Failure, broken promises, betrayal, and denial—Peter
has done all these things after publicly vowing never to
deny Jesus. Jesus’ disciples fail him and abandon their call.
The runaway disciples have fished all night and caught
nothing. As dawn breaks, Jesus calls to them and tells them
to put the net on the other side of the boat. They catch more
fish than the boat can hold. The Bible says this was Jesus’
third appearance to the disciples after the Resurrection. It is a
miracle of mercy. Jesus comes to them, guides them, reveals
himself to them—and then comes the detailed account of
Peter’s restoration. Three denials, three questions, three
affirmations—the process of healing and restoration takes
time. It is a process, then and now.
We all need revelation, restoration, and guidance.
Yet, within minutes of Peter’s restoration and his positive
response to Jesus’ command, “Follow me!” he takes his eyes
off Jesus and focuses on the behavior of another disciple,
“Lord, what about him?”
Jesus’ response to Peter “What is that to you?” flashed
through my mind and into my heart in 2006 when I questioned
the actions and attitudes of others in our United
Methodist Church. “What is that to you, Tom? Follow me!”
I believe the call of Jesus through the power of the Holy
Spirit is the same this Pentecost season: “Follow me!” The
call to follow comes to every disciple. Regardless of our
words or actions, our sense of loss or gain—nothing matters
except our response to the call of the Lord Jesus Christ,
“Follow me!”
By Tom Albin from The Upper Room: 60 Days of Prayer for General Conference 2016