John 21 Part -8 | Why did Jesus ask Peter three times? Pastor Suresh Ramachandran Tamil Message

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Contact Details
Dr. Suresh Ramachandran
Mount Carmel Ministries International,
PO Box 81, Kandy, Sri Lanka.

Telephone: +94 771231420
Email: [email protected]
Skype: sureshbabu1234

Why did Jesus ask Peter "Do you love me?" three times?

The 21st chapter of the Gospel of John presents us with a scene that has commonly been read as the counterpart of Peter’s three acts of denial. Interestingly, whereas all four Gospels include Peter’s denial, only the Gospel of John includes this scene, in which Jesus asks Peter “do you love me?” three times. While some biblical commentators understand these three questions, asked by Jesus in his third post-Resurrection apparition, as a redemptive moment in which Jesus addresses Peter’s three denials and confirming him as the leader of the then-nascent church, some other subtleties in this dialogue can be better appreciated if we go back to the original Greek.

In the text, we find Jesus sharing breakfast with the disciples, shortly after his Resurrection. The Gospel reads as follows:

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, “Feed my lambs.” He said to him 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, “Tend 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 everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.”
Again, the fact that Jesus replies to Peter’s answer —“Yes, Lord; you know that I love you”— with a mandate —either “feed my lambs” or “tend my sheep”— has at least two meanings that run in parallel, one being the consequence of the other. One the one hand, this is a clear instantiation of the Great Commandment: if Peter really loves his Lord —Kyrie is the word Peter uses, according to the original Greek text— then he will surely care for those who belong to him. On the other hand, this is a concrete moment of divine forgiveness: despite his three denials, Jesus confirms Peter three times in his role as leader of the church. This gesture suggests God’s love is bigger than our own personal sin, no matter how grave.

In Greek, unlike in English, there are at least five different words for “love.”