Making Sense of Feeding Sheep

Peter's Charge is Our Charge

I have a beautiful friend who brings so much joy and encouragement to my life. She and I discuss life and scripture and more life and more scripture, showing one another the layers of the Word as the Holy Spirit guides our conversations.  Recently we were looking at the final chapter of John. In the first 17 verses, there is so much good stuff!  But there's a section that made me think of you, beloved reader.  A few verses that I hadn't dissected before and thought you might enjoy the revelation as well.

A quick recap:  Peter and a few other disciples have been fishing all night and caught nothing. As they head to shore, a stranger they do not recognize tells them to put their nets onto the right side of the boat.  They do - and the fish are so plentiful that they can't get the net back into the boat.  They realize that the stranger is Jesus and He tells them to bring so fish to shore to have breakfast with Him.  There's a lot of other good stuff in there that we loved discussing, but that's for another day.

So here we are at verse 15.  Breakfast is finished and Jesus wants to talk to Peter.  He asks Peter three times almost the exact same question: Do you love me? If you'll recall, Peter has previously denied Jesus three times (John 18:15-27).  So here Jesus is nullifying those denials with Peter's affirmative answers.  But that's not the focus of my thoughts either.  Let's read the verses together:

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you."

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs."

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."

Jesus said, “Shepherd my sheep."

The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you."

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep."  (John 21:15-17)

Jesus said almost the same thing each time, with just a little variation.  But it's in those variations that the real charge is given.  Remember that no word is wasted in scripture so the words Jesus chose have to matter.

If you've read my other posts - or a lot of the parables of the bible - you'll know that people are symbolized as sheep quite often in scripture due to stubbornness and the need for a Shepherd (who is Christ for believers). But in these three verses, the focus isn't so much on the animal used as it is the age of the animal.

Jesus first says to "feed my lambs."  Lambs are babies.  Like human babies, they need constant care.  They need kept warm, they need protected from danger they don't recognize, and they need fed.  A lot.  And often.  So what is represented here by "lambs" is a new believer in Christ.  Someone who is just learning to walk in their new relationship with Him as their Savior.  They need fed the Word.  A lot.  And often.  Who are they in Christ? What does the Lord say about their value? Why can they trust that His love for them is real? Jesus is telling Peter to feed the new disciples that are being made.

Then He says, "shepherd my sheep." Some bible versions say "tend my sheep."  Sheep are adults.  They can feed themselves and meet basic needs.  But they need guidance.  They need direction.  Once new believers grow and become more mature in their relationship with Christ, they do not need someone feeding them scripture all the time.  But they do need to be tended to.  Discipleship is ongoing.  We aren't meant to walk this road alone after becoming an adult.  In life, we have coworkers, friends, family members, spouses - relationships that keep us from being alone.  The same applies to our life within the church - we need to tend to one another, walking with one another as we encourage and train and lead and keep maturing.  Jesus is telling Peter not to ignore the more mature disciples who need continued guidance.

And then Jesus mixes the two: "feed my sheep."  What?!  We just discussed that lambs need fed, but sheep can feed themselves so what does this mean? Have you ever known a believer in Christ who seemed to just give up?  Have you ever watched someone at church go through so much heartache and tribulation that they lost faith and hope in what they once proclaimed?  Have you ever felt that things were so bad that you had no desire to walk out all the things you knew you were supposed to do?  There are times in life that our burdens feel heavier than we can carry. The pressure of surviving is more important than the call to maturity. There is a danger in distancing ourselves from the Body. It is in those times that we need someone to walk with us and feed us on the simple truths of God. Basic needs become the focus - a listening ear, a ride, a meal. Someone to stand in the gap when praying and worshiping seem too difficult to do on our own. Jesus is reminding Peter that sometimes the adults will need to be fed for a time until they can regroup and rejoin the productive herd.

These three verses are a powerful reminder to us.  We need to be aware of the different lambs and sheep in our lives.  We need to take notice of the different stages the sheep are in.  Sometimes we forget that even a mature adult can end up in trouble. In Matthew 18, Jesus tells of a man who has 100 sheep and one gets lost.  Not a lost lamb, a lost sheep. It doesn't matter how many years we walk with the Lord, we can still get "lost" in the chaos of this world.  Don't misunderstand me.  I'm not talking about losing salvation.  I mean that the burdens of this life can become overwhelming: death of a loved one, a marital problem, an illness, a financial crisis, the worry over a child...any number of things can burden us despite our deep and solid walk with Jesus.

If you know a hungry lamb, feed them.  

If you are a hungry lamb, seek a shepherd.

If you know a sheep that needs shepherded, step up.  

If you are a sheep that needs shepherded, seek a shepherd.

If you know a hungry sheep, by all means, feed them!  

If you are a hungry sheep, by all means, seek a shepherd!

Wherever you are right now, whatever your circumstances, you are loved.  

You are seen by the One who sees it all.  

You are not alone.  

Seek The Shepherd.