Thank you, Trust and Obey, and OnTheDL, for joining this discussion with me.
I don't want to give away everything I have about this Scripture, but I thought I should clarify something I said in the synopsis that may not be apparent to everyone from the text, and I hope when you read this, that it is as big a blessing as learning it was for me.
He asks for all, but accepts for the time being what we feel we can give Him.
Where does it say that? Jesus asked Peter three times if Peter loved him, and Peter replied three times "You know I love you." Peter was sad when Jesus asked him the third time, because it made Peter remember that he had denied Jesus three times the night before Jesus was crucified. But there was another thing Jesus and Peter were communicating to one another that doesn't show up in the English translation, which some of you are probably aware of, but some of you may not have heard of yet. When Jesus asked Peter those three times if he loved Him, the word "love," appears six times in the English translation- "Do you love me?" "Yes I love you." "Do you love me?" "Yes I love you." "Do you love me?" "Yes I love you." But in the Greek text, the words used for "love" are different- and they tell a very different story that reveals a deeper insight into the emotions Jesus and Peter were sharing.
The word, "love" has many meanings. You know, I'm starting to think that we Anglo-Saxons who communicate with this word, "love," must be a very loveless culture. Think about the Eskimoes. They have probably a dozen words for "snow," because they live in an icy, snowy enviornment, and their lives and livllihoods revolve around snow. Eskimoes don't have many words for the things that don't concern them, but they have a lot of words for snow. I heard of a native American tribe who lived around the Great Lakes area, and because so much of their lives revolved around lakes and rivers, they had several different words for water- describing water with ripples refected in the moonlight- water with waves and white caps in the wind, still water, etc. Well, I am aware of three distinctly different Greek words for love: Eros, Agape and Phileo. Eros means passionate, sexual or romantic love. Agape means self-sacrificing, giving love focused solely on benefiting the one who is loved. Phileo is brotherly love. We Anglophones have just that one word, "love." Kinda makes you think, doesn't it?
When we look at what Jesus and Peter were really saying to one another, in Greek, according to John and his editorial helper(s), it goes like this:
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly agape me more than these?"
"Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I phileo you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."
16 Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly agape me?"
He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I phileo you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep."
17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you phileo me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you phileo me?"
He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I phileo you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.
Do you see what Jesus and Peter were really saying to one another? Jesus asked Peter twice if Peter really had self-sacrificing, Agape love for Jesus. And Peter honestly replied, "Yes, but you know my heart. The truth is, I have phileo, brotherly love for you." Peter's once boasting, self-confidence was pretty much crushed when he failed Jesus the night before the crucifixion. Peter had once thought he had agape for Jesus, but after that, he realized he could not lie to himself or Jesus any more. He realized, like many of us, that we cannot really love Jesus back as much as Jesus loves us.
Then, the emotional climax of that encounter came when Jesus changed his question to Peter. He asked Peter the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you phileo me- do you have brotherly love for me?" And Peter was sad because now, not just because Jesus had asked the third time- a memory of Peter's betrayal. Jesus had lowered his expectations of Peter. And Peter had to be honest and respond that he could only live up to those lowered expectations. "Lord, you know all things. You know that I phileo you."
Then Jesus said, "Feed my sheep." Jesus told Peter, even though He knew that Peter could not love Jesus back as much as Jesus loved Peter, Jesus still accepted Peter, and still wanted Peter as a trusted friend and gospel worker. What that says to me is that Jesus asks us, do we agape Him? He asks us for everything. He asks us for self-sacrificing love. But He knows that we are only capable of phileo love. So. even though He asks us for agape, He will accept phileo from us, as long as that is all that we can give Him. His love is free of demand, because that's what agape is like.
