Jesus appeared to his disciples twice after the resurrection, but the disciples were still confused about should happen next. At some point, Peter, Thomas, Nathaniel, James, and John went back to fishing. After a long night with no fish a mysterious figure showed up on shore. The figure inquired about their catch and then told them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. As soon as they did their net was full to capacity. Peter immediately jumped into the water and swam to shore recognizing the mysterious figure as Jesus.
Jesus was already cooking fish by a charcoal fire when the rest of the disciples arrived. As they hauled their catch on land, they heard Jesus uttered these remarkable words: “Bring some of the fish which you have now caught” These words were remarkable for three reasons. First, because Jesus was there to say them in person. He had been executed on a Roman cross and laid in a Jewish grave. The very fact that Jesus was alive again was amazing.
The second reason Jesus’ words were remarkable was because He gave them credit for catching the fish. Peter and his companions had fished all night and caught nothing. Jesus did the most important part by telling them where to cast their net, yet He still gave them ownership over their success.
Thirdly, Jesus’ words were remarkable because the disciples had abandoned and denied Jesus. When the authorities came to arrest Jesus in Garden of Gethsemane, they all ran away in fear. When Peter was questioned about his relationship with Jesus, he denied he even knew Jesus three times. The men who promised to be faithful had been faithless, and yet Jesus welcomed them anyway.
This is a picture of miraculous, gracious, forgiveness. Jesus wasn’t supposed to be a part of their frustration-filled fishing trip, but He was. Jesus didn’t have to help them catch a record-haul of fish, but He did. Jesus shouldn’t have welcomed them to join Him by the fire, but He called out the invitation. Jesus is still showing up and calling us close today.