Who Will You Follow?

by Fay Barlow

John 21: 15-22 So when they had eaten 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 love 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 love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.” He said to him a third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?”

Peter was grieved because He said to him a third time, “Do you love Me?” and he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep. 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.”

This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”

Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”

I’ve thought about these verses for a couple of days. Peter fascinates me. Probably because I am so like him. He seemed to have had little patience and was constantly comparing himself to others, even in his love for Jesus. He was so adamant earlier in saying that he would die with Jesus and that he would never leave Jesus, even if others would. I believe his heart was on target but his mouth and pride got the best of him at times.

After Jesus restored Peter to himself with these verses, asking three times if Peter loved him. (The same amount of times Peter denied Jesus) Jesus made a prophetic statement about the life and death of Peter, and then said the two words that have stuck with me for the past few days. “Follow me.”

For all of us who would love to have a glimpse into our futures, this is not what I would have wanted to see. And I wonder if Peter felt the same way. Jesus, instead of telling him the great things that Peter will do with regard to the gospel, told of his death. I wonder why?

If Peter is anything like me, knowing the grandness of the future might cause a lot of pride to seep in and destroy any glory for God.
But the thing that gets me the most about this passage is that Peter asks a question about John (the one whom Jesus loved.)

Jesus had just given Peter a glimpse into the future and Peter immediately (in my opinion) begins to compare himself to others. He asks about John’s future. Now, I understand that this revelation that Peter had just been given was stunning and probably fearful. Maybe he just wanted to know if he was going to have company in his death.

And basically, Jesus said that it was none of Peter’s business what He had in store for John, or anyone else, but that Peter needed to focus on simply following Him.

Now, for me, this means that I need to not compare my life or what I want my future to be, with that of others. God’s plan for one person is not the same for another. I find myself looking at my life and almost expecting the same thing to happen to me that I’ve seen happen to others.

And Jesus is saying the same thing to me. “Don’t worry about everyone else and what they are doing and where their success lies. I have a unique plan for you. It may not happen like it has happened to others. You just need to focus on Me and the life I’ve given you. “You follow Me.”

It seems so simple, yet so hard. Jesus didn’t love Peter anymore than he loved John or anyone else. And just because someone else’s life seems easier than my own, I shouldn’t measure God’s love accordingly.

Maybe that was Peter’s problem. And mine too. Peter was measuring Jesus’ love for him by the future he was told. And I measure Jesus’ love for me by the level of accomplishments or success or money or family dynamics that I hold and that I compare to others!

And I find it interesting that in verse 20 it says; Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple. So maybe Peter’s problem, and mine, is that we are “turning around” when we should be facing forward. It’s kind of hard to follow someone when you’re always looking around at others!