The Piercing Question

Do you love Me? —John 21:17

Peter’s response to this piercing question is considerably different from the bold defiance he exhibited only a few days before when he declared, "Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!" ( Matthew 26:35 ; also see Matthew 26:33-34 ). Our natural individuality, or our natural self, boldly speaks out and declares its feelings. But the true love within our inner spiritual self can be discovered only by experiencing the hurt of this question of Jesus Christ. Peter loved Jesus in the way any natural man loves a good person. Yet that is nothing but emotional love. It may reach deeply into our natural self, but it never penetrates to the spirit of a person. True love never simply declares itself. Jesus said, "Whoever confesses Me before men [that is, confesses his love by everything he does, not merely by his words], him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God" ( Luke 12:8 ).

Unless we are experiencing the hurt of facing every deception about ourselves, we have hindered the work of the Word of God in our lives. The Word of God inflicts hurt on us more than sin ever could, because sin dulls our senses. But this question of the Lord intensifies our sensitivities to the point that this hurt produced by Jesus is the most exquisite pain conceivable. It hurts not only on the natural level, but also on the deeper spiritual level. "For the Word of God is living and powerful . . . , piercing even to the division of soul and spirit . . ."— to the point that no deception can remain ( Hebrews 4:12). When the Lord asks us this question, it is impossible to think and respond properly, because when the Lord speaks directly to us, the pain is too intense. It causes such a tremendous hurt that any part of our life which may be out of line with His will can feel the pain. There is never any mistaking the pain of the Lord’s Word by His children, but the moment that pain is felt is the very moment at which God reveals His truth to us.

-Oswald Chambers

The act of Remembering

"Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you." - Revelation 3:2-3
Waking up physically usually involves turning off my alarm clock. But if I want to wake up spiritually, I've got to remember some things. What should I recall, Lord? Jesus spelled it out for us, just as He did for His church in Sardis. First, we must remember "what [we] received" (Revelation 3:3). What did I receive? Paul asked, "What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?" (I Corinthians 4:7). I love stuff that's easy to understand. This is one of those cases. What do you have that you did not receive? The answer doesn't require higher math - it's nothing! Everything that we have fits in the category of received. James 1:17 says, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above." What do you have? Everything you can see around you - and the eyes you use to see - you received. Every relationship in your life - husband, wife, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren - received!
So you want to wake up spiritually? "Remember... what [else] you received." You received the Gospel! You received the free gift of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. How did you get in on it? You’re like, "I don't know. I don’t deserve it. I didn't earn it. It just showed up. He just grabbed me."
Second, we must remember “what [we] . . . heard.” We pray, “Wake me up, Jesus!” How does that happen? By remembering the things that you have received and heard. Revelation 3:3 then adds “Keep it.” “Keep it,” as in put what you know and remember into practice.
You're like, "I haven't been keeping it, James. I know the truth, but I haven’t been living it." Well, your awakening is right there in the text: "repent." Do it right now while you are reading. As the Spirit of God is stirring in your heart, just pray, "I've been wrong. I've been selfish, self-indulgent, and sensual. I've been worldly. I've been distracted. I've been mean-spirited - I've been forgetful!" I don't know exactly what you have been; I just know what I've been. And we need to repent of spiritual deadness: "Sorry, God. I'm wrong; You're right... again."

-James Mcdonald