PART 1 – John 21:1-14
After this, Jesus appeared again to the disciples, this time at the Tiberias Sea (the Sea of Galilee). This is how he did it: Simon Peter, Thomas (nicknamed “Twin”), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the brothers Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. Simon Peter announced, “I’m going fishing.” The rest of them replied, “We’re going with you.” They went out and got in the boat. They caught nothing that night. When the sun came up, Jesus was standing on the beach, but they didn’t recognize him.
Jesus spoke to them: “Good morning! Did you catch anything for breakfast?” They answered, “No.”
He said, “Throw the net off the right side of the boat and see what happens.” They did what he said. All of a sudden there were so many fish in it, they weren’t strong enough to pull it in.
Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It’s the Master!”
When Simon Peter realized that it was the Master, he threw on some clothes, for he was stripped for work, and dove into the sea. The other disciples came in by boat for they weren’t far from land, a hundred yards or so, pulling along the net full of fish. When they got out of the boat, they saw a fire laid, with fish and bread cooking on it.
Jesus said, “Bring some of the fish you’ve just caught.” Simon Peter joined them and pulled the net to shore—153 big fish! And even with all those fish, the net didn’t rip.
Jesus said, “Breakfast is ready.” Not one of the disciples dared ask, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Master.
Jesus then took the bread and gave it to them. He did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus had shown himself alive to the disciples since being raised from the dead.
PART TWO – John 21:15-19
After breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Master, you know I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
He then asked a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Master, you know I love you.” Jesus said, “Shepherd my sheep.”
Then he said it a third time: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was upset that he asked for the third time, “Do you love me?” so he answered, “Master, you know everything there is to know. You’ve got to know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep .... And then he commanded, “Follow me.”
Part One:
Starting with Holy Week and running through until Pentecost is the primary time when we hear readings from John’s gospel on a weekly basis. We are coming close to the end of Easter season now and I wanted to get in my personal favorite Easter story before the season ends.
This one we just heard isn’t the one in the lectionary for this week, but it is from John’s gospel. I love this story. I think it’s because it has all the “feels” – and those “feels” are so strong they just reach out and grab me.
Maybe it’s the dry recitation of the story at the beginning that sets it up – the scene is so bleak and depressing. The disciples are all just sitting there doing nothing, until Peter finally announces, “well, I guess I’ll go out to fish,” and the others, having nothing else to do decide to go along with him.
And when they do go out in their boat they fish all night long and catch absolutely nada -- zilch. The whole night has been an exercise in futility. There is nothing here for Jesus’ once ardent followers except grief and hopelessness and failure.
Coming back in the shore at dawn they see a stranger on the shore, who asks the same question asked of every fisherperson since the beginning of time, did you catch anything? This stranger then suggests they try throwing their net off the other side of the boat – a statement that seems to me to be just asking for a punch in the nose (there's nothing we like better when tired and frustrated than to have a total stranger come up and ask if we've tried the obvious) – but the tired, apathetic disciples give it a try anyway and, lo and behold, they pull up a net-load of fish!
And here, finally, everything changes. Here is the magical moment of recognition! The “disciple Jesus loved,” – (remember, this is John’s gospel) – shouts, “It’s the Master,” and Peter, without a moment to think about it, throws on some clothes and dives in – heading straight to Jesus as fast as he can.
The rest of the disciples bring in the boat at a more reasonable speed, they haul in the fish, and once again Jesus shares a meal with his followers.
Part Two:
Certain sensory experiences can be so evocative. The opening few notes of a piece of music from 30 years ago can sometimes, out of nowhere, drop you right back into that long-ago time. Once, while walking through a department store I caught a glimpse, out of the corner of my eye, of a set of china, which happened to have the same pattern our dishes had when I was a child, and suddenly, out of nowhere, I was eleven years old and in the kitchen eating Cream of Wheat for breakfast on a cold, damp winter morning, getting ready for school.
I think, for me, scent may be the strongest of these sensory triggers. I know that the scent of a certain woodsmoke has often sent me straight back to when I was younger than five, to a foggy morning on the beach at Little River where my daddy was crabbing. I don’t remember anything else about the time – just the fog and the sand and the scent of woodsmoke -- but for a moment the sense of being there is very strong.
Maybe because of this I often have wondered how Peter felt about the scent of smoke after his last night with Jesus when, huddled for warmth around the fire of strangers, somewhere on a dark street, he three times was challenged and three times denied even knowing Jesus. Was that scent long afterward associated in his subconscious mind with his shame and grief?
And here, in the second half of today’s story, Jesus calls Peter to stand with him, beside another fire. But instead of reinforcing Peter’s shame, Jesus nullifies it, wipes it out entirely with three opportunities for Peter to say out loud and in front of the others, “I love you.” Three affirmations to negate three denials.
Not just simple forgiveness but a slate wiped perfectly clean.
And more even than that – three commissions to go out and do Jesus’ work for him. Three times Peter is told he is trustworthy – that Jesus believes in his love and repentance and trusts him with this most important task.
I wonder if from that time on the scent of woodsmoke was, for Peter, associated, not with betrayal and shame, but with the warmth of love and forgiveness and trust?
Do you love me, Peter?
Then feed my sheep.
Starting with Holy Week and running through until Pentecost is the primary time when we hear readings from John’s gospel on a weekly basis. We are coming close to the end of Easter season now and I wanted to get in my personal favorite Easter story before the season ends.
This one we just heard isn’t the one in the lectionary for this week, but it is from John’s gospel. I love this story. I think it’s because it has all the “feels” – and those “feels” are so strong they just reach out and grab me.
Maybe it’s the dry recitation of the story at the beginning that sets it up – the scene is so bleak and depressing. The disciples are all just sitting there doing nothing, until Peter finally announces, “well, I guess I’ll go out to fish,” and the others, having nothing else to do decide to go along with him.
And when they do go out in their boat they fish all night long and catch absolutely nada -- zilch. The whole night has been an exercise in futility. There is nothing here for Jesus’ once ardent followers except grief and hopelessness and failure.
Coming back in the shore at dawn they see a stranger on the shore, who asks the same question asked of every fisherperson since the beginning of time, did you catch anything? This stranger then suggests they try throwing their net off the other side of the boat – a statement that seems to me to be just asking for a punch in the nose (there's nothing we like better when tired and frustrated than to have a total stranger come up and ask if we've tried the obvious) – but the tired, apathetic disciples give it a try anyway and, lo and behold, they pull up a net-load of fish!
And here, finally, everything changes. Here is the magical moment of recognition! The “disciple Jesus loved,” – (remember, this is John’s gospel) – shouts, “It’s the Master,” and Peter, without a moment to think about it, throws on some clothes and dives in – heading straight to Jesus as fast as he can.
The rest of the disciples bring in the boat at a more reasonable speed, they haul in the fish, and once again Jesus shares a meal with his followers.
Part Two:
Certain sensory experiences can be so evocative. The opening few notes of a piece of music from 30 years ago can sometimes, out of nowhere, drop you right back into that long-ago time. Once, while walking through a department store I caught a glimpse, out of the corner of my eye, of a set of china, which happened to have the same pattern our dishes had when I was a child, and suddenly, out of nowhere, I was eleven years old and in the kitchen eating Cream of Wheat for breakfast on a cold, damp winter morning, getting ready for school.
I think, for me, scent may be the strongest of these sensory triggers. I know that the scent of a certain woodsmoke has often sent me straight back to when I was younger than five, to a foggy morning on the beach at Little River where my daddy was crabbing. I don’t remember anything else about the time – just the fog and the sand and the scent of woodsmoke -- but for a moment the sense of being there is very strong.
Maybe because of this I often have wondered how Peter felt about the scent of smoke after his last night with Jesus when, huddled for warmth around the fire of strangers, somewhere on a dark street, he three times was challenged and three times denied even knowing Jesus. Was that scent long afterward associated in his subconscious mind with his shame and grief?
And here, in the second half of today’s story, Jesus calls Peter to stand with him, beside another fire. But instead of reinforcing Peter’s shame, Jesus nullifies it, wipes it out entirely with three opportunities for Peter to say out loud and in front of the others, “I love you.” Three affirmations to negate three denials.
Not just simple forgiveness but a slate wiped perfectly clean.
And more even than that – three commissions to go out and do Jesus’ work for him. Three times Peter is told he is trustworthy – that Jesus believes in his love and repentance and trusts him with this most important task.
I wonder if from that time on the scent of woodsmoke was, for Peter, associated, not with betrayal and shame, but with the warmth of love and forgiveness and trust?
Do you love me, Peter?
Then feed my sheep.
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