Following After Failure
This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”
(John 21:19 NKJV)
The last words to Peter were of forgiveness. Peter had betrayed Jesus Christ and it hurt Jesus. Jesus had poured His heart into Peter, expecting Peter to gently follow Him. But when the time as tough, Peter failed.
Do I feel worthy to follow Jesus after I know that I have failed Him? No, but that doesn’t matter.
Do I feel like I am able to follow Jesus? No, but that doesn’t matter. Why?
Because Jesus knows that it does not take willpower, but love. Jesus asked Peter three times if Peter loved Him. Three times Jesus was betrayed, so He asked Peter three times – to restore the relationship.
Some people concentrate on the words that were used in this exchange. There were two different words used for love. What kind of love did Peter really have for Jesus? The point is not what kind of love Peter had for Jesus, but what kind of love Jesus expected from Peter.
Jesus expected Peter to learn and grow. Jesus expects all to learn and grow after failure. This is an important test of our love for Him. We all make mistakes. We all sin and fail God.
The last words to Peter were: “Follow Me”. The resurrection teaches us that Jesus gives us the power to learn from our failure and to continue to follow Him.
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