Fed

Joh 21:12  Jesus said, "Breakfast is ready." Not one of the disciples dared ask, "Who are 
you?" They knew it was the Master. 
Joh 21:13  Jesus then took the bread and gave it to them. He did the same with the fish. 
Joh 21:14  This was now the third time Jesus had shown himself alive to the disciples 
since being raised from the dead. 
Joh 21:15  After breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love 
me more than these?" "Yes, Master, you know I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my 
lambs." 

	It's not enough to be holy and super spiritual. It's not enough to be full of the spirit 
and abounding with prophetic and revelation knowledge. It's not enough to even be the 
Son of God. All of the sufficiency in the world is without any substance or useful value 
without a willingness to serve. 
	I've heard this story so many times about the interchange between Jesus and Peter, 
where Jesus told him to, "Feed my lambs". I understood this to mean a "ministry" attitude 
in which "spiritual" food would be brought to the people so that they could be fed the 
bread of life. While it is true that symbolism is being used here, there is also a more direct 
and practical meaning to be garnered from this story. Jesus was speaking this to Peter, not 
after a glorious mass meeting in which thousands came forward for healing and salvation. 
He didn't convey this directive after presenting His most powerful exposition of scripture. 
He spoke to Peter in this manner after physically performing an act that was most 
frequently reserved for the servant- he built a fire and cooked them a meal. This was 
surely something that shouldn't be the task of the breadwinner or the leader of the group. 
After all, the honored one should be taken care of with great respect and deference. Can 
you imagine today what a frenzy there would be if Jesus were to appear for a few days? 
There would be an endless convergence of premium service to take care of His every 
need and insure His total comfort. He would not have the opportunity to do anything for 
Himself, as it would have already been taken care of by a "serving" hand. 
	From this passage, however, it is shown what made it possible for Jesus to be the 
perfect sacrifice, and to offer Himself up freely for the lost. His purpose was not to 
develop a bunch of followers that would completely take care of Him. His purpose was to 
find a way to serve in the ultimate way that would touch every person who would ever 
live.  So, for Him to do this it would require the heart of a servant, ready to do even the 
smallest menial things for those He loved so perfectly. He did teach and provide spiritual 
understanding with His words, but He understood that if He wanted to impart who He 
really was it would require something much more substantial than just words. It would 
require a physical demonstration of His true heart of love. In the act of literally "feeding 
His lambs" He was providing a nourishment of an eternal substance that would validate 
and bring heart understanding to every word He would speak. 
	"If you love me, you'll feed my lambs" was being spoken from Jesus lips, but the 
illustration of its true meaning had already been provided in Jesus' washing of the feet, 
going to the cross, and cooking up a fresh fish breakfast. I believe He was saying that to 
minister at all would require becoming the servant of all, consumed with giving, rather 
than receiving from those that so needed an authentic demonstration of God's true heart. 
There is a way to the very heart of a man or woman, and that way has been shown by the 
incredible example of Jesus' life. May it be that we learn to frequent that way, as we learn 
to let service to others be included in the truth of our Father's worship. May hearts and 
lives be changed by what comes out of our mouths, but may there be an even more 
powerful testimony of His goodness in our willingness to provide a humble act of 
service. If we really love Him, the lambs will be fed. 


1/24/06