Will We Speak, Will We Feed His Sheep?

[Prayer-Soldier]

Will We Speak, Will We Feed His Sheep?

Scripture:

And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, saying: Commanding, we commanded you that you should not teach in this name. And behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine: and you have a mind to bring the blood of this man upon us. But Peter and the apostles answering, said: We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers has raised up Jesus, whom you put to death, hanging him upon a tree. Him has God exalted with his right hand, to be Prince and Savior to give repentance to Israel and remission of sins. And we are witnesses of these things: and the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to all that obey him.

And calling in the apostles, after they had scourged them, they charged them that they should not speak at all in the name of Jesus. And they dismissed them. And they indeed went from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were accounted worthy to suffer reproach for the name of Jesus. And every day they ceased not, in the temple and from house to house, to teach and preach Christ Jesus. (Acts 5:27-32, 40-42)

And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the living creatures and the ancients (and the number of them was thousands of thousands), saying with a loud voice: The Lamb that was slain is worthy to receive power and divinity and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and benediction. And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard all saying: To him that sits on the throne and to the Lamb, benediction and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever. And the four living creatures said: Amen. And the four and twenty ancients fell down on their faces and adored him that lives for ever and ever. (Revelation 5:11-14)

After this, Jesus showed himself to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias. And he showed himself after this manner. There were together: Simon Peter and Thomas, who is called Didymus, and Nathanael, who was of Cana of Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee and two others of his disciples. Simon Peter said to them: I go a fishing. They say to him: We also come with you. And they went forth and entered into the ship: and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning was come, Jesus stood on the shore: yet the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus therefore said to them: Children, have you any meat? They answered him: No. He said to them: Cast the net on the right side of the ship; and you shall find. They cast therefore: and now they were not able to draw it, for the multitude of fishes.

That disciple therefore whom Jesus loved said to Peter: It is the Lord. Simon Peter, when he heard that it was the Lord, girt his coat about him (for he was naked) and cast himself into the sea. But the other disciples came in the ship (for they were not far from the land, but as it were two hundred cubits) dragging the net with fishes. As soon then as they came to land they saw hot coals lying, and a fish laid thereon, and bread. Jesus said to them: Bring hither of the fishes which you have now caught.

Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of great fishes, one hundred and fifty-three. And although there were so many, the net was not broken. Jesus said to them: Come and dine. And none of them who were at meat, dared ask him: Who are you? Knowing that it was the Lord. And Jesus comes and takes bread and gives them: and fish in like manner.

This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to his disciples, after he was risen from the dead. When therefore they had dined, Jesus said to Simon Peter: Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? He said to him: Yea, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him: Feed my lambs. He said to him again: Simon, son of John, do you love me? He said to him: yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him: Feed my lambs. He said to him the third time: Simon, son of John, do you love me? Peter was grieved because he had said to him the third time: Do you love me? And he said to him: Lord, you know all things: you know that I love you. He said to him: Feed my sheep. Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you did gird yourself and did walk where you would. But when you shall be old, you shall stretch forth your hands, and another shall gird you and lead you whither you would not. And this he said, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him: Follow me. (John 21:1-19)

Reflection:

We might wonder, would we have the same courage as Peter, and the disciples with him, as they faced the authorities who sought to silence them? When we are faced with the ways and expectations of those within the world, would we say to ourselves that we must obey God rather than the exhortations of people? If we stood where Peter stood, would we allow ourselves to be cowered in fear and silenced? More importantly, as we face those around us today, will we allow ourselves to be silenced in our belief in God so that we might receive the approval of those who would turn us away from Him?

We will not know the answer for certain unless we are in the moment, but we might consider, how many times have we already faced such moments? They do not only come before courts, exalted bodies or appointed authorities, rather, we may experience such challenges during the course of a simple conversation. We might reflect upon such times and ask ourselves, what did we do and what should we have done so that others might see His love through us? As some speak against Him, do we speak for Him? If we are challenged, do we ask for the Holy Spirit to guide us in the prudence and truth of our response?

While we might have words we wish to say, or we might be tempted to believe we ought to say, we should also take a moment to reflect upon whether such words should be spoken in the fashion in which we might form them. We should ask ourselves, will His love be seen within what we say? Will our words speak to and encourage the heart of another or will we fall to the temptation to speak only to score political points or to retaliate from some self appointed position of judgment? If we are in any doubt of the truth or prudence of what may come from us, we may ask for the Holy Spirit to guide us in our response. If we are challenged in our faith, we need not fear, for if we ask the Holy Spirit, He will give us the love and the words which we need in the moment. (Mark 13:11)

The faithful yearn for the day we may sit with Him, where no one will seek to silence our faith, where we may give and receive the blessings of love which we may share freely in honor of all He has taught and all He has done for us. The evil one would rob us of such an eternity, just as he robbed himself, but if we believe in the Son, our Lord and Savior will guide us away from the darkness and bring us to the blessings of His light.

If we look back over all the scripture, we see an accounting of the relationship between God and the children of His creation. As with any child, we must learn and find our way. Without guidance, we become vulnerable to that which would destroy us. Some mistakes do not yield a second chance from which to learn and adjust, but, through the grace of Jesus, we may turn away from our mistakes and the mortality brought forth by our sin.

The lessons of learning are not always simple or without struggle and pain. It is through trial we are formed and strengthened. We must also remember, He has not left us alone against the world or the deceptions of evil, rather, He has given us each other so that we might help one another along the path. He calls us to participate in His work so that we might better appreciate the blessings of His kingdom. Just as He challenged Peter to care for His sheep, He presents the same challenge to all within His church. In the same fashion He stooped to serve us, we are called to serve one another.

In the moments before Jesus was taken, Peter came forth to Jesus with brave words, but Peter did not comprehend his weakness. Jesus reminded Peter that it is easier to speak than to live what is spoken. (Matthew 26:34) It should not, then, been a surprise to Peter that Jesus would later come to Peter and challenge Peter three times to live by what Peter said he would do.

The same challenge is now before us. Will we live as we speak or will we allow our sin to silence our faith? Will we care for His sheep or will we abandon them so that we may receive a short moment of perceived comfort? Will we seek to receive the approval of those who do not love us, over the love of the One who died and rose so that we too might live? We might wonder, what causes us to chase acceptance of those who wander in the darkness over the acceptance of the One who loves beyond all others?

We may fear in any moment in which we are challenged or threatened, but if we reach out to Him, He will guide us beyond our fear and pain. If we ask the Holy Spirit, He will guide us in how we may do the work our Lord has for us. If we ask, He will grant us the courage and strength to speak what is right and just, but more importantly, He will guide us to do and live by His commandments to love. Let us, then, lift our hearts in prayer so we may receive Him and share freely the blessings of His love.

May the peace and blessings of the Lord be with you always,
Prayer Soldier