Scripture Reading: John 21:18-23
“Peter, seeing him (John), said to Jesus, ‘But Lord, what about this man?’ Jesus said to him, ‘If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.’”—John 21:21-22
Now that Peter was restored in his relationship with the Lord, Jesus went on to foretell Peter’s fate as a disciple. Verse 19 has been understood as a prophecy of Peter’s imprisonment and crucifixion for the sake of the Gospel. Peter diverted the discussion about his eventual martyrdom to ask about the fate of another member of Jesus’ inner circle, John. Jesus redirects the conversation back to Peter’s life with a simple point, “… what is that to you? You follow Me.”
Just as happened with Peter, the tendency to focus on God’s work in the lives of others distracts us from what God is telling us about our own lives. When we are charged with tackling the hard tasks or asked to make the difficult sacrifice, we wonder if others are getting off easier than us. When we are chastised for our individual sin, we can focus on how God deals with the sins of others. We try to engage God to compare ourselves to others; and God is not interested in the conversation. Instead, God redirects us to the topic at hand, our own lives.
This issue of staying the course in our own lives goes to many facets of our living. We focus on whether others are obedient to God, why they don’t worship the way we worship, or why God isn’t chastising them for their sin the way we are chastised. All the while, God is telling us the same words Jesus spoke to Peter: Stop trying to redirect the discussion from our own predicament or worrying about what God is doing in another person’s life. Instead, focus on following Jesus. Certainly, there is a role for accountability and encouragement in Christian discipleship, but never at the cost of being judgmental and meddlesome.
I recall school days when the smart kid in the class would finish the test well ahead of everyone else. The entire class would become unsettled for a moment—we all focused on the question, “how could she be done already?” We became distracted from our own tests to focus on someone else’s work. The teacher would refocus us by quietly saying, “Keep working.” At times, God has to remind us to “keep working” on our own assignments and not concentrate on how others are doing or their relationship with God.
Perhaps Peter asked the question about John in genuine concern for his friend. Regardless, Jesus did not entertain Peter’s query. Instead, Jesus redirected the question to the point at hand—Peter’s personal discipleship and relationship with the Lord. Jesus’ words to Peter should echo in our lives when we are tempted to compare ourselves to others or meddle in their walk with God, “What is that to you? You follow Me.”
Lesson to Remember: When we focus on following Jesus, we don’t have time to follow other people’s lives.
“Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.”—Romans 14:4
