“Do You Love Me?”
By Elizabeth Cole
“Again Jesus said, ‘Simon, son of John, do you truly love me?’”
John 21:16a (NIV)
By Elizabeth Cole
“Again Jesus said, ‘Simon, son of John, do you truly love me?’”
John 21:16a (NIV)
I’ve been thinking
about that poignant moment in the second act of Fiddler on the Roof
where Tevye asks Golde, his wife of 25 years, if she loves him. Tevye is
intrigued by his daughter’s love for a young man and it causes him to
tentatively ask, “Golde…do you love me?” She quickly brushes off the question
as simply a sign of indigestion, given all the stress and trouble that’s taking
place in their turn-of-the-century village. But he persists…“Golde, I’m asking
you a question…do you love me?”
And here’s the part that has caused me to dwell on this scene lately. Golde answers, “For twenty-five years I've washed your clothes, cooked your meals, cleaned your house, given you children, milked the cow…” How quickly her mind moves to actions…good actions, for sure. Basically, she’s replying, “Good grief, look at everything I’ve done for you! I’ve spent my whole adult life doing things for you…”
How often does that become our answer when we stop to think about how we love Jesus? “Lord, of course, I love you. Look at everything I’ve been doing for you. In fact, I’ve spent my whole adult life doing things for you…” The tone of voice in my mind uncomfortably echoes what I imagine Martha’s to be when her friend Jesus came to visit. While her sister Mary sits with Jesus, Martha does things for Jesus. Martha’s about accomplishments and results; Mary’s about first things first.
Love is first. Henri Nouwen writes of Jesus’ exchange with Peter as He restores him, “He whose only concern had been to announce the unconditional love of God had only one question to ask, ‘Do you love me?’ The question is not: How many people take you seriously? How much are you going to accomplish? Can you show some results? But: Are you in love with Jesus?” (1)
Am I in love with Jesus? Am I in love with One who laid aside every divine right in order to obey the Father and drag a way-too-heavy cross up a hill? Am I in love with the One who calmly tells the wind to cool it, tenderly holds a child, and speaks unvarnished truth for the sake of Love? Do I love Him as my First Love, with fervency and passion…with all my heart and soul and mind and strength?
Actions matter…for sure. But His question’s got to be answered first: Do you love me?
GOING DEEPER:
1. What will you do today to be with Jesus?
FURTHER READING:
Mark 12:30-31; Luke 10; John 21; Philippians 2; Revelation 2:1-7
And here’s the part that has caused me to dwell on this scene lately. Golde answers, “For twenty-five years I've washed your clothes, cooked your meals, cleaned your house, given you children, milked the cow…” How quickly her mind moves to actions…good actions, for sure. Basically, she’s replying, “Good grief, look at everything I’ve done for you! I’ve spent my whole adult life doing things for you…”
How often does that become our answer when we stop to think about how we love Jesus? “Lord, of course, I love you. Look at everything I’ve been doing for you. In fact, I’ve spent my whole adult life doing things for you…” The tone of voice in my mind uncomfortably echoes what I imagine Martha’s to be when her friend Jesus came to visit. While her sister Mary sits with Jesus, Martha does things for Jesus. Martha’s about accomplishments and results; Mary’s about first things first.
Love is first. Henri Nouwen writes of Jesus’ exchange with Peter as He restores him, “He whose only concern had been to announce the unconditional love of God had only one question to ask, ‘Do you love me?’ The question is not: How many people take you seriously? How much are you going to accomplish? Can you show some results? But: Are you in love with Jesus?” (1)
Am I in love with Jesus? Am I in love with One who laid aside every divine right in order to obey the Father and drag a way-too-heavy cross up a hill? Am I in love with the One who calmly tells the wind to cool it, tenderly holds a child, and speaks unvarnished truth for the sake of Love? Do I love Him as my First Love, with fervency and passion…with all my heart and soul and mind and strength?
Actions matter…for sure. But His question’s got to be answered first: Do you love me?
GOING DEEPER:
1. What will you do today to be with Jesus?
FURTHER READING:
Mark 12:30-31; Luke 10; John 21; Philippians 2; Revelation 2:1-7
(1) Henri J.M. Nouwen,
In the Name of Jesus, The Crossroad Publishing Company, New York, p. 37
Elizabeth
is a wife, mother to three grown daughters, and Director of Connecting and
Women’s Ministries at Oakwood Church.
