Do You Love Me?

“But how do you know? What are you willing to do to prove it? Can you show me?”

Pause.

Did you see that? Without even realizing it, the conversation immediately went from “tell me” to “show me.” 

Remember the story of Jesus and Peter on the shore following a wearisome few days after Jesus’s death and resurrection? Many of the disciples, including Peter, returned to their former trade of fishing when Jesus approached them on the banks of the sea.

The conversation between Peter and Jesus must have been so intense. “It’s Jesus, it’s really Him” he must have thought as he cast himself into the sea and began to swim to the shore. In the midst of the conversation Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love me?” 

How irritating it must have been as he continually responded in the affirmative. Three times. Three times Jesus asked him this. Surely there was no irony in Peter’s three previous denials of Jesus the night before His crucifixion.

Feed my sheep, Peter. Quit telling me that you love me and show me. Do something. Obey my command. Put me first.

There’s no questioning Jesus’s love; it’s evident in the invitation. Now, Peter’s love was placed on the stand of action.

So, ‘do you love me’ may be better asked, ‘how do you know you love me’?

I’ve been asked this question, “How do you know you love me?” and I didn’t feel I had an adequate response. 

All I know is “love does.”