More than These?
John 21:15-19
“Peter, do you love me more than these?” That Scripture text that I have read a heard read hundreds of times pierced my heart around 10:00 a. m. last Friday, 08 April 05, as I was silent before the Lord in room 124 of the King’s House of Retreats across the Illinois River from Henry, Illinois. I was a participant in the Five Day Academy for Spiritual Formation co-sponsored by the Upper Room and our Illinois Great Rivers Annual Conference.
I am a person who loves to hear the “booming voice of the Lord.” Harry can never play the organ too loud for me. I love the feel the vibration of the 32 foot pedal stop resonate through the sanctuary. I love to be present when God displays His power in dynamite fashion—I relish hearing him through the powerful wind, the earthquake, or the fire in similar fashion as Elijah looked for God in all these phenomena in I Kings Chapter 19, but like Elijah I am beginning to hear the Lord speak in that “gentle whisper” or “still small voice.”
If you ever get the opportunity to participate in a Five Day Academy for Spiritual Formation, do so; you won’t regret it, and you will certainly draw closer to Jesus.” Two Christian leaders are present to share spiritual teaching with you for the five days. Our teachers were Dr. Bob Mulholland, Professor of New Testament and former Vice President and Chief Academic Officer at my Alma Mater Asbury Theological Seminary, who spoke on “New Testament Spirituality,” and Presbyterian Pastor Pat Ashley from Florida, who spoke on “Spiritual Discernment.” They would each speak for one hour each day, and then give us one hour for silent meditation on their presentation to simply “be still before the Lord” and listen to His “still small voice” speak to our hearts. We were encouraged to write in a journal the things the Lord spoke directly to us. After one hour, we would come back as a group and share as the Holy Spirit led us the things God had personally revealed to us during our one hour of silence in our room.
Now let me interject here that I need more of these periods of silence before God to hear God speak directly to my heart and soul. I have definitely heard God’s voice speak to me on several occasions in my fifty-seven years on this earth—at my conversion, in my call to preach, during the Great Asbury Revival of 1970 that lasted 181 continuous hours, during a similar Revival at Sumner in the early 1980s, and on all the Walks to Emmaus in which the Lord has led me to participate. As a pastor, however, I so often get so “busy working for God” that I don’t have time to “be still and listen to God.”
As Bob Mulholland pointed out so clearly to us last week, we live in a society that wants instant gratification, a quick fix. We carry that over into our relationship with Jesus as well. If I miss a day of devotions, I’m not too concerned. I usually will take the time to read the UPPER ROOM devotional for the day, perhaps the daily reading in Oswald Chamber’s MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST, and my PSALM for this year. As I am now 57, my personal Psalm for this year is Psalm 57. After such a “quick” fix, I get on with my day.
Several times last week, however, during our times of “silence” to “be still and listen for God to speak to our hearts,” the Holy Spirit zapped me with His presence and spoke clearly to me in ways I had not had time to listen to Him speak for months and even years. Bob had mentioned in his lecture last Friday the question Jesus raised with Peter in John 21:15. Recall that verse with me: “When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?’”
The word “these” can be a pronoun, but pronouns usually have to have a clearly stated “antecedent,” “a noun for which the pronoun stands” [--J. C. Tressler and Henry I. Christ, English in Action Course One, 7th ed. (Boston: D. C. Heath and Company, 1960), 399.] However, in our text we can not distinguish a specific antecedent for the word “these.”
To What “things” or “people” is Jesus referring when He asks Peter, “Do you love me more than these?” We can not tell from the text. This is Jesus third appearance to a group of His disciples since His Resurrection. We know from the opening verses of John 21 that there are a total of seven disciples, including Peter, to whom Jesus appeared that day on the beech and for whom He cooked breakfast. Could it be that Jesus was asking Peter, “Peter, do you love Me more than these other six disciples love Me?” Maybe Jesus is asking, “Peter, do you love Me more than you love these other six disciples.”
The story begins with Peter saying to his companions, “I’m going out to fish.” They respond by saying, “We’ll go with you.” They fished all night and caught nothing, but then with the help and encouragement of Jesus their catch was humongous. The net “was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn” (John 21:11). This catch would bring Peter a huge profit. Maybe Jesus was asking, “Peter do you love Me more than you love your work, your profitable fishing business? Peter “enjoyed” fishing. Maybe Jesus was asking, “Peter, do you love Me more than you love fishing?” Jesus had cooked a great breakfast for Peter and his brother disciples—maybe Jesus was asking, “Do you love me more than you love having a full stomach?”
What were Peter’s “these?” Did he love Jesus more than he loved anyone else, more than he loved fishing, more than he loved owning a profitable business? Did he love Jesus more than the other six disciples loved Him? Did he love Jesus more than having Jesus satisfy his physical appetite?
Bob Mulholland asked us, “What are the “these” in your life?” What are the areas and priorities in you life where Jesus asks you, “Peter, David, do you love me more than these?” That is the question upon which the Holy Spirit called me to meditate last Friday morning at 10:00 a. m. Almost immediately, He began to show me my own “these.” It resulted in a flood of tears that lasted for an hour along with a heart that pounded as I knew beyond all doubt that I was in the presence of Jesus and He was cleansing me.
My first “these” was my music. I thank God I was raised by Christian parents in an evangelical United Methodist Church. Ever since I can remember I wanted to play the organ in Church. I remember my first experience of being thrilled by the accompaniment of the organ in congregational singing. I must have been four or five. Mom was ill that June morning, and Dad and I went to Church alone. The opening hymn that day was “Holy, Holy, Holy.” As the congregation sang that day to the accompaniment of full organ, goose bumps clung to my spine, and I said, “I want to do that some day.”
In the eighth grade I fell more in love with music and determined to major in it in college and become a music teacher. My junior high music teacher had inspired me so, and indeed she became my first organ teacher However, that same summer, God began to call me to preach, and I kept arguing with God, “No, Lord,” please not that; just let me serve you as a public school music teacher and even as a choir director in the local Church. Music, not Jesus, was my number one priority.
At age twenty, knowing I was the poorest specimen of physical fitness, I began running on the Kenneth Cooper Aerobics Program. That was in the summer of 1968; ten year later being inspired by Jim Fixx’s THE COMPLETE BOOK OF RUNNING, I set as my goal to follow in my hero, Jim Fixx’s footsteps and run the distance around the equator, a total of 24, 902 miles, a feat I was able by God’s help to accomplish on 07 December 1996. During those years I became somewhat of an “amateur” athlete, even winning some trophies in my age division. At Sumner and Beulah Churches we had a lot of runners and even sponsored “w4 Hour Runs for Jesus” to raise money for missions. However, I became obnoxious and obsessed with running. That was all I could talk about, and it became boring to Liz and everyone else. Running had become my second “these.” Although I would have good talks with Jesus on my runs, running was my number one priority.
It was my joy to serve the former Southern Illinois Annual Conference and our new Illinois Great Rivers Annual Conference as chairperson of the Committee on Annual Conference Sessions for seven years and serve a total of thirteen years as part of the Committee. The ministry of the Committee on Annual Conference Sessions is “to assist the bishop and cabinet in planning Annual Conference” each year. As the chairperson I was before the entire Annual Conference at least twice each year. All those years people would tell me, “We really appreciate the job you and your committee do in helping see that everything goes smoothly each year.” I so appreciated all those kind affirmations, along with those that come from a grateful congregation such as, “Pastor, we really love you and appreciate the fact that we know we can always count on you to be there for us.” These affirmations by my congregation and the Annual Conference became my third “these.”
Jesus was saying to me last Friday, “David, do you love Me more than your music, more than your running, more than the satisfaction of working for Me as a pastor, more than the affirmation of the Annual Conference.” Music, running, chairing the Sessions Committee, being a caring pastor that was affirmed by his congregation were all things I had loved and cherished for years. Jesus had, I know, tried to get through to me at this point for at least forty years, but I just had not taken the time to listen. Now I clearly heard, I dropped to my knees weeping with a broken heart.” I beyond all doubt that I was in His presence, and I could honestly confess to Him, “Yes, Lord, I love you more than these—more than my music, more than running, more than chairing the Sessions Committee, more than working for You as a pastor. I truly love you, Lord Jesus, “more than these.”
My favorite praise and worship chorus, as you well know, is “You Are My All in All,” but now that has taken on new meaning. “Yes, Lord, I love you more than these.” “Yes, Jesus, You Truly Are My All in All.”
My “these” were not bad things; they just needed to be under the Lordship and control of Jesus, and not be the gods of my life I had allowed them to become. I can not adequately express to you what deep peace, joy, and love flooded my soul and continues to do so now for over nine days. The Holy Spirit truly cleansed my soul in a marvelous new way when I was open to His voice and obedient to His call.
What are the “these” in your life that He calls you to surrender to Him today? Go to a quiet place to be alone with Jesus; mediate on these verses from John 21:15-19. Read it over and over, again and again if need be. Read it aloud; read it silently; read it in multiple translations in the spirit of this prayer, “God, what are you saying to me in this passage?”
Be obedient to what He says to you by surrendering the “these” He reveals to you to His control.
For Peter this encounter with Jesus brought restoration to the disciple who had “denied Jesus three times.” When I surrendered my “these” to Jesus, I too experienced new restoration. The same joy, love, and peace can be yours too as you give your own “these” to Jesus, and truly allow Him to become Your “All in All.”
“Listen! He is calling your name? Do you hear His voice, “Bob, Tim, Georgia, Liz, Arelene, Glenn, Norm, Tom, David, Frank, Glenna, Alice, do you love Me more than these?” How will you answer Him?
