April 11, 2013       Daniel Daring       Daniel's previous reflections

Without Jesus nothing works, with Jesus all is well again
 – Third Sunday of Easter Acts 5:27-32, 40-41; Revelation 5:11-14; John 21:1-19  

The Gospel of Luke 5:1-11 has a story of Jesus meeting for the first time his soon-to-be disciples. Peter, John and James were washing the nets after working the whole night. Requested by Jesus, Peter agreed to use his boat as the place from which Jesus could preach His message. Then the memorable experience followed:  

Jesus – Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a draught.

Peter – Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net (Luke 5:4-5, KJV).  

And as we all know they were able to catch such a great multitude of fish that their net was at the point of breaking. What was the reaction of Peter to this miracle? “He fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, ‘Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord’.” In response, Jesus said: “Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men” (Luke 5:8-10, KJV). Since that day Peter was able to witness to other miracles and participate in sharing the message about the Kingdom of God (Luke 9:1-6). But then came Good Friday. Peter disowned His Master three times. How should he live his life after that day? Did Jesus not once said that “whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:33; Luke 9:26)?  

I am going fishing  

At the beginning everything appears to be so easy. We have met Jesus and our life was never the same. We repented from our sins and felt the grace of salvation; we quit our bad habits, and were full of joy; we were even dreaming to go to the ends of the earth in order to share the Gospel. But then something went the way we never expected. Our “good” friends had left telling that they could not find anymore a common language with us. Trying to be honest in work left us with fewer opportunities of making a good business. Our new convictions and principles in life got us into trouble with our bosses and coworkers. Even God, so close before, became so far. There were few miracles and more hardships. We stopped thinking about sharing the Gospel and began to be preoccupied with survival in this “selfish world”. And then, the day came when we made the deal. You bribed that officer in order to get a lucrative project; I cheated on taxes, and s/he spent a weekend with that wo/man.

“I am going fishing” said Peter to his friends one evening after Good Friday and went to his boat. How many of us have done the same? The Church becomes irrelevant, prayer is not answered, and nobody is really interested in the Gospel. Christ has died – is but a part of our Easter proclamation. The tragedy is that for many of us, Jesus continues to be in the grave. So, like Peter and his friends, we want to go back to our previous life and do business as usual. We want to forget our failures as Christians and find success in something else: our work. But what is the outcome of this decision? “So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing” (John 21:3). As before Easter, so also after, the disciples realized that without Jesus everything goes wrong. No matter how hard we work, we cannot succeed. “If the Lord does not build the house, in vain labor its laborers” (Psalm 127:1). There is no real success in life without Jesus.  

It is the Lord  

The great catch reminded the disciples about the same situation that took place when they met Jesus for the first time. “It is the Lord,” proclaimed the beloved disciple. To the great surprise of Peter and the others, Good Friday did not end their relationship with Jesus. Jesus came to them again – although in a new way – yet with the same grace of caring and forgiving: “Children! Do you have anything to eat?” (John 21:5); “Simon, son of Jonas, do you love me?” (John 21:15.16.17). Nothing has changed and yet everything became new. As before Good Friday, so also after that memorable day, Jesus’ presence makes all things well again. We work hard only to see our efforts fruitless; we see ourselves as sinners, failing the Lord again and again. Yet to our surprise, Jesus comes to us again. Our “Good Fridays” do not make Him go away for ever. He comes; He stands on the shore to welcome us; He prepares breakfast for us; and when we are satisfied, He asks us whether our sins and failures have taken away our love for Him; when our answer is like that of Peter, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you,” He calls as again to follow Him (John 21:15-19).

How long does it take you to move from Good Friday to Easter Sunday? Three days? How long does it take you to move from saying, “I am going fishing,” to the proclamation, “it is the Lord”? A whole night of fruitless work? The Bible says that one day for the Lord is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day (2 Peter 3:8). Three days may take longer then just 72 hours and a night can last longer than a period of time from sunset to sunrise. We, who are often somewhere in between Good Friday and Easter Sunday, and often in the middle of the night struggling hard to make sense out of our lives, are invited to recognize Jesus’ caring voice addressing us as His children, and seeing Jesus on the shore waiting to serve us breakfast. It is true: “At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the dawn, rejoicing” (Psalm 30:6). We may have failed Jesus many times, but He is always faithful. That is our Lord!  

Conclusion  

Between Good Friday and Easter Sunday, the process of conversion takes place. As we decide to give up our faith and live as the world around us, we realize that without Jesus nothing works. “Going fishing” does not solve our problems. Faith is too precious; too important to set it aside; our failures and sins cannot quench God’s love for us. When we come to that realization and begin to long for Jesus again, He will meet us at the point of our needs. And, with joyful heart, we will experience that all is well again: caring and forgiveness will flow into our lives from Jesus, the Risen One, who stands on the shore waiting to serve us breakfast.