Devotions this week are based on Week 3 How Would You Answer (WATCH HERE)
John 21:18 I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”
After restoring Peter, Jesus does something unexpected. He speaks about Peter’s future. He describes a future when Peter will follow Him with faithfulness, even to the point of death.
This stands in contrast to the Peter who once denied Him out of fear.
Jesus is not just addressing Peter’s past. He is redefining his future.
Then He gives a simple command. “Follow me.”
This is the same call Peter heard at the beginning, but now it carries deeper meaning. It is not based on Peter’s strength, but on Jesus’ grace. What Jesus began a few years earlier in Peter, he was going to see to completion. The work God created for Peter was one of Gospel blessings but also persecution for that same Gospel message.
Yet Jesus calls him forward. Peter doesn’t object. He doesn’t run. He doesn’t negotiate. He is ready to follow.
Jesus did not leave Peter defined by his failure. He calls him into a future shaped by faithfulness. The same is true for us. Grace does not just forgive. It sends. It calls us to move forward, to live differently, to follow Jesus with renewed purpose.
It won’t be easy. We may not face upside down crucifixion as Peter did, but our faith will be challenged, our connection to Christ strained, and our loyalty tested. But as Jesus’ grace calls AND equips Peter for the task, so will the Lord Jesus do for you.
Our past does not cancel your calling. Rather Jesus redeems our past and calls us into our future. He speaks over your life and invites you to follow Him, living in and proclaiming his message of grace!
Follow him!
Reflect: What might Jesus be calling you to step into right now? What is holding you back from fully following Him?
Prayer: Lord, thank you that my past does not define my future. Give me the courage to follow you wherever you lead. Help me to trust your call and walk in the purpose you have for my life. Amen.