Breakfast Outdoors- by the Lake- with Jesus When the World
Was Changing- John 21:1-14
Do you get a sense that the world is changing? Queen Elizabeth II- the 96 year old UK
Monarch died this week. Covid changed
our world rapidly- and coming out of Covid- our world is changing too-
inflation has come; people are refusing to work; supply change issues and
shortages are still here (try buying a car today).
No doubt the disciples were feeling the same way. They saw their world changing. They went from fishermen to followers of Christ, to being amazed at his teachings and miracles, to being dismayed and in fear at His arrest and crucifixion, to being inspired by His resurrection- all within three years- and most with a few days. It is a bit ironic that when Jesus had been
arrested, crucified, and rose from the dead- Peter basically says (vs 3), “I’m
going fishing.” He was wanting an
escape. I have felt the same way- I’ll
go fishing on the lake- I’ll go hiking- I’ll go on vacation- I’ll watch
football. But though they fished all
night, Peter and the disciples with him came up empty.
Why would you want to get away in a time when the world is changing- and your
life is making a drastic change? You
maybe looking for a breath- some relief.
But oftentimes- the best vacation wearies you- and you would like a few
days to recover from your vacation, the best relief may bring stress. The disciples had hoped for some refreshment,
some strength from eating fish and nourishment.
THEN JESUS CAME- Jesus told them to
cast the net on the right side of the boat.
Now, when Jesus first called the disciples according to Matthew, Mark,
and Luke- many of them were fishermen and had fished all night and caught
nothing. Jesus told them to cast their
nets on the other side and they caught so many fish their nets began to break. So Jesus’ doing this again- was an indication
of His identity- He is Lord of the fish, and His power to provide for the
disciples. Their efforts were in vain-
but with Jesus their efforts could bear fruit.
I am reminded of Haggai’s words to the exiles who had returned to the
land. He told them, “Give careful
thought to your ways- you have planted much and harvested little; You eat, but
never have enough; You drink but never have your fill. You put on clothes but are not warm; You earn
wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it..The reason why was the
people had built beautiful paneled houses for themselves but left God’s house
in ruins. You go fishing and it is
fruitless. Apart from Jesus we can do
nothing. But with Him anything is
possible. I believe that. I have seen that.
THEN JESUS PROVIDED FOR THEM- Not
only did they catch fish. But when they
got to the shore- Jesus had already started a fire and was cooking bread and
fish on it. Not too far away on the same
lake- Jesus had fed over 5,000 people with… bread and fish! He was not just feeding them, He was saying
God would provide for them. I would like
to know where Jesus bought that bread.
There was no grocery store around.
Even today- that section of Lake Galilee/Tiberius (the Roman name) is
isolated. But Jesus cooked breakfast for
them. Hubert Joly was CEO of Best Buy
in a changing time- when Amazon and e-tail was taking over his kind of business. It was a changing time for the company. He
was told he needed to lay off thousands of employees. But instead he motivated them to plug into
the company- developing the idea of self-empowering, self directed employees.
He said employees are not a resource but the center of the company. He served his employees and it worked. He also gave them a purpose. He said “If I had just said, We are going to
double the share price or the earnings per share on the stock market- who would
have cared?” But he said we are not a
consumer electronics retailer- we are enriching lives through technology-
addressing key human needs.” But let me
tell you the best key human need is not a computer/TV/refrigerator. It is the deep need of the soul. That is a
need only Jesus could meet. After
he fed them breakfast- Jesus reinstated Peter- forgiving Him and inviting Him
to the purpose of feeding the people (feed my sheep). He gave them all the great commission- as the
father has sent me, so send I you.
The verse right before our passage says, “I write these things so that you may
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may
have life in His name.” In a changing time, we need a purpose. Our purpose in starting Foundation
Presbyterian Church has been that people will hear the Gospel- believe- and
then may have eternal life. Eternal life
does not start after you die- it starts right now. Today is the first day of the rest of your
eternal life. In a changing time- you
need to not abandon- but remember where your focus is.
When 911 occurred 21 years ago now,
everything changed. The War in
Afghanistan that ended in a sad way last year, began. We had a purpose to fight back. But we have lost our true purpose as a
country. In the Cold War days we knew we were different from the Atheistic
Soviet Union- and our faith united us.
Many have abandoned their faith today.
But on the day of 911 there were many stories of faith. Many Americans prayed, and looked to God for
help. The US Congress sang together-
democrats and republicans “God bless America” on the congress steps. Queen Elizabeth had “The Star Spangled Banner”-
our national anthem played at the changing of the guard- and sang it- the only
British monarch to ever sing it. Last
year she said in a letter to President Biden, “My thoughts and prayers remain
with the victims and survivors and families affected as well as the first
responders and rescue workers called to duty.”
Queen Elizbeth also famously said that she “Found great comfort in
difficult times in Christ’s words."
In her address that Christmas she again mentioned 911 and said, “As so
often in our lives at times of tragedy—just as on occasions of celebration and
thanksgiving- we look to he Church to bring us together in commemoration and
tribute.” This is a legacy passed down to
us. In difficult times- we should find comfort,
strength, peace and grace in Christ. He
is the living Lord- with a living word for each of us.
[This sermon was preached on the last time preaching at Foundation Presbyterian Church before retirement].
No comments:
Post a Comment