"Feed My Sheep"

In the 21st chapter of his gospel, John describes an exchange between Peter and Jesus, most of you know it well. Jesus asked Peter, "Do you love me?" He asked him three times in fact. And three times Jesus committed his flock to Peter's care: Feed my lambs; feed my sheep; feed my sheep. Those whom Jesus committed to Peter are the church of Christ, his flock, which he purchased with his own blood.

I can imagine Jesus saying, "Peter, these are my lambs, my sheep. I love them dearly. I was beaten, spit on, and finally crucified for them. I paid the highest price, and will you not care for them as I did? Will you love them as I do? Hold them in your arms, lead them to green pastures, and risk your life to save theirs?"

I imagine Jesus saying that to me as he is committing a small flock of sheep and lambs to my care at the Franklin Campus. "Do you love me?" he says. "Then feed them, that is, teach them; for the doctrine of the gospel is spiritual food."

I believe God is asking me to feed his sheep, but I also believe that he is asking me to shepherd a flock where lambs and sheep can mature and eventually feed themselves. Said another way, "Give a man a fish, feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, feed him for the rest of his life." 

So, I want to teach sheep how to fish. I want to help them mature in their faith by teaching them personal spiritual practices like prayer and reading God's word. I believe that students who are maturing in their faith will be students who are proclaiming Christ and giving their lives away. That's why we are going to Franklin: our mission is to proclaim Christ and give our lives away. 

If you're a student who is interested in coming to the Franklin Campus, I am so excited you're reading this! God is placing before you an opportunity to take the gospel to the city of Franklin. In the coming months I'll be showing you some of the people and places of Franklin, to give you an idea of who you'll meet and where you'll get to serve. I'll also give you a glimpse inside the facility that God has given us within which to gather and worship.

For now though, I'm encouraging you to commit to reading one chapter of your Bible each day with me this year. We're going to go through the books of the Bible, one chapter at a time, and I will put up a short post each day here on the blog with some of my thoughts, and some questions for you to consider. It will only take five to ten minutes of your day, but the affect on your spiritual life with God will be staggering.

Will you join me?