Father Gary’s Sermon

Inspired from John 21: 1-14

Proclaimed on April 25, 2004

Do you all remember the “Twilight Zone?” It was a series of stories that always ended with an unusual twist. One of these stories was about a Nazi war criminal that was being hunted by some Israeli agents. One day, after he became aware that he was about to be caught, he visited a local museum. While there he came across a picture of a man fishing. It was a very serene scene, one that quickly grasped his heart as he recalled the peace he felt in previous fishing trips of his own. Some days later, as the Jewish hunters were closing in on him, he ran back to that same museum. Kneeling before the picture of the fishing scene, he began to pray desperately that he could be placed in the picture. All of a sudden he vanished. Some time later two curators walked by the picture. Looking up at the picture they both comment on how realistic the picture appears. Now instead of a serene fishing scene, there is in its place a painting of a face--the face of the crucified Christ.

This little story seems to say something, however accidentally, about how God deals with our past. It is always handled through the crucified Christ. The same is true in our Gospel reading this morning. In this story the disciples, like the man in the “Twilight Zone,” are also running from Jewish agents. They are all that is left of the perceived rebellion of the Jesus Movement. Now they are more dangerous then ever because of the rumors that the Risen Christ has been seen. Also like the Nazi war criminal, they seek some sense of peace by going fishing.

While fishing, their initial fortunes are quite poor. They are without a catch. Then they are told by a man of the shore to throw their nets on the opposite side of the boat. Such directions are not unusual in that sometimes people on the shore have a better perspective of the fishing grounds. In their compliance the disciples bring in a huge catch. It was so large that it took all of them to handle it! That is except for one. When John recalls this to be the same miracle that Jesus had done with them before, he announced that it was Risen Lord coming back into their presence for the third time. With this announcement the normally exuberant Peter puts on some clothes, jumps off of the boat, and then swims in to greet Jesus. In approaching Jesus he notices a fire going with some fish being prepared. When Jesus invites the disciples to breakfast with him, Peter jumps back into the water and single-handedly pulls in the net full of fish.

Now the meal Jesus was inviting the disciples was not just any sort of meal. It was similar to the popular Hollywood statement, “Let’s do lunch!” Such a meal is a business meal in which big deals are going to be discussed and possible contracts signed. Jesus, who had previously showed up to the disciples to give them unmerited grace, was now going to deal with some unfinished business.

In this Gospel we are only told about his business with Peter. As may be recalled, Peter had acted very poorly during the last Passover meal Jesus had shared with the disciples. In pulling Peter aside he asks him quite simply, “Peter, do you love me?” At this point Peter may have recalled how he had reacted to Jesus when John was appointed to the seat of highest honor rather than himself. He stomped off to sit in the seat furthest from the Lord. Still disappointed he answered, “Lord, you know that I like you.” Jesus then commanded him, “Feed my sheep!” Again, Jesus repeated the question. This time Peter may have recalled how he initially refused to allow Jesus to wash his feet. Perhaps still feeling in the right, he said, “Lord, you know that I like you.” Then Jesus repeated the command and the question again, only this time adjusting it to Peter’s limitations, “Peter, do you like me a whole lot?” At this point, Peter may have recalled the three times he denied Jesus on that same Thursday night when he so adamantly refuted Jesus’ prediction. Now his self-righteousness was crushed. He realized how utterly wrong he had been. Now he could barely admit, “Lord, you know that I like you.” To which the Lord repeated, “Feed my sheep!” Feeling his relationship with the Lord to be restored again, Peter went back to some unfinished business of his own, asking what Jesus was going to do about John. Jesus’ response was simple, “Peter, that is between John and myself. It is none of your business. What is your business is my command to you to feed my sheep.”

Now the question arises just what does it mean to “feed my sheep?” A Methodist Chaplain was once driving through the countryside of Washington when he had to bring his car to a stop. In front of him was a shepherd leading a large flock of sheep across the road. While he sat there a question crossed his mind that he wanted to ask the shepherd. Getting out of the car the man approached the shepherd and asked, “What does the phrase ‘Lamb of God’ mean to you?” After getting over his surprise at being questioned the shepherd answered, “I know exactly what that phrase means. Each year at lambing time, there are lambs and ewes that do not make it. On the other side of the field is an ewe whose lamb died. The ewe is filled with milk, but will not nourish any lamb she does not recognize as her own. On the other side of the field is a lamb whose other has died. That lamb is doomed to die as well for lack of milk. The shepherd handles this problem by taking the dead lamb, slitting its throat and pouring its blood over the living lamb. Recognizing the blood as being that of her lamb the mother ewe will now accept the covered lamb as her own and nourish it as her own. The Lamb of God is the Lamb whose blood was used to save and give life to that one that was orphaned.”

In essence, when Jesus was telling Peter to “feed my sheep,” he was telling him about the nature of his mission. Jesus’ purpose on earth was to die that his blood might be used to cover all we orphans who would die without his blood. Jesus was claiming us orphans as his own. He was commanding Peter to be like the ewe. He was commanding him to “feed my sheep.” In order to accomplish this Peter eventually became willing to pay the ultimate price to carry on our Lord’s mission. Like the Nazi war criminal who attempted to escape into a fishing scene, only to experience crucifixion, so now the same is true for the Apostle Peter. He would later pay the ultimate price for his Lord on behalf of the orphaned Church. He would be crucified upside down.

How is this a comfort for us? It is a comfort in that we are orphan’s covered by the blood of Christ, and we are the beneficiaries of Peter and the apostles, in that through the scriptures which they provided, and the missions they accomplished, we have all the benefits of being God’s children. We have the benefits of being fed with the life of Christ. We have the benefits of being part of the Church, which is the family of God.

In taking advantage of these benefits, today we are baptizing little Kate Najor. Like the first two visits of the Resurrected Lord to the disciples, she is receiving complete grace. What about the rest of us? While we too are recipients of grace, unlike little Kate, we all have a history with our Lord. Many of us have witnessed our Lord’s ministry of miracles and power. We have heard his great teachings. But, what have we done with them? As Jesus had to confront Peter and the rest of his disciples with their baggage, so too we need to be gently confronted with our baggage. As we approach the altar this morning for the Holy Eucharist, please understand that this is the Lord’s power meal; this is like the meal he had prepared for his disciples on the Sea of Galilee. This is where the Lord makes things happen for the mission of the Church. This is where we are confronted with the baggage of our failures that hinder our participation with the Lord.

So this morning, as you kneel before the altar of our Lord, listen carefully. In listening you may here him ask you, “Do you love me?” Like Peter, this is a time to be honest with your answer. Like the Nazi war criminal, it will change our lives. We cannot have the peace of the resurrection without going through the Crucified Lord.