The disciples are “overwhelmed.” “Life,” has just been throwing a lot at them. I mean a lot! Most of us have been there!
They went from the “dire diagnosis” that Jesus — their buddy, their guy — was dead…crucified at the hands of the Roman authorities-egged-on by the crowds.
Mary showed up early on the third morning and the tomb was empty! Mary immediately texted Peter — “OMG the tomb is empty!!!” — and the disciples came running as fast as they could. The tomb was, indeed, empty. A linen shroud was on the ground. Their hearts raced. Their voices trembled. What does it all mean? What is it supposed to signify?
Next, Jesus started “showing up” all over the place. He appeared to Mary in a garden.
He pops in where the disciples were hiding from the crowds in a locked room. He breathes on them, and takes off.
But Thomas gone. So he didn’t believe. A week later, Jesus makes their hearts flutter “big time,” by appearing to Thomas.
From the devastation of the cross, to the emotions of the empty tomb, to Jesus’ continued appearances, life as a disciple has been nothing but overwhelming.
So what do you do when you’re overwhelmed? When life gives you too much to handle? Do you read a book? Go shopping? Do you cry…or don’t cry? Maybe you hang out with friends, or maybe you spend time alone? What do you do?
Well, Peter knew that “he” needed to decompress. “I am going fishing” he said. A few “other guys” decided they’d go with him. There’s nothing like a night out on a lake to calm the mind. They might even make some bucks, besides! “Goodbye overwhelming feeling. Hello lake.”
It turns out though – the fishing thing didn’t lead to any fish. They were “out all night” and caught zip. They were skunked! But just as dawn was breaking, someone glimpsed a figure on the beach “who somehow knew” – they hadn’t caught anything. The guy yelled, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you’ll catch some lake trout.” So they did. And the net got “so full” they couldn’t even haul it in… Unbelievable!
Who was the “miracle man” on the beach? One fisherman figured it out pretty quick. “It is the Lord!” John said to Peter. And, before you could say anything else Peter was cannon-balling it off the side of the boat!
You have to love Peter’s “enthusiasm.”
The other disciples in the boat had a different approach. They rowed their way as quickly as they could to the shore. They had those “full nets” to care for and they were about 100 yards away.
So as Peter swam, they carefully rowed the boat ashore, sans Michael. Now there’s a couple of things we can do with this text — a simple interpretation, and a more challenging one. The simple reading goes something like this: Peter was the “good disciple.” When he knew it was Jesus on the shore, he jumped in and swam to the Lord. Our lives of faith should always be like Peter’s — quickly jumping at the first glimpse of the Lord.
The others rowed slowly. They cared too much about the fish. They didn’t embrace “the immediacy of the moment.” That’s the simple spin!
A few verses later…Jesus asks Peter if he loves him, but that’s mostly to reflect the three times that Peter had denied Jesus previously.
If John “didn’t recognize Jesus,” Peter wouldn’t have been able to jump in and swim ashore. “Recognizing the Lord” is an important step, but so is responding — that was Peter’s gift.
When Peter “sees the Lord” he throws caution to the wind and dives right in. If we have faith like Peter, we care less about respectability and expectations. When we see Jesus we jump in, not caring if we get wet.
So we’ve got Peter’s approach to faith: the impulsive responder.
The Beloved Disciple, on the other hand, is the one who “sees Jesus first” on the beach. But John doesn’t jump in. He tells Peter — who jumps from the boat — but then John slowly and cautiously rows ashore.
Maybe John’s “cautious,” but he’s also “smart.” At dawn, he sees a man a long way away and he knows, he senses, it’s Jesus.
John’s faith is “one of recognition”… of knowing… If he was a superhero, he’d have telescope lenses or carrot stoked eyes. John “sees” what the others can’t.
This type of faith is “essential too.” Jumping in with both feet is great, but we need “to know” where and into “what” we’re jumping into first.
The disciple John shows a “reflective personality,” not jumping into the fray, but floating wisely above it. So who are you more like? Peter or John? Amen.