April 7: “Do You Love Me?”
♫ Music:
Day 50 - Wednesday, April 7
Title: “DO YOU LOVE ME?”
Scripture: John 21:15-19
So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My lambs.” He said to him again a second time, Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep.” Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.” Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me!”
Poetry:
Kenosis
by Judith H. Montgomery
each day I will walk the dog without
sobbing in the dry woods will field
the phone calls abandon ink and pen
will start awake to see whether my
husband breathes or not will not
sleep (ever) (again) while the clock’s
red numbers blink bright as blood
I will empty my self will not com-
plain will change his soaked
dressing twice will tend his in-
sistent wound will tell him how
well it heals will lie will lie down
on the living room’s red rug at
night will wonder whether there
is a dying room or whether it is
the whole house will curl on my side
weep helplessly will stifle the sound
will get up will do it again
tomorrow
THE RESTORATION OF PETER IS OFFERED TO US TODAY!
In many cultures, we often associate leadership with strength and confidence. We expect leaders to know how to respond in every circumstance that they are faced with. However, Jesus has a different expectation of how a disciple is to respond when facing unfamiliar moments filled with personal disappointment. If you are like me, these times surface very complex emotions, especially when we know that we have saddened others through actions of betrayal.
In this week’s Scripture, we see the disciples confused. It is their love for Jesus in the midst of their failure and confusion that demonstrates their potential for being instruments of restoration. Peter is restored by the tender words of love that Jesus expresses to him. Can you imagine how exciting, and yet discouraging it was for Peter when he heard Jesus’ voice inviting him to have pescado sarandiado (grilled fish) on the shores of Tiberias. At that moment Peter is thinking back to when he betrayed Jesus when he was on trial for his life. In this passage, Jesus restores Peter and teaches us what qualities characterize leadership: humility, trust, loving unconditionally, and obedience.
After they were finished eating, Jesus addressed Peter with a question he would ask him three times, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” (21:15, 16, 17). Simon was Peter’s name by birth, which means “Rocky” (not Balboa) it was the nickname Jesus gave him. The first time Jesus asked Peter if he loved him raises within him the incognita, what does Jesus mean by this question? Scholars think Jesus was asking Peter if he loved him more than any of the other disciples. Remember, this is what Peter asserted in Mark 14:29 before Jesus was arrested, he had boldly claimed to love Jesus deeper than anyone else. Peter’s tone demonstrates that he was embarrassed and needed restoration to uphold his claim, and, like you and me he responds, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you” (John 21:15).
Jesus repeats the question two more times, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” (21:16-17). Peter was uncomfortable and admits that Jesus knows his heart, and with a trembling voice answers, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you” (John 21:17). The disciple has lost his arrogance; he recognized he had failed Jesus. He humbles himself and knows that Jesus sees his true heart and intentions. At that moment, just as it happens right now with you, restoration is taking place! Life is being restored: hope is being revived: and a calling is being asserted. Jesus was restoring Peter to public ministry within the view of the other disciples. We need to do this kind of restoration more often in our ministries. Can you imagine what it would be like if we showed that kind of forgiveness and love in our communities? What would our churches and institutions look like if we loved and forgave like Jesus? We also see how the pastoral care and tenderness of Jesus evoked a loving response of obedience in Peter’s heart and became the model for his calling. (D. A. Carson, The Pillar New Testament Commentary: John, p. 678).
The Holy Spirit prepares us as disciples through these questions today. Jesus is asking us—do we love him? If so, then take care of his flock whether that is in a church, parachurch, academic institution, or anywhere we live or work. We must serve with self-sacrifice and through suffering. These lessons and journeys are unavoidable and as leaders, we must go through them. These questions also lead us to examine our stubbornness, and most of the time it will usually happen through the process of brokenness and by learning humility. Jesus ends their time with a statement that indicated “the kind of death by which Peter would suffer will glorify God” (21:19). Are we willing to “Follow Jesus!” at all costs? Amigos, I pray that as we follow Jesus, we learn to be obedient, to be humble, to be prepared to suffer, and in all things to trust Christ.
Praying for your restoration today!
Oscar Merlo
Director, Center for the Study of the Work and Ministry of the Holy Spirit Today
Talbot School of Theology
Biola University
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab.
About the Artwork:
De Profundis (Installation view)
Miguel Rothschild
2018
Print on fabric, fishing line, lead balls
850 x 400 cm piece of fabric
St. Matthew’s Church
Berlin, Germany
“De profundis” is Latin for the first words of the first line of Psalm 130, “Out of the depths I cry to you, O God,” a petition by the psalmist to the Lord for deliverance. In 2018, artist Miguel Rothschild’s installation piece entitled De Profundis was hung above the altar of St. Matthew’s Church in Berlin. Composed with over 1,500 eight-meter-long pieces of fishing wire, Rothschild suspended a cascading sheet of blue fabric printed with patterns of ocean waves. The glistening of the strands of clear fishing line evokes both heavy rain and light streaming from the heavens. Of this work Rothschild states, “My reading is that the sea (located on the altar) acts as a stairway to heaven. I hung more than 1,500 fishing lines from the highest point of the apse to achieve this: these threads simulate a beam of light that floats in space and gives volume to the photograph of the sea printed on canvas. With a 850 x 400 cm piece of fabric I completely covered the altar, as if it is the great veil ‘velum quadragesimale.’” This refers to the hanging of a large curtain during the Lenten season to obscure the altar of the church until the Wednesday before Easter, a Parisian practice until around 1870. In a further description of his work, Rothschild says, “I try to show the human aspect of what is commonly considered divine. I try to offer a different perspective of all dogma. In this particular case, to create new earthly images around the Passion of Christ.”
https://www.liturgicalartsjournal.com/2018/03/the-lenten-veil-velum-quadragesimale-by.html
https://miguelrothschild.de/works/installations/
About the Artist:
Miguel Rothschild (b. 1963) is an Argentinian multidisciplinary artist who currently lives and works in Berlin, Germany. The artist’s works commonly express the interplay of thematic structures, usage of everyday materials, and abstracted forms to question what defines the sacred by contemporary culture. Rothshild’s works incorporate a wide variety of mediums, from modified photography to glass sculpture and textiles. His first exhibition was Art Cologne 1996 at Koelnmesse GmbH in Cologne and his most recent exhibition was Seestücke | Fakten und Fiktion at Alfred Ehrhardt Stiftung in Berlin in 2020. Mostly exhibiting in Germany, he has also had exhibitions in France and Argentina.
https://www.ignant.com/2018/04/03/talking-melancholy-and-humour-with-miguel-rothschild/
https://www.stirworld.com/see-features-miguel-rothschild-s-immersive-art-practice-represents-the-duality-of-lifeMiguel Rothschild
About the Music:
“Ever Faithful” from the album Worth the Wait
Lyrics:
Just like you said to Peter
You’re calling me out again
Step out upon the water
And breathe deep in the wind
You say we’ll do this together
I’m with you to the end
And with a trembling heart
I’ll stand on wilder oceans
In knowing who you are
Strength of the weak and broken
With trust inside your gaze
You say I can’t be shaken
Just keep your eyes on me
Just keep your eyes on me
Ever faithful breaking the darkest night
Never changing
Your love outshines every other light
Always with me you speak to the strongest tide
And I’m standing on
The rock that you provide
The rock that you provide
Your voice has called me closer
With confidence I run
My portion is your joy now
My fears you overcome
What we do here lasts forever
It’s only just begun
You whisper to me in the storm
And you say
Peace be still
I am with you always
Just keep your eyes on me
Just keep your eyes on me
Just keep your eyes on me
Lyricist/Composer/Performer:
Bryan McCleery is a worship pastor, recording artist, and GMA Dove Award–nominated singer/songwriter. Since the age of seventeen, when he started writing songs in the countryside of rural Florida, Bryan felt called to be a messenger of truth and to bring glory to the Father through his songwriting. He is best known for his seven-year partnership with IHOPKC, ministering in the US and internationally. His songs have been recorded by artists such as Cory Asbury, UPPERROOM, and Misty Edwards. In 2012, Bryan debuted his first EP, “Come Away,” which gained grassroots success. He is also featured on “The Emerging Sound Vol. 2” with People & Songs, and in 2017 released his first full-length album, “Worth the Wait.” Bryan is invested in equipping emerging worship leaders and is committed to writing songs that exalt Jesus and reveal the character of God through the power of the Holy Spirit.
https://crossbridgecommunitychurch.com/people/bryan-mccleery/
About the Poet:
Judith H. Montgomery has a Ph.D. in American Literature from Syracuse University. Originally from Torrington, Connecticut, she now lives in Oregon, in a suburb of Portland. She has won fellowships from the Oregon Arts Commission and Literary Arts, has taught poetry workshops throughout Oregon, and has been a resident at Caldera, Playa, and Hypatia-in-the-Woods. Montgomery is the author of five books of poetry. Her first book, Passion, was chosen by Mark Doty for Defined Providence Press, and won the Oregon Book Award for Poetry in 2000. Her fifth book, Mercy, was published last year; it chronicles Montgomery’s experience with her husband’s cancer. Her other books are Red Jess (Cherry Grove), Pulse & Constellation (Finishing Line Press), and Litany for Wound and Bloom (Uttered Chaos Press).
https://therumpus.net/2020/11/the-rumpus-interview-with-judith-h-montgomery/
jhm@bendcable.com
About the Devotion Author:
Oscar Merlo
Director, Center for the Study of the Work and Ministry of the Holy Spirit Today
Talbot School of Theology
Biola University
Dr. Oscar Merlo is passionate about empowering new generations through the Holy Spirit and illuminating the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. He has served in executive leadership positions for profit and nonprofit multinational organizations. Merlo has traveled extensively to over thirty-five countries in five continents and has experienced how God’s Missio-Dei is at work in diverse places such as Cuba, Tel Aviv, Bissau, Istanbul, Guatemala, local communities in Los Angeles, and other places in the global South. He leads global plans in evangelism and transformation initiatives and has participated in social justice advocacy, the Latin America Free of Corruption Initiative, and has coordinated global leadership training programs. Merlo served as a co-founder of the OMEGA generation project, an initiative to mentor Latin-X millennials in the twenty-first century. He has developed EDEAM (School of Evangelists Alberto Mottesi) academic programs, expanding to 136 international centers throughout Latin America, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. Oscar is happily married to Lexa and they have two daughters.