Introduction

To love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, is actually a central idea that John wanted to convey. At the end of the Gospel of John, he highlighted a story, a conversation between Jesus and Peter:

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. (John 21:15-17)

Through this story, the Apostle John wanted to express that the relationship between us and God is one of love. Love is wonderful. If a person lives a life without love, unable to give love to others, they will live a miserable life. Conversely, if the love within is lived out, life will be good. A characteristic of this world is that selfish people live very miserably.

Love is, in reality, giving and sacrifice. A crucial concept in our church's core value system is paying the price. Brothers and sisters, observe carefully: selfish people never live well. Today, let us also ask ourselves if we have love within us. If there is no love for others in one's heart, one cannot receive love either. If a person says, No one loves me, they are basically selfish and unlikely to receive love. But if we love God, we will surely live a vibrant life.

The Background of This Passage

Peter loved Jesus very much and was willing to lay down his life for Him. When Jesus called Peter to follow Him, they immediately left their nets and followed Him (see Matthew 4:20). Simon Peter answered, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. (see John 6:68). After Jesus was crucified and resurrected from the dead, this was the third time He appeared during the forty days. In the days without Jesus, Peter became very lost and had no choice but to go fishing. That night they caught nothing (see John 21:3). When people are in a bad mood, they cannot catch fish either, even though Peter was very skilled at fishing.

Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore, yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea. (John 21:4)

As for why John wrote about Peter being naked, I think it was because Peter felt very uncomfortable. The days without the Lord Jesus were truly hard to bear. Those who have loved the Lord know this. Once there is no Lord Jesus to love, it is very painful. I find joy in serving God every day and do not know how to live without the Lord. Peter felt that fishing was meaningless, and he wanted to release what was inside him. So he took off his clothes and threw a tantrum. When he heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment and threw himself into the sea (see John 21:7).

This story is about Jesus appearing to them for the third time after His resurrection. Jesus had been with them for more than three years. Suddenly, the Lord Jesus was no longer among them. They loved the Lord but could not see Him, and their hearts were very troubled. Our Lord clearly understands our feelings. To love the Lord inwardly brings great satisfaction. Serving God with love, even though it involves sweat, tears, and blood, brings a wonderful sense of fulfillment. I hope our brothers and sisters can all understand this. Loving God is not about God needing our love, but about us needing to actively love Him. When we love God and serve Him, our days will be very fulfilling.

Always remember my words: Do not live in selfishness. Among us, there are some children who need to take university entrance exams. One of the sisters has had a very miserable life these past years, spending a million dollars and not obtaining any qualifications. I told her not to be selfish, otherwise she would be troubled, upset, and living a meaningless life. She needs to start learning to give and sacrifice. If you love God, you will surely live a flavorful life.

Do You Love Me More Than These?

Our God is a jealous God. We must not love anything more than Him. He is our only love, and only then can we live a better life. Peter was a professional fisherman. He loved fishing very much, and it was also his means of livelihood. Jesus said to Simon Peter:

Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? (John 21:15)

Today, we love our work, but we must never love it more than Jesus, otherwise our work will become our bondage. Whatever you love more than Jesus will become your bondage. When Jesus called Peter, Peter left everything to follow the Lord Jesus. If this were today, many people would think that Peter was irresponsible towards his family. Recently, Singapore has introduced a concept that puts family first, but the Bible does not teach this. Instead, it teaches the concept of Peter, who gave up everything. If our reaction to the Lord Jesus today is the same as Peter's, Jesus will say to you, Feed my lambs (see John 21:15).

In Shenzhen, I saw the pastors in the K district desperately praying for a brother who was suffering from kidney failure. I was deeply moved and saw the expression of loving God and paying the price in them. Christians who have not grown up are like immature lambs, and they need people's love and care very much. One of them, Sister MW, had a child who was coughing at night. She did not rest all night and got up the next day to take care of this brother. There were also several brothers and sisters who later took this brother to the hospital for dialysis, taking turns on duty and giving a lot. This also allowed their entire district to personally experience God's grace.

It turns out that God brought this brother among us so that we could learn a lesson: ask ourselves, do we love God more than the world? If we love God more than these things, God's lambs will not lose love among us. If we love the necessities of life more than the Lord, our necessities of life will become a problem.

Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. (Matthew 10:37)

Because only when we love the Lord Jesus can our parents and children experience God.

What Exactly Is the Proof of Loving the Lord?

That is to say, serving is loving God. If you feed God's sheep, that is loving God. If you say, I don't know how to shepherd, then learn! Some people don't know how to shepherd, nor do they improve themselves to shepherd. Why is that? Because they lack love. If you truly love God, you will go and shepherd. Rick Joyner expresses the same theological concept in his books as John does. John says that love is supreme; in Rick Joyner's books, the highest mountain to climb is the Father's Garden of Love. In the Father's Garden of Love, there is a Tree of Life, and the fruit of the Tree of Life can be eaten freely.

It turns out that even if you have the faith to move mountains, can heal, and can deliver, because healing and deliverance are through faith, if you do not have love in your heart, do not have the heart to love God, God will not recognize you. The problem is not casting out demons, but not loving God. If a person has great power, great faith, but does not love God, that person is of no benefit. Therefore, Paul says this in 1 Corinthians: I will show you the most excellent way: And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. That is to say, if you lose love, even faith is useless. At the top of the mountain of the Lord is the Father's Garden of Love.

To love the Lord is to serve the Lord. To love the Lord is to pay the price, to offer your life, to serve God. Serving God is to shepherd and feed God's flock. In the future, God will judge the effectiveness of our service in heaven, and the effect of our service will follow us all the way to heaven. You say, It doesn't matter, I will serve in heaven. There is no service in heaven, only service on earth. Therefore, if you do not have time to serve on earth, there will be no opportunity in heaven. That is to say, God puts us on this earth so that we can live out God's love, share it, and serve this generation, so as to shepherd God's flock and feed God's lambs. To serve is to love God.

Jesus Said, Follow Me

After talking about shepherding God's sheep, Jesus said this:

Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!” (John 21:18-19)

The point I want to make is about following the Lord. What does it mean to follow the Lord? It means to imitate the death of the Lord Jesus, to imitate the Lord Jesus' complete offering of Himself, like a grain of wheat sown in the ground, which, though it dies, will yield many seeds. It turns out that the original intention of our lives is like this. Today, brothers and sisters, do not think that you will preserve your life. If you put your life in God's hands to serve God, you will gain your life, and your life will become prosperous. Imitating Jesus is the core value of our church. If a person wants to imitate the Lord, they must imitate the Lord's death, completely offer themselves, and die on the cross. If a person wants to preserve their life, they will lose it.

Reflect on whether you have a selfish heart. If you have a very selfish heart, you will definitely live a miserable life in this life. Do you want to live well or live miserably? Follow the Lord, imitate the Lord, and you will be exalted to the highest. Therefore, in the 201 course, we talk about obedience to the point of death, not caring about death. So, what do we proclaim in the church? What the church proclaims is how to live a good life, how to live out God's glory. If you rely on your own logical system, you cannot live well. So, brothers and sisters, do you really love God? If you love, offer yourself for God and serve God. Serving God is serving God's flock, and serving God's flock is offering your life. Offering your life is following Jesus and imitating Jesus.

I have met many Christians. When chatting, they always ask: What year were you saved? Oh, what year was I saved, what year did I believe in the Lord. But there is not a trace of Jesus in them. I don't know who they are following. They should be following the devil, with a pile of problems. Then they say: Why are there so many problems? It must be God giving them to me. Actually, it's not, it's because they don't follow or imitate Jesus. That is to say, if you really believe in God today, follow God, because that is the path of life.

The Lord Jesus has opened up a path of life for us, which is to take up our own cross and follow the Lord. If you want to be the Lord's disciple, you must follow the Lord and must imitate the Lord. Why? Because in the Lord Jesus there is eternal life. If a person lives well in this life but does not have eternal life and is heading to hell, their life is empty, really helpless. I think this is following the Lord. To imitate the Lord is to follow the Lord.

Focus on Following the Lord

At the Last Supper, Peter turned around and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved leaning close to Jesus' chest, asking Jesus: Lord, who is going to betray you? That disciple was John. When Peter saw him, he asked Jesus: Lord, what about him? I think his subconscious thought was: Why did you tell me to follow you, but you didn't tell him to follow you? Jesus answered very well:

Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” (John 21:22)

Don't ask some boring questions: Lord, what will happen to him in the future? Is he following you? Actually, whether he follows or not has nothing to do with you. I have developed a habit, I don't like to interfere in other people's business. As for someone who wants to follow, if it's not my flock, then it has nothing to do with me. Someone once asked me: Are there any other dragon-slaying churches in Singapore? I don't know! It's none of my business. I only care about the sheep God has entrusted to me, shepherding them well, and being a person after God's own heart. I just follow the Lord well. How wonderful it is to follow the Lord well!

I am a focused person. Why did I study well since I was little? Because I was focused! I rarely interfere in things that are not related to me. People play mahjong, smoke, what does that have to do with me? Therefore, brothers and sisters must be focused! I have found that many people who don't study well are unfocused people.

In our church, I like one of the more diligent children in our midst. She is very lovely and often says: Pastor, shall I make you a cup of coffee? I feel very comforted. When I am serving very hard, it is good to have someone bring me a cup of coffee! I said: Sister, thank you very much! Then someone saw it and was very unhappy: Pastor, why do you like this sister so much? I like her, what does it have to do with you? They will do some useless things that have nothing to do with them. Everyone must start understanding, paying attention to things that are related to us. What are you doing interfering in things that have nothing to do with you? For you, follow the Lord! Imitate the Lord! If the Lord Jesus wants you to pay the price, then pay the price! As for what happens to others, it has not much relation with you.

However, if it is the sheep you are shepherding, then shepherd them well. The sheep that others are shepherding are being shepherded by others. If you do not take care of your own vineyard, but look at other people's vineyards; if you do not eat the grapes in your own vineyard, but eat the grapes in other people's vineyards, thinking that the grapes in your own home are more sour and the grapes in other people's homes are sweeter. This is strange! Therefore, there are many other people's children in this generation. Later, I learned an idiom, which is other people's children, which means that other people's children look good.

Therefore, brothers and sisters must be focused today. Because I am a focused person, I think the books I write are the best, I think the websites I make are the most beautiful, I think my service is the best, and I think the church I build is the most after God's own heart. Others will say: How do you know? That's what I think! Never mind me, and I won't mind you! This is focus.

I think the songs we write are the best songs. To reveal a little inside information, many people have listened to our songs and come to find YX: Can your professional team help us create a song? We have become a professional team! However, I believe our team is also very professional. As for whether other people's teams are professional or not, it's not my concern. If you are a focused person, a person with a lot of character, you must focus on following the Lord.

When I was little, our house was very small, with seven people living in it. Neighbors came to our house and often saw me sitting on a small stool in the corner reading a book. They said: Don't look at this kid who doesn't make a sound, but he has ideas! I heard everything they said. I had a lot of ideas. You guys chat, it's none of my business, I'll study hard. When we were young, there was a saying, study math, physics and chemistry well, and you can travel all over the world. It's true! Today, learn to follow the Lord Jesus well, and you can travel all over the world.

Focus well. Focus is a person's character. For example, like FF, start practicing his focus. Genesis Chapter 1 is finished reading, isn't it? Read Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 again. A person who drifts, has no roots, drifting around is a problem of character.

Yesterday, a sister told me: Because the welfare benefits in New Zealand and Australia are particularly good, I want to get a degree and apply for a residence permit from them to become a resident there. I thought about it and said to that sister: Your thoughts are all selfish! Why didn't you think about making a contribution to that country? The welfare of other people's countries was not created by you either. The problem I am raising is whether you have the ability to create value.

It doesn't matter where a person is. The key is that a person must have a character, and that character is focus. She said: Pastor, only you tell me these things, otherwise I would think it is a matter of course. However, she thinks like this, and she really thinks it is a matter of course. Is the welfare of other people's countries for you to take advantage of? You always want to take advantage, but you never get to, how tangled you must be! I never want to take advantage of others. I only think about one thing: how can I give my life and be a blessing to this generation.

Brothers and sisters, you have to carefully ponder what John wants to tell us. Why focus on following the Lord? Brothers and sisters, what exactly is your focus? If your focus is on following Jesus, this kind of focused character can enable you to live a wonderful life.

To Love the Lord with All Your Heart, Soul, Strength, and Mind is the Entirety of Our Life

To love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul is key, and you need not worry about anything in your life. This morning, during prayer, a sister asked me if she could open a Tuina massage shop, as she had learned Tuina and was seeking the Lord recently, but had not received any revelation. I thought, the 《Bible》 never speaks of such things. In the 《Bible》, Paul never prayed for anyone asking, Can I start a business? The 《Bible》 says that you should love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and all these things will be added to you.

The 《Bible》 records how to love God. During Solomon's reign, after Solomon became king, he prayed to God. God appeared to him in a dream, asking what he needed. He said, I want wisdom to govern the people of Israel. God was pleased and not only gave him wisdom but also honor, wealth, and things he did not ask for. This means that if we have wisdom, other things will come naturally.

Brothers and sisters, can we have this concept: Our needs in life are all within loving the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. I don't think everyone believes this. Do you believe it? You really must believe it! Jesus said:

When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up? “Twelve,” they replied. “And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?” They answered, “Seven.” Jesus said to them, “Do you still not understand?” (《Mark》 8:19-21)

Do you understand today? Where is the bread? The bread is in Jesus Christ! Where is the loaf? The loaf is in Jesus Christ! All are in the blessing! Milk will be there, bread will be there, fish will be there, bread will be there, all are in Jesus Christ! You know that Jesus Christ stood on the shore, and when they came up, they saw Jesus there, baking bread and grilling fish. Where did the bread come from? Where did the fish come from? Jesus transformed them. It was impossible for Jesus to carry a bag of bread and a bag of fish after His resurrection. He said it, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.

Think about it. If all our daily needs are in Jesus Christ, isn't loving the Lord the most normal thing? I often minister to people who encounter significant difficulties in their lives. I pray for them, their lives are released, and their problems are solved. After that, they return to the world to busy themselves with their affairs, because they do not know that in Jesus Christ, there is bread and fish, all that they need for life. This is the most foolish thing.

I once compared this to someone who discovered a gold mine, picked up a small piece of gold, and ran away, clutching that small piece of gold tightly, not knowing that there were five tons, ten tons, a hundred tons of gold in that gold mine. If he were a clever person, he would continue to dig, like me. If I found a gold mine, I would buy excavators and equipment to build a gold mine and continue to dig, one ton, two tons, three tons, five tons, a hundred tons, keep digging.

There are many treasures in Jesus Christ. Since I came to know Jesus Christ at the end of 1991 and was baptized in 1992, I knew I had found a treasure. I kept telling myself that this is a treasure, and I will never leave it. To this day, this focused character of mine has enabled me to receive great grace. This means that in Jesus Christ, there is abundant grace. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we enter into the blessings of Abraham. God will make us a great nation, and God will make our name great. If your name is great, what do you worry about? A small internet celebrity, with a not-so-great name, earns three million yuan a year. What do you worry about?

In the future, our church will definitely become a great nation. God will surely make our name great. God will surely lift us up above all nations. God will surely make us a blessing to others. We are also willing to bless them, and God will make us a blessing to all nations and peoples on earth. This is living out God's love. If this is the case, is the need for daily life still a problem? It's not a problem at all. Sister MW stopped working for several years to take care of her children. When she went out to find a job, she immediately found a leadership position. How can you reason with that? It infuriates those who do not love God. Those who love God, who love the Lord your God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength, will lack nothing in life.

Health is in Jesus Christ, abundance is in Jesus Christ, living prosperously is in Jesus Christ, and living wonderfully is also in Jesus Christ. Where else are you going to look? Our good is not apart from Him. The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Where are you going to look! Turning back at every step, what are you looking at? There is nothing good in the world. There is no need to investigate further. Further investigations will only confuse you. This is what Jesus keeps asking us, Do you still not understand? I fed five thousand people with five loaves and two fish, and I fed four thousand people with seven loaves and four fish. Can't you see the essence of the facts? Actually, the few loaves and fish are not the point. The key is to know that in Jesus Christ, there is the answer to all our needs. This is great!

Conclusion: Love the Lord Your God!

Brothers and sisters, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength. In Him, there is abundant grace and mercy. In Him, there are infinite treasures. He has given us the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Keys represent authority. Do you want to take up the keys of the kingdom of heaven, open the treasures of the kingdom, to meet all the needs on this earth? As long as you are a person who loves God, you will surely become wealthy, because there is no lack in Jesus Christ.

In closing, I would like to talk about a number: 153. You can check it online. This 153 is a wonderful number. These one hundred and fifty-three fish are also actually telling Peter that catching people is like catching fish. So many fish were caught in one net that it almost broke. In the future, we will also be like Peter, casting our nets in the right place. The net we cast is not Peter's net; we cast the Internet. Once this Internet is cast, it will be extraordinary. It will be more than one hundred and fifty-three fish. In the future, God will greatly raise up our church, making it a church that catches people like catching fish.

Because, we have the love of God in our midst. We have feeding and shepherding, a complete shepherding system, a shepherding system that will not miss any fish. It will surely catch all the fish. What are we building a complete shepherding system for today? To prepare to catch the fish. This is not a broken net; it is a complete net.

To love the Lord and serve this generation is our Mingding Destiny. To distribute God's love is our Mingding Destiny. Selfishness is not the way at all. To start serving God is the way. Brothers and sisters, start learning to be wise people today, and let's start running together on this road of catching people like catching fish!