (the fish) more than what you have in your hand. more than what you desire, more than what is before you.
Just as how Jesus confronts Peter, Jesus confronts us with the same question, Do you love me more than these. (The thing that you hold dear) your family, your friends, your career, your money, your financial investments and the returns you will get from it.
Do you love me more than these? is the question that Jesus ask Peter.
notice the response Peter gave. “you know that i love you”
peter was not answering the question of his love but only reminiscent of his past proclamation of love.
sometimes we do the same thing to our love ones, we like to say you know i love you because we want that person to remember what was said in the past by us, maybe at the alter when you pledge your love, maybe when you showed affection of gratitude or gave a tangible object to that person. We keep hinging our love on something of the Past rather than our present. that’s what peter was doing.
so Jesus ask him the second time but the same response and for each time he used the word love but with a different association.
so Jesus ask him again the third time but Jesus used the same word that Peter used Love. (Philo) and then he realize what Jesus was doing was confronting him on his denial and rather than rebuking Peter Jesus said “follow me” the same statement that he made with peter three years before. follow me and i will make you fisher of men.
in these words Jesus is saying i know you said you love me but all your proclamation of Love, it means nothing unless you are willing to “follow me”.
Just as how Jesus confronts peter Jesus is confronting us and He is saying, if you are not willing to follow me, your presence here today, your religious liturgy means nothing unless you can say Lord, i love you and i am willing to follow you.
Today what does it means to follow Christ.
Does it means coming to Church?
Does it means sing praises?
Does it means being apart of a religious organization?
sometimes we equate following Jesus to these things but miss the meaning of really following Jesus.
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.
Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
today are you still willing to follow Jesus fully aware of its cost. which is dying to self.
listen to the testimony of Paul
But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Jesus confrontation with Peter was the act of reconciliation, an act of renewal for Peter for it was Peter who stood up on the day of Pentecost and preached Jesus, it was Peter who stood and witnessed for Jesus and when he was to die, he proclaimed to his executioners that he was not worthy to be crucified the same way like his lord. Historians says he was crucified up-sided down.
Today, Do you love Jesus more than these.....
Do you love Jesus still to follow me and say i love you.
Lets pray.