Can You Still Follow Jesus After Failure? What John 21 Teaches Us
Adapted from “Unfinished Calling: When Jesus Still Calls Your Name,” a message by Genetta Herrera at Olathe Wesleyan Church.
“I thought I’d be further along by now.”
Maybe you’ve said that after losing your patience with someone you love. Maybe you’ve said it after going back to a habit you thought you’d left behind. The hardest part can be what you start to wonder about yourself. If I’ve let Jesus down again, does he still have a place for me?
In John 21, Jesus restores Peter after Peter denies knowing him three times. He makes Peter breakfast, asks him whether he loves him, and entrusts him with caring for his people. Jesus knows exactly what Peter has done when he says, “Follow me.”
Jesus makes breakfast for the disciple who denied him
Peter had been sure he would stay with Jesus even if everyone else walked away. Then Jesus was arrested, and Peter denied knowing him three times. When the rooster crowed, Jesus turned and looked at him. Peter went out and wept bitterly (Luke 22:54–62).
John 21 takes us from that courtyard to the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Peter and several other disciples have been fishing all night and have caught nothing. At daybreak, the risen Jesus calls from shore and tells them where to cast their net. By the time they haul in their catch, Jesus already has fish and bread waiting over a charcoal fire.
John mentions a charcoal fire in one other scene. It’s where Peter warmed himself on the night he denied Jesus (John 18:18). Now there’s another fire, and Jesus is inviting Peter to breakfast. Imagine being Peter and hearing the person you let down say, “Come and have breakfast.”
Why does Jesus ask Peter, “Do you love me?” three times?
After breakfast, Jesus asks Peter three times whether he loves him (John 21:15–17). Set beside Peter’s three denials, the repeated question gives Peter room to say openly what he once denied. By the third question, Peter is hurt. He answers, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.”
Earlier, Peter had been so sure of what he would do under pressure. This time, he rests his answer on what Jesus knows. Jesus knows about the promise Peter broke. He also knows that Peter loves him.
Then Jesus says, “Feed my sheep.” He gives Peter people to care for. There’s something deeply personal about that moment. The person who knows Peter’s worst night is the one who trusts him with work that matters.
What does it look like to follow Jesus after failure?
When Jesus tells Peter something of what following him will cost, Peter looks over at another disciple and asks, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus brings Peter back to the invitation in front of him. “As for you, follow me” (John 21:18–22).
It’s easy to recognize ourselves in Peter’s question. Someone else seems to have moved past the struggle we keep coming back to. Someone else seems to know exactly what God is asking of them. Meanwhile, the next faithful thing in our own lives may be plain enough. We owe someone an apology. We need to tell a trusted friend what we’ve been carrying. We’ve been putting off a conversation because we’re afraid of what it might cost.
Take a quiet moment and ask, Jesus, what is one step you’re asking me to take today? You can start with the part of your life you’re most tempted to keep from him. He already knows it, and his invitation still stands.
