Today we will continue in our study of three-word phrases from the lips of our Savior, which are recorded in the Gospel of John. In this study, we find Three Searching Words for the Conscience โ โLovest thou me?โ (John 21:15).
These words are directed at Peter, that impetuous disciple who had thrice denied knowing Christ. Jesus posed this question to Peter three times. Why did Jesus ask Peter, โLovest thou me?โ I believe that Jesus gets right to the heart of the matter.
First of all, Love is the Greatest Commandment โ When Jesus was confronted with the question of what was the great commandment? Notice His response, โThou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandmentโ (Matthew 22:37, 38). Jesus continued to say that the second was like unto the first, โThou shalt love thy neighbor as thyselfโ (Matthew 22:39). Jesus summarized the Ten Commandments in one word โ love. Paul declared in Romans 13:10, โLove is the fulfilling of the law.โ The truth is that all of our sin problems are, at their core, love problems. We simply donโt love God, and we donโt love others as we should. All defects in obedience issue from a defect in love. There is no duty to which true love does not incline, nor sin from which true love does not restrain. Peter acknowledged this when he responded to the question, โLovest thou me?โ While the Lord posed the question using the strongest term for a deep, selfless, abiding love; Peter responded with a much weaker, less fervent word for love.
Secondly, Love is the Greatest Characteristic โ โAnd now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charityโ (I Corinthians 13:13). Charity is love in action. When we speak of โcharitable contributionsโ or โacts of charity,โ we are speaking of things done freely for the benefit of another. This is love in action. When we are saved, we are immediately indwelt by the Spirit of God. One of the great endeavors of the Holy Spirit in my life as a believer is to reproduce in me the character of Christ. Paul tells us in Galatians 5:22-23 that, โThe fruit of the Spirit is love, joy peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.โ As Paul lays out for us the fruit of the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer, he begins with, โlove.โ Love is first and foremost on the list for all other fruits are an outflow of love.
Finally, Love is the Greatest Constraint โ โFor the love of Christ constraineth us; โฆNow then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christโs stead, be ye reconciled to Godโ (2 Corinthians 5:14, 20). As the great Apostle Paul traveled across the miles preaching the gospel, enduring the difficulties and heartaches which were his lot, the thing which sustained him through it all was his love for God and lost men. Love will cause you to do gladly what you would do for no other reason. All other motivations will fade and cause us to lose our zeal, only love for God and love for others will sustain us in a life of service. As Paul wrote to the Church at Thessalonica, his great desire was to prepare them for the return of Christ. Notice in his prayer for these believers what his request was, โAnd the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all menโฆ To the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before Godโฆ at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christโ (1 Thessalonians 3:12,13). Love for God will motivate us to fashion our lives to be prepared for the Lordโs return.
What searching words for the conscience โ โLovest thou me?โ Am I obedient to the Greatest Commandment? Is my life marked by the Greatest Characteristic? Is my service motivated by the Greatest Constraint?
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Craig Burcham, GSBC Chairman of the Bible Department
Bro. Burcham serves as the Chairman of the Bible Department at Golden State Baptist College. Before coming to GSBC, he served as a missionary with his family in Japan for several years and then pastored in Missouri.
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