Do I Love Jesus?

Text: John 21:15–17

When we read this part of the story, we must not overlook the reason behind Jesus’ question to Peter. He didn’t ask Peter just once. He didn’t ask him twice. He asked him three times: “Do you love me?”

You can almost hear the frustration in Peter’s voice. After the first question, he says, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Again, Jesus asks—and again, Peter affirms. But then a third time, Jesus presses in: “Do you love me?”

Let’s not forget that Peter had denied the Lord three times. Perhaps this is why Jesus asked the question three times—to give Peter the opportunity to fully reaffirm his love. But notice what Jesus did not ask. He didn’t say:

• “Do you believe in me?”

• “Do you admire me?”

No—He asked, “Do you love me?”

And I believe it’s a question we must ask ourselves—not once, not twice, but again and again:

Do I love Jesus?

1. The Question of Our Love

Jesus asked the same question three times—and Peter gave the same answer each time. But this wasn’t just repetition. Peter had been on spiritual probation. He had denied Christ, cursed, ran away, and returned to fishing (John 21:3). Maybe he was considering returning to his old life—or maybe he just needed time to think. We don’t know. But what we do know is this: Jesus came to him.

He came to the disciples, startled them with His presence, then fed them breakfast. And then He turned to Peter and asked, “Do you love me?”

Jesus wasn’t satisfied with just a verbal answer. He connected love with service.

“Feed my lambs.”
“Feed my sheep.”
“Feed my sheep.”

Peter had once said, “Lord, I’ll never deny you.” But then he did. Now, Jesus wanted him to understand something deeper:

Love isn’t just something you say—it’s something you do.

You can serve without loving, but you cannot love the Lord Jesus without serving.

2. The Obedience of Our Love

Jesus clearly connects love with obedience in John 14:

• “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (v.15).

• “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me” (v.21).

• “If a man love me, he will keep my words” (v.23).

Jesus did not make this vague or confusing. If we love Him, we will obey Him.

Think about our children. They can say, “I love you,” but if they constantly rebel and disobey, those words feel empty. How must Jesus feel when we say we love Him—but don’t live like it?

Luke 6:46 asks:

“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”

Here’s what others have said about this connection between love and obedience:

A.W. Tozer: “The final test of love is obedience.”
Elisabeth Elliot: “Loving God is not just a warm, fuzzy feeling. It is a determined act of the will to obey His commands, no matter the cost.”
D.L. Moody: “A man who says ‘I love God’ and doesn’t obey Him is no better than a man who says ‘I love my wife’ and never comes home.”

3. The Confrontation of Our Love

Jesus was intentionally confronting Peter. Why? Because Christianity is not a game. It’s not a buffet line where we pick what we want. It’s not based on feelings or emotions or preferences. It’s about loving and serving our Savior with everything we have.

It’s about the greatest commandment:

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart…”

In Revelation 2:4, Jesus addresses the church at Ephesus. He commends them for standing against evil, enduring hardships, and working for His name. Yet He says:

“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.”

He didn’t say they lost it—He said they left it.

That tells us something:

Loving Jesus is a choice.
We choose where our heart goes. We choose what gets our affection. And too often, we choose lesser loves over the Lord.

Let’s be honest:

• Wives don’t want to be second in their husband’s heart.

• Husbands don’t want to be second in their wife’s life.

• Why would Jesus be okay being second in ours?

He calls us His bride. Shouldn’t He have first place?

Do You Love Him?

Let’s consider a few examples:

David said in Psalm 18:1, “I will love thee, O Lord, my strength.”
The psalmist said in Psalm 116:1, “I love the Lord, because he hath heard my voice.”
Jesus Himself said in John 14:31, “That the world may know that I love the Father…”

And then we think of Abraham, Moses, and Paul—men who showed their love through sacrifice, obedience, and faithfulness.

So let me ask you:

Why do we think we can live a modern version of Christianity in 2025 that never says “I love Jesus” and never shows it through service? He told Peter, "if you love me, serve me." if we love Jesus, shouldn't we serve him too?