Overwhelmed and exhausted by the events of the past few weeks, the disciples of Jesus were an emotional and spiritual mess. Their world had been shaken with fear and grief. They were bewildered, confused, and struggling with feelings of guilt over their cowardly desertion of Jesus during His arrest, trial and crucifixion.
According to the disciple, John, he and six others were together in their home neighborhood by the Sea of Galilee. One evening, Simon Peter said, “I’m going out to fish, … and they said, “We’ll go with you. So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.” (John 21:3).
The decision to go fishing was a decision that arose out of their feelings of sad defeat and despair. Their hopes in a new Kingdom, a new day for the people of God, were shattered. Yes, they rejoiced in seeing Jesus resurrected and again alive, but they failed to comprehend how He could transform what they saw as a lost cause, into a new future of God’s Kingdom on earth. They felt fearful and defeated, and to go fishing was a returning to something they knew, understood, and felt comfortable doing.
And now, after fishing all night, which is the best time to catch fish, they are feeling even more defeated. They caught nothing, zilch, not even one small fish. These were expert fisherman who knew the lake in every detail and were skilled in catching fish. It had been their vocation, their livelihood, but on this night, they failed to catch even one fish.
I can easily imagine that it was a long, dismal night for them with no laughter, no fun, no happy times. The night only further emphasized their feelings of defeat, failure, emptiness, and despair. They set out to fish with empty hearts and returned with empty nets.
It was at this extremely low moment in their lives, that Jesus comes and calls out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” They answered back across the water, “No.” Then Jesus tells them to “Throw you net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.”
What a tremendous, unexpected success follows their obedience to Jesus’ instruction. Please note that they had success at the very place of failure. It was the same lake, the same boat, the same net, and the same crew, but a new obedience. This is an important lesson of encouragement to us in times of failure.
Even though Jesus had breakfast already prepared for these hungry men, He still asks them to contribute to the breakfast from their big catch of fish. And then with gentleness and love, Jesus invites them to “Come and have breakfast.” He feeds them as he had earlier fed the hungry crowd, in taking the bread and the fish and giving it to them.
As Jesus graciously and lovingly shares His food with them, they experience His forgiveness. Their fellowship with Him is restored. They are reassured that they are loved by Him. Moreover, their team unity and love for one another is restored. They again sense that they are working together under the authority of Jesus. Their physical, emotional, and spiritual hungers are nourished and satisfied.
During the early dawn of a new day, Jesus comes and turns their night of failure and emptiness into a morning of fullness and potential. With love and forgiveness, He turns their sadness into gladness.
We could view this time by the Sea of Galilee as a time of LOVE, even as we view Pentecost as a time of POWER. I suggest this perspective because we can learn from the Scriptures that in God’s preparation of his followers to be his witnesses, enabling power is always secondary to compelling love.
However, even though this is the biblical pattern, I am thinking most of us pray for power to do God’s work more often than we pray for love in doing God’s work. It seems easier to pray for power to do things for God, than it is to pray to be a person of love for God and others.
Love is the most powerful and compelling emotion in our being. When it is raised to the Divine level, it becomes the highest motivation and stimulus in all of life. When this love fills and possesses us, it becomes the source of our greatest good, our greatest happiness, and our greatest usefulness as God’s witness and evangelist as the bearer of good news.
More than anything else, we need love! The world needs love! In the early morning seaside breakfast, love becomes the Savior’s last effort to restore relationship, while physically present with his disciples.
“Come and have breakfast” is about re-establishing a climate of love in the relationship between himself and the disciples, as well as between disciple and disciple.
For the same purpose, Jesus comes to us and invites us to “Come and have breakfast.” Start your day with me and I will feed and nourish your deepest hungers of the day. I will turn you nets of empty dilemmas and concerns into full nets of blessings. With love, I will unite you with my church team in doing my work of love in the world. And I will always love you. “Come and have breakfast.”
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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – April 20, 2022
Ray M. Geigley
Healing Rays of Righteousness 
Comments on: "“Come and Have Breakfast”" (1)
Dear Ray, I considered calling you “bucket” but then I thought “I should grow up.” When I first saw your heading I thought, “Great, we will go to breakfast.” but as I read on I realized it is an invitation from Jesus and believe me I have responded to that invite and have been really blessed. We had very special Good Friday and Easter services at out church this weekend and as the disciples on that morning by the sea I feel sooo blessed. I think I have written to you a time or two and affirmed your “Healing Rays”. This one was also very good. I understand that Jim and Caron Shelly were in Florida for the winter but should be home now. I would like to invite you and Dorothy and Jim and Caron to visit us for a weekend when it suits everyone. We can get caught up on out life and have a BALL, so to speak. We are sorting through our books for “down-sizing” and I discovered Don Kraybill’s book, “Passing On The Faith. Do you have that book? It is very interesting about LMH. There has been a lot of changes since we were there. “Very Interesting”. So, if you have a date to suggest I will consider it. I’ll say the same thing to Jim and hopefully we can find a date to suit us all and we can get together. In the mean time, “Blessing of love and joy.” Glenn and Velma `
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