Resurrection Appearances: Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish

John 21:1-14

1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards.[c] 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

It was just an ordinary day at work. What doest hat look like to you? An office? A meeting? A staff room or classroom? A construction site?
It was a bad day at work. What does that look like to you? Tension with a manager? A lost contract? A cold office? A deadline that came a little too soon? Too much to do?

In this passage, we see some of the disciples after the high point of Palm Sunday. After the enormous tension and passion of Holy Week, followed by what they thought was the utter calmity of Jesus' cruxifiction. After strange events, people claiming they've seen Jesus alive again. It was the most pivotal moment in history, but the disciples still need to eat. So, they returned to their job of fishing and they fail; no fish all night.

Then, as the first hint of light appears in the sky, they see a figure. Perhaps he's been there all of the time. "You're closer than you realise. Try the other side of the boat" and an abundance is provided. It's then they realise who it is. Jesus in their workplace.

Last Friday started badly for me. Working on a bid for a contract is not a part of my job I enjoy. I was doing it when key collagues were away and when I had other deadlines to juggle, so it was very stressful. My wife, Izzi, could see I was stressed. She told me later that she'd prayed for me and all that day, things fell into place. Other colleagues helped and things ended well.

I'm an engineer; I think about physics quite a lot. Recently, Josh Lees was preaching at St George's when we had some baptisms. I was listening bu I also had a train of thought about the image below which he used.

Bubbles are amazing things, kids love them. They also play an important role in the climate because they are a key way that the atmosphere interacts with oceans and rivers. The image got my thinking about why we can even see them. They are lumps of air; None of us can see the air between us and water is transparent too. What we can see is the surface where the air and water meet, where one transparent substance is distinct from another. And the reason we can see that surface is because it reflects the light.

I think it's profound that Jesus appeared at dawn because Jesus says himself that He is the light of the world. He is the first thing the disciples see when the sun rises. Or another way of putting it, as the sun rises they see the risen Son. The sun shines day in day out and it shines over all the world. The light shines in the offices, the classrooms and the fishing boats. It shines on the ordinary days and the bad ones all the same. What it means for us is that we can be the bubbles. By being distinct (in the right ways), we can be a bubble that stands out from the water around it. We can reflect His light. By being forgiving, honest, caring and praying continually, like we read in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, we can be bubbles in wherever we are this week.

Ewan Jones