i

April 17 Daily Devotional

Lovest Thou Me More Than These?

Frans Bakker

So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? —John 21:15a

Bible Reading

John 21:15–17

Devotional

“Lovest thou me more than these?” This is a painful question. It is a question that must bring Peter down from his self-elevation above the other disciples. None of the disciples had acted so deplorably as Simon. They all had run away from Jesus at His darkest hour, but none had fallen so sadly as Peter.

Peter, therefore, cannot simply answer “yes” to this question. He must acknowledge that he is no longer the greatest but the least. He says, “Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee.” He no longer dares to compare himself with the others; he is silent about them. How many things will be unlearned when the Lord deals personally with the soul! Upon the searching of Christ, everyone must receive insight into his own depravity and become the least of all. The question comes to Simon for the second and for the third time, “Lovest thou me?” Peter denied Christ three times and he is asked about his love three times. The Lord, in His uncovering work, does this perfectly. Sin needs to be exposed in all its bright colors. Therefore, God will lead the sinner back to the fall in Adam. The Lord does not bypass sin.

“Simon, do you love Me?” This is the crucial question for all of us. The Lord does not ask Simon if he has enough knowledge. You can have knowledge of the truth by virtue of your upbringing, or by education. The Lord does not ask Simon if he is really converted, for what does conversion mean when there is no love present? Neither does Christ ask if Simon is elected. Many desire to know the answer to that question and then conclude that all is well. The Lord asks for the fruit of grace in one’s life. He asks for the fruit of conversion, or the fruit of election. That fruit will be love.

“Lovest thou me?” Everything in our spiritual lives begins and ends with this question. Whether one is a child, a young man, or a father in grace, love will be present. One cannot ask for more and one cannot do with less. All things culminate in this question. To be without love means to be without God.

The Lord does not ask many things. If God had asked us to perform many duties in His law, there would be some who, with the rich young ruler, would lift up their head and declare: “All these things have I kept from my youth up.” But with our deeds in hand, like the rich young ruler, we must go away sorrowful. Ultimately God asks only one thing of His children and that is that in love they walk humbly with their God. We must love in spite of sin; we must love in spite of guilt; and we must love in spite of knowing what the outcome will be. Do you understand that?

“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” When the Lord asks Peter this question for the third time, Peter is grieved. He does not understand why the Lord does not seem to accept his love. He may even question the genuineness of his love. His own thoughts and questions bring him grief in his heart. His own words testify against him. He can say that he loves Christ but his former words prove a different story.

There is a time when the Lord makes His people sorrowful. God puts His own work to the test. Gold must be purified because it is gold. Living branches must be pruned and that causes pain.

 

From The Everlasting Word by Frans Bakker, compiled and translated by Gerald R. Procee. Reformation Heritage Books and Free Reformed Publications, 2007. Used by permission. For further information, click here.

 

CONTACT US

+1 215 830 0900

Contact Form

Find a Church