Tending the Lambs God Sends
Month 12: Risen & Sending · Loving Others
Today's Scripture
Read together: John 21:15-16
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus replied, “Feed My lambs.” 16 Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus told him, “Shepherd My sheep.”
Memory Verse
“Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was deeply hurt that Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” “Lord, You know all things,” he replied. “You know I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.”— John 21:17 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: 1 John 2-4
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (Near Day 357 of 365 — "He who loves God must love his brother also.")The Heart of It
Jesus' first command to the restored Peter was not "preach to thousands." It was not "do something impressive." It was "Feed My lambs." Lambs are the small ones. The new ones. The weak and wobbly ones who can't feed themselves yet. Before Peter is ever asked to care for the grown sheep, he's told to care for the littlest ones in the flock. That's striking. How do we prove we love Jesus? Not by how big our platform is. We prove it by whether we'll bend down and care for the small, plain, easily overlooked people right in front of us.
This is everyday love. It rarely makes the news. Feeding lambs looks like being patient with a fussy toddler. Sitting with the new kid at church. Listening to someone who's struggling. Showing up faithfully for people who can't pay you back. Jesus says this is exactly how love for Him takes shape in the real world. And notice. He calls them My lambs. Think of the people God puts in your path. Your younger siblings. Your friends. The new family at church. Jesus loves them. And He is trusting some of His care for them to you. When you love the lambs God sends, you share in the work of the Good Shepherd Himself.
Around the Table
Jesus said, "Take care of My little lambs!" That means being kind and gentle with little ones and new friends.
Let's do it: Find someone smaller or newer than you and do one kind thing for them today.
"Lambs" are the small, new, or weak ones. Jesus told Peter to take care of them first.
Let's talk: Who is a "little lamb" in your life that you could help this week?
Real love for Jesus shows up in plain, faithful care for people who can't pay you back. It doesn't show up in being impressive.
Let's go deeper: It's easy to love people who are fun or popular. Who is someone harder to love that Jesus might be sending you to care for?
💬 Conversation Starter
Think of someone who is new, little, or left out. What's one specific thing you could do this week to take care of them?
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Christianity cared for the weak. For orphans. For the sick. For the outcast. This was so unusual in the ancient world that even its critics noticed it. That self-giving love flows straight out of "feed My lambs." And it's part of why the gospel spread so far. People don't sacrifice for strangers without a reason. And their reason was as real as a risen Lord.
For Dad · Go Deeper
There's a quiet correction here for how we measure a faithful life. We tend to honor the big and the visible. Large ministries. Large influence. Jesus puts the lambs first. The most spiritually significant work you do may be the least visible. The bedtime conversation. The patient answer to the same question for the tenth time. The steady, unseen shepherding of the five small image-bearers in your own home. You are, quite literally, feeding Jesus' lambs. And it counts to Him. Don't look down on how small it seems. As you disciple your children, you're not just raising them. You're showing them how the Shepherd's love bends low. The kids who were faithfully tended become adults who faithfully tend. Love that reaches down is love that lasts.
Draws on: Rodney Stark, The Rise of Christianity (on early Christian care for the vulnerable).
Let's Pray Together
"Lord Jesus, You are the Good Shepherd. You ask us to care for Your lambs. Help us love the small, the new, and the overlooked, the way You love them. Make our home a place that bends low in kindness. In Jesus' name, amen."
Loving Jesus looks like bending low to care for His littlest lambs.