"Ka mea a Ihu ki a ratou, haere mai kai te kai. heoi kihai tetahi o nga akonga i maia ki te ui ki a ia, Ko wai koe? i mohio hoki ko te Ariki. Na ka haere a Ihu, ka mau ki te taro, a hoatu ana e ia ki a ratou, me nga ika. Ko te toru tenei o nga putanga o Ihu ki ana akonga, i muri i tona aranga ake i te hunga mate".
"Jesus said to them, 'Come and have breakfast'. None of the disciples dared ask him, 'Who are you?' They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead".
— John 21:12-14
We are on the edge of the Sea of Galilee, it’s the wee hours of the morning as darkness turns to dawn. At the same time, on the other side of the world, it’s late afternoon across the lakes of Aotearoa, New Zealand as light prepares to give way to night.
Jesus—raised from the dead—says to his disciples: "Come and have breakfast". To understand the beginning of our passage we have to understand its ending.
Who is this inviting them to breakfast on the beach? Who is this inviting them to breakfast as darkness turns to dawn?
Jesus, who was dead, has been raised from the dead.
Jesus, God’s Son who came in the flesh, who died for us, in our place, by taking on himself our sin. (2 Cor. 5)
Jesus, the second person of the trinity who pays the penalty for our rebellion, achieving victory over the powers of Sin, Death, and Evil. Jesus, who completely satisfies God’s good, holy, just requirements where we couldn’t. (Adapted from Stephen J. Wellum)
Jesus, whom God raised from the dead by his Spirit.
Jesus, who has been ‘raised for our justification'. (Romans 4:25)
Jesus, who was broken on the cross for us. Jesus who was buried in our place.
Jesus’ resurrection is God’s exclamation mark that Jesus is right with God, and through his death and resurrection, so are we!
Jesus, who buries death by defeating it, is the one who stands on the beach inviting the disciples to breakfast.
I’m deeply moved by this.
I do appreciate within the wider story there is the provision of 153 fish. As someone who has a pretty poor track record of catching fish, this is a profound testament to Jesus’ command of the natural world!
But still, I can’t get over the grace, kindness, and care of our risen Lord.
The one who died for us prepares a fire, provides fish, and pounds dough into bread.
The one who has risen for us invites his disciples to contribute to the meal.
The one who has at his command the entire creation, steps forward to offer them first bread and then fish.
The one to whom the hosts of heaven would bow, hosts a breakfast on the beach for his disciples.
I cannot help but reflect on the reality that my sin, and my complicity with evil, led to Jesus' body being broken on the cross and buried in the tomb.
And yet the risen Lord still welcomes me, he steps forward to me, and offers me himself—the Bread of Life.
Jesus, whose life, death, and resurrection are good news.
It was good news on the shore of that lake, and it’s good news on the shores of the 775 lakes across our island nation.
