Have you ever said something you later regretted? Promised more than you could deliver? Failed someone when they needed you most?
Then today’s story is for you.
It’s a quiet scene at the end of John’s Gospel. A beach, a fire, a breakfast. But behind this peaceful moment lies a storm of shame, failure, and heartbreak. And it all centres on one man: Peter.
But to really appreciate today’s Gospel story, we need to rewind the clock a bit to the night Jesus was arrested. Because, after sharing a meal with his closest friends, Jesus looked around the table and said:
“This very night you will all fall away on account of me.”
Peter, never one to stay quiet, fired back:
“Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.”
But Jesus replied:
“Truly I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.”
Still, Peter insisted:
“Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.”
It wasn’t long after that Jesus was betrayed by Judas and arrested. And as he was taken away, Peter followed at a distance, eventually sneaking into the high priest’s courtyard where Jesus was being interrogated.
There, three different people asked Peter if he was one of Jesus’ disciples. Three times he replied: “I am not.”
And then:
“Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him… And he broke down and wept.”
As Peter stood therein shame, Jesus was beaten, mocked, sentenced, and crucified. The bravado of Peter, the rock on which Jesus promised to build his church, crumbled. He had failed. And he knew it.
But that wasn’t the end of Peter’s story.
After the resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples multiple times. One of those moments is what we hear about today. It’s a quiet, beautiful encounter on a beach by the Sea of Galilee.
The disciples had gone back to fishing, but after a fruitless night on the water, a voice from the shore called out: “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
They answered no.
“Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some” he replied.
Suddenly, the net was overflowing with fish. And in that moment, John whispered to Peter: “It is the Lord!”
Peter jumped into the water and swam ashore. When the others arrived, they found Jesus by a fire, cooking breakfast.
“Come and have breakfast,” he said.
It’s during this simple seaside meal that Jesus turned to Peter and asked: “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
Now, that little phrase, “more than these,” takes us back to Peter’s earlier claim that even if everyone else fell away, he never would. But this time Peter doesn’t compare himself to others. He simply says: “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Three times Jesus asks: “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
And three times, Peter says yes. Each time, Jesus replies with a commission:
“Feed my lambs. Take care of my sheep. Feed my sheep.”
Jesus doesn’t avoid Peter’s failure. He meets it head-on. But he does it with grace. This isn’t about rubbing Peter’s nose in his mistakes. It’s about healing the wound and restoring the relationship. Peter is brought back not just into friendship with Jesus, but into leadership. Not because he deserved it. Not because he earned it. But because Jesus is full of grace.
So why should this matter to us?
Because so many of us know what it’s like to feel the weight of our own failures. Maybe not as dramatic as Peter’s, but real nonetheless. We know what it’s like to fall short, to let someone down, to feel ashamed. And if we’re not careful, we can begin to believe the lie that our mistakes define us.
But this story tells us the opposite.
As John Chrysostom once said:
"Let no one mourn that [they have] fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave.”
Peter was forgiven and restored through Jesus’ death and resurrection. And so are we. That’s the hope in this story: that no matter how far we fall, Jesus offers a way back.
But there’s also a challenge.
The saying goes that the church is the only army that shoots its wounded. It’s not always true, but sometimes we do struggle to show grace to others when they mess up. Which is why I find it striking that John’s Gospel ends not with a grand miracle or heavenly vision, but with a conversation between a broken man and a forgiving Saviour. That's not a coincidence. It’s a message.
Jesus’ grace is not just for us to receive. It’s also for us to pass on.
As St Paul said in his letter to the Ephesians:
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
So may this story stir something in you today.
If you carry regret or failure, hear Jesus’ quiet voice asking, “Do you love me?” Not to shame you, but to restore you.
And if someone around you has stumbled, don’t shoot the wounded. Make space for their healing.
Because the good news is that no one is beyond redemption. Not Peter. Not you. Not me. And through Jesus, there is always a way back.
Always.
