Repentance and Restoration
When the Lord turned and looked at Peter, Peter felt more than simply regret and remorse, he knew that "all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do" (Heb 4.13). Peter knew that the Lord, because of His omniscience, knew all his thoughts and motivations and every detail of his denials (Jn 21.17). He wished he had not sinned in denying his Lord because of the sadness and sorrow it had caused Him. These were the first stirrings of true repentance.
After the Lord’s resurrection, an angel said to the women who went to the empty tomb, "Tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him" (Mk 16.7). When the two disciples who had met the Lord on the road to Emmaus went back to Jerusalem, the other disciples said to them, "The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon" (Lk 24.34). The Lord had graciously met and talked with Peter. What passed between them we do not know, and may never know, but Peter was restored at this private meeting.
It is recorded in John 21 that the disciples went fishing in the Sea of Tiberias, but that night they caught nothing. In the morning, the Lord stood on the shore, but at first they did not recognise Him. He told them to "Cast the net on the right side of the ship" (Jn 21.6). This showed His omniscience in that He knew where the fish were. Some of the disciples would have remembered a similar experience in the past, when, after a night in which they had caught no fish, at the Lord’s command they had let the net down and caught so many fish that the net broke (Lk 5.4-7). John now knew that it was the Lord and, as soon as he told Peter, Peter, in his eagerness to be with his Lord, jumped into the water and swam ashore.
On the beach was a fire with fish laid on it. The fire was made not from driftwood but from coals. This would have reminded Peter of the coal fire at which he had warmed himself when he denied the Lord. After they had eaten, the Lord spoke to Peter in the presence of the other disciples. Their conversation is recorded for us in John 21.15-19.
Peter had denied the Lord three times, and this was the third time the Lord appeared to His disciples after His resurrection (Jn 21.14). The Lord made no reference to Peter’s denials. He did not ask Peter if he had truly repented and was sure he would never fail Him again, but drew out, three times, Peter’s confession of love for Himself. The Lord asked Peter if he loved Him more than those around loved Him. Peter said that the Lord knew he loved Him, but now his pride and self-confidence were gone and he did not add "more than these". Peter was told by the Lord to "Feed my lambs". The Lord asked Peter the same question a second time, except that He omitted the words, "more than these". Peter gave the same answer again and the Lord told him to "Feed my sheep". The third time the question was asked Peter "was grieved" and, knowing the Lord’s deity and hence His omniscience, "said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee". Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep". The Lord then told Peter that he would indeed die for Him as he had once said he was prepared to do.
Two different Greek words for love are used in the record of the conversation between the Lord and Peter. Both words have fairly wide meanings which overlap. Where the words are used in the same passage or context, as in John 21.15-17, a distinction can be drawn between them. The word used by the Lord in the first and second questions was agapao, which is used in 1 Corinthians 13.1 (as a noun); 1 John 4.8; John 3.16,35. It is a strong word meaning a love which is deep, unselfish and constant. The other word used for love is phileo. This is a weaker word in the sense that it means a general, tender affection and personal attachment. It is used in John 5.20; Matthew 10.37; Revelation 3.19. Peter, with all self-confidence gone, was careful to use the weaker word phileo in his answers to the Lord’s three questions, and it was the word used by the Lord the third time He questioned Peter. The use, by the Lord, of phileo in the third question broke Peter down and, all boasting gone, he told the Lord that He, in His omniscience, knew that Peter loved Him.
Service
Peter was fully and publicly restored and re-commissioned. Henceforth he would serve the Lord and, from now on, obey the Lord’s command, "Follow me". He would follow the Lord closely, not "afar off". Peter had learned not to rely upon himself but upon the power of God. Peter had made, and would make, mistakes, for he was only human. The Lord Jesus Christ is infinitely wise, holy, and cannot sin, and only He could say that He always did that which pleased His Father (Jn 8.29).
The apostle Peter would serve the Lord particularly among the Jews. He who had seen the Lord suffering on the Cross (1 Pet 5.1) fed believers and shepherded the flock. He was used to write two beautiful epistles which have been a blessing to generations of believers. Peter wrote, "Unto you therefore which believe he is precious" (1 Pet 2.7), and he could say, using the Greek word agapao, "Whom having not seen, ye love" (1 Pet 1.8).
The Lord’s gracious dealings with Peter, His longsuffering and grace which led Peter to repentance, restoration, and service as a dependent servant, show that the Lord, in His love, grace, and wisdom, can forgive and restore us when we fail Him. We read, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins" (1 Jn 1.9). If we are truly repentant He will forgive us and graciously use us again in His service.
We must be vigilant and careful to stay close to the Lord, bearing in mind the admonition, "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall" (1 Cor 10.12).
Concluded.
