“Reinstated”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Sunday, May 4, 2025

John 21: 1-19 (Forward, p. 6) CEV p. 1130

It simply ‘had’ to be done. The unresolved situation, then tensions, between Jesus and Simon Peter could not be allowed to persist. Even if it didn’t negatively impact Jesus, it was bound to affect how Peter related to Him. There would always be a lingering sense of shame and guilt, always a sense of doubt over whether he was actually forgiven, and always a sense of separation. Peter and Jesus needed to rebuild the bridges and get on with life, with life together.

And, what a wonderful way to set the stage, to put Peter at ease. Firstly, there was a kind of nostalgic repeat of a treasured incident from the past, the miraculous draught of fish. How fondly Peter would have remembered that, for it was the very occasion when Jesus called Peter to follow Him. And then there was the barbeque breakfast on the beach: what a relaxed and homey event, an event that would put everyone at his ease.

However, the inevitable could not be put off forever: the past needed to be dealt with—for the sake of both of them. And so, Jesus asks Peter the necessary question, ‘do you love me?’, and asks it, in various forms, three times. Biblical scholars and commentators have laboured long and hard to try to find an explanation how differently Jesus and Peter each worded their comments, but I have found none that fully satisfy. However, what seems obvious is that Jesus asked the central question, ‘do you love me?” entirely on purpose—as a way of reminding Peter quite starkly of what he had done in denying Him. Surely this would have pricked Peter’s heart and conscience and brought back a flood of painful memories. However, as Peter had once denied Jesus three times, he was now being given a chance to acknowledge Him three times, and to affirm that his love for Jesus was stronger than the fears that had once drive him to self-preservation and his denial of his Lord.

Now, there is one other thing I have wondered about in this little, but necessary, episode between Jesus and Peter. It appears to have been done in public, whereas I would certainly have opted for going off somewhere to be alone to deal with something so sensitive and embarrassing. But maybe there was a ‘method to His madness’: maybe Jesus wanted the fact of Peter’s re-instatement to be fully acknowledged, fully public, fully accepted, so that the entire group knew just where things stood between himself and Jesus. And perhaps not just for Peter, but for them, and all of us, as well: to know that any falling out, any sin, any separation, between us and God can be bridged, forgiven, and made new. Yes, no matter what,

there is the possibility of re-instatement and reconciliation.

Forward notes: “Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast’” (verse 12a).

“Gathering around food is one of the ways we create community. We meet for coffee, talk with friends over lunch, and gather for celebratory meals. Traditions around birthdays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas meals strengthen community, not just among those gathered that day but across time. When we share our mother’s or grandmother’s recipes, we find that, somehow, that generation is at the table with us as well. Gathering around a table changes things. We are different after we share a meal.

“The most common element across the resurrection accounts is the disciples sharing a meal with Jesus. The frequency of these post-resurrection meals is an indication that we should pay attention. Jesus’s passion and death broke the community of disciples. They scattered. Many abandoned or denied Jesus. In the wake of his resurrection, Jesus re-forms that broken community. He calls them together in peace and forgiveness, and then he eats with them. Over those meals, they are re-formed and transformed into a community gathered around Jesus and sent into the world proclaiming the Good News.”

Moving Forward: “Plan a friend or family dinner.”