“The Case for Christ: - K/G: Christ’s Forgiving Love/Peter’

We continue on in John 21 tonight once more, as we examine the keys that were given for ministry in the Kingdom of God.

The first one we considered was the fact of spiritual illumination upon which Christ would build His church after His ascension.

The outward communication of Himself was going to be transferred to the inward divine teaching of Himself.

The disciples would walk and live in the light of Christ, the illumination of the Holy Spirit, as He girded and guided them onward in the work of His kingdom.

So, when Peter presented the great opening sermon in Acts 2 to the people who were astonished with the baptism of the Holy Spirit, he spoke out from that divine revelation that Jesus first introduced to the disciples in Mt 16:17.

There - He told Peter: ‘...Blessed art thou Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in heaven.’

Peter had received a divine illumination concerning the Christ!

That progressed to John 16:7-15, where Jesus told all of His disciples that the Holy Spirit would be sent after His ascension.

He would be the Divine Illuminator Who would guide them into all truth by receiving from Christ and showing it unto them.

And, now, once again, Jesus has confirmed this progression of illumination to Peter.

This is the point of time when Christ applied His teaching about the Spirit’s ministry to Peter’s ministry.

Peter was going to be girded about and guided through all his work upon earth by the living, risen Christ under the agency of the Holy Spirit.

And, even though Peter is singled out here in John 21, it is clear that all of Christ’s servants are under this same spiritual covering. 

They all are to concentrate upon Jesus Christ, the Lord, and, thereby, come under the same unction of the Holy Spirit’s ministry.

Now - if we look at this passage carefully, we find two other keys that were to make a striking impression, keys Christ had already put into operation that served as examples for all to see and follow.

And what are they?

The first key was that of a full and complete forgiveness for all of them.

And, it naturally goes on to the second - that of genuinely loving only as Christ loves.

I will combine the two into one for our purposes tonight and term it as the key of ‘full, loving forgiveness’ that Christ was making evident, especially through the way He dealt with Peter.

Let us see tonight how Christ forgives so fully, how that forgiving love is transferred to His servants, and how they must regard it in the light of their relationships to others. 

Before we start, let me point out that, in spite of Peter taking his first wrong step almost immediately, there is something quite regal, and quite heartwarming, about Peter as he faces the greatness of the love and forgiveness Christ has shown him.

If you read through verses 15-18 once again, you cannot miss how, in the whole conversation, their hearts meet and embrace each other.

The Lord’s sublime love and wisdom in the way He met Peter head on brought Peter to a humble, honest, reverent,  trusting place before Christ.

Peter was openly laying himself at the feet of Christ, embracing Christ and letting Christ embrace him with divine love and forgiveness.

I wonder if we realize how blessed we are to be able to lay one’s soul at the feet of Christ, and be taken into such an embrace as this!

Peter had, not too very long ago, denied Jesus outright. It was so blatant and so harsh - really, a downright, bold-faced lie.

He had been with Jesus for three years and probably many people saw them together during that time.

So, we know that it was not just a slip-of-the-mouth happenstance Peter was committing!

No - Peter was guilty! He had turned his back on Jesus!

But - he did not stand alone in his guilt! The others were just as offensive, for they, too, ‘forsook Him[Christ] and fled’ when they saw the road ahead getting rough! (Mt 26:56)

So, they were not innocent either!

We also know that Peter was offensive in other ways. He seemed to carry about an air of superiority over the other disciples.

That is proven in what Peter said in his answer to Jesus’ statement in Mt 26:33: ‘...though they all are offended and stumble and fall away because of You [distrust and desert You], I will never do so!’

What was he saying of all the others who were standing right there when Jesus made the statement of their defection? 

‘Yes, Lord, they are all cowards and faithless: they would do something like that, but not me, Lord!’

In his brazenness, Peter was setting himself above the others!

And, let it be known - Christ, in the Kingdom of God, will have none of that in His church!

Thus, to bring this picture into proper focus, Christ worked with Peter in the presence of all to hear and see. 

Peter was representative of this group.

And how Christ dealt with him was their example of how they were to treat Peter now and how they were to look upon each other in Christ’s Kingdom.

Had He not given them the commandment to ‘...love one another as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for another.’

And - as Christ forgave Peter in unfailing love, so were they also to forgive and love one another!

They all were now covered with that same forgiveness by Christ, a loving forgiveness sealed in and through His atoning work for all of them.

Yes - it is true! Always - always - His merciful, forgiving love was to be a vital, critical key to the Kingdom of God.

Now - notice what was taking place at this moment - in this drawing love shown to Peter that was the result of how Christ’s love had operated in His intercessory prayer for Peter.

We go back to Lu 22:31 for that. And, here, we see how the strengthening Peter was to give to his brethren is first tested for strengthening in himself. 

Jesus issued him a warning: ‘Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.’

In Peter’s response of v 33, what was he saying about himself?

He said there: ‘Lord, I am ready to die for you!’ 

He was just showing how much he first needed to be sifted as wheat, to be strengthened in faith.

And the Lord knew this: notice - He did not pray to keep Peter from being sifted. But He prayed that Peter would not fail in faith.

Jesus saw what was needed to plow and break up the inner man so that divine love could operate aright in Peter’s heart.

And the sifting was needful because his blunder would become a mirror to Peter’s rotten soul life.

He would be given a holy, pure glimpse of Christ’s love to compare it to his egotistical self, his self-worthlessness, his self-confidence, his self-pride, his self-importance.

‘No flippancy, no presumptions, no superiority anymore, Peter!’

‘That loving forgiveness must be real. It must be with a deep sense of your own sin that has been forgiven.’ 

That is why Jesus prayed for Peter that his ‘faith would fail not’, that the sifting would sift out the natural self that was holding its power over Peter.

And that was blinding Peter to himself!

Impetuous and rash by nature, he had spoken and promised so illustriously!

And, then, when the test came, a test he had foolishly and willfully brought upon himself, he fell miserably - denied Jesus three times - and emphatically, as well!

In him, there was not yet anything of a ‘Peter’, a ‘rock’, the kind of character that showed itself as steadfast and sure!

All of the natural Simon-self had to be replaced by the love of and for Christ and take on the character of a 
Christ-centered self in Peter.

That was the prayer Jesus prayed: that he would be ‘converted’ by the sifting.

Christ was lifting Peter out of Peter’s natural self unto Himself, incorporating Peter unto Himself unconditionally.

In other words, the service unto Christ to feed His lambs and sheep must be in love so deep that it would love at all costs, forgive at all costs, just as Christ had shown His love and His forgiveness for them with the very great cost of giving His all!

Is this not how the church must also operate?

Is this not how we all must function and progress?

Listen - there must be a love so deep that it will love at all costs! 

We all must grow in this grace! We all must grow in this heavenly-mindedness as never before!

We must all come together in loving forgiveness of one another to be the good news of God’s love through Christ to the world!

Did Peter see this clearly?

Oh, yes, he did!

Look at what he had to say, after he learned all about Christ’s loving forgiveness of himself in 1 Peter 1:22.

‘Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently.’

The love poured out to Peter by Christ in full forgiveness of Peter prompted this same response of Peter to all his brethren.

He demonstrated his love for Christ by loving the brethren.

This is how we show our love for Christ - by a full loving forgiveness, with no strings attached.

This is ‘unfeigned love’, as Peter put it.

It is love without pretense, the real thing. It comes from a heart that demonstrates it with full power, force, and vigor - wholeheartedly, fervently! 

It is sincere, strong, healthy, steadfast!

Why must this be so of the Christian?

Well - let me ask you this: have we experienced the new birth in Christ through the Word of God?

Is it that incorruptible seed that lives and abides forever in us?

Of course! When the Christian has been reborn, remade, made a new man, the life of God is in him.

And - the great characteristic of the life of God is the boundlessness of His grand, loving forgiveness through Christ’s work!

And - this new life partakes of the character of a loving God, so that it can, and it must, show that character to others.

Let me remind you of a very important fact found in Jas. 4:14.

There the question is asked: ‘What is your life?’

And the answer comes back: ‘It is even a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away.’

What does that mean?

Everything in life is temporary - it is all going to fade away, and that very soon!

The only thing that will remain is the Word of God which is eternal.

That Word, in the Person of Christ in you, is immortal. And it is so in all other Christians - including your friends, your Christian neighbors, your spouses, your families.  

Each one has been called to this ‘glory’ and to this ‘virtue’.

Every object in this world is worthless in comparison. They are all transitory - they pass away quickly - like a vapor!

But if we were to lay upon our backs the weight of the  glory that each one of our relationships has, it would be a load so heavy that only pure humility could carry it.

And that is because these are the holiest objects we can possess in this transitory life of ours!

They are the holiest objects we can hold in our hands. 

In each is the ‘glory of Another’, the Glorifier, Glory Himself, hidden within!

And these ‘holy objects’ are the only objects that will go on forever.

So - whether you know it or not - in your hands, you have these manifestations of God’s holy glory - everlasting splendors - jewels of the church’s crown!

Do you not think, then, they are worth the deep, cost of loving forgiveness, of forgiving all as Christ forgave His all?

I leave you with the wonderful passage Peter wrote in 2 Peter 1:2-11 of the confirmation of this vital key into the Kingdom of God. 

I will read only portions of it but please read it all if you have opportunity this week - 2 Peter 1:2-11.

‘Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus, our Lord.

According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

And, beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith, virtue...knowledge...temperance...patience...godliness;

And to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.

For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

Wherefore, the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.’ 

Amen! 

Let us pray.