 Yeah, so just before the break, we started John chapter 21 and we looked at these disciples who have decided to go out to fish and we see in verse 3, John 21 verse 3, that they were unable to catch any fish. This is almost a repetition of what had occurred long ago, about three years back when they first were called into ministry. So if we were to turn to Luke chapter 5, we see over there in Luke chapter 5 that Jesus sees these first disciples fishing and then, you know, they have not caught anything and then Jesus says to them, throw the nets on the other side and they have a huge catch, which they are able to get, that would be in Luke 5 and at the end of that passage, Luke chapter 5, if we were to look at verses 10 and 11, this is what it says over there. So if we could have someone please read out for us, Luke chapter 5 verses 10 and 11, please. Luke 5, 10 and 11. And so also were James and John the son of Zebede, who were partners with Simon and Jesus said to Simon, do not be afraid from now on you will catch men. So when they had brought their boats to land, they foresook all and followed him. It says that they foresook all and followed him, that is, they gave up everything here in this, I think this, I'm not sure which version I have with me right now. It says over here, when they had brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him. So which means, now onwards, the main full-time task would be to be with Jesus, learn from him, help him in the ministry that he is doing and all of that. So whenever they would get an opportunity, yes, they would support themselves. But what would be their main focus, their topmost priority from now on? It would be the calling which Jesus has given to them. He said, from now on, you are going to be catching people, not fish, okay? So this does not mean that they were always depending on, upon other people to support them and their families. It just means that from now on, their first topmost priority would be to do whatever Jesus commands them to do. So in that sense, you know, they became full-time ministers. So later on, we see Paul and his team also doing full-time ministry. But even as they did their full-time ministry to the extent possible, they supported themselves by making tents and, you know, taking part in other forms of trade. So here, on this occasion, again, they're unable to catch a fish in John chapter 21 and Jesus says, cast your nets on the right side. And it seems in those days, the fishing people generally would cast the net on the left side, it seems. But now Jesus says, you know, cast it on the right side and they're actually able to catch many fish. So that causes John to realize that this must be Jesus. And so he quickly comes, you know, Peter gets down into the water and comes running to the shore and then all the other disciples catch up and they all eat together. And then this conversation begins in verse 15, John chapter 21, Jesus' conversation with Peter. So this is basically what Jesus says to Peter. So maybe if we could have someone read out for us, John chapter 21, from verse 15 all the way up to verse 17, John 21, 15 to 17. So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these? He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, feed my lads. He said to him again the second time, a second time, Simon son of Jonah, do you love me? He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, tend my sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon son of Jonah, do you love me? Peter was grieved because he 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. Jesus said to him, feed my sheep. Amen. Yes, thank you. So here this is the question which Jesus places before Peter. He says, do you love me more than these? So maybe Jesus is referring back to the first time when Peter and the other disciples were called into ministry and he's saying, yes, you will always have human responsibilities. Yes, you will have need to go and do fishing. But do you love me more than these, all these earthly responsibilities that you have more than this need to be able to make money, to be able to earn a livelihood, do you love me more than these things? Peter's immediate responses, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. You know, it's what Peter says. Now there are so many things which are said regarding this passage. We will look at it in stages. So first let's just, you know, look at this commission, the re-commissioning that Jesus is doing over here. I guess we'll just dwell on that first. So Peter and the disciples have been fishing and now the question that Jesus is asking is, do you love me more than these things? You will have earthly responsibilities. You will need to earn a livelihood. But just like on that day, you know, in Luke chapter five, where you people gave up everything to become fishers of men, are you willing to now, you know, do that again? Are you willing to resume that? And Peter's immediate responses, yes, Lord, you know that I love you, you know, and so Jesus believes him and Jesus says, feed my lambs, all right? So we see this being repeated twice. The first time he says, feed my lambs. The second time he says, tend my sheep. And the third time he says, feed my sheep. So you have lambs being mentioned and you have sheep being mentioned. Lambs of course would be the younger offspring of the grown-up sheep. Of course other, you know, the grown-up animals. So they would be youngsters to be taken care of. Maybe those were spiritually young and they would be older sheep also who would need to be taken care of. So that word that is used over there, feed is used twice. It just basically talks about grazing, you know, you graze the sheep. So in the same way, when it comes to the human flock, the few human flock would have to be fed taken care of in different ways. And then the second occasion, he says, tend my sheep. The word that is used over there, it's not referring so much to grazing. That word that is used over there is talking more about leading, guiding. So in that sense, it has more to do with governance. It has more to do with, you know, matters of leadership, matters of decision-making, you know, how you're going to look after them, what are the things that you're going to be doing for them so that they will grow in the Lord. All of those things are referred to. So you have the, so when it comes to this whole matter of doing ministry, of being fishers of men, this is what it would involve. It would involve feeding them spiritual food. It would also involve leading them and guiding them and taking care of decision-making, you know, decision matters and things like that. So it's talking about leadership. It's talking about service. It's talking about taking care and tending in that sense as well. So if you were to, you know, reflect upon Ezekiel 34, where God, Yahweh, talks about these false shepherds who were not good, you know, shepherds to the people. And if you were to go back to Ezekiel 34, this is the accusation which Yahweh makes about these people. He says in Ezekiel 34 verse 2, Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves, you know, should not the shepherds feed the flocks, you know, is what it says over there in Ezekiel 34 verse 2. And then God says, You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool. You slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. You know, rather than looking after them, you kill them and you clothe yourself with that wool. Those are the kind of shepherds that you, you know, you are. And then he goes on to say, I will raise up a shepherd for myself who will go searching for the flock, the lost ones, he'll bring them back. And that was Jesus, the true shepherd, you know, who came and did that for us. So now these people are being called to take on that same responsibility, Peter and all of the others. They are going to become shepherds. And this is what would be expected of them, because in Ezekiel chapter 34 verse 4, you kind of have a small role description of what a shepherd should be doing. What exactly, of course, these false shepherds were not doing those things, but this is what our true shepherd should be doing, Ezekiel 34 verse 4. It talks about how the weak will have to be strengthened. Not everyone is going to be spiritually mature and strong. The shepherd would have to go after the weak, sit with them, you know, encourage them, help them to take a more active role in developing their relationship with the Lord. So someone would have to sit with them and strengthen them. It also talks about how the sick would need to be healed. So there would be those who would require physical healing. There would also be those who are maybe spiritually sick and need to be restored. So that also would be involved. Verse Ezekiel 34 verse 4 also talks about how the broken need to be bound up. There are those who have been injured, maybe both emotionally as well as in a spiritual sense. So someone needs to bind up their wounds and help them to recover. It even talks over there in Ezekiel 34 verse 4 about people who have been driven away. And so someone needs to go after them and bring them back, you know, those who have been hurt in the church by other believers. So someone has to go after them and bring them back into the flock so that Satan will not take advantage of the situation and harm them. And then of course, you know, the leaders also have to be people who will seek those who are lost. Those who have never come to the fold. So you go after all the Lord sheep out in the world and you bring them to the fold of the Lord. So these are all the different things that a shepherd actually does. So here when Jesus is saying to Peter, feed my lambs, feed my sheep, tend my sheep. These are all the things which Peter is being asked to do. So if he is going to be only interested in fishing, then these tasks will get neglected. So it is important that Simon son of Jonah should love the Lord more than these earthly things. Because only then, you know, if his priorities are right, only then will he prove to be a good servant of his master. So that's regarding the feeding of the lambs and the tending of the sheep and all of that. Coming to the other aspect where there's a lot said about the words which are used in the original Greek for love, a lot of wrong interpretations are given. And it all this only started 1960 onwards. Before that, people did not really think about this passage in such a negative sense. What happened was that in 1960, C.S. Lewis wrote a book called The Four Loves where he kind of took four Greek words and he gave them very, very specific definitions and said, you know what, this word means this and this word, this Greek word means this. And so this is this kind of love and this love is inferior to that love and this love is better than the other type of love and all of that. But actually, if you look into your Greek Bible and you look at those four words being used in different places, that kind of strict demarcation is not there between these words. These words were used more as synonyms, you know, I may say that I adore my dog or I may say that I love my dog. They're just two ways of saying that I have affection for my dog. So I have used, in fact, three words now, you know, a love, adore and affection. They're all kind of synonyms. So which was what the case was with Agape and Filio. It's not like as if Agape is in some way some kind of superior kind of a love, nor is it a kind of divine love. It's just a word for love. Filio is in the same way, not an inferior word for love. It's just another word for love. And we will actually look at passages which would prove this case. So what we actually learn from commentaries is that these words were Filio and Agape were kind of used as synonyms and used interchangeably, okay? So they were not meant to be used very distinctively. But New Testament writers began to choose this word Agape more and more whenever they would talk about the love of God, simply because this word Agape, the emphasis of that word is more on the object that is being loved, okay? So the object that is loved is cherished. The object that is being loved is considered as precious. It's considered as valuable and important. So there was a slight nuance to this particular word Agape, which was not there in the other word Filio. So the New Testament writers started using this word Agape more for God's love and that is basically how a demarcation came about, okay? So originally in the Greek language, when people used to speak, these two words were just very commonly used as synonyms and we see that happening in many places in the New Testament. But New Testament writers began to choose this word Agape for two reasons. One of course is the heavy emphasis which is there on the object, where the person who is doing the loving considers this object so precious, so valuable, even though it may be something ordinary, the person who is loving it considers it very, very valuable. The other thing is that it's not really an emotional kind of a love. Filio is a very, very emotional word. It's the kind of love that exists between family members, with friends. It's very heavily emotional, Filio is very, very emotional. Agape on the other hand is something that you choose to do and whether you feel like it or not, you do it because that object that you love is that special and that dear. So whether you feel like it or not, you do it, which is why you see when the commandment is given to husbands and wives in Ephesians chapter 5, that word Agape is used and in Ephesians 525, this is what it says over there, husbands love your wife, Agape your wives, just as Christ Agape the church. So in this modern era, you have people in broken homes, they say, oh, I don't feel love for my spouse anymore, so I think I should just leave the person. It's not about emotion, it's not Filio. If Filio will be there on some days, Filio will not be there on some days, but you don't go by emotions, you make a choice, it's a will and you declare and say, yes, I shall be faithful to this person. So Agape does not depend on emotions, it considers the object valuable enough, whether you're feeling like it or not, whether you're feeling Filio or not, you will choose to express love. So it's in that sense, it's unconditional. All right, so Agape and Filio are both good words. Filio is in no way an inferior word. And we see this in, especially in John chapter five verse 20, where it very clearly says, the father Filio the son. Okay, so this is the word Filio is used for the father's love for Jesus Christ. So it's in no way inferior to Agape. All right, so Agape is beautiful, Filio is also beautiful. It's just that Filio is a very emotional word where you feel a lot of emotion towards your loved ones, towards your friends, towards the people who are close to you. Agape, on the other hand, is more stable, doesn't go by emotions. It just decides in its heart, you know, this person is valuable, deserves to be loved irrespective of whether I'm feeling like it or not. I am going to love this person. So it's more stable kind of a word. Okay, so that's just the difference. So now having understood the background, if we were to look at what is happening over here in the conversation between Jesus and Peter, Jesus says to him in verse 15, Simon, do you Agape me more than all these things of the world? You know, and immediately Peter replies and says, Yes, Lord, you know that I filial you, you know, from the bottom of his heart with all his emotion, he's saying, Lord, I filial you. So yes, Lord, you know, you're going to be my first priority. But then Jesus says to him a second time, do you Agape me? And he's probably puzzled that Jesus is asking this a second time. And he says, Yes, Lord, you know that I filial you and he's still using the deep emotional, you know, that word which is packed with a lot of emotion. And so then the third time Jesus uses the emotional word. And he says to him, Simon, son of Jonah, do you filial me? And over here, he's also using that emotion, emotional word, that filial word. And then he says that the third time we are told in verse 17, Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, do you filial me? And he just replies and says, Lord, you know all things. You know that I filial you. So because now Peter kind of catches what is happening here. Jesus is asking him three times. And so he would have been reminded about how when they were in front of another fire, he denied him three times and said, No, I do not even know this person. And so it probably reminded him of that occasion. And Peter is grieved that Jesus is saying this to him for the third time. And he says, Lord, you know, you know all things. So you know whether I really know filial you or not. And so this passage troubled me for a long time because we are told in scripture that once God forgives, he does not remind you of your sin. He does not rub it in again and again. What is forgiven is forgiven. So I always wondered why did Jesus rub it in for Peter? I'm sure he weeps bitterly after the third betrayal. You know, after he betrays Jesus for the third time. So he has repented. He is no longer against Jesus. Why does Jesus bring this up for the third time to hurt his feelings? You know, it's a question which is always there in my heart. But then I, you know, read somewhere about this and I began to understand. Jesus says this to him to help him bring to put a closure to what happened. You know, so because maybe Peter was always reminded of what he had done. Maybe that guilt of that always rested upon him. And now Jesus wants to completely remove him from that feeling of guilt and show him that he's going to go on to much greater things. And he needs to leave this behind. It doesn't have to go on holding on to this. So because you see Peter says, Lord, you know all things. And Jesus confirms to him that he indeed knows all things. In fact, he knows to what extent Peter is going to filet you him. And so he goes on to say, yeah, I know this is what is going to happen in the future. So Jesus says to him, very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you dressed yourself and went where you wanted. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and over there, the wording that is used over there is the kind of wording that is used about, you know, hands being stretched out on a cross. You know, so and Jesus says to him, someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go. And in fact, in verse 19, it confirms and we are told Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. So Jesus is telling him, you can put behind, you know, whatever happened. You know, you have repented, put it behind you, not continue to live in guilt. Move on from there because indeed, I do know all things. You know, Jesus is confirming to him and saying, yes, you do filet you me. In fact, you filet you me to an extent where you're going to be doing this. You'll be glorifying God one day in that manner. And then you have a very interesting statement. You know, yeah, he's then he said to him, follow me. And of course, you know, Peter is more than willing to follow Jesus. In spite of knowing this is the way he's going to be, you know, die. If he follows Jesus, he doesn't care about that. He's more than willing to follow Jesus. So, you know, he and then in verse 20, it says, Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. Now, this is something so wonderful, you know, this conversation which happens between Peter and Jesus is a private conversation. It's not happening with all the other disciples sitting over there as an audience. It looks like the meal has finished. They have got up. They have, you know, they have both of them together are walking down the beach. The others are not listening into what's going on. So in private, Jesus brings up this topic of what he had done in the past, you know, the betrayal that has taken place in the past and three times Jesus asks the question. Three times Peter replies, yes, I fill you and he says, Lord, you know all things and Jesus has very truly, this is how you're going to glorify me one day. So, you know, what has happened is now put to rest. Jesus helps him to bring flow. You know, Jesus brings closure to whatever has taken place and now Peter can move on confidently knowing that, you know, God is going to strengthen him because that is what Jesus says to him earlier. He says you will be sifted like wheat, but don't worry, you know, because I have prayed for you and he says you will return and when you return, you will strengthen your brethren, you know, so now he is going to be feeding the sheep. He is going to be tending the flock. He is going to be a leader. So Jesus brings closure to that issue. So if you and I are still living under the dark cloud of something that we have done in the past and it keeps coming back to you again and again, no matter what you do for the Lord that comes back to you and you think, oh, this is who I am. This is what I did. This was the kind of person I was. And if you're still being haunted by that again and again, maybe you should sit down with this passage and, you know, reflect upon it as though Jesus is speaking these words to you and he's asking you now in the present, do you agape me? And like Peter, are you able to respond with all of your heart and say, yes, Lord, I filet you. That is the case. Then know that in the same way that, you know, Jesus wanted Peter to move on and become a person who will strengthen his brethren, who will tend to the flock, that is the same role that Jesus wants for you as well. So do not live in the past. What happened happened? Yes, three times, maybe you denied Jesus, but now three times, you know, you're honestly declaring and saying, yes, I filler you with the Lord. And the Lord has accepted that because the Lord has accepted that. He is saying, yes, now fulfill the role which I'm giving you. And he's saying, follow me. Are you willing to follow him? Or are you going to be haunted by that thing in the past, which the Lord himself has forgiven? The Lord has forgiven it. Who are you to hold on to it? You know, so are you greater than the Lord to refuse to forgive yourself? Who on earth made you God? Let the Lord decide what needs to be forgiven and what should not be forgiven, because he's the one who paid the price for it. I mean, he paid the price in full. That is a forgiven sin. Are you saying that the blood of Christ was not enough to, to forgive you of that sin? I mean, how can you say that? That's the blood of Christ that has completely cleansed you of that sin, you know, first John one nine, if you confess your sins, he's faithful and just because he's acting upon what was done on the cross, and therefore he chooses to forgive you and you are forgiven. And he will cleanse you from all unrighteousness is what it says over there in what's John one nine. So therefore, like Peter, we can move on with our lives and glorify God in the way Peter glorified. And so, in fact, you know, what we are told in the commentaries is that by the time John writes this Gospel, what Jesus had prophesied had probably already taken place. Peter probably was crucified during the time of Nero. You know, so he would probably be dead by now. By the time this particular Gospel was written, because, you know, if you were if you have done all the Gospels, you would know the first three were written earlier on and the Gospel of John was the last one to be written a little later. So by this time, Peter's crucifixion probably would have happened already. You know, just to address the question which Rosalind has posted over here. So it's the Agape love and unconditional love, like we like we talked about Agape is this very stable love. Its emphasis is on the object that is being loved. So whether you're feeling filial, whether you're emotionally moved from the depths of your being to express love or not, you just choose to love. It's a very stable love. And therefore, when we are commanded by God, you know, to love the Lord, we are told to this word, this is the word which is used. Okay, maybe John 1423, in John 1423, Jesus answered and said to him, if anyone Agape me, he will keep my word and my father will Agape him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. So here Jesus is saying, it's not a divine love which only God can feel. No, that's a very wrong definition. Humans are quite capable of expressing Agape love. In fact, we are being commanded to express Agape love. Jesus commands us in John 1423 and says to us, if anyone Agape me, let him show that in action, you know, by keeping my word, those who obey me and keep my word and submit to it, they are the people who Agape me. You don't depend on filial only when you're feeling filial, you don't just obey the Lord, whether you're feeling emotions or not, you choose to obey him. And when you do that, the father in that same steady manner, he will Agape you. And in fact, it says we will come, you know, the father and Jesus, you know, along with the Holy Spirit, he will come to you and make our home with you. So we literally have the triune Godhead living in us, making his home in us, willing to consider ordinary human beings as his temple. I mean, you know, in the Old Testament times, the temple was revered to something respected because that is where the presence of God dwelt. And today you and I are that temple. This almighty God is choosing to, you know, that in that day, he chose to stay in our temple that was slated with gold and which had golden vessels, which were used for the service. And today he's staying inside humans, just made a flesh we sweat. I mean, at times our health is, you know, maybe not good. Sometimes we are strong. Sometimes we are weak. He has chosen to dwell in a, in a perishable clay God like this, the almighty one, he has chosen to make his home with us. You know, it's not just, you know, like he's just coming over there as a kind of beauty. He wants to be with us. He considers us family. So how careful we should be in the thoughts which run through our minds? No, do we have all kinds of hatreds and jealousies and greed and pride in our mind? That is no way to honor this amazing God. So agape love is a good love sometimes, you know, we don't go with our emotions. We choose to be steady in the way we choose to love him. So yes, in that sense, it's a steady love, not based on emotions. In that sense, it is an unconditional love. Okay, so whether we are, whether I'm feeling the condition of love or not, I will still love. So in that sense, it is unconditional, of course. All right, so yes, if we can have someone read out versus 20 and 21. So here, here we are in chapter 21. If someone could read out versus 20 and 21. In fact, maybe up to 25. Yeah, John chapter 21, if someone could read from 20 all the way up to 25, yeah. Then Peter turning around saw the disciples whom Jesus loved following who also had lean on his breast at the supper and said, Lord, who is the one who betrays you? Peter seen him say to Jesus, but Lord, what about this man? Jesus said to him, if I will that he remains till I come, what is that to you? You follow me. Then this same went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yeah, Jesus did not say to him that he would not die. But if I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? This is the disciple who defies of these things and wrote these things. And we know that his testimony is true. And there are also many things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not compare the books that would be written. Amen. Amen. So we had seen our introduction that some copies, original copies that have survived and come to us, they contain only 20 chapters. Whereas we have some other manuscripts which contain 21 chapters, so which is why people said that maybe John actually when he first wrote, he just finished off with chapter 20 and then later he wanted to clarify and clear up certain additional things, which is why maybe I know he again under the he was inspired by God to add one more chapter, which is why in some manuscripts you have 21 chapters being mentioned. So they say that maybe this was one thing which he wanted to very clearly clarify. There was this false rumor going around saying that, Oh, John is never going to die. He's going to stay alive till the second coming off the Lord. So if people hold on to that kind of a belief and then you know Monday, John dies, then it would affect the faith of people. So he wanted to make that very, very clear that this is not at all what was meant when Peter asks Jesus what about him? Jesus says, you mind your own business. I mean, you take care of your life. What I will do with other people that's between me and them. So so he Jesus only meant it in that sense. So John wants to clarify and make it very clear to the readers that in no way is he going to be immortal. He's going to die the same way. Everyone else has died. So in fact, we learn from Jewish tradition that he most probably was burnt to death is what they say. I mean, there's no clear historical record regarding that. But yeah, so even, you know, John dies just like all the other people. And so now we have a second conclusion over here at the end of chapter 21, where it where the where this John is saying, we know that his testimony is true. He's talking about himself. You know, he says I am that disciple who leaned on Jesus' breast and about whom Peter asked this question. And so he says, we know that his testimony is true. Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written. So you again have a repetition of what was mentioned in the earlier chapter. So in this way, you know, the gospel of John comes to a conclusion. So after we have covered all of these things, anything that anyone wants to say regarding the entire gospel of John. I mean, I don't mean just to raise class any comments that you would like to make or any question that you would like to raise. Yeah, otherwise, you know, we can actually close early with a word of prayer. But if anyone wants to ask anything at all from the gospel of John, which has been covered so far, yeah, you can go ahead. No, all right. Okay, then in that case, let's close. So of course, you know, next week, we will get into the epistets. Lord, we just thank you so much for all the lessons that we could have that we were able to learn up to now from the gospel of John. Thank you, Lord. Lord, it has been very clearly established that you are the Son of God, that you are the Messiah who has come, and it is through you alone that we can have eternal life. Lord, we pray that even as we have learned these truths, even as we have spent time reflecting upon them, now or Lord, we will fulfill the commission that you have given us and go out and share these things with other people. Lord, even as we carry the Holy Spirit now within us, we know, Lord, that He will convict the people whom we speak to. So we pray, Lord, that we will do our part so that the Holy Spirit can work through us and bring about work of conviction and repentance. We pray, Lord, that whenever we have the time, we will go through this book once again. We will reflect on the important truths that are contained in it, that, Lord, we would absorb them into our hearts and minds and then go out and share these things with other people so that they may be benefited, so that they may know you in a personal way that we know you, O Lord. We pray that you would anoint all of us for this task, O Lord. Every single student who has attended so far, me, O Lord, who has tried to teach some of these truths and concepts, please, Lord, we pray that you would anoint us afresh, equip us, O Lord, so that what we have learned through this Gospel of John, we will not just keep it to ourselves, but we will go and share it with others so that, Lord, they too can be part of your flock. They too can enjoy the eternal life which we enjoy. Thank you, O Lord. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Thank you so much for staying with me throughout the Gospel of John. And, yeah, next week we will begin with the Epistols. Thank you.