Silly Jesus
As the sun was rising, Jesus stood at the water’s edge, but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Then he asked them, ‘Young men, haven’t you caught anything?’
‘Not a thing’, they answered.
He said to them, ‘Throw your net out on the right side of the boat and you will catch some’. So they threw the net out and could not pull it back in, because they had caught so many fish. (verses 4-6)
Read John 21: 1-14
It has been a horrible time for these men. Their friend and leader has been arrested, tried and killed. With his death their dreams died. Now there are rumours about people seeing him alive. This sort of talk is confusing; it only makes the pain worse. They might as well go back to work, fishing. But even that brings no satisfaction: they fish all night, and catch nothing. Now there’s this guy standing on the shore, just watching, asking dumb questions, making ridiculous suggestions. As if he’d know!
It’s Jesus, of course. They just don’t recognise him.
Often life is like that for us too. Things are messed up, we get tossed around. And it is as if Jesus just stands, watches, asks silly questions and makes stupid suggestions.
But look what happens! He’s not as uninvolved as they think. Nor as silly.
Says something, doesn’t it?
Lord Jesus, help me to trust your words to me, even when they sound ridiculous, and surprise me yet again with your love. Amen.
by Bob Kempe, in ‘New Strength for each Day’ (LCA, Openbook, 1998)
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