Keeping Our Eyes On Jesus

Opening Illustration: Joseph Tson was pastor of Second Baptist Church, Oradea, Romania, until he was exiled by the Romanian government in 1981. He writes of his experience:

"Years ago I ran away from my country to study theology at Oxford. In 1972, when I was ready to go back to Romania, I discussed my plans with some fellow students. They pointed out that I might be arrested at the border. One student asked, 'Joseph, what chances do you have of successfully implementing your plans?'"

Joseph asked God about it, and God brought to mind Matthew 10:16 "I send you as sheep in the midst of wolves" -- and seemed to say, "Tell me, what chance does a sheep surrounded by wolves have of surviving five minutes, let alone of converting the wolves? Joseph, that’s how I send you: totally defenseless and without a reasonable hope of success. If you are willing to go like that, go. If you are not willing to be in that position, don’t go."

Tson writes: "After our return, as I preached uninhibitedly, harassment and arrests came. One day during interrogation an officer threatened to kill me. Then I said, 'Sir, your supreme weapon is killing. My supreme weapon is dying. Sir, you know my sermons are all over the country on tapes now. If you kill me, I will be sprinkling them with my blood. Whoever listens to them after that will say, "I’d better listen. This man sealed it with his blood. "They will speak ten times louder than before. So, go on and kill me. I win the supreme victory then.'"

The officer sent him home. "That gave me pause. For years I was a Christian who was cautious because I wanted to survive. I had accepted all the restrictions the authorities put on me because I wanted to live. Now I wanted to die, and they wouldn’t oblige. Now I could do whatever I wanted in Romania. For years I wanted to save my life, and I was losing it. Now that I wanted to lose it, I was winning it." [1]

John 21:20–22

I like Peter if for no other reason, he reminds me too much of me. Peter was always the boisterous one of the all the disciples and as such, he was their unofficial leader. But Peter had problems keeping his eyes only and solely on Jesus. In the days following the resurrection of Jesus, Jesus appears with His disciples on numerous occasions. In the previous verses we read where Jesus restores Peter to ministry after his failure of denying Jesus. Jesus goes on to tell Peter how he will end his days:

John 21:18–19 (NKJV) Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”

Jesus in verse 19 was speaking that Peter would later on die as a martyr and as a martyr Peter would glorify God.

Church tradition holds that Peter was crucified in Rome and at Peter’s request, he was crucified upside-down because he felt unworthy to die just as Jesus died.

Now before we become too harsh on Peter, think about it for a moment. What if you were told that you, as some point in the future, near or far future, you would die a horrible death for the cause of Christ? But Peter, after his denial of Jesus and Jesus restoring him to ministry looked around and to see who was listening.

John 21:20 (NKJV) Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?”

Peter identified John. John in his own Gospel was reluctant to identify himself directly. Peter asked a straight forward question to Jesus.

John 21:21 (NKJV) Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?”

Good question, we would say. Yah, what about good old John. I’m going to die, what about him? Listen to the answer Jesus gives:

John 21:22 (NKJV) Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”

So what about John. You are to follow me. More than a few of my commentators said that in essence Jesus said, “Peter, mind your own business. What I will for John to do is my business. You are to do what I called you to do.”

What Peter was doing is what we all do. We take our eyes off of Jesus. Peter had a history of taking His eyes off of Jesus. He should have known better.