A Team Of Two

My Utmost For His Highest

 

‘He said to him the third time, ’. . . do you love Me?’ —John 21:17

 

‘Have you ever felt the pain, inflicted by the Lord, at the very center of your being, deep down in the most sensitive area of your life? The devil never inflicts pain there, and neither can sin nor human emotions. Nothing can cut through to that part of our being but the Word of God. “Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ’Do you love Me?’ ” Yet he was awakened to the fact that at the center of his personal life he was devoted to Jesus. And then he began to see what Jesus’ patient questioning meant.’ CHAMBERS

 

I have mostly heard or read references to Jesus asking Peter “Do you love Me?” three times as a counter to Peter’s denial of Jesus, three times.  We love to look at numerical significance in the Bible, don’t we?  As if those numbers will give us a glimpse into the mind of God. Like God has given us some “code” that we must break to have spiritual understanding.  We have spiritual understanding through the Holy Spirit.

 

John 14:16 “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—“

 

Jesus was leaving and the Father was sending the Spirit.

 

John 14:26 “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

 

Acts 1:7-8 “ He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

 

Our part is to obey … just as Peter’s was  … Jesus told Peter that if he loved Jesus … “show Him” …. obey His commandments …. the Spirit’s part is to empower … We can do nothing that has eternal value on our own .. Peter tried it .. it did not go so well for him … but after Pentecost … he and the other disciples changed the world. The same Spirit that was in them is in you … The question is … do you love Jesus … or do you love something or someone else more .. yourself perhaps … That is the question that cuts deep … but it also brings healing … Our part is to obey … the Spirit’s part is to empower and transform … a team of two … that is a significant number.

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)