Abundance on the Beach
A Sermon by the Rev. Peter De Franco
The Third Sunday in Easter
The Episcopal Church of St. John the Baptist
John 21:1-19
21After these things Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. 2Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. 3Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. 4Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5Jesus said to them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.” 6He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. 7That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. 8But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off. 9When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. 10Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” 11So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. 12Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew it was the Lord. 13Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead. 15When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “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.” 16A 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.” 17He 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. 18Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” 19(He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”
Over the past three Sundays, we have heard the story of the Resurrection as told in the Gospel according to John. That story begins with the discovery by Mary Magdalene of the empty tomb and the appearance of the Risen Christ to her. Last week the story continued with the account of Jesus appearing to the disciples on Easter night followed by another appearance the next Sunday.
This week we noticed that the location shifts from Jerusalem to the familiar haunts of the disciples along the Sea of Tiberius, also known as the Sea of Galilee, far from the Jerusalem capital. More than location is shifting. The disciples have shifted from following Jesus to following their former career choices. Have Peter and the boys seen the challenges of following Jesus and fallen back to their former and familiar patterns?
We see the disciples set out at night, they are in the dark, and they proved themselves failures at fishing. They work all night but catch nothing. These same disciples had failed Jesus at night when they fled from him at the crucifixion. It seems they can get nothing right.
As dawn illumines the sky, they return home when a stranger greets them from the shore and bids them try an alternate approach to fishing. They hear his voice and obey. Then so many fish fill their nets that the nets are close to breaking.
In that miraculous moment, the Beloved Disciple realizes what is happening. He tells the others: “It is the Lord!” Not a stranger but the Lord has called them. Once again God is intruding on their ordinary patterns of behavior and changing things.
As soon as Peter understands the situation, he jumps into the water and swims to Jesus. Notice how Peter does not first see Jesus.
The Beloved Disciple sees and understands. The ever-impetuous Peter jumps headlong into the activity.
Perhaps you were amazed at the abundance which the Risen Christ brings. One hundred fifty three fish push the net to the breaking point. This Gospel regularly hints at abundance in other sections of its message and the same echoes sound throughout this passage. In listing the disciples engaged in this fishing trip, Nathaniel of Cana of Galilee is mentioned. We all know the sign Jesus performed in Cana where he changed 180 gallons of water into wine. That comes to over 1,000 bottles of wine, and choice wine at that. Who wouldn’t want that stock for their wine cellar?
When we hear that the charcoal breakfast menu consists of fish and bread, once again we are invited to remember the abundant multiplication of fish and bread feeding 5,000 people.
This gospel marks a decisive moment for the disciples, a shift away from their casting their nets for fish in favor of seeking new disciples. Jesus assures them that an abundant catch waits them if they listen to his voice.
Each of us is invited to hear Jesus call us to be disciples, to go out and do what we can to share the news of Jesus with others. We, as a community, also are invited to hear Jesus call us to share the good news about the Risen Christ with others.
Some time ago I preached about a new venture in our outreach, a ministry with and among the Hispanic community. Over the next months, we shall begin working on a new venture as we share the good news about Jesus with the Hispanic members of our communities. We already know that a third of the people living in Linden are Hispanic. Let me say that I wish there was a better word to use to describe the different national groups about which we speak with the word Hispanic. That community not only includes a variety of people from different countries but also different cultures and they even speak different versions of Spanish. They include people whose first language is Spanish and people who speak no Spanish.
Our church is already involved with the Hispanic Ministry Coalition of the Diocese of New Jersey. From May 16 – 20, I shall participate in a Latino Ministry Competency Course sponsored by the national Episcopal Church. Some of you have already expressed an interest in forming a Task Force to begin this ministry.
For our first task, we shall study the make up of the Hispanic community in our area, discovering their countries of origin, their religious needs, the ways we can collaborate with them in ministry.
Our listening to this morning’s gospel offers us an opportunity to hear Jesus inviting us to cast our nets, to begin our outreach, to consider our corporate mission to follow Jesus and to share the Good News with our neighbors. We don’t have Jesus preparing us a coffee hour with bread and fish. For those of you who do not like fish, that comes as a blessing. We do have the continuing presence of Jesus breaking bread for us and sharing the abundant gift of the Holy Eucharist. I invite you to consider how you can be a part of this mission. Talk to me if you feel Jesus inviting you to be a part of it. We begin this work knowing the Jesus will bless us. We begin our ministry with trust that Jesus will fill our nets with an abundance.