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Fr David's Sermon 22nd April 2007

Easter III

Hire a DVD version of a film and it usually comes with bonus material – deleted scenes, interviews with the director and actors, the ‘making of’ and sometimes an alternative ending. Some books give you a choice of ending too – like ‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’ by John Fowles.

It is also true of the Gospels. St. Mark for instance has two bonus Easter features tacked on the end. St. John, who we’ve been reading since Easter, has a hidden extra, the story of the woman taken in adultery and today’s gospel, 21.1-19. It takes the scholars to point this out to us and because we are used to bite sized chunks we can fail to notice any significance in any case.

We cheated last week and had a part of Luke’s story of Emmaus instead of John’s story of doubting Thomas. That is now thought to have been the end of John gospel. John ends by telling us that he has written so that we might believe and have life. In reading of Peter, Mary Magdalene and Thomas coming to Easter faith we are led to believe too.

It is thought that John wrote firstly for his church, a group of early Christians. Either John or more probably someone else, came to the view that belief was all very well but what difference was it making. Today’s passage is all about the need to express our Easter faith in the risen Lord, in other words about ‘vision for action’, to use the diocese’s slogan! We can pick out four things: -

1. Fishing – mission
   Peter, Thomas, Nathaniel and other disciples having already witnessed the resurrection, nevertheless wanted to get back to normal. They had found it all a bit too much to take in and so like many men desiring to escape, they went fishing, in this case returning to their trade. The snag was that they caught nothing all night until the mysterious figure on the shore told them to cast once more. The result was 153 fish, following Peter’s recognition of the Lord. This, the commentators tell us, represents the mission of the church, fishing for men and women, fishing for souls. Once we have come to believe in the risen Lord we can’t return to normal, we cannot seek to escape, rather we are called to mission, to tell others the good news about Jesus Christ.
2. Eucharist – breakfast
   Jesus invited the disciples to share a breakfast barbeque with him. Like the feeding of the five thousand in John’s gospel this has Eucharistic overtones. In the taking, breaking and sharing, the disciples know the presence of Risen Lord with them. Each Sunday we are similarly invited to ‘come and dine’, to use the words of the Authorised Version. Sharing in the Eucharist gives expression and confirms our belief in the Risen Christ. We know - we know- that he is present.
3. Sheep – pastoral care
   John changes metaphors and speaks not of fish but of sheep. Peter who denied Jesus three time before a charcoal fire is now interrogated by Jesus. Three times he is asked if he loves Jesus, three times he is told to care for the sheep. This is pastoral care, the ongoing ministry of the Christian community for those who have been caught in its missionary fishing nets. Peter is charged with this ministry of shepherding the flock. It is of course the gospel used at ordinations. It is why bishops have crooks!
4. Being bound
   In the night Peter still a young man was messing about in boats, fishing around in the sea, naked and free. As a young man Jesus told him he was free to go where he wished. As an old man he would be bound, no longer free, constrained. The reference to Peter’s eventual death by crucifixion, and Jesus’ words, ‘Follow me’, remind us of the cost of discipleship.

In some ways this is the gospel of ageing. As we age we find ourselves less free, we have responsibilities, jobs, mortgages, children and elderly relatives to care for. Older still, we are inevitably restricted by the mere fact of old age. But says the gospel this is actually a consequence of discipleship and it leads to life.

Four things, missionary fishing, an Eucharistic B-B-Q, pastoral care of sheep and binding discipleship; all part of St. John’s bonus material. Belief in the risen Lord is not enough; faith has to find expression in mission, worship, pastoral care and Christian discipleship.

Amen

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