In New Testament times, Rabbis were not full time teachers or ministers. Because God is a God Who works, Rabbis worked at a profession one third of the time and studied and taught two thirds of the time. The difference between these teachers and everyday people, is work was just a means to buy food and clothing. Jesus likely worked at His trade as a carpenter (more of a contractor than simply a worker of wood) some of the time. St. Paul continued his trade as a tentmaker.
After Jesus rose from the dead, Peter, James, John and others moved back to Galilee. They picked up their nets again to earn a living. They did not catch anything all night. Jesus called to them from the shore and told them to cast their nets over the right side of the boat. They caught a net full of fish. Jesus did this once before for them — at the beginning of his ministry. John instantly recognized it was Jesus. When they got to shore, the disciples saw Jesus had made a breakfast of fish and bread — just like he had fed 5000 people not long ago. By preparing breakfast for his disciples, Jesus shows that He blesses the everyday work God has given us. He helps His disciples do their work and gives them a hot meal to go with their catch.
But he had one more job for them to do. And He also gives them another job to do. He asked Peter three times if the disciple loved him. Peter, quite upset by the question, said he loved Jesus three times. Each time Jesus told him to care for God’s people — His lambs and His sheep. That is what Peter and the other apostles did.
Today Jesus calls on pastors, teachers, deaconesses and others to do the same. They teach his Word, proclaim the gospel of the forgiveness of sins in the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. The forgive sins in his name, baptize and feed his sheep with his own body and blood together with bread and wine. They follow in the footsteps of Jesus, his apostles and the pastors that went to every corner of the world, making disciples from every nation, language, tribe and race.
Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana
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Hmm! Excellent devotional thoughts. I was hoping, by your title, that you might describe a typical mid-eastern “breakfast by the lake,” or go the angle of showing the kids what our Lord had for breakfast at his appearance to the fishing disciples by the Sea. Anyway, what you have is excellent… as a former worker-priest, I can say that sharing the burden with a small congregation to go out and be “fishers of men” indicates to the laymen that we are in it with them. We teamed up for mission and ministry instead of one ‘side’ having outmoded expectations of the other ‘side’. I know that everyone promises to be on the same side, but in practice that can get lost when there’s an expectation that the full-time pastor will deliver big results or conversely when the pastor expects the people
of God to spend inordinate amounts of time and money to support a given project or mission effort.
Thanks! These posts actually came out of the send home Sunday School newsletter. It was intended to help the parents explain a lesson to their kids to teach them something they didn’t know.