TWO CHARCOAL FIRES

One place of failure need not be the place where we remain.

It can become the very place of redemption and restoration—when Jesus reaches out… and He does.

Just as He reached out to Peter around a charcoal fire, He reaches out to you as well.

So respond to Him.

Because the only question He asks is this:

“Do you love Me?”

And the answer, beloved, is simply this:

“Lord, You know all things… You know that I love You.”

And in that moment—

restoration begins.

(Taken from John Chs 18 & 21)

For comments, feedback or prayer requests please write to me at cihclements@gmail.com

Transcript

TWO CHARCOAL FIRES
 
 

Here they come.

“Come on—let’s fight.”

He draws his sword. In a flash, he strikes the first man in front of him—an ear falls to the ground.

And then… the quiet voice of his Master:

“Stop.”

Silence.

And in a moment that must have stunned him, Jesus bends down, picks up that severed piece, and restores it—whole, as if nothing had ever happened.

Peter watches… bewildered.

This is not how it was supposed to go.

They seize his Master—roughly, forcefully—and begin to lead Him away toward the high priest’s house. Peter follows… but now at a distance.

Uncertain.

Confused.

Questions racing through his mind.

Why aren’t we fighting back?

Why isn’t He resisting?

They arrive. There’s a fire burning—a charcoal fire.

He moves closer, drawn to its warmth.

A fire to warm his hands…

and a fire that seems to stir everything inside him.

He watches as they mishandle his Master—brutally, unjustly.

And then, suddenly—

A voice:

“You also were with Him.”

He freezes.

Another voice.

And then a third

Three times.

And each time, the only response he can muster is denial.

“I don’t know Him.”

And then—

Jesus turns.

Their eyes meet.

And something breaks.

Peter rushes out into the night… weeping bitterly.

How could he have done this?

How could he have denied the One he loved?

And in the distance… a rooster crows.

Time passes.

Another morning.

Another scene.

Another charcoal fire.

“Throw your net on the right side.”

After a night of emptiness—no fish, no success—they obey.

And suddenly… abundance.

A net full.

One hundred and fifty-three fish.

Overwhelming.

And then—

They see Him.

On the shore.

And there it is again—

A charcoal fire.

And as the smoke rises, so do the memories

That other fire.

That other night.

That other failure.

Peter cannot escape it.

And then—

Eyes meet again.

But this time, not in a courtyard of accusation…

but in a place of restoration.

“Simon, son of John… do you love Me?”

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Three denials…

Three questions.

And each time, Peter answers:

“Lord… You know all things. You know that I love You.”

And then comes the commission:

“Feed My sheep.”

“Shepherd My flock.”

“Tend My lambs.”

Not rejection—

Recommissioning.

Not condemnation—

Restoration.

Two charcoal fires.

One—the place of denial.

The other—the place of restoration.

And this is the beauty of Jesus.

He meets us in the very places of our failure…

not to leave us there…

but to restore us,

renew us,

reorient us,

and send us forward again.

And I wonder today…

if you are standing between two fires.

Living in the memory of one…

and waiting for the other.

Because the same Jesus

who met Peter by that second fire…

is ready to meet you.

To restore.

To renew.

To recommission.

And perhaps all that stands between where you are

and where He wants to take you

is that one simple, honest response:

“Lord… You know all things. You know that I love You.”

Blessings.