“Undone”

About six months after we moved to New England, I turned 40. That’s a big deal in my family. Being the fourth in line and having already remembered my older brothers on their 40^th birthdays with such wonderful gifts as Grecian Formula, Poly Grip and Ex-Lax, I thought it would be wise to move away…far, far away. They found me anyway.

When we lived in PA, I had breakfast on Wednesday mornings with my siblings at Ernie’s Texas Lunch diner. Being a bit of a lengthy commute, I gave that up when we moved to CT. Even so, since my 40th birthday happened to fall on a Wednesday I got a call from my brothers bright and early that morning. “Hey,” they said, “let’s go for breakfast!” “Sure,” I answered, “be right there!” Ha ha. After the phone call I proceeded to get ready for my day as usual, but halfway through my shower I was rudely interrupted by two wise guys yelling at me through the bathroom door telling me to hurry up so we could go eat! They drove 6½ hours the night before and stayed in a motel room in Mystic just so they could take me out to breakfast. Which they did and after which, they turned right around and drove 6½ hours back! Sometimes I wonder about my family…

Seriously, although they didn’t come right out and say it, I know they came because they love me. Not that we’ve always liked each other, but every once in a while we do go out of our way to show that we love each other. Like this past December when I took off right after church to go to my brother’s 50^th birthday party. Drove back the next day, of course. Sometimes I wonder about myself, too…

Talk about people going out of their way for each other…Jesus came all the way back from the dead to have breakfast with his friends!

When the disciples weren’t sure what to do after the intense and confusing events of that first Holy Week and Easter, they did a typical guy thing – they went fishing. I can understand that – get the bait and tackle, load up the cooler, fuel up the tanks and head out on the water – let the world go by! There are times when just getting away is just the right thing to do.

Of course, They did have that incredibly Good News about the resurrection of Jesus Christ to share, so there was a point where they needed to get out of their boats and get back to doing what Jesus wanted them to do in the first place. So, Jesus came after them and proceeded to give them some encouragement. He appeared on the beach, calling out to the boat, “Catch anything?” Now, most fishermen would have lied at this point, “You bet, caught some really big ones!” and would have held out their hands to size up their imaginary fish. But maybe because it was the Lord, after all, they chose to tell the truth, “We’ve been doing nothing but drowning our bait out here!” When Jesus told them to toss the nets over the other side of the boat, things improved a bit. It was at that moment they all agreed to take him along next time. Peter was so excited to see Jesus that he jumped in the water and swam to shore.

They had breakfast there (I don’t know if it was Wednesday or not) and then Jesus took Peter aside. “Do you love me?” he asked Peter three times. Each time, Peter said yes. “Tend, feed, take care of my sheep”, said Jesus.

Three times. Does that number sound familiar to you? Do you remember how many times Peter denied knowing Jesus? Three times. Three reasons for Peter to feel guilty for failing the Lord, but now three reasons for Peter to feel the wonderful release of forgiveness. Three words of love and absolution. And then, some more words Peter had heard before, and this time he was truly ready to hear them: “Follow me.”

The disciples really weren’t out there fishing for the fun of it, but had returned to their boats because they didn’t know what else to do. Afraid, unsure of themselves, they went back to what they knew, familiar territory, old traditions. We might have done the same. Unsure of the future, it can be very compelling to hold on to the past.

But Jesus wouldn’t let them get away with it. The Good News they had was meant to be shared with the world. It was the best news the world had ever known. It had to get beyond the shores of the Sea of Tiberias. It has to get beyond these shores, too.

It’s still the best news in the world and there are still countless numbers of people who need to hear it. We’re working on that. We’ve been opening our doors to more and more people. We’re thinking about adding a new style of worship service to reach out further. We’re broadening our ministry by cooperating with Second Church. And in each instance, with each effort to reach out with the Good News of Jesus Christ, we’re called upon to explore new territory, to loosen our grip on the past, to step into the unknown, trusting that the Lord knows a better way to fish and feed lambs.

Now, let’s ask a very simple and blunt question here – Why bother? Aren’t things good enough as they are? Theresa tells us our financial situation is improving. There are more people in church now. Attendance is pretty good. And we’re all happy. Why mess with a good thing? Well, here’s the answer – Because Jesus won’t stop messing with us! Even in this comfortable spot, Jesus comes and stirs our hearts, makes us yearn to reach out, makes us want to embrace the needs of our communities and feed those sheep.

Jesus compels us to love him and love his people because his love seeks us out. And just like Peter, it’s not that we’ve asked for it or even deserve it…quite the contrary…it’s because God so loves the world. Peter’s denials, his sins, his guilt were undone at the Lord’s choosing, not Peter’s. The cross and resurrection happened. It’s a given. It’s a fact that Peter couldn’t change, nor can we. The forgiveness it offers the world pursues us to the ends of the earth. Our denials, sins and guilt are undone.

I guess that leaves the question as to what our response to such amazing grace will be. And here’s the heart of the matter. What do we do…what do you do…with such love? Do you stay in the old boat and just keep fishing off the same side? Do you hold on to the past and stay in your comfort zone where it is safe? Or like Peter, do you jump right in and leave the boats behind? Do you feed those lambs, showing the Lord that you love him just as he loves you?

There are people in your life today who need to experience Christ’s pursuing, unlimited, unconditional forgiving love and they need to experience it from you, O shepherd of Christ’s flock!

Christ is with us, has been all along, but we’re starting to heed his call in new ways, dropping the nets on the other side. He calls to us to commune with him, welcomes us even if we happen to be running away and calls us again to follow.

That’s where we need to be heading – to the shore, to the world. That’s where our church needs to be heading. There are new fish to catch and lambs to feed.

Pursued by Christ’s love to this place in our lives, loved completely, forgiven, guilt undone, called to serve, what do we do now? Peter shows us the way – jump right in!