Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way:
2 Simon Peter, Thomas, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them…
[I heard Anne Graham Lotz say about Peter going back to his old life: ‘I can’t go back, but I don’t know if I can go forward. Oh, God, who am I?’
Then Jesus answers his question…]
When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter,
“Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said,
“Feed my lambs.”
16 Again Jesus said,
“Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said,
“Take care of my sheep.”
17 The third time he said to him,
“Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said,
“Feed my sheep. Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”
20 Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”)
21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
22 Jesus answered,
“If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” 23
Because of this, the rumor spread among the believers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.
25 Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.
John 21:15-25 via www.biblegateway.com
I’m always sad to finish a book I’ve been slowly working through.
As a bit of a side note, in Paul’s review of what is first importance, he described the order of Christ’s appearing this way:
“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of he brothers at the same time…”
(1 Corinthians 15:3-6a, emphasis mine)
I heard a teacher mention this passage, wondering if maybe Jesus came to Peter first and individually because he so deeply needed to know he was still who God said he was. He had to believe even after such failure. That the two of them had a meeting so intimate it necessitated being alone.
I don’t doubt it. He is so good and so kind and so wise.
It is not told to us specifically, so we can’t be dogmatic about it.
But still. Makes me wonder…