I’ll bet not one of you can tell me exactly what happened to the disciples after that first Easter morning, and in what order. And it’s not surprising. I would have had a hard time putting together a chronology of events if I hadn’t had to preach on the subject, and even then there’s a little confusion over exactly in what order things happen after the resurrection. Of course that’s not surprising, considering that their world has been completely turned upside down, but I think I’ve managed to put together all the gospel accounts in a way that makes sense even if I can’t swear to its accuracy.
Matthew reports that Jesus said to the women who went that morning to the tomb to tell the disciples, “go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” [Mt 28:10] Matthew doesn’t say anything about any meetings in Jerusalem, and though Mark mentions meetings, he’s not specific about where they occur. But Luke reports about two of Jesus’ followers meeting him on the road from Jerusalem west to Emmaus, and then on the same day Jesus appears to the disciples in the upper room in Jerusalem. John adds the story of “doubting Thomas” at a second meeting a week later.
But finally there they are in Galilee. John lists Peter and John and James, Thomas and Nathaniel, and two others. My guess is that the two others are Philip and Andrew; Andrew because he is Simon’s brother, and Philip because he is Nathaniel’s friend, the one who brought him to the Lord at the very beginning when they were both still following John the Baptist. And they’re all Galileans: Simon and Andrew, James and John are all fishermen from Capernaum right on the shores of Lake Tiberias; Philip was from Bethsaida, right at the north of the lake, and Nathaniel was from Cana, a day’s walk to the west. Well, maybe Thomas wasn’t from there, we don’t know. My own personal opinion is that Levi the tax collector, Simon the Zealot, and the other disciples are in Galilee, too, certainly I can’t imagine any of them disobeying Jesus, but being city guys, weren’t quite so keen on going fishing. But imagine their state of mind.
Think about it. The most momentous event in the entire history of the world has just happened. The disciples have endured the double blow of betrayal and loss. They have mourned the death not only of their friend but of their dreams. They had probably not even started the process of pulling together the tattered remnants of their lives to reorient themselves to a world empty of their teacher and master, when suddenly the world turns upside down yet again. Jesus their rabbi had risen from the dead. They hadn’t lost him. It hadn’t all been for nothing. Jesus was the Messiah after all. There’s an even greater future ahead of them than they had ever imagined. Even Thomas, skeptical Thomas, has been convinced.
And what do they do? They go fishing.
Now, I realize that for many of you going fishing is a natural response to life’s little ups and downs, but really. Isn’t this just a little anticlimactic? Shouldn’t they be marking the occasion with a little more - ceremony, shall we say? Shouldn’t their lives show the effect of this radical dislocation?
A lot of commentators criticize the disciples for this. One describes the scene as one of ‘complete apostasy’ and the fulfillment of verse 16:32, when Jesus said “The hour is coming, indeed has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone.” Some even question whether this chapter really belongs in John’s gospel at all. "It’s unthinkable," says Barrett, "that they should just calmly go back to their old occupation as if nothing had happened." And others think this story was added later as a footnote by someone else, for some obscure reason we can’t understand. The story is really over, they say, with Thomas’s recognition of the risen Lord.
Well, I don’t criticize the disciples. I don’t blame them for going fishing; after all, they hadn’t gotten their marching orders yet. But I did go with the majority opinion on the most important point of the passage, which is Jesus’ conversation with Peter.
Everyone preaches on that part of the text. Who wouldn’t? "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs." A second time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Tend my sheep." He said to him the third time, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, "Do you love me?" And he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep. [v. 15-17]
This is wonderful stuff. But which part should we concentrate on?
First, here we have Peter - you know, the one who denied even knowing Jesus three times in the high priest’s courtyard - here is Jesus not only forgiving Peter, but giving him an assignment! That really preaches, doesn’t it, the fact that Jesus not only forgives repentant sinners like us, but he transforms us into vital members of the most innovative and influential organization the world has ever known.
A second important aspect of this conversation, though, is that Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves him. Now, this may be simply to erase the triple denial. Each time Peter says “Yes, Lord, I love you” he is, in a way, reversing the “I don’t know him!” of his night of shame. And that makes sense, I suppose. Or it may be that Jesus is trying to really pound home into Peter’s remarkably resilient skull the fact that being his follower is an act of love. A lot of people do seem to think that being a Christian is just about being honest and kind and so on. And that is important, of course. But the key, the core of discipleship is love for Jesus.
And right along with that of course is the fact that loving Jesus calls for a response.
But what is that response supposed to be?
Say we’ve recognized that our sins are forgiven. Say that the love Jesus has for us has called forth an answering love in our own hearts. Say that there’s nothing more on earth we want to do more than get on with the business of doing Jesus’ work in the world.
Do we all have the same job as Peter’s?
Is Jesus telling each one of us, “Feed my sheep”?
In a way, of course, we all do have the same job. This scene takes place either a little before or a little after Jesus gives the Great Commission, telling the disciples to “Go ... and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.” [Mt 28:19-20]
Is that the same thing Jesus is telling Peter? Or is this, as many believe, the selection of Peter to be the head of the church, the chief shepherd, the new CEO of this revolutionary enterprise? In any case, does that give us any clue as to what our job for Jesus is?
Let me answer those questions.
First, is “feed my sheep” the same as “go into all the world and make disciples”? I believe that it is not. It is the job of the church as a whole to go into the world and make disciples. The job of feeding the sheep is a specialized function within the church. And in answer to the second question, if you look at the book of Acts and the history of the church, Peter is not a great evangelist. He’s not sent out on the road to break new territory. He does, in fact, appear to function as the CEO, rather than as the head of Sales and Marketing. And when he leaves for Rome, leaving James to run the Jerusalem office, not many would have expected Rome to be the center of Christendom for the next couple of thousand years.
But that still doesn’t tell us what our job should be. In fact, just after this exchange Jesus rebukes Jesus for asking about what was in store for John. “What’s that to you?” he says “Follow me!” [v. 22]
So what are we to take away from this passage?
I think the whole scene - from the disciples’ decision to go fishing to the discussion of Peter’s future - is a pattern for us. Iit tells us that hearing and following Jesus takes place right in the midst of our lives.
What are they doing in Galilee? They are waiting for Jesus. And while they are waiting, they still have to work, they still have to eat. And so do we. But while they are doing this, they have their eyes and ears open, waiting for the call. Jesus does show up, of course, but the light isn’t good and they’re tired. The work hasn’t been going well. But as soon as they lift their eyes and open their ears and follow Jesus’ directions, everything changes. All of a sudden their work starts bearing fruit.
Well, Peter jumps overboard and wades ashore, impulsive as always, while the other disciples bring in the boat and the fish. But there’s no hint in the text that Jesus prefers the impulsive Peter to the deliberate Thomas. All of them are focused on Jesus. And the first thing he does is to sit down and eat with them. And then he gives Peter his assignment. Peter was called to build the church by teaching and leading the people of God, and finally to follow Jesus to death. He sort of hints at the fact that John is going to be called to live a long life, to reflect on and record Jesus’ life and teachings and their implications to all the ones who would follow. Tradition tells us that Thomas took the Gospel to India and Mark wound up in Egypt, but we don’t know about Nathaniel or Thaddeus.
But all of them have to go back to Jerusalem to wait for the Holy Spirit before they get started. And what does that teach us?
First, this passage teaches us that it’s okay to get on with our lives while waiting for Jesus to make it clear what it is we are to do for him. He knows we have to work, he knows we have to eat. But it also tells us that if we aren’t listening to Jesus, not even our everyday activities are going to bear fruit in the long run.
Second, the passage teaches us that working for God means waiting for God. Just because his time is not our time doesn’t mean we should give up and go do something else, nor does it mean we should go dashing about in frantic activity in hope that we will accidentally stumble upon what it is that Jesus has in mind for us to do.
Are you waiting to find out what it is that Jesus wants you to do? Start looking and listening. Get to know him, so that you’ll recognize his voice when he does call. If you have stopped listening for a call, or never begun, now’s the time to start - whether it’s for the first time or not. Build some waiting time into your life, so that thet ouside noise doesn’t drown out the master’s voice. Because God has created you for a purpose. Every baptized member of the church of Jesus Christ is called into the ministry ... my job, like Peter’s, is to feed you. Your job is to go into the world and make disciples. Jesus will tell you where and when - if you have your ears open.
