Pastoral care à la Jesus
Series: CREATIO | Bible text: John 21:15–22; Luke 22:54–62
God can create a new heart or restore a broken heart. Jesus shows us in his dealings with Peter, after his denial, what purposeful pastoral care could look like. To do this, he creates a shame-free zone and a space of grace. Forgiveness plays a key role in restoration. The goal is a growing love for Jesus and a life in the vocation God has intended for us.
To be free – that is what we all want. The Bible says: «Only when the Son makes you free are you truly free»(John 8:36 NLB). How does he do that? Today we look into Jesus» pastoral practice of creating a new heart or restoring a broken heart.
Strategies based on one’s own imprints
Peter is quick, proactive and self-confident. One gets the impression that he is constantly in competition with the other friends of Jesus. For example, he is convinced: «Even if everyone leaves you, I will stay with you» (Matthew 26:33 NLB). After Jesus prophesied that he would deny him, Peter persisted: «No! Not even if I had to die with you! I will never deny you!»(Matthew 26:35 NLB). Perhaps Peter was brought up very performance-oriented and he had to earn the love of his parents by being better than the neighbour’s boy. Maybe he was often shamed and laughed at as a boy that he now wants to prove to the whole world that he can do something. Maybe he often had to get down at school and now must not allow any weakness. Like every human being, Peter brings his childhood imprints and hurts with him into following Jesus.
Contrary to all protestations and honest intentions, Peter shortly afterwards denies three times that he knows Jesus. «[…] And at that moment the cock crowed. Suddenly Peter remembered Jesus» words: «Before the cock crows, you will deny me three times». And he went away and wept bitterly»(Matthew 26:74–75 NLB). Peter, devastated, full of grief and shame. He felt like a failure. The life strategies built on his imprints suffered shipwreck. It was a brutal crash landing and he plunged into the bottomless pit. I could imagine that he even struggled with suicidal thoughts. A little later he says, completely frustrated: «I go fishing»(John 21:3 NLB). Although Jesus called him to fish for people, he turns back to his old profession. As a tribute to his failure, he is willing to live a life below his calling. This reminds me of the son in the parable who, after his fall, is ready to give up his position as a son and instead work as a day labourer for his father. Where wounds are not cared for, fixations arise. And these stand in the way of our path to a good future.
Strategies of Jesus in creating a new heart
But Jesus is not at the end of his Latin. He picks Peter up exactly at the point where he landed. After the hard crash landing, Peter said to his colleagues: « «I’m going fishing». The others said, «We’ll come with you.» So they went out in the boat, but they caught nothing all night.»(John 21:3 NLB). In the morning, Jesus stands on the shore and invites the whole fishing party to breakfast. Jesus serves Peter as a holistic person who not only has spiritual needs. After the tasty meal, pastoral care is then the order of the day.
Jesus creates a helpful atmosphere
From v.20 it is clear that the following conversation took place while walking and apart from the others. Only John was walking behind. Jesus does not expose anyone, but creates a shame-free zone, an atmosphere of security and intimacy.
«After breakfast Jesus said to Simon Peter: «Simon, son of John, do you love me more than the others?» » (John 21:15a NLB). Jesus had only once before called Peter «Simon, son of John«There he was promised to be a «rock». So this is also about a new beginning. Jesus holds fast to his calling for Peter despite apparent weaknesses. Jesus always enables us to start again. Reconnecting a broken heart is about growing into the full potential God intended.
Johannes means in German God is merciful. With the mention of this name, Jesus opens a space of grace. In this way he lays the foundation on which the following pastoral care is to take place. It is the prediction of victory without making amends. Peter is invited to breathe a sigh of relief, to courageously open his heart and stand by his failures. In the space of grace we can stand by ourselves and our failures.
Jesus gently heals Peter’s heart
Peter lives under the pain of having answered no three times to the question whether he knew Jesus. As a pastor, Jesus does not begin with reproaches, but with a thought-provoking question. He asks him a total of three times about his love for Him. Peter is gently introduced to his past. But dealing with the past is an indispensable part of the healing process. You can’t just «let the grass grow over it». Peter gets a new chance to declare his relationship with Jesus. Peter answers somewhat timidly and no longer with his usual self-confidence: «Yes, Lord, you know that I love you […].»(John 21:15b NLB).
The question of love for Jesus is the most important question in life. No matter in which task in the Kingdom of God you are; the decisive question is the question of love for Jesus. This love legitimises you to act under the authority of the Triune God. Church Father Augustine said: «Love and then do what you want.» If we love God, the 615 individual commandments of the Old Testament become wastepaper or we will automatically live them. When there is deep love between spouses, it is much easier to forgive when the other has been hurtful.
Why can Jesus claim this love? Because God is love and loved us first. This divine love also includes forgiveness. «If we live like Christ in the light of God, then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all guilt» (1John 1:7 NLB). Forgiveness is at the heart of all pastoral care and is made possible on the ground of grace. I remember a talk in which a mother told how she forgave the murderer of her daughter. Or Corrie ten Boom, who suddenly stood in front of one of her tormentors from the concentration camp who asked her for forgiveness. How hard it must be to forgive someone who has abused you so much! Forgiveness in coming to terms with the past can be enormously difficult and probably requires an understanding of the guilt that God has forgiven me for. Max Lucado says: «You can’t forgive anyone more than God forgives you.»
Forgiveness means letting go of the right to hate, to make amends and to take revenge. It is a legal act that can be committed even if the feeling is not yet ready for it. Forgiveness is the basis for healing a broken heart and the gateway to eventual reconciliation. Anne Lamott, a writer, writes: «Not forgiving is like drinking rat poison and then waiting for the rat to die.» By refusing to forgive, one does not harm the other, but oneself. One makes the healing of the wounded heart impossible. Reconciliation involves restoring a relationship with a person who has been guilty of something against me. However, this is not possible in every case and if there is a danger of a repeat offence, it is not sensible.
The result of the restoration through Jesus
Finding my way into life as God intended it for me: «Peter replied: «Yes, Lord, you know that I love you». Jesus said: «Then feed my lambs».»(John 21:15b NLB). In similar words, Jesus calls Peter to the pastoral office twice more. Jesus forgives Peter for his denial and failure. Forgiveness, however, leads to a mission. Therefore, the command «Feed my lambs» Forgiveness and mission in one. As a tribute for our failures, we are ready to live under our calling. Through forgiveness and the healing of a broken heart, we grow deeper into the calling God has in store for us.
Finding your way into life with more love: The gracious experience of forgiveness releases more love. Peter does not say: «I love you more than these». Nevertheless, he answers the question in the affirmative: «Do you love me more than the others?» clearly. There is a story with the same choice of words. Jesus says about a woman: «I tell you, her sins – and they are many – are forgiven; so she has shown me much love. But a person who has been forgiven little shows little love»(Luke 7:47 NLB). Peter could honestly answer Jesus» question in the affirmative because he needed more forgiveness than the other disciples after his denial. He was more dependent on grace «than the others». Through the deep experience of forgiveness through Jesus Christ we become more capable of love.
A moment ago Peter loved his own life more than Jesus. He was willing to deny his relationship with Jesus in order to ensure his own survival. Peter is enabled to love more through Jesus» pastoral care! «I assure you: When you were young, you could do what you wanted and go where you pleased. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and another will lead you and take you where you do not want to go.»(John 21:18 NLB). By restoring our hearts, we become more selfless and place our lives more trustfully in Jesus» hands. We all need this healing process to serve better and become more useful for Jesus.
You can live your whole long life on your own. But if we want to be used by God and led into our true calling, then we must let the Creator Jesus come to our hearts. In the course «Living in Freedom» we want to give space to the Son who truly makes free.
Possible questions for the small groups
Read Bible text: Luke 22:54–62; John 21:15–22
- What injuries of the heart could have been the cause of Peter’s behaviour?
- How did Jesus manage to open a space that enabled Peter to open his heart?
- Why did Jesus ask Peter three times about his love for him?
- What does it mean that Jesus commissioned Peter three times to feed his sheep?
- Are you living in the vocation God intended for you?
- Check whether it might be your turn to join the course «Living in Freedom».
