John 21: 7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water.
Jesus has come to the disciples who have gone out in a boat to fish. The fishing was lousy until they saw a man on the shore who told them to drop the net again. It was full of fish immediately, and John realized that the man was Jesus. Peter jumps out of the boat to swim to Jesus. Later he asks Peter 3 times whether Peter loves Jesus.
Peter had denied Jesus 3 times, so asking the question 3 times refers to that.
Peter truly loved Jesus, but he is weak. I can relate to both sides of Peter. I know I love God and His only son, but I am weak too. I just love this whole story. It feels like the last time the disciples will hang out together as a group before the tough work ahead. And Jesus is waiting with a fire, ready to grill and eat fish with them. Good times.
Prayer: I want to find Jesus waiting for me someday. I will jump and run to him. I will enjoy his company. We will talk and everything will become clear to me. I will be sad for the times my faith has wavered, but mostly I will be glad to spend eternity according to Your plan. Praise be to God!
Amen
In 2015, I discovered how close this was to my 2013 post. Totally different take today, but I was still drawn to Peter leaping from the boat and puzzled by his taking the coat.
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