John 21:13-17 :

Then Jesus came and took the bread, gave it to them, and the fish likewise. This is now the third time that Jesus was revealed to his disciples, after he had risen from the dead. So when they had eaten their breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these?”

He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I have affection for you.”

He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?”

He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I have affection for you.”

He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you have affection for me?”

Peter was grieved because he asked him the third time, “Do you have affection for me?” He said to him, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I have affection for you.”

Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.”

Here we see that Peter didn’t have to wonder what Jesus wanted him to do. He was told very clearly to feed His sheep. This meant that he was to take care of the people of God.

After denying Jesus three times, Peter was probably wondering what Jesus wanted him to do. He probably had the same feelings that we have after we have done something very disappointing to God. Jesus restored Peter and gave Him clear direction about his future service.

This is a good way to know when Jesus is indicating to us that we should do something too. God gives us a clear indication of what is right. There are many things that I have done wrong because of feelings. It is more important that we follow God’s word and do what it says. Many of the details He leaves up to us. God made us and knows what we will do when we are asked to do a general thing like “love your brother.” God knows exactly what we will do as a result of such a command.

This story also tells us how important it is to keep our love for Jesus alive when we do work for Him. Without love, the Bible says, our work is worthless. With love, good works are the way we see that the love is real. The two go together but can easily fall apart when we try to do things without God.

It may seem like after this point Peter did no wrong. The Bible makes it clear that after this, Peter still made big mistakes. Peter is a great example for us because he acted much like we do and it was recorded for all of us to see. His imperfect life tells us something about how we are to care for each other as Christians. We should be willing to share our problems with each other, knowing that we all do have them. Even though we fail, we should encourage each other to making upward progress. We should be willing to be honest about our problems rather than hiding them from each other.