The Wager Of God
“When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter: Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these? Yes Lord, he said, you know that I love you. Jesus said: feed my lambs”. ( John 21:15 )
Jesus had already resurrected and in one of his reunions with the apostles asks Peter, who had denied him thrice, if he loved Him, and acknowledging the answer, while staring deep into this man’s eyes, asks him to watch over( to herd ) the most precious gift that He would leave on Earth: people washed and redeemed by his blood, whom he gently calls as “my lambs”.
The most fascinating aspect of this dialogue is the trust that Christ places in a man of strong temper, and whom at times was even aggressive[1], to herd. Jesus knew Peter’s potential for leadership and the challenge was to wager that for the love of a cause, for an ideal, that is, to gather souls for the Kingdom of God, Peter would deny his own self, controlling his haste, and having been so often herded by Jesus, would start to live and teach that which he had learned from the Son Of God during their three years together.
At the moment that Peter decided to follow Jesus, his life started to make more sense, a reason, a motive to fight and at this instant, while he is staring at the Lord, begins then to gain a responsibility: to show the world that a man with courage, dreams and love manages to be in Christ and with Christ, more than victorious.
Why did God give to the outrageous Peter the mission of herding? What mystery, or purpose, was there in Jesus’ decision of choosing exactly Peter? Something glorious should be added to the ministry of this man of outburst, whom Jesus well knew.
Practical Application: What has the Lord Jesus asked of you in this walk? For Him and His cause, were you able to provide it? He wagers in you, day after day... and He knows who he’s wagering on!!!
[1] An example of this occurred at the time when Jesus was being arrested; Peter, hastily, cuts the ear of one of the High Priest’s servants.
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