First Love - Breakfast With Jesus (The Original)

Elder Andrew began by referring to the message which Pastor Lionel gave at the beginning of the year. His message exhorted Riverlifers to heed the call like the Ephesian church in Revelation 2: 4-7 to return to our first love. We left our first love when love for God is not high on our priority. Jesus calls us to repent and do the first works or He will come and remove the lampstand from its place. One does not lose his salvation when he leaves his first love but his life will become irrelevant and inconsequential.  In 1 Corinthians 13:2, Paul wrote that all our works come to nothing without love. Jesus promises to give the overcomer in the church at Ephesus to eat from the tree of life.

 

Elder Andrew used John 21:15-19 to draw out the process of returning to the first love after the apostle Peter had denied knowing Jesus when the latter was captured to be crucified. Elder Andrew referred to John 13:37 and Mt 26:33 where Peter had professed his willingness to lay down his life for Jesus and Peter’s confidence that Jesus can count on him to stand by him even if all were to leave him.  John chapter 21 can be summarized as the passage with three questions, three answers and three commissions. Elder Andrew challenged us to examine if the three questions were indeed only one question.  Through these questions, we can see the Lord’s compassion and love for Peter; helping him to overcome his self-doubt, shame and guilt. Peter needed to forgive himself for having betrayed Jesus. 

 

John recorded that Jesus appeared to Peter and six other disciples who had returned from a futile, night fishing trip. Jesus then directed them to net a miraculous catch of fish and prepared breakfast for them. After breakfast, Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved him. Upon each of Peter’s three confessions of his love for Jesus, the Lord gave him the three commissions to feed his lambs, tend his sheep and feed his sheep. Jesus also prophesised that Peter would glorify God by his death. Peter’s desire to die for Jesus was fulfilled when he was crucified for his faith.  Church tradition wrote that he was crucified upside down as he felt unworthy to die like Jesus, his Lord.

 

Elder Andrew ended his message by encouraging all Riverlifers to sign up with a cell for the upcoming Rediscovering the Gospel (RTG) discipleship journey back to our first love. The elders and many church leaders have gone through this course and found that it brought them to a renewed and deeper love for God. May we be enabled through RTG to say with the apostle Paul in Romans 1:16 - For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.

Discussion Questions

1 Read John Chapter 21:15-19 which describes the three questions, answers and commissions. Elder Andrew alluded to Jesus using the Greek word “agapao”(unreserving) for love in the first two questions and the Greek word, “phileo”(friendship, recriprocal) for love in his last question to Peter.  Peter had used the word “phileo” in his reply to each of Jesus’ questions. Share with your group how was Peter’s restoration accomplished through this encounter. [10 min]

 

2 a)     What does it mean to have left your first love? [10 min]

2 b)      How can you return to your first love? [5 min]

 

3 Who are you shepherding? Read 1 Peter 5:2-4 and Psalm 23 and share with your group the tasks and attitudes of a good shepherd. End in prayer for the shepherds in your life. [15 min]