Sincerity

SINCERITY

John 21:17-19

17 He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

18 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.

19 This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.

Our Lord addressed Peter as they walk along after Jesus had become Lord of all things. He did not here use the name that he had given Peter but called him Simon. Peter had not forfeited that Sir name given him by Jesus but Peter must have thought He might have because of his denying Him. Three times Peter denied any knowledge of the Lord Jesus. Now, he has had to confess his love three times. On the third and final time Peter answered anxiously, “Thou knowest that I love thee;” but without professing he loved Jesus more than all others. Our love for Jesus comes before all other of our friends and family. We should not be surprised to have our sincerity called into question, when we ourselves have done that which makes it doubtful. We remember our past sins, even God does not.’’ Though pardoned old sins renew the sorrow of a true child of God who has integrity, Thus, Peter solemnly appealed to Christ, as knowing all things, even the secrets of his heart. It is well when our falls and mistakes are valued as a lesson in integrity. They must make us more humble and carefully watchful. The sincerity of our love to God must be brought to the test; for our peace of mind. It behooves us to inquire with earnest, preserving prayer to the heart-searching God, to examine and prove us. It is nice to hear Him affirm that we are able to stand the test of time, service and death. No one can be qualified to feed the sheep and lambs of Christ, who does not love the good Shepherd more than any earthly advantage, person or object. It is the great concern of every good man, whatever death he dies, to glorify God in it; for what is our chief end but this, to die to the Lord, at the Word of the Lord?

The suffering of pains and death, will appear formidable even to the seasoned Christian. But in them we hold onto the hope to glorify God. We glory in leaving this old sinful world and to be present with our Lord, We become ready to obey the Redeemer's call, and to follow Him through death to glory. It is the will of Christ that his disciples should possess great sincerity of heart and not be curious about future events, either as to What manner of things God has in store. Know God, know peace. Amen 12-13-2019 BLL