What Jesus Does For Losers John 21:15-19

What Jesus Does For Losers John 21:15-19
Reality programs have been all the rage on TV the past few years. It started with Big Brother, then American Chopper, the Bachelor, Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, and my personal favorite- Little People, Big World. I think if I had an opportunity to write a script for a reality show it would be American Preacher. And then its spinoff, American Deacon. Or how about- American choir member? There’s a new reality show on television- have you seen it? Its called “The Biggest Loser.” The premise of the show is a parade of severely overweight people and their daily struggle to lose weight. Every time they step on the scale you take a deep breath for them- will their weight go down- or will it go in the other direction? For someone like that, being a loser is a good thing. But we all know that loser has a more common meaning.
The teenagers call a failure by another name- loser. To be called a loser means to be inept, a disgrace, someone who can’t get it together, whose not quite right, who doesn’t fit, someone who has messed up. Let me give you the politically correct term-Someone who is success challenged. What do we do with losers? How do we deal with them? We sideline them, avoid them, and if they do come into our presence, we tolerate them just long enough until somebody we want to be with comes along and we say, Gee- look at time! Gotta run, see ya! We have a hard time dealing with losers in our world. But it was just as hard dealing with them in the first century. Peter, and the rest of the disciples, were expecting something different. They were expecting an overthrow of Rome and a new kind of kingdom. But…the movement failed. He did not conquer Rome. You know, Jesus’ death looked like anything but a success. And when Jesus needed them the most, the disciples scattered. They failed miserably. But what we learn out of this is that…
Jesus Makes Successes out of Losers.. He can take our most miserable failure and make something great out of it. What we need to realize is we are all losers- is what the Bible tells us. For all have sinned. Sin means to lose out on our relationship with God. Today we are going to look into the life of Peter, and how he almost lost out because of his own self-confidence, and how he received forgiveness and most of all restored to a greater place of ministry and service.
I. We often have a self-confidence that is not well-founded. (John 13:36-38; 18:17, 25-27). In a conversation that occurs before Judas’ betrayal, we find this: Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!”
Simply, Peter overestimates his own ability. He is arrogant. He has a certain belief in his own strength.
So much so, even if the rest of the disciples were to fall away, he would not.
He would surpass them all. He was going to stay with Jesus no matter what. And then…the betrayal comes. Judas kisses Jesus and the soldiers move in. Peter found himself surrounded by the Lord’s enemies. All of sudden, it became real hard for him to stand by his earlier boast. And you know what they all did…they ran. They proved…
The thing we do not want to do is the very thing that we do. And the man who said that he would not fall away, did follow Jesus…from a distance. Now listen what happens to him… “You are not one of his disciples, are you?” the girl at the door asked Peter. He replied, “I am not.” As Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked, “You are not one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it, saying, “I am not.” One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the olive grove?” Again Peter denied it, and to drive home his denial, he punctuated the denial with curses, and at that moment a rooster began to crow. Can you imagine what it was like for Peter at this point? He felt like a complete failure- the ultimate loser. Here, he had been a member of Jesus’ inner core group. He had even seen Jesus in the glory of the transfiguration, with Moses and Elijah. He had had all the advantages.Yet, when push came to shove, when Jesus needed him most, he denied the Lord.
Peter was devastated by his own inability. And the text tells us that he wept bitterly. It was probably his worst moment ever. It broke his heart, for he had violated the trust of the One he loved the most. He had just promised that when all the others fell away, he would be there. And he was not.
Peter teaches us that most of us don’t know how sinful we are. We think more highly of our abilities than we ought. Romans 12:3 tells teaches us that we are not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think. We love to be identified with success, don’t we? We love to impress people with what we have done- or what we would do in a certain situation. O, I would never do what Peter did- not me..
So…we are shocked when we fall. We prefer to be shocked when someone else falls. Dr. W.A. Criswell once said, “Lord, if I should fail, let me fall into the hands of the lowlifes and the drunkards and the sinners, but Please don’t let me fall into the hands of church people.” Instead of nurturing and restoring the fallen comrades in God’s army, you know what we do with them? We shoot them! Why do we do that? Because we’re afraid? We’re afraid that people know the loser we truly are, so we become judgmental, harsh, critical, mean- which is, in my humble opinion, worse than messing up in the first place. Do you know what you would do if you were in that same situation Peter was in? Truth is, most of us don’t really know what we would do if we were faced with a situation like that. We would like to think what we might do, but what if you were confronted with having to deny your faith? We live in such a materialistic world today I submit to you that I despair to think about what it might take for a so-called Christian to deny his or her faith in Jesus. But the point is does failure have to be permanent?
II. The good news, is that our failing does not have to make us a failure. (Luke 22:31-32; John 21:15-17). Jesus has provided for our failings. Jesus knew that Peter was going to fail.For Jesus said…Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” What is wonderful here is that Jesus saw beyond the problem to Peter’s heart. He knew the man behind the loser. And it was because of that loss, Jesus had went to the cross. It was for his sin. It was for his denial.
The great thing about this is that God doesn’t wait until we are cleaned up and acceptable to love us and care for us. There’s a phrase people use around here that describes this, when I talk to them about their need for Christ, and you know what they tell me? “I’ve got to get things righted around!” Got to get things righted around? How are you going to do that? That’s like a lot of women around I have observed around here who hire the cleaning lady to come in to clean their house, but you know what they do the day before? They work like crazy to get their housecleaning done before the cleaning lady comes. Why? They will say, “What will the cleaning lady think of us- she’ll think we’re a bunch of slobs!” That doesn’t make any sense, anymore than to think we can clean up our lives before asking Christ to come in, because we can’t do it. No, Jesus died for us while we were still sinners. Jesus knew that Peter was going to mess up!. And now he was bringing him back. Jesus wants us to know that there is nothing that can separate us from His love So now it is time for the question, “Peter, do you love me?”
Notice, Jesus is not asking, “Did you distinguish yourself in My service?” Did you get a PHD? Did you go to church?” It is, “Do you love Me?” And Jesus asks it three times. He asks it three times to go along with every denial Peter rendered. . Now, how Jesus asks these questions and Peter’s reply are significant, because they use different words for love.
The two words we see here are agape, which is the most powerful type of love, characterized by self-sacrifice. The other word for love is phileo, which is a deep affection as a love between family and siblings. It is intense, but it is not as powerful as agape. So Jesus’ first question is, “Do you agape me more than these?”
Jesus asks this question, because Peter had said that he would outlast the rest.
But he did not. Rightfully, Peter does not boast anymore. His response to Jesus was, “You know that I phileo you.” “I have a deep affection for You. I like you!” He cannot say anything more or higher within himself. And he was not going to lie. He was not going to say that he had the agape kind of love after he had denied Jesus. He obviously did not have that kind of love for Jesus. He is careful not to promise more than he can deliver.
Peter is right to say that Jesus knows. For Jesus knows the worst about us and still loves us. But what’s more, He knows the best about us when others do not. He knows what we can be. Jesus again asks the question, “Do you agape me?” The reply is the same, “You know that I phileo you.”Peter had to take responsibility for this.. You see, you cannot grow from failures until you acknowledge them, own them and learn from them- not blame other people for it. If you have messed up, you’ve got to take responsibility for it, and repent of it. And Peter is beginning that process. But Jesus isn’t done yet. He has to ask one more time. But the question this time is different. He says, “Peter, do you phileo me?” This is such a wonderful question even though Peter grieves at its asking. For on this third time, Jesus comes down to Peter’s level. You see…
Jesus meets us where we are. Though this question a third time distressed Peter, and probably hurt his feelings, he had to recognize that it was grace. Peter confirms his love for Jesus and now Jesus owns him. There will be no more denial or betrayal. Now is the time for service-its time to get to work. Galatians 6:1- if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness.
III. We discover this wonderful truth here, that…Jesus frees us from our past and provides new opportunities for us. (John 21:18-19). There is hope for you. We are not beyond recovery! Its true, Peter messed up, and he messed up badly. But Jesus came to call Peter back into the fight. With each question, Peter gets an assignment. He is to be a shepherd in the church. He is to “feed my lambs,” that is, he is to feed the young, immature believers. He is to “take care of my sheep,” that is, he is to shepherd and lead the mature believers. Jesus said, “Keep on following me!” Its not the convenience oriented faith that we see so much of today. He too would someday be led to die, but this time he would make it And the hope of the resurrection would be a true hope for him. He forgave Peter and offered him something even greater than before.
Are you a loser? We all are! Jesus can take your failure and make you a success. He can turn it around for you. If you have failed Him, you do not need to stay in that pattern. You can know His grace. For Jesus can take your old life and give you a new one. Jesus offered Peter Perhaps, you have fallen behind. Jesus is here today to make you a new creation, old things will pass away, all things become new.
You see Jesus is offering you the opportunity to change. He is offering you the opportunity today. He is pursuing you. He is out to rescue you, not to put you down. You do not have to be a loser anymore. No matter how you may have messed up, come to Jesus. He stands ready to turn your failures into successes.