John 21:7-14 (NIV)
Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”
Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
John was the first to recognize Jesus’ modus operandi from His previous instruction on fishing more than three years before (Luke 5:4-5). But as soon as he said it, the same recognition flashed through Peter’s brain: of course it was Jesus!
Peter, impulsive as usual, put on his tunic, jumped into the water, and started to swim for shore. The other disciples stared after him for a moment before they decided to steer toward shore with their full nets in tow, since it wasn’t that far away.
Even though the disicples hadn’t caught any fish all night long until He had given them His instruction, Jesus already had several fish on the fire, a fact that wasn’t lost on any of them. How did Jesus get fish with no boat and no gear? And where had he gotten bread in this lonely place? Jesus turned their minds away from the unproductive speculation by asking them to bring some of their catch to add to the meal.
By the time the extra fish were cooked, the disciples had counted and discovered that there were 153 large fish in the net – a remarkable catch. Some have tried to come up with a symbolic meaning for the number, but it is just factual reporting. The number was so large that it stuck in John’s head, even after fifty years!
Many have noted verse 12 and wondered why these close disciples had a hard time recognizing Jesus. Some had speculated that his appearance very different in His resurrection body. But the key is not any difference in Jesus’ appearance, but that, despite the remote location, despite the improbably early hour, and despite the ordinariness of a man cooking over a fire on the shore, Jesus’ presence, the miracle He had produced, and His command of the situation left no doubt that it was Jesus who was inviting them to eat with Him. They would have recognized Him a mile away!
Father, it is interesting to me that so often, even in the face of many of the blessings that Jesus brings into our lives, in spite of the miracles that He is still producing, we often don’t recognize Him in the events that surround us. We write of as “coincidences” or “unexplained phenomena” many things that should easily be seen as simple miracles. And in the process, we fail to give You and Jesus appropriate praise and glory, essentially asking of the circumstances, “Who are you?” instead of saying, “It is the Lord.” Forgive us, Lord, and help us to know You more fully, to see You more clearly, and to always give You all the glory. Amen.
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