John 21: 1-19
Are you being fed? No, not fish!
What is missing from the story? No, not clothing!
The placement of this story seems to almost be an afterthought. It may have been written to answer some of the questions of the day. But it's placement at the end of John also serves as a grand finale--a summary of the main idea that Jesus was trying to get across to the disciples and to us.
The story has 3 parts--before the boat, in the boat, and after the boat. Let's take a look at all three.
Before they got into the boat, some of the disciples were gathering together. Feeling rather lost and "leaderless" after all that they had just been through, they did as we often do in times when something has come to an end. We go back to something familiar--maybe baking fills the void, or gardening, woodworking, or any number of hobbies. In any case, we search for something to do and for the disciples, that was fishing.
Note I said fishing, not catching. And that is where Jesus finds them--in the boat after a long night in which they caught nothing. But from the shore, He yells for them to throw the nets out on the right side. Was it the distance that caused them not to recognize Him? And if they didn't recognize Him, why in the world did they try again? Maybe their time with Jesus had taught them to expect the unexpected. But whatever the reason, they obey the stranger. They threw the nets out of the right side. Interesting that Jesus requested that they use the right side, considering that was His side in a way. He does, after all, sit on the right-hand of God, the Father, Almighty. And those words, along with the fact that the nets were immediately full of fish, rang with a familiar sound to the disciples causing them to recognize their teacher. With this recognition, Peter throws on his clothes (he had really gone back to the basics and was working in and out of the water and probably had taken off his outer cloak as men today would work in their undershirts on a hard job), jumps out of the boat (he had done that before, see Matthew 14: 29), and swam to shore. One in our congregation, commented that it was not unlike Adam and Eve covering themselves before the Lord could see them, although they hid instead of running to Him!
Once everyone was out of the boat, Jesus' first concern was that the disciples be fed. But he wasn't just concerned about their physical hunger, but also their spiritual hunger. As they are eating together, they are reminded that this is the man who truly knows them and they are given a time to remember all the lessons that He had taught them. This time is so important because it moves their knowledge back from their heads (their memories, where they were questioning all that they had seen and learned) and into their hearts. It confirmed for them again the truth of their experience. It moved them to the final level of commitment and assurance that they were ready to do all that God was calling them to do.
It can be the same for us. The disciples had to obey the Lord before they recognized Him. We do, too. And once you obey, He will call you into your own experience where you will get to know Him in your own way. He calls--we must respond. And that is how one gets fed and how your thirst gets quenched. When Jesus said, "I am the bread of life" in John 6:35, He really meant it. When He said,
"whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst" in John 4 :14, He meant that-- spiritually. The pattern of search, obey, be fed can be a powerful one.
Peter knew this, and yet Jesus asked him three times if he loved Him. Poor Peter! But the number 3 here is important. Not only was this the 3rd time that Christ had revealed himself to the disciples after His resurrection, but you will recall that Peter had denied Christ 3 times on the night of His arrest. And similarly, it was when a crowd was gathering around coals, so Peter probably totally understood the connection! So, as Peter answered Christ, his answers got firmer and firmer--ending by proclaiming Agape love for Christ. Agape love is not the love one sees between a young couple, not the love one sees between friends, but it is the further reaching love like that of a fireman, rushing into a burning building to save someone; or the love that drives a policeman into danger for the protection of citizens; or the love that gives a parent the strength to lift a car to save their child! That is the kind of love it will take Peter to suffer and yet continue to tell the truth about the kingdom of Christ. That is the kind of love that will sustain Peter when he is crucified upside down as Jesus prophesies in verse 18.
That is the kind of love it will take for us to control our fears in order to confess our faith and teach others the gospel. That is the kind of love that will help us to listen for that far away voice that may ask us to step out and do something different. And if we obey that voice, we may be allowed to be amazed by God. And that amazement can lead us to move our Bible knowledge from our heads to our hearts.
I pray that for each of you. I pray--
that you will seek to be fed and that God will tell you what is missing in your life!
May God reveal himself to us all, whether it for the 3rd time or the 300th time!
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