Following Jesus in Greek's Perfect Tense

5.4.2025

3rd Easter Week

[Texts]

Acts 9:1-6 [7-20] Paul’s conversion, baptism, and preaching

Psalm 30 You have turned my wailing into dancing. (Ps. 30:11)

Revelation 5:11-14 The song of the living creatures to the Lamb

John 21:1-19 Jesus appears to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias

Grace and Peace from God to you, my dear siblings in Christ.

Today is the third Easter Sunday. How have we been doing as Easter People? Are we filled with hope and joy, so energized and so ready to share the Good News of our risen Lord?

As I was preparing today’s sermon, I wondered how the first generation of Jesus’ disciples was doing. Were they still grieving, depressed, missing Jesus’ presence with them 24/7 as they had for the past three years? Based on today’s Gospel reading, this is the third time Jesus visited them after His resurrection. The first time, Thomas wasn’t with them. Then Jesus returned for the second visit, and Thomas was able to see His Lord in person and even touch His wounds. What significant impact did this visit have on them, as described in John 21?

Recently I watched a movie called Tuesday, a poignant fantasy drama that explores the emotional journey of a mother struggling with her teenage daughter’s terminal illness. The daughter’s name is Tuesday, and the mother’s name is Zora. Death is personified as a macaw, a type of parrot. The macaw visits Tuesday at the time she is meant to pass. But Tuesday bargains for time to say goodbye to her mother.

Throughout the film, Zora struggles to accept the inevitable death, battling fear and denial. But eventually, with deep conviction, she makes a heartfelt promise to her daughter that she will live well without her. After Tuesday’s passing, Zora is devastated, overwhelmed by grief. Then the macaw visits Zora again and gently reminds her of the promise she made three times to her daughter by imitating her voice: "I promise. I promise. I promise."

Now, imagine ourselves as Jesus’ followers, proud yet humbled, to walk alongside Him on the street, on the bus, on the light rail, in a store, etc., meeting those in need each day. We were taught firsthand how to fish for people. We learned the embodiment of Kingdom values, loving God and loving one another as ourselves. We witnessed transformed lives touched by God’s grace and mercy. We experienced what a kindled life with a strong sense of purpose is like.

Then, all of a sudden, Jesus was no longer with us in person. Rumors spread. Some claimed to have seen Him, while others insisted He was never real. Some were even convinced that He was merely a criminal, crucified. What might be our plan for moving forward in life?

That was likely how the first generation of Jesus’ disciples felt. They joined Peter, not to fish for people, but to return to their former vocation as fishermen, the profession they had left behind when they became disciples. All night, they caught nothing. But when they noticed Jesus' presence and followed His direction, everything changed.

For those of you who have studied the Bible, you may recall that the perfect tense in Greek is unique and differs from how we understand it in English. In Greek, the perfect tense describes a completed action with enduring significance. For example, "I have written" does not just convey the act of writing but also the ongoing impact of the written work. It’s a fascinating aspect of the language that adds depth to Biblical texts.

In John 21:1-19, the perfect tense is used in three instances to indicate completed actions with lasting effects:

• Verse 14 – "Jesus was raised from the dead." Though it reads as past tense in English, the Greek perfect tense highlights that Jesus' resurrection is not just a historical event but a completed action with ongoing significance.

• Verses 15, 16, and 17 – Each time Jesus asks Peter, "Do you love me?" Though it appears in present tense in English, in Greek, it is in the perfect form, indicating that Peter’s love for Jesus is something already acquired and continues to endure.

• Verses 15, 16, and 17 – Each time Peter responds, "Lord, you know." Though it appears in present tense in English, in Greek, the perfect tense here emphasizes that Jesus already knows Peter’s devotion not only as an established truth but as an enduring reality.

At the end of today’s story, Jesus gave a simple yet profound command to Peter. What was it? Jesus said, "Follow me!" We can only follow what we see, what we love, and what we trust. When we fail to see the resurrected Jesus, to love and trust God, we miss being Easter People.

As Easter People, when we notice the resurrected Jesus in our midst and follow His direction as the body of Christ, everything will change in time just as described in John 21. Every life will be transformed into a living testimony. The embodiment of Kingdom values, loving God and loving others as ourselves, will become tangible and visible to be celebrated. In light of Christ’s Resurrection, let us meet people where they are, not where we are. Let us tell them about God’s love for them, not our opinions or assumptions about them.

Like Paul, we may find ourselves blinded, unable to see what we are not yet ready for. The scales on our eyes could be weariness, pride, ego, fear, denial, or even a lack of faith and love for Jesus. Whenever God’s beloved children fail to recognize or are not ready for the presence of the resurrected Christ in their lives, may God send Easter People to guide them back to Jesus. May they, like Paul, wait patiently to regain their sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit once again.

The good news is revealed and promised by God through the life of Jesus in the perfect tense. A completed event in history with lasting impact. An established truth. An enduring reality. As the Lord God, the Almighty who is, who was, and who is to come declares in Revelation 1:8: “I am the Alpha and the Omega.”

Rather than making a promise to God three times, we receive the eternal, unified promise from God over and over again. The very prayer Jesus lifted for us in John 17. This is why we gather in worship, come before God, begin with our Thanksgiving for Baptism, and humbly accept the established truth and enduring reality by saying three times: Baptized into you, O Living One, make us one, as You are one, one God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Together, we, People of God give thanks to God. Amen.