Just Mind Your Business

June 16th, 2023

by Bro. Craig Amenell
06/16/2023

John 21:20-22 - “Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.”

Ever find yourself concerned with the affairs of others? I am sure we all have been guilty at times of wanting to know what someone else was doing or would be doing as their fair share of the work.

You may have a job where you work on projects with deadlines as a team. For some of us, the last time we faced a similar situation was in school when our teacher had us work together on group projects. Some enjoyed these types of assignments while others hated them. Usually, the ones that enjoyed them the most were kids that had no intention of contributing to the work but were looking forward to a better grade than usual. Often the kids that did not like these projects were those that were most concerned with others not doing their fair share of the work, or at least in their minds not doing as much as they would be doing.

In the above text, we find Peter who has just been questioned by the resurrected Savior. “Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.” (John 21:15-17).

I am sure we are all familiar with the significance of the question being asked three times by the Lord in the wake of Peter's denial of Christ. It should be noted that if God says something once, listen. If He says it twice, take heed. But if He says it three times, He is in your front yard for a reason.

In essence, the Lord just told Peter that if you really love me, you had better prepare for the work that I have prepared for you. No sooner than this conversation between himself and the Lord ended, then Peter sees John and asks the Lord what John will be responsible for doing.

Peter is great about saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Perhaps Peter thought the Lord was handing out assignments for a group project and wanted to know what John would be responsible for contributing or if he would be doing as much as Peter perceived he would. Jesus’ answer to him as always got right to the point, “What is that to thee? Follow thou me.”

Christian, do you find yourself looking at other's ministries and asking yourself, or foolishly others, why are they doing it that way or what are they even doing? I know that I have personally been guilty of this type of foolishness and sadly even as of late. The Lord’s answer to me is the same as it was to Peter, “What is that to thee?”

Do you love the Lord? Then take the Lord's advice to Peter, get busy about the work He has prepared for you, and don’t worry about what others are or are not doing. If you really love the Lord then you will be mindful of the work “which God hath before ordained [that] you should walk in,” and if you do it to the best of your ability you won’t have time to worry about anyone’s business but your own.

I have found the greatest critics are those not doing anything. Christian, be mindful of the business the Lord has for you.