Forgiveness from Jesus is always surprising to us.
It has become a tradition of mine to take a week's vacation after Easter Sunday. As a pastor, the preparation and implementation of presiding over Holy Week is taxing physically, emotionally, and mentally. On top of that, it is no surprise pastors find the days immediately after Easter also spiritually exhausting. On these days (just like those that follow Christmas and Advent), spiritual warfare is heightened. So, what do I do to finally soak in the true joys of celebrating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus?
I go fishing.
As an outdoorsman, this is instinctual. As a professional, it is essential. Getting out of town and onto the water provides me with a quiet time and an opportunity to replay all that has been done and preached during the Easter season. It is for this reason that I can relate to Peter's decision to go fishing after the most pivotal point in his life: the death and resurrection of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
After Jesus rose from the dead on Easter morning (and prior to his ascension), he appeared to his disciples in the flesh (including Peter) at least seven times. Of all these appearances, the one that seems most surprising in terms of the disciples' behavior is Jesus' appearance on the shores of the sea of Galilee in John 21. Peter already knows Jesus has risen from the grave. And what does he decide to do? Perhaps the thing he is most comfortable doing in life: Fishing.
John 21 tells us that Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James, John, and two others were together. This collection of disciples makes sense. These are the disciples from the Galilee area. Peter, James, and John were especially fishermen by trade. So, Peter gets up and says, like only Peter can, "I am going out to fish," and the others all say, "We will go with you." Then, just as the day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore by the Sea of Galilee and served them breakfast (John 21:1-3).
These seven disciples have just witnessed the world's greatest miracle and decide to go fishing. Is this simply a quirky Biblical scene or something else? What can Peter's outing – and Jesus' appearance to him there – tell us?
First, John's inclusion of this special appearance of Jesus speaks volumes about vocation. Part of being a disciple is owning how God has uniquely wired us for life. The exclamation "I'm going fishing" in John 21 showcases that everything has changed, yet nothing has changed. Christ is risen, and yet daily life with all its needs, requirements, hardships, and joys - the life Jesus' good news breaks into - remains. Our salvation and righteousness are secure on account of Christ's resurrection; what more can we do but go back to serving our neighbor as life continues? Peter's exclamation: "I'm going fishing," should remind us of the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…" In the Great Commission, Jesus sends the disciples immediately, without any delay: "Go quickly, hurry up." In the same way, we hurry up and get on with our lives. We fish. We care for our families. We work in the office or at school.
The entire gift of the Christian life - undeserved as it may be - surprises us as we receive all that we need in this life and the next.
Second, no matter the work or leisure we do, great or small, God is at work with and for us, even amid the mundane. When Peter and the disciples decided to step back into the boat after the resurrection and do some fishing, little did they know that Jesus was waiting on the shore to bookend a story that began on the same body of water. Jesus called Peter into faithful discipleship with a miraculous catch in Luke 5:6: "And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking." Jesus would do the same in John 21:6: "He said to them, 'Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.' So, they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because of the quantity of fish." No matter how minor it may appear, Jesus' appearance in John 21 reminds us he's actually been present from the beginning, continues to be present during the mundane, and will be with us until the very end.
Third, God always surprises us along the way. Forgiveness from Jesus is always surprising to us, as I'm sure it was for Peter over that simple fish breakfast. It is surprising because Jesus gives forgiveness and rest even when it is not deserved. It is astonishing to see Peter's life restored and our lives redeemed by God. All of it. The physical as well as the spiritual. The ordinary along with the extraordinary. The entire gift of the Christian life - undeserved as it may be - surprises us as we receive all that we need in this life and the next from our Lord and Savior, Jesus.
