In this blog, we move from Jesus’ encounters with the disciples in and around Jerusalem to the shores of the Sea of Galilee. If you recall, Jesus had waited another week to make sure that Thomas was with the other disciples in the Upper Room, and then fulfilling His words to the women who first came to the tomb, Jesus met all of the disciples in Galilee. And that is where we will pick up the story today.
Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, James and John, Thomas, Nathaniel and two other disciples were along the shore of the Sea of Galilee when Peter told them that he was going fishing, and the other disciples decided to join him. Of course, looking back to when Jesus first called the fishermen on the shores of Galilee over three years prior, once again, after a night of fishing, they had caught nothing. And that’s when Jesus appeared on the beach and said to them:
“Children, you do not have any fish to eat, do you?” And they answered Him, “No.” And then Jesus said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will find the fish” (John 21:5-6).
Jesus knew where the fish were. He either miraculously directed the fish to show up on the right side of the boat (if He could calm the wind and the waves, He could make fish gather on the right side of the boat). Or maybe there is a natural explanation that in the early morning sunrise, a shadow was cast across the boat and the fish would gather either in the shadow or in the sunlight, on the opposite side of the boat where they were fishing. Of course, the net was immediately filled with fish. It was then that John recognized that it was Jesus standing on the shore, and after telling Peter that it was the Lord, he immediately jumped into the sea and started swimming toward Jesus.
Certainly, there is an application for us here. We may be desperately trying to accomplish something in a way of our own choosing, and the Lord knows the right way that we should take. Whenever we seem to hit the proverbial “brick wall,” let’s ask God to show us if there is a mid-course correction that we need to make, and then ask Him to show us the way.
As the other disciples dragged the net to shore, one of the disciples decided to count the fish, numbering 153. There is nothing symbolic about this number (believe me, theologians have tried to figure it out), but I think that John just wanted to record the details to show his readers that this wasn’t a vision or an illusion. These were real fish that they had caught, and they even counted them to confirm it!
And then when they got to shore,
…they saw a charcoal fire already made and fish placed on it, and bread (John 21:9).
The word for “charcoal fire” comes from the Greek word anthrakia, and it is found in only two places in our New Testament: 1) here on the shore of Galilee, and 2) in the courtyard of the High Priest during Jesus trial (John 18:18). And now, the focus was directly upon Peter. Jesus was taking him back a few weeks to his denial by the “charcoal fire” on the night Jesus was betrayed by Judas, the same night that He was denied by Peter.
I like to think that there are two “charcoal fires” in our own lives. The first when we denied our need for the Lord, or if we already knew Him, a time that we walked away from Him, denying that we ever knew Him. It is at this point that our gracious Lord builds another fire for us, a metaphorical fire, calling us to join Him for a meal. It is here that repentance and/or restoration occurs for us, just as Jesus was preparing to do with Peter.
The “charcoal fire” brought Peter back to his moment of greatest failure so that Jesus could forgive and restore him. The “charcoal fire” on the shores of Galilee laid the foundation to what Jesus was going to do with Peter next. And that will be the subject of next week’s blog.
May the Lord bless and keep each one of you. If you need to spend some time by the “charcoal fire” that Jesus has prepared for you, just join Him and prepare your heart and mind for what He has to say to you. May the Lord bless you and keep you in His care.
