John’s Gospel ends with a callback to stories from earlier in Jesus’s ministry—with Jesus calling the disciples to Himself and showing them His provision. Since the resurrection, Jesus had appeared to them twice before, but before His final departure, He appeared once more to provide for them. This time it was for them all, but especially for Peter. And it impacted more than Peter alone; it impacts the future global Church.
In Peter’s story, we see that no matter how closely we walk with Jesus or how deeply we dwell in the inner circles of faith and ministry, we hold in us the potential to deny any association with Jesus and return to the comfort of the life we lived before. We may see the scars in Jesus’s hands and touch the wound in His side and still forget He is for us—that He came to dwell with us and care for His flock as the Good Shepherd.
Peter also reminds us that no matter how much we’ve experienced the love of Christ, we may so readily refrain from extending that love to others. To love Jesus is to love those whom He loves. But Christ’s exhortations to Peter—to love the flock and feed them—do take root in Peter’s heart. Near the end of Peter’s ministry, he writes letters to the church, exhorting them to live a life forever changed and made possible only by Jesus. The resurrected Christ has eternally marked Peter, and us, with love.
Bearing witness to Peter’s restoration calls us to ask ourselves where we’ve set our gaze. How does our behavior reflect our fellowship with Christ? How are we working out our faith in Him? How are we supplementing our “faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness, godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love” (2 Peter 1:5–7)?
Christ extends an invitation to Peter: “Follow me” (John 21:19). But the invitation is for us, too. We are invited to shift our gaze from fish to fellowship in Him, from denial to deliverance. In accepting the invitation, we accept the possibility of being forever changed.
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59 thoughts on "Peter’s Restoration to the Resurrected Christ"
Let me live my life as an example of your love Jesus. Let my mini flock see you in their mummy and want to know more of you! Lead our steps today as we head out into the world!
We all have it within us to deny any knowledge or relationship with Jesus.
Lord forgive me for my denials. Lead me to love and feed your sheep.
I apologize for the multiple posts.
Brittany Brooks. Thank you for sharing that with us.
I also have been having postpartum anxiety and haven’t felt like myself. I don’t normally read through a lot of these comments honestly. But today I felt I needed to.
Praying for you and for myself. We will find healing through Christ.
Brittany Brooks. Thank you for sharing that with us.
I also have been having postpartum anxiety and haven’t felt like myself. I don’t normally read through a lot of these comments honestly. But today I felt I needed to.
Brittany Brooks. Thank you for sharing that with us.
Hi Brittany – I’m late doing this study and was reading these posts and wanted to let you know you’re in my prayers. I went through a bad postpartum period after the birth of my second child. Hang in there. And if you haven’t make sure to reach out to your doctor/healthcare provider.
Feeling convicted by the traits that Peter identifies as key traits in our walk with Christ. Really focusing on each brings various emotions but mostly hope to continue pursuing Him in every aspect of my life.
@brittany brooks – lifting you in prayer. May you have peace and comfort from our God as only He can provide.
Amen!
Brittany Brooks: Praying for you now to know Jesus as your Counselor of peace and calmness on the inside. Also please seek professional, godly advice.
Brittany Brooks: Praying for you now to be
A strong family and I pray it gets easier. Holy cow I accidentally kept pressing return sorry for all the posts.
Me about how much he loves his dog and he said one time I was going through a hard time and I was depressed and my dog saved my life when I attempted to commit suicide. Such a God wink in my opinion. He knew how lonely I felt in this process and immediately put this person in my path. You’re
Me about how much he loves his dog and he said one time I was going through a hard time and I was depressed and my dog saved my life when I attempted to commit suicide. Such a God wink in my
Commented about how cute the dog was and proceeded to tell
@LEHUA K. Love your testimony about your work situation and how God has our back! Such a great reminder . @BRIWLLE HEBERT so sorry for your loss of your niece. What a sweet testimony though. I remember when my dad was in the hospital after his attempt with suicide I was crying to my mom leaving the hospital saying nobody really understands what we are going through and I feel so alone in this journey. We went back to our hotel and went straight to the gas station before heading into the hotel. I had our little dog with me and guy working the counter
Amen!
♥️
Amen!
BRIELLE HEBERT – that story gave me goosebumps.. God is so powerful! Praying for you and your family. My cousin also lost her 5 month old baby about a year and a half ago and we have all experienced signs from God that JJ is up there with Him! Definitely a moment that means so much in such a difficult time.
Asking for a prayer request for my boyfriend – he has two housing options coming up that are both great but one could potentially not work out and the time frames conflict with one another which causes an issue. Pray that God leads him to where he needs to be!
I have to share this with y’all because it’s such a beautiful testament of God’s faithfulness. Some of you may remember me posting about my five month old niece being in the ICU about a month ago after cardiac arrest. She is safe in the arms of Jesus now. My sister is a believer but has been having a hard time. She made butterflies her symbol for sweet Lo (that was her name). She had asked God the other day to show her a butterfly as a sign that he’s still here in the midst of this tragedy. Today, her three year old was playing with beanie babies that were hers as a kid and he picked up the butterfly one and said “this is my baby sister, Lo. I love her.” She had expected God to send her a real butterfly, but of course His way is so much sweeter and better than anything we could even imagine. Another crazy part is that the other day God had put it on my heart to get this picture on Etsy for her that I “happened” to come across. It has butterflies on it! I had no idea! God is so so good, even in this.
“Make every effort to confirm your calling and election…” sometimes it’s hard to know what your calling is to be!
Sorry for the multiple posts! Not used to the posting yet!
How awesome is it that when Peter realizes it’s Jesus on the bank, he once again walks away from his boat and fishing. But this time he DIVES IN and goes to meet Jesus!
It’s also kind of cool that Jesus really enjoyed eating with his friends. I love that food shared with friends was important to Jesus. We need more time sharing over a meal instead of virtually.
How awesome is it that when Peter realizes it’s Jesus on the bank, he once again walks away from his boat and fishing. But this time he DIVES IN and goes to meet Jesus!
It’s also kind of cool that Jesus really enjoyed eating with his friends. I love that food shared with friends was important to Jesus. We need more time sharing over a meal
How awesome is it that when Peter realizes it’s Jesus on the bank, he once again walks away from his boat and fishing. But this time he DIVES IN and goes to meet Jesus!
Good day she’s, today’s portion of scriptures left me convicted and greatly encouraged with the glorious truth:
1-We are called to glory and to virtue/power/valor. Women of valor…who can find?
2-Don’t be lulled and enticed by wordly corruption wrapped in lust (2 Peter 1:4). May God cleanse us of lust in any forms… lust of the Flesh & lust of the Eyes (1 John 2:16).
3-We need to give ALL due DILIGENCE to go from faith to charity (diligence: steady, earnest, energetic effort, devoted and painstaking work and application to accomplish an undertaking-dictionary). There are 7 levels of spiritual growth described here with faith being the foundation, and DILIGENCE is the effort on our part. Grace is God’s part. We co-labour with God. Diligence. Diligence. Diligence.
May God be with you and grant you your heart’s longings.
Lifting up prayers to the God of all grace.
Be blessed dear sisters.
I love that I have everything I need to follow after Jesus. It is still my choice whether I choose to walk in the Lord’s way. I pray I would walk in God’s love and patience towards when interacting with my daughters. I love them so much, but I often feel frustrated by their behavior. I so desire to be the best mom I can b, but I know I can only do that in the Lord’s strength.
This verse stood out to me: “If I want him to remain until I come,” Jesus answered, “what is that to you? As for you, follow me.””
John 21:22 CSB. We do at time focus on others behaviors and not our own behavior. We need to be loving and follow Jesus.
Lord, help me to focus on following you and being the light to others to follow Your Word. Help me to be the beacon of light you called me to be help me to spread love to others. May I always run to you. You always have your arms wide open. I want others to know the unconditional love you have for everyone. Help my eyes to be fixated on you; I will follow you Lord. In Jesus name, Amen!
This was a touching devotion.
Amen, this verse stood out to me to. We do at time focus on others behaviors. Lord, help me to focus on following you and being the light to others to follow Your Word. Help to be the beacon of light you called me to be. May I always run to you. You always have your arms wide open. In Jesus name,
So good! <3
Follow me. We are to be faithful disciples.
❤️
I am really loving this study so far, it’s made me feel so close to Jesus in a time I’ve really needed it. I have two prayer requests today! The first one is just for a situation with this guy I’ve been seeing. He’s distanced himself from me this week with no communication as to why. I can get anxious about this, so I’m just praying for clarity. The second is that I have a meeting with my boss today to talk about a possible promotion opportunity/raise. I’ve been putting this meeting off for a bit, so I could use all the prayers. Thank you all so much!
“Feed His sheep” Faith* Goodness* knowledge * self control* endurance * godliness * brotherly affection * Love❤️
Jenai has left us with a great questions to ponder, the one that stands out for me:”How does our behavior reflect our fellowship with Christ?” Am I living and behaving in a way that Christ is seen in me?? I am sure I have lots to work on in this area! Today I will try to be more mindful in reflecting Jesus in all that I do…I also love how Peter is not afraid to remind those who have received faith through Christ, of the power He has given us for everything we need for life and godliness. For us, it is good to be reminded through listening to the preaching of the Word, by listening to godly teachings, through friends, church family and through us reading the Word for ourselves. Thank you God for leaving us Your written word and Your Holy Spirit! May we all reflect our fellowship with Christ in our day to day lives!
Praying for your requests – have a blessed day!
22 “If I want him to remain until I come,” Jesus answered, “what is that to you? As for you, follow me.” – John 21:22 this verse hit home today. I am often times so worried about someone else’s behavior that I’m not checking my own! Lord help me to “make every effort” to follow you and love thy neighbor!
Ah!!! My old tablet keeps spell checking!! I meant @Lehua — not Kenya! Lol**
Gold** not good that perishes***
@Rhonda J- I relate so much to what you’re saying about looking ahead and having fear. I have sensed He has given me great peace the past two weeks. But I’m always bracing myself for the journey ahead. But like you said, God is faithful to have mercy for our future failures. Something that stands out to me in 1 Peter are the verses about how our trials produce praise, honor, and glory to God (1 Peter 1:6-7). And how could without the trials/testing of our faith? My Bible says it is “much more precious than good that perishes.” (NKJV)
We see our trials resulting in praise this week. Look at @Lehua & @JMW – :) what strikes me in your testimony @JMW is your delight in God’s presence, not necessarily the problem being totally resolved. I think that is the true win– being content in the Lord.
@Kenya- I love that you noticed the Lord showing you the result of true faith. That is beautiful <3
God bless us, Shes! May we be "in the world but not of it"! Speaking this to myself, too, because I never want to get too comfortable.
I think the song by Cain “Awe In YOu” captures perfectly what I was trying to say! Give it a listen!
Hit sent too early. (Again). I feel challenged. A great reminder and opportunity to reflect on these characteristics. Have a beautiful day everyone!
Really loved todays reading and devotional.
3 His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. (2 Peter 1:3)
How do we forget that so quickly. We are all Peter, saying “Lord, I will never deny (refuse, forget, not come to) you.” We say we love Him, praise Him, worship Him, we stay in the word. And then a problem comes, we forget and we look around and to ourselves. Then when we can’t do it, we finally come to Him, the One that gives us HIS DIVINE POWER…REQUIRED for life! He is good, and if we have knowledge of Him, He is there to help us through ALL trials of life.
I don’t know what’s ahead, and sometimes that scares me. I wonder, will I stand on the rock, will I not fear, will I remember God is in me? I sure hope so. But GOD, if I fail, I know He will still shelter me and forgive my unbelief in his goodness. Before, I never understood the part of “having a relationship with Jesus.” I couldn’t fathom what that meant because he is the Almighty Saviour in heaven! How could I have an “earthy relationship” with him? But over the years it has come to be apparent that I have a solid relationship with him, and it is incredibly mind blowing. I pray like Peter, that I will honor that and tell the world, and follow Him, and be established in the truth. Praise God. He is bigger than any problem we will ever encounter. Lord give me your daily bread every day. He is our provider.
Lord I need thee, oh I need thee.
Every hour I need thee…
❤️
Amen
How often do I fail to reflect Christ to others? Lord forgive me and help me to grow in knowledge, self control, goodness, endurance, godliness, brotherly affection, and LOVE.
Father let my heart and actions continue to change to reflect Jesus. I want to share in Your divine nature in my actions and words. In Jesus name, Amen
I pray that I would love those whom Jesus loves. Thank you @Lehua K for your statement about not comparing our journey to others but to focus on Jesus. I’m running late today but I hope everyone has a blessed day <3
Thinking and praying about the work I need to do so that my life is more closely aligned with the progressive sequence in 2 Peter 1.
LEHUA K and JMW – thank you for your praise reports!
JMW – no update yet. I know her but not her family so hopeful she’ll be up to checking in with me soon.
MERCY – such good words yesterday ❤️
GWINETH52 – I like your “muscle memory” comment ❤️
SYDNEY STORY – love your praise yesterday while remembering your grandmother.
MAE POUND – praying
RACHEL FROM TX – praying for good health, and needed rest.
SACHI J – praying for your mental health, peace, wisdom and clarity
MIRANDA FAZIO – praying for you and with you, sister. Yes, the Lord Jesus is close to the brokenhearted, He sees you, knows you and loves you. Praying you feel His love and comfort in your heartbreak. Luke 4:16-21, Psalm 147:3-4 ❤️
I’ve been struggling this week and this was exactly what I needed to read this morning. How am I supplementing my faith? With all the good, knowledge, self control, endurance, godliness, brotherly affection, love? I can honestly say, no. That’s not how I handled this week, but thank you Lord that you offer me grace and seeing how you loved Peter, gives me hope. I am new here and am so thankful I found this group, this study and a way to grow closer to Him everyday!
Amen
“To love Jesus is to love those whom He loves.”
Truly a monumental task some days, and impossible without the Spirit!
LAHUA K and JMW – rejoicing with you that you were heard. Trusting the Lord will continue to fight for you, whatever the outcome looks like.
MAE POUND – praying for you D-I-L’s father
LANIE H – speaking the peace of Jesus over you
DOROTHY – praying for you and your siblings as you deal with Carol’s situation.
I have a “Praise Jesus!” report, y’all!!❤️ today was an absolute miracle, and a blessing disguised as a HUGE work challenge (that’s still being fixed but much more manageable now). Last night I heard about it and instead of going to bed worrying (like I usually would), God nudged on me to let it go until morning. Then when I woke up, I prayed and decided to let go and let Him lead the day, and the challenges.
While it was very complex (about 12-15+ coworkers from different departments had to get involved), it really shifted my perspective on the situation from a few days ago into a more healthy one. Everyone was so supportive, working positively together without complaining. I realized that a lot of feeling isolated was in my head. There are still other issues to iron out relationally and logistically, but I had a long talk with the big boss this morning and the doors have been opened to continue solution seeking through these issues together. God whispered to me this evening: “This is faith.” Believing before the miracle, having total peace that everything will work out somehow. He’s got us, sisters. What the enemy meant for evil, God turned it to good.
Thank you for your prayers. It does make a difference and I am SO grateful. ❤️ Continuing to pray for the requests shared and looking forward to hearing more “Praise Jesus!” reports.
@JMW Praise Jesus! I was just thinking about you and about to write a praise report update ❤️ I’ve been praying for you sister. God’s got us – He is our Rock, Redeemer, Refuge, our Price of Peace – among many other names.
“How does our behavior reflect our fellowship with Christ? How are we working out our faith in Him?”
Such good questions to reflect upon!
Two additional things that stand out to me today:
1. Jesus asks Peter 3x if he loves Him because Peter had denied Jesus 3x earlier. It wasn’t because He didn’t believe Him, but it’s a beautiful way to show Peter grace.
2. We need not compare our journey with others. We just need to focus on Jesus.
O how I want to follow Him ♥️
Hello sweet sisters!
I wanted to give you an update on my work situation. I’ve had a good conversation with my boss about my manager. She really wanted to hear my side of the story so I’m so thankful for that.
And I am beyond thankful of how God strengthened me before the conversation. I felt so carried by him. It is hard to put into words how He made me feel but I felt so happy not to have to go through it alone. And felt loved beyond words by Him. I’ve never experienced His love and presence like this before ♥️
The situation isn’t resolved yet because they have to decide a next step. But for me I’m happy that I could tell my side of the story and more so my felt closeness to God.
O how He is my Savior!
Thank you again for all your prayers ♥️
It warms my heart that so many of you thought of me and prayed for me. Thank you for your sweet words Linda G, Michelle Patire, Kelly Neo and Searching.
How is your friend Searching?
And know that I’m praying for your requests too:
@SACHI J and @ LEHUA K praying for your work situations too.
Praying for your daughter’s father-in-law @Mae Pound, for your sister Carol @DOROTHY, @SISSY, @LANIE H praying with you for a miracle, @Tanya Evans I hope that it warms your heart too that we all pray for you and that you may feel loved by God. We are your SRT friends.
@ MIRANDA FAZIO heartbreaking to read your post. I pray for you dear sweet sister. Know that God is always with you and hope that you may feel His presence in this difficult time.
And I’m praying for all your other requests written or unwritten ♥️