Our verse for today comes from John 21:9, “Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread.”
The third time Jesus appeared to the disciples, after having shown Himself to them on two separate occasions in the room where they were cloistered, came on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, or Tiberias as John calls it. Seven of them, led by Peter, had decided to go fishing. But after spending the entire night on the water, their nets were still empty. Shortly after sunrise, though, Jesus appears and calls out to them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. Doing so, they immediately caught more fish than they could haul in, 153 large ones to be exact. Seeing this, John realizes it is Jesus and tells Peter, causing the impetuous one to jump into the water to get to Him. After they all make it to shore, they see Jesus cooking fish and bread over coals, and He invites them to join Him with some fish of their own from their great catch. Interestingly, the previous time that John told a fish story, it involved Jesus multiplying two small ones to feed thousands. And I wonder if the fish Jesus roasted over the coals that morning were two small ones, and did they cause the men to recall the earlier time when Jesus miraculously multiplied the fish, as He had just done in their nets.
Nevertheless, with all the fish swimming around this event, Jesus makes it a point to speak directly to Peter. Once the meal was done, Jesus goes about the business that all this fish led up to. He didn’t come to the beach just to cook breakfast for His disciples. No, he had a greater purpose in mind. The meal and the miracle served only as a backdrop to the words He came to speak to His beloved Simon. Peter had a greater calling than catching fish, and he was not meant to wallow in his regret for denying that he knew Jesus. We may be pretty good about gathering and eating and fellowshipping. But we can’t let that be all that brings us together. There is more that can be shared at a meal than bread and fish. The words of Christ are alive and powerful, and they fit any occasion if we’ll let them. So invite Jesus along on your next outing.
As we seek Him today, let the words and works of Jesus make their way into your way. Share something more than a meal.