Lovest thou me more than these?

John 21:15

So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

The marvelous love and compassion of our Lord is on full display through this passage. For the Lord Jesus, having been risen again, and knowing that some of His disciples were still doubting, appeared to them when they had gone fishing. He showed up on the shore and prepares a fire to bake fish and bread. They had fished all night without catching one fish, and now He tells them how to catch many fish. They are to fish on the right side of the ship. Now that they have done so, they pull in a great quantity of fish. As He bakes the fish and the bread, He tells them, “Come and dine.” But the most marvelous part of this story is that Jesus shows great care and forgiveness toward Simon Peter, the one who had denied Him, and the one who soon after would become the leader of the church. And one question is asked of our Lord to him that is also asked to each of us today—lovest thou me more than these?

What does this question mean? Who are these? Are they the fellow disciples? Are they the fish? It does not matter, indeed, it is exceedingly irrelevant! For the meaning here is, do you love me supremely? Do you love me above all others? That is the question. Do we love our Lord more deeply than do we love our profession, our possessions, and our pride? Do we love Him more than our family, our friends, and our fun? Is He above all else, towering to greater heights of devotion, and sounding to greater depths of commitment? Are all our commitments in life more unbreakable because our commitment to Him is impregnable? Do we have more fervent charity towards others, because our love for Christ is of greater fervor and passion than any other? Our love for others must be predicated in our love for Him! If we love Him, we will love these-the fellow disciples. No doubt we will because we love Christ. And we will feed His lambs. That will be a natural outworking, and an automatic result of our love for Christ. Every other love will grow. But other loves will wane, wear out, and wither away if our love for Christ waxes cold. Dear friend, above all else, we must love Him more than these!

As we begin this day, let us enquire who is the object of our greatest and chiefest love. May it be undoubtedly the Lord. If it is not, we will struggle all day to love others, and we will be given to every other purpose and plan with more ardor than the ardor we have in nourishing our walk with Him. We are told to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and then our neighbor as ourself! Without the love of God, the love for the neighbor is weak, selfish, and breakable. It is based on their actions, their person, and their love toward us. But no, my friend! Love Christ more! And if you will, you will love others, and you shall be able to follow Him! And you shall be able, with His help, to feed His lambs. Love Him more than all else!

“Father, we know that your Word has helped to change our perspective and adjust our understanding. We have thought that we love others for their sake and for our sakes. But help us to know that the love of Christ is first, and will be the arbiter and governor of all other loves. If we could just love you! Oh, how we would love others! How exceedingly better our lives would be! How much closer to Thy side! How much more drawn into intimate fellowship with Thee! How greatly we would love to be with you, to follow you, to obey you! Strengthen and deepen this day our love for Thee, and all else will certainly follow for Thy sake. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.”