“A homey scene”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Friday, April 14, 2023

John 21:1-14 (Forward, p. 75) CEV p. 1130

There was something rather familiar about all of this: they, or at least for Peter, James and John, were back on their familiar turf, back on the lake they had traversed so often, and back at their old familiar task, fishing. It was like the ‘old times’, the times before they had ‘signed on’ with Jesus, before they had become His disciples. It was if nothing had changed.

And then too there was the remarkable, and familiar, incident with the fish, or their lack thereof. Hadn’t they been through this before? There was probably a strange sense of déjà vu, and even more so, when the stranger on the shore suggested that they try again, this time on the other side of the boat. And imagine, when they hauled in that tremendous catch of fish, that this too didn’t remind them of yet ‘another time’, a time in the past when Jesus had ordered that very same thing?

No wonder John’s memory was twigged, and his eyes opened, allowing him to see for the first time, just who it was out on the seashore. It was his beloved friend, Jesus. Again, it was all so very familiar, so very homey.

But there was a difference: this time it was Jesus who prepared the meal, acted as host, and invited them to dine with Him. At the home of Mary and Lazarus, the house of Simon the Pharisee and the place in Emmaus, Jesus had been the guest. Now the tables were turned, He was the host and they were the guests. It was like a re-enactment of the Last Supper but in a different place and time and context. Indeed, is this not exactly like the Last Supper as we know it, spread over space and time? It matters not the context nor situation; the Lord is still there and is still inviting us to partake with Him. He is still inviting us, believers everywhere, to this place and time of belonging and intimacy. So very homey. And, indeed, we are at home with Him. Amen.

Forward notes: “Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast’” (verse 12a)

“Although I am now a vegetarian and don’t buy meat or fish, I have eaten both in the far past and caught my first trout with my uncle when I was a little girl.

“I think of that moment—hoisting a glittering rainbow-scaled fish from the mountain stream—whenever I encounter this passage. I think of Jesus serving fish for breakfast on the beach and remember the time a friend of mine caught a trout from the river in Cherokee and induced me to take a bite. We were studying the language and felt fed by learning about Cherokee history and culture, including learning how to pray in Cherokee. That time still nourishes me today as priest and poet.

“Yeshuah, Jesus, was also a tribal member, raised Jewish where community was everything. This is why offering his own body and blood as food and drink was so shocking and offensive to religious authorities. But here, he is not thinking about any of that: he is simply inviting his friends to breakfast just as he invites us to the altar for his supper. Are you hungry? I am.”

Moving Forward: “Think about moments in your life that have fed you spiritually. Do you set aside intentional time for feasting in the word of God?”