Bread and Fish

Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead. (John 21:13-14 ESV) He is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia! Our Lord showed Himself to be alive through His words and actions that were most familiar to His disciples. Today at International Lutheran Church, we witness Jesus’ third appearance to His disciples after His resurrection from the dead so that we can be confident in our hope in Him.

This story takes us back to the beginning of Jesus’ first calling of His disciples. One of His resurrection promises was that He would meet them in Galilee (Matthew 26:32; 28:7,10; Mark 14:28, 16:7; and Luke 24:6). This was not an accidental meeting but planned and coordinated for the purpose of strengthening their faith. The disciples had returned to familiar territory and familiar tasks that they knew well. All night they fished again the waters of the Sea of Galilee and when morning came, they encountered Jesus. He asked them a simple question and received a simple response. “Have you caught anything?” “No!” Now the disciples had years earlier been surprised at a similar catch of fish that showed Jesus to be the Son of God after a night of fruitless fishing and then being overwhelmed at the catch according to His word (Luke 5:1-11). Yes, Jesus was alive!

But this third gathering also revealed something equally familiar – a meal of loaves and fish. Just as Jesus had multiplied the bread and fish from that little boy’s lunch (Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15), now He feeds His own from the same menu. Perhaps you have a childhood memory of a favorite dish that can bring a sense of comfort and relief from the trauma of everyday. Sometimes we even call this kind of food - comfort food. The flavors can remind us of the comfort and care of family, parents and loved ones. During the last week of my dad’s life, I can still remember the menu well – oatmeal for breakfast and mashed potatoes for dinner. They were the food of his youth. Jesus’ menu of fish and bread was calling his disciples back to their faith in Him and the good news that feeds us and nourishes us each day in our souls – the word of His forgiving love. His food comforts us and sustains us even in death.

I don’t know if you have ever noticed that many of our hymns and songs of the church often refer to both our life and our death in Jesus. This is the baptismal life in Him. We are called to faith in Holy Baptism, into the One who was slain, and in the end, we sleep in that peace that surpasses earthly understanding as we know one day He will wake us from our slumber and give to us a new body that will never be corrupted. We are in Jesus. Death is not something that we willingly take to ourselves, but because of His victory over death it now does not cause us to be dismayed. We are instead hopeful and filled with joy, even as we mourn and weep over our loss at the same time. At the death of a loved one, of course we weep and mourn. Life is still painful. Yet, just as we might enjoy the birds singing to us during these warm spring days, we also long to join in the endless praise of angels around the very throne of God and to hear the great Amen! While we might enjoy a beautiful afternoon under the warm spring sun, still it can’t compare with the joy that awaits us and all who die in the Lord.

That Jesus comes to us in simple ways strengthens our faith. The water and word of baptism and the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper may seem ordinary, but through them we know He is alive. We know that we are forgiven and that we will live with Him. Indeed, Jesus is risen! Alleluia!

Pastor Carl