"Feeding my sheep" is how Jesus Reaches Out through Peter. Jesus had already made him a "fisher of men," but now he also makes him a "shepherd of souls." I wonder if Jesus had to tell him three times just to get the point across. There's something exciting, and dangerous, and adventurous about fishing; the same can't be said about tending sheep. And yet, feeding the sheep that are found -- whether a congregation or a family -- is no less important than finding the sheep that are lost. Both are doing the work of the Lord.
"Do you love me?" is how Jesus Reaches Out to Peter. If Peter is to be the Prince of the Apostles and the Shepherd of the Sheep, then he needs to be forgiven by the Good Shepherd himself. Since Peter denied him three times, Jesus gives him three opportunities to declare his love:
- The first is comparative -- "Do you truly love me more than these?"
- The second is emphatic -- "Do you truly love me?"
- The third is simply declarative -- "Do you love me?"
- this one hurts, for now Jesus has come to the heart of the matter, the thorn buried in Peter's flesh. He is willing to pull it out and heal the wound; all he asks for is our love.
Caravaggio, "The Crucifixion of St. Peter"
