Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, we also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, no. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye will find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher’s coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea. And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes. John 21:3-8
Have you ever done something as a pure reaction? With little or no thought, you simply react. This is the third time we find Simon Peter in a boat. In Luke 5: 4 and 5, there was no reaction, just the obedience, “Nevertheless at thy word,” before he is called to follow Christ. In Matthew 14: 24-31, we witness Simon Peter’s moment of unbelievable faith with, “Lord if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water,” that allowed him to walk on water toward Jesus. Now in chapter 21 of John, Jesus has been crucified and resurrected. He has appeared to the disciples twice so they know he is alive. There would have been no surprise. So what would make Peter react in such a way? When John said it was the Lord, there was little to no thought. He forgot the fish in the net. He paid no attention to what the others were doing. He grabbed his coat, jumped out of the boat and swam the hundred yards to shore. Why?
I think it had something to do with his journey. We often talk about people who are too focused on something as having blinders on. They can see nothing but their target, whether it’s good or bad. Peter obeyed and followed a teacher. He later realized Jesus was the Son of God. Now Christ had been crucified, buried and resurrected. And there, I believe, lies one point of this Scripture; after everything Simon Peter had experienced, witnessed and heard since becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ, what else could stir him to the point of pure reaction except the glory of the risen Lord?
Too often throughout our day, our focus is on everything except Christ. Our days are so filled at times it can almost seem to minimize our risen Lord. So I will pose the question – What are you focused on? What would merit such a reaction and cause you to jump out of your boat?
It’s amazing how many people feel Christians look at the world with naïve optimism. I was fortunate enough to assist with a Christ-centered addictions program for two years. Week after week I watched people come to the program once or twice and never return. One man even stood up and said, “You’re not giving these people any real help. When they are down in the gutter, they need someone they can call on to drag them out. Sitting here in a church and praying isn’t going to help them in the real world.”
The problem of sin has brought the consequences of the curse – one of which is that the ‘new’ never lasts (or costs too much to keep new). New houses lose their magic after a mortgage payment or two. The new car smell generally wears off after about two weeks. Honeymoons don’t last forever. Even in the spiritual realm, the newness of conversion and church wears off all-too-soon! The only exception is what God does in the lives of His children. 2 Corinthians 5 speaks about how God seeks to renew us, if we will allow Him. During my sabbatical, I made this a serious matter of prayer…
Have you ever been through a season of disorganization and chaos at some point in your life? It may seem that days went by without notice and before you knew it you missed out on an entire week or even longer. Maybe even now you feel as if you are always rushing to be somewhere, rarely have any time to relax at home or cannot enjoy the things in life that matter to you most.
P4G 