Feed My Lambs

"Simon Peter [and the disciples] went out and got into the boat [to go fishing], but that night they caught nothing.  . .  Jesus said to them, 'Children, have you caught anything to eat?' They answered Him, 'No.'  So He said to them, 'Cast the net over the right side of the boat and you will find something.'  So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in because of the number of fish. So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord.'
When the climbed out on shore, they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread. . . Jesus said to them, 'Come have breakfast.' Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them, and in like manner the fish.
Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon Peter, do you love me more than these?'
Simon Peter answered Him, 'Yes, Lord, you know I love you.'
Jesus said to him, 'Feed my lambs.'
He then said to Simon Peter a second time, 'Simon, do you love me?'
Simon Peter answered Him, 'Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.'
Jesus said to him, 'Tend my sheep.'
Jesus said to him a third time, 'Simon, do you love me?'
Peter was distressed that Jesus had said [this] to him a third time, and he said to Him, 'Lord you know everything; you know that I love you.'
Jesus said to him, 'Feed my sheep.'
And when He had said this, He said to him, 'Follow me.' "
 -[John 21: 1-19].


This Scripture is laden with symbolism: when Jesus' ministry began, he appealed to the disciples to leave their nets and become "Fishers of Men". This meal on the shores of the Sea of Tiberias mirrors in a poignant and earthly way, the Last Supper which became the basis of Communion for Christians. Upon Jesus taking the bread and the fish, and giving it to His disciples, Jesus is recognized for who He is. The great number of fish in the net has been numbered at 153, the number of different kinds of fish believed to be in the sea at that time; meaning that Jesus and His disciples fish for ALL, not just for some.

But the most important and poignant part of this Scripture is when Jesus says, "Feed my lambs. Tend my sheep. Feed my sheep."

In the series, "Jesus: His Life" aired over Easter week on the History channel, Biblical scholars argue that Simon Peter, having denied Jesus three times before His Crucifixion, returns to fishing believing that he is a failure; and that the Way, the Truth and the Life are over.

Imagine Peter's astonishment when the Risen Jesus appears at the shore. Not only does Jesus literally feed His disciples, he commands them to go forth and to, "Feed my lambs."

This ministry of nourishment can be found in this meal of fish and bread, and more crucially, in the meal of the Eucharist. But, this ministry of nourishment expands into a worldwide command to love others- when Jesus tells His disciples, "Follow me."

Jesus makes the command to love others directly personal. Nothing can be more clear than the explicit connection with Jesus established in Matthew 25: "And He will answer, 'I tell you the truth, when you refused help to the least of one of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.' " -[Matthew 25:45; New Living Translation.]

I read the news and social media today - and what I read is judgment, hard-heartedness, hate, jealousy, scapegoating, contempt, abuse, harassment, ego, selfishness, racism, violence and so forth.

Yes, there is good and evil. Yes, we must fight for justice.

But, however it is that we approach the poor, the ill, the marginalized, the folks who stumble badly - THAT approach is what we do to Jesus Himself.

Christians "have an irresistible love for the down-trodden, the sick, the wretched, the wrong, the outcast and all who are tortured with anxiety." -[Dietrich Bonhoeffer, "The Cost of Discipleship"].  We do not judge such as these, instead we share their burdens and we work to alleviate their sufferings.

Nor do we respond with violence, verbal or otherwise, at being rejected by the world. For the world does reject us for refusing to accommodate its selfishness and greed, its vicious judgment of others, its bitterness and war. "The disciples keep the peace by choosing to endure suffering themselves rather than inflict it upon others." -[D. Bonhoeffer].

A Christian judges others for their struggles or their mistakes- at his peril - because, "Every idle word which we think so little of, betrays our lack of respect for our neighbor, and shows that we place ourselves on a pinnacle above him and value our own lives higher than his.  . Let us see whether we have tried to win popularity by falling in with the worlds' hatred, its contempt . . For if we do, we are murderers." -[D. Bonhoeffer.] For as we display anger with our brother, or judge him despite the immensity of our own sins, we assert ourselves as God.

Consider the sum total of all news and social media content. . . what percentage of it amounts to contempt, anger, egoism, and the inserting ourselves as a false God in society?

Because, in the end, only Love vanquishes all sin, all evil, all fear, all rejection and abandonment. Jesus proves this, as He loves and forgives Peter three times- that Love of Jesus triumphing over Peter's thrice denials before the cross.

Because, "Who needs our Love more than those who are consumed with hatred and are utterly devoid of Love?" -[D. Bonhoeffer].

[Related Postings: "Feed Me", 4/11/16; "Do You Love Me?", 4/14/13.].

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