|
Jesus and Peter
|
|
15
So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon
Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love (agape) Me more than these?" He said to Him, "Yes,
Lord; You know that I love (philo) You." He said to him, "Tend My lambs."
16
He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of John,
do you love (agape) Me?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love (philo)
You." He said to him, "Shepherd My sheep."
17
He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do
you love (philo) Me?" Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, "Do you
love (philo) Me?" And he said to Him, "Lord, You know all things; You know that I love
(philo) You." Jesus said to him, "Tend My sheep."
(John 21:15-17)
|
A common interpretation of this passage is that Peter
denied Jesus three times, so Jesus asked Peter three times. Yet, that is unlike Jesus.
If a person was sorry for their sins and asked for forgiveness, Jesus was happy to
oblige. If Jesus asked for loyalty for every sin, He would be asking a lot of questions.
So that interpretation seems to fall flat.
Another explanation of this exchange expounds on the
differences between agape and philo. Although the meanings are different, Jesus asks for
philo on the third question and the two words are used synonymously throughout the New
Testament such as in the story of the Good Samaritan. Therefore to build the whole
explanation on the difference between agape and philo is like playing tug of war on a
step ladder. The foundation is seriously lacking.
Rather, it seems that Jesus is bargaining with Peter to see
how far Peter will go. With each question Jesus reduces his demand. At first, Jesus ask
for a greater agape than what the others have. Then Jesus only asks for some agape. And
finally, Jesus settles for philo (friendship). But the next paragraph implies that the
lack of love will result in Peter's martyrdom (John 21:18). In other words, like Jesus,
Peter will be the good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep. John who seems to
agape Jesus, is not to suffer the same fate. This doesn't imply that agape saves anyone
from martyrdom. Jesus (the very essence of agape) was crucified. Yet, agape is clearly
the goal. When we fall short of the mark, remedial actions will be taken.
It is also clear that although Peter does rise not to the
ideal (agape), his vocation (shepherding sheep) remains constant.
The most important point, that love gives us the ability to
do our vocation, is almost never mentioned and usually lacking in the explanations.
|
|
What Is Agape?
|
When reading the The New Testament, it is easy to
reach the conclusion that agape is central to the personality of God and we are called
to it.
|
While agape is presented as the key to finding happiness
both in this life and the next, it seems that agape is rarely presented in a way that
would deliver on this promise.
For example, the most common definition of agape is unconditional love. Yet, if that is
true, then how is it the Devil and the dammed are not saved? Didn't God love them
unconditionally? Jesus has choice words for the Pharisees, and He even tells Peter, "Get
behind me Satan". Where do we find the power to live our vocation (as Jesus implied to
Peter) if love was unconditional? The answer, of course, is that agape means something
different than unconditional love.
Another popular definition is that agape is sacrificial love. Yet how does that square
with Jesus saying, "These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and
that your joy may be made full.?" (John 15:11). God made the world and He saw that it
was good (that it would thrive). There again, it is hard to see that sacrifice is the
ultimate nature of God.
Both unconditional and sacrificial love have some validity, but they are not the
defining element of God and what we are call to do.
If not these definitions, then what does agape mean? The best way to discover what Jesus
meant, is to look at what the word would mean to Jesus when he used it.
People who study Greek lexicon have written on agape and philo. Disregarding context,
which means a lot, philo would be something like, "to have a warm regard for and
interest in another; to have high esteem for or satisfaction with something," and agape
would be more like, "cherish, have affection for, love, take pleasure in.".
While it might be getting a little out of bounds by using the words of some popular
songs, they probably add some much needed context. In song, we might boil it down to
philo, "Our God is an awesome God", or "He has the whole world in His hands". Whereas,
agape is closer to, "Surely the presence of the Lord is in this place, I can feel His
mighty power and His grace".
The key test is to apply all of this back to Bible verses to see if it makes sense.
If this definition makes sense in a number of cases, it must be golden.
|
|
(1 John 4:7):
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone
who loves is born of God and knows God.
|
We are not called to admire each other (philo) but to bear each others
burdens (Galatians 6:2) (agape). This passage only make sense if we feel the presence of
each other which is only possible through God's grace.
|
|
(1 Corinthians 8:3):
but if anyone loves God, he is known by Him.
|
If we feel God's presence, God senses us or knows us. While God
knows all things, that does not mean that God agapes all things. For example, God does
not dwell on death and sin (though those words are redundant). Salvation is the key to
this passage. God saves those He knows. If we feel the presence of God (agape), then God
feels (knows) us (Matt: 25:12).
|
|
(Matt 22:36-40):
36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in
the Law?" 37 And He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all
your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 This is the
great and foremost commandment. 39 The second is like it, 'You shall love
your neighbor as yourself.' 40 Upon these two commandments hang the whole
Law and the Prophets."
|
In this case, Jesus quotes scripture that tells us to love
God with our whole heart (emotions), soul (appetites), and mind (thoughts).
From Thomas of Aquinas, different parts of us wants different things, except
that all parts have an instinctual love of God. Therefore, we can only make
all parts happy by wanting God with every aspect of our being. It is hard to
imagine an attitude (unconditional love) or concept (sacrificial love) that
makes sense with this passage. However, a divine presence fits this
saying.
|
|
(1 Corinthians 13:3):
And if I give away all my possessions to charity,
and if I surrender my body so that I may glory, but do not have love, it does me no good.
|
This passage should end the argument for
sacrificial love. Paul says that if he sacrifices everything but does not have
love, then it does him no good. Indeed, the sacrifice should be compelled by
the presence that is within us. Again, we find that unconditional love rings
rather hollow with this scripture. Only agape (feeling the Divine presence) seems
to meet what the language requires.
|
|
(1 John 4:16):
God is love and he who abides (remains) in love abides in God and God in him.
|
When taken to their end, all things are either selfish
or charitable. If God is love (as Scripture says), then our only talent before God is
our decision to love. Our talent is invested by feeling the presence of God and others.
If we only feel our own presence, our talent is wasted on selfishness.
|
|
(John 13:35):
By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love
for one another.
|
Love is the Christian witness. In Christian countries,
our witness has been so strong for so long that love is assumed to be a natural trait of
the human existence, until Communism, Nazism, or some other atheistic movement comes
along and kills millions of people. Of course, some people will have some charity for a
while without Christianity, but it never lasts long.
Many civilizations have shown us what life is like without Christianity, and some have
shown us the before and after effects such as the Vikings who quit raiding after they
became Christian.
Christianity is the only religion where one advances through relationships. Most
religion advances through enlightenment (e.g., Hinduism, Buddhism). Some advance through
warfare such as Islam.
What is love, if you can't feel it? While it could be successfully argued that love
helps form the mind through habits, virtues, and so forth, these are only shadows of
the relationship.
God wants us to know Him. Jesus spent most of His public relationship preaching. But, He
formed His Church through His relationship with His disciples especially the
apostles.
Jesus feeds us with His Body and His Blood. Nothing could be more personal. Just
as we can taste the bread and wine, so we can feel the presence of God. We learn through
our senses and we our designed by God. If God is going to appeal to our body, we have to
be able to sense Him. Because God loves our body, God won't go around our body and save
our soul as some Christian heretics and confused philosophers have claimed. Christian
life is full of real joy that is the result of relationships.
To paraphrase Aquinas, not only can we feel God in every feeling; it is our only
strategy, if we are going to reconcile all our feelings, since different parts of the
body have different feelings which often oppose each other.
|
|
(Matt 25:34-46):
34 "Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For
I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me
something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; 36 naked, and you clothed
Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.' 37 Then the
righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or
thirsty, and give You something to drink? 38 And when did we see You as a stranger,
and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? 39 And when did we see You sick, or in
prison, and come to You?' 40 And the King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to
you, to the extent that you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters
of Mine, you did it for Me.'
41 "Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, you accursed people,
into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I
was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to
drink; 43 I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not
clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.' 44 Then they themselves
also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or as a stranger, or
naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not [i]take care of You?' 45 Then He will answer
them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it for one of the least
of these, you did not do it for Me, either.' 46 These will go away into eternal
punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
|
This passage is self explanatory. It obviously rules out
that agape is unconditional love, because as John says, "God is Love", and here we see
that love has conditions.
As a bonus, we can see that we are not saved by "faith alone".
|
|
The Power of Agape
|
If agape of God or neighbor is feeling their presence, it
might be easy to conclude that it would have little impact on everyday life. However,
that "take" misses what life is. In logic, God is the creator and maintainer of all
things, and from the Bible, God is agape. By coming to know agape, we imitate who God
is.
Let's look at this passage from Saint Paul.
|
|
(1 Corinthians 13:4-7):
4 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not
arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does
not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but
rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things,
endures all things.
|
Anyone who is unshakable in faith and hope while enduring to
the end is going to prevail and not only by personal perseverance but by divine
intervention. As Jesus says, "with God all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26)
When Jesus asks if Peter agaped Him and follows with "feed my sheep", it implies that
agape (feeling the presence of Jesus) would make Peter more effective.
Indeed, in the gospel Jesus says that we can not bear fruit unless we abide (agape)
Him.
|
|
4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides
in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me." (John 15:4)
|
Only agape has the power to transform us.
We see this in inner healing where people are freed from sin and pain by feeling the
presence of Jesus in those feelings.
The process occurs in deep prayer except with more intensity. We move the Divine
presence into different parts of our body, and the power of agape transforms us into the
image of Christ. As we feel the presence of Christ, we begin to imitate Christ.
|
|