“Jesus said unto them, "Come and dine." And none of the disciples dared ask Him, "Who art Thou?" knowing that it was the Lord.” (John 21:12 NKJV)
Is Satan whispering that God is not for us in our daily battles? Is he whispering lies that God is going to erase our name from the Book of Life for something we’ve done, yet repented over?
Satan never had it so wrong! And Jesus never had it so right!
Salvation in Christ is not a funeral, but a feast! It is not an ending, but a beginning.
The Bible is a continual feast from Genesis right through to Revelation. Covenant meals and meals of fellowship are frequent occurrences in Scripture. Our Shepherd, the Lord Jesus, has given many examples of His open invitation to be replenished and restored, to remember, and to rejoice at His table.
Spend just a few moments to think about the setting of today’s verse. God has become flesh and dwelt among His creation. He has temporarily laid aside the glory of heaven to become human like us, and become totally dependent upon and obedient to the Father, in all things.
He taught His apostles and the people of Galilee, Judea and other regions, even across the Jordan, about the Kingdom of God. He has performed miracles. There were healings, driving out demons, and demonstrations of authority over time and nature. He had caught the religious leaders in their own hypocrisy. He confronted every one of their challenges and came out on top in every case. In humility and obedience He went to Calvary’s cross, poured out His blood and died to pay the penalty for our sin, and He did it for all. Now He has risen from the tomb where He defeated death and the grave, and one by one, two by two, appeared to those who have loved Him. He gave them promise that not many days later they would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
So now what do we expect from this Man Jesus Christ? This One who is declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead? I mean, how can anyone do more than that?
Now here we are at John chapter 21. Peter (the coward), Thomas (the doubter), Nathaniel, and the two boys who had thought they could drink the cup with Him, James and John; and two unnamed disciples, have gone back to their fishing.
And the risen, glorified, Lord of the universe, appears on the shore to cook them breakfast.
Doesn’t that just say it all? Whatever is our concept of God; however we tend to respond to Him, hold it up to the light of what we see happening in the verse. Let this picture shape our thinking of Jesus Christ, Lord, Savior, Messiah. He cooked them breakfast!
Have we sinned? Have we missed the mark in our obedience to God’s plan? Does our past come back to haunt us? Are we confused with the pains of guilt, rejection, failure and personal shame? Do Satan’s lies leave us beaten, abused, weak and tired? Have we lost our focus and are we left longing and lonely?
Look toward the shore.
The Lion of the tribe of Judah; the One who went down into death and conquered it; the One whose voice the wind and the waves still obey; the glorious, risen, Lord of all wants to serve us breakfast. He’ll feed and strengthen us, assure us, accept us, and give us focus and a purpose. Jesus goes one step further by then promising to be with us forever. He died to pay the price for our sin. He rose to give us life.
Don’t look down. Don’t look back. Look up Jesus is coming back. Don’t look down. Don’t look back. Look at the shore. Bread and fish are on the fire being prepared by a nail-scarred hand.
The Disciples knew it was Him. This time they knew for sure.
Some are so caught up in other stuff in life and expect Jesus just to keep waiting on them. They wonder why others are getting blessed while they are still struggling. It’s because those who know Jesus are swimming toward Him and the others are afraid to get their feet wet.
Knowing Jesus means we can’t wait to get to Him. Knowing Jesus means we will forget what we used to do. Knowing Jesus means leaving behind our old life. Knowing Jesus means we love Him more than anything.
Satan wants us to think we are failures and unlovable. The Master of the universe is making a meal for us. What more can He do? Nothing. His Grace is sufficient for all we need.
Hello Again!!
7 years ago
