Peter Speaking with Jesus Beside Fishing NetsBible World
19:27Matthew 19:27
Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?
After Jesus warned that a rich man shall hardly enter the kingdom of heaven and that what is impossible with men is possible with God, Peter recalled the promise of treasure in heaven and asked what he and the other disciples shall therefore have because they have forsaken all and followed Him. Although they had left only a few fishing boats and nets, their sacrifice was accepted because it was all they had and was as dear to them as a wealthy person's riches. Those who have followed Him will in the regeneration share His kingdom and glory upon twelve thrones, and every one who has forsaken houses or family or lands for His name's sake shall receive an hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life. The question shows a grasping, mercenary spirit that measures sacrifice against hoped-for reward and thinks God's favor must be earned by works, which would make them unfit to serve as His messengers unless corrected. The promise encourages sacrifice in faithful discipleship, not self-confidence or any claim to personal merit.
Setting and Question
The question belongs to the encounter when a young ruler ran up to Jesus, kneeled before Him, and asked what good thing he should do to have eternal life. In that encounter Jesus taught that God alone is good and must be received in His Son as His representative, and that to enter life the principles of God's law expressing God's character must become the spring of every action in harmony with God.
Peter's question comes immediately after Jesus warned that a rich man shall hardly enter the kingdom of heaven and that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. After that warning the disciples asked in amazement who then can be saved, and Jesus answered that what is impossible with men is possible with God. With Jesus' promise of treasure in heaven to the rich young ruler in mind, Peter then asked what reward would be given for sacrifice.
Peter asks what he and the other disciples shall therefore have because they have forsaken all and followed Jesus. That question is answered in the next verse. Although the disciples had left only a few fishing boats and nets, Jesus did not reproach them for having left little. Their sacrifice was accepted because it was all they had and was as dear to them as a wealthy person's riches.
Promise of Reward
In the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit upon the throne of His glory, those who have followed Him will share in His kingdom and glory and sit upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for His name's sake shall receive an hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life, an abundant reward including honor. Many that are first shall be last, and the last shall be first.
Forsaking all for Christ is investment in the kingdom, in the greatest mine ever worked to secure the heavenly pearl of great price, with a sure return without risk of disappointment, unlike worldly mining speculations in which none of the Lord's money is to be placed.
The promise encourages sacrifice in following Christ through faithful discipleship, not self-confidence, self-sufficiency, or any claim to personal merit. The exchange reveals Christ giving His life to the work of soul-saving to make it possible for human beings to return to loyalty and take their stand under the blood-stained banner of Prince Emmanuel.
Motive Exposed and Applied
Peter's question shows that he and the other disciples were not yet wholly free from the idea that God's favor and the reward of the righteous must be earned by works. Remembering the promise of treasure in heaven just made to the rich young ruler, Peter measured what they had left against the reward they hoped to receive. His asking what they would therefore have for forsaking all and following Jesus revealed a grasping, mercenary, hireling spirit. That spirit thinks reward should match labor, compares worker with worker, and takes satisfaction in sacrifice made.
Such a spirit, with its lingering Pharisaism, self-exaltation, self-satisfaction, and comparing of themselves among themselves, would have made them unfit to serve as Christ's messengers unless He corrected it. Jesus therefore sought to correct the mercenary grasping revealed in the question. Leaving possessions and loved ones to follow Christ for His sake is nonetheless a real sacrifice. That self-denial belongs to the work of spreading the gospel, as when missionaries leave home and family to carry the truth to others.
After Jesus warned that a rich man shall hardly enter the kingdom of heaven and that what is impossible with men is possible with God, Peter recalled the promise of treasure in heaven and asked what he and the other disciples shall therefore have because they have forsaken all and followed Him. Although they had left only a few fishing boats and nets, their sacrifice was accepted because it was all they had and was as dear to them as a wealthy person's riches. Those who have followed Him will in the regeneration share His kingdom and glory upon twelve thrones, and every one who has forsaken houses or family or lands for His name's sake shall receive an hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life. The question shows a grasping, mercenary spirit that measures sacrifice against hoped-for reward and thinks God's favor must be earned by works, which would make them unfit to serve as His messengers unless corrected. The promise encourages sacrifice in faithful discipleship, not self-confidence or any claim to personal merit.
Setting and Question
The question belongs to the encounter when a young ruler ran up to Jesus, kneeled before Him, and asked what good thing he should do to have eternal life. In that encounter Jesus taught that God alone is good and must be received in His Son as His representative, and that to enter life the principles of God's law expressing God's character must become the spring of every action in harmony with God.
Peter's question comes immediately after Jesus warned that a rich man shall hardly enter the kingdom of heaven and that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. After that warning the disciples asked in amazement who then can be saved, and Jesus answered that what is impossible with men is possible with God. With Jesus' promise of treasure in heaven to the rich young ruler in mind, Peter then asked what reward would be given for sacrifice.
Peter asks what he and the other disciples shall therefore have because they have forsaken all and followed Jesus. That question is answered in the next verse. Although the disciples had left only a few fishing boats and nets, Jesus did not reproach them for having left little. Their sacrifice was accepted because it was all they had and was as dear to them as a wealthy person's riches.
Promise of Reward
In the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit upon the throne of His glory, those who have followed Him will share in His kingdom and glory and sit upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for His name's sake shall receive an hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life, an abundant reward including honor. Many that are first shall be last, and the last shall be first.
Forsaking all for Christ is investment in the kingdom, in the greatest mine ever worked to secure the heavenly pearl of great price, with a sure return without risk of disappointment, unlike worldly mining speculations in which none of the Lord's money is to be placed.
The promise encourages sacrifice in following Christ through faithful discipleship, not self-confidence, self-sufficiency, or any claim to personal merit. The exchange reveals Christ giving His life to the work of soul-saving to make it possible for human beings to return to loyalty and take their stand under the blood-stained banner of Prince Emmanuel.
Motive Exposed and Applied
Peter's question shows that he and the other disciples were not yet wholly free from the idea that God's favor and the reward of the righteous must be earned by works. Remembering the promise of treasure in heaven just made to the rich young ruler, Peter measured what they had left against the reward they hoped to receive. His asking what they would therefore have for forsaking all and following Jesus revealed a grasping, mercenary, hireling spirit. That spirit thinks reward should match labor, compares worker with worker, and takes satisfaction in sacrifice made.
Such a spirit, with its lingering Pharisaism, self-exaltation, self-satisfaction, and comparing of themselves among themselves, would have made them unfit to serve as Christ's messengers unless He corrected it. Jesus therefore sought to correct the mercenary grasping revealed in the question. Leaving possessions and loved ones to follow Christ for His sake is nonetheless a real sacrifice. That self-denial belongs to the work of spreading the gospel, as when missionaries leave home and family to carry the truth to others.