Breakfast
with Jesus
Saturday
morning at eight o’clock—that’s when my family gathers around the table to
enjoy homemade pancakes. Often, my children ask on Friday evening, “Are we
going to eat pancakes tomorrow?” We just love Saturday morning pancake
breakfasts—not just because we particularly like pancakes, but because we
cherish the atmosphere of our time together. I turn on good classical music,
and we share the highs and lows of the week.
Abe and I used
to make pancakes and prepare the table together. Now Grace, Esther, and Hannah
take turns and enjoy their “Dad and me” time. Lydia and Abe still join us once
or twice a month. Even so, they too look forward to our Saturday family pancake
breakfast. It’s all about the memories.
There is
something special about eating together. In today’s Scripture, Jesus prepared
breakfast for His disciples. Peter and six others had toiled all night but
caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus appeared to them on the shore and
said, “Cast your net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.”
When they did, they caught so many fish they couldn’t haul in the net. When
they landed, they saw a fire with fish on it and some bread. Jesus said, “Come
and have breakfast.” This scene must have stirred many memories for the
disciples. For three years, Jesus and His disciples sat down and shared meals
together every single day—breaking bread, sharing the highs and lows of the
day.
Follow Me
When they
finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He asked the same question three times, and Peter answered three times, “Yes,
Lord, you know that I love you.” Then Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” He
continued, “When you were younger, you tied your own belt and walked wherever
you wanted. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone
else will tie your belt and lead you where you do not want to go.”
After saying
this, Jesus said to Peter, “Follow me.” These were the very words Jesus had
spoken to Peter when they first met. Peter was younger then. He knew little of
what would be involved, but he followed. Now the same command came again:
“Follow me.” How deeply these words had grown in meaning! Peter was there when
Jesus fed the five thousand. Peter was there when Jesus prayed fervently in
Gethsemane. Peter was there when Jesus was crucified at Golgotha. He had denied
Christ. But now, Jesus called him again. What depth of meaning these words now
carried: “Follow me.” All of our life as disciples lies in these two
words—“Follow me.”
All In
From what
Jesus said to Peter in verse 18, we see three essential qualities of
discipleship. The first is being all in. When you are young, you come
and go. You quit. You deny. But as you grow older, you become steadfast. You
won’t budge. You become immovable like a rock. You are all in.
One day, Jesus
said to His disciples: “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a
field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and in his joy went and sold all
he had and bought that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and
sold everything he had and bought it” (Matt. 13:44–46, NIV).
We could
paraphrase the parable this way: One day, a man walking downtown spots the most
beautiful pearl he has ever seen in a shop window. He knows he must have it. He
rushes inside and asks the clerk, “How much is that pearl?” The clerk replies,
“How much do you have?” The man says, “I have $100 in my pocket.” “Good,
I’ll take that. What else do you have?” “Well... I have a car parked outside.”
“I’ll take that too. What else?” “I have some savings—maybe $10,000.” “Good.
I’ll take that as well. What else?” This goes on until the man gives up his
house, his family, everything. Finally, the storekeeper says, “Alright. The
pearl is yours.” The man is thrilled and turns to leave, but the storekeeper
stops him. “Wait. One more thing. Your family? I don’t need them—I’m giving
them back. But they’re mine now. Take care of them for me. Your house? You can
live in it. But remember, it’s mine. Same with your car, your savings, even the
$100. It’s all mine now. Use it well—for me.” That’s what it means to be all
in—I’ve decided to follow Jesus, my pearl, my all in all! No turning back.
Obedience
The second
quality of discipleship is obedience. When you are young, you go
wherever you want. Your preferences take top priority. As you mature, you learn
to trust and obey over time.
One day, Jesus
asked His disciples, “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the
Christ, the Son of the living God!” (Matt. 16:16). Immediately after this,
Jesus began to explain that He must suffer, be killed, and be raised again. The
same Peter—young and impulsive—took Him aside and rebuked Him: “Never, Lord!
This shall never happen to you!” His own ideas, convictions, and preferences
were more important to him than God’s will. In contrast, Jesus prayed in
Gethsemane, “O my Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet not
my will, but yours be done” (Matt. 26:39).
In The Cost
of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “When Christ calls a man, he
bids him come and die.” Following Jesus requires more than intellectual assent;
it calls for the surrender of our will, no matter the cost. At the time,
Bonhoeffer witnessed the German church compromising its faith and becoming a
political cult aligned with the Nazis. He warned, “Cheap grace is grace without
discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”
Bonhoeffer openly criticized Hitler and was in grave danger. Though he briefly
escaped to the U.S., after 26 days he returned to Germany, saying, “I must live
through this difficult period of our national history with the people of
Germany.” That decision led him to the resistance—and ultimately cost him his
life. When Jesus calls us, He bids us come and die. Grace is free, but costly.
So is discipleship.
Dependence
The third
quality of discipleship is dependence. When you are young, you have your
own way. You are independent and self-sufficient. But as you grow older, you
learn to depend on God and others.
The other day,
I visited John Trask in the hospital. He is now 94. He was a pilot. He traveled
to many places. He used to go wherever he pleased. I asked him, “John, what was
your favorite place?” “Spain,” he replied. “I love the people and the food
there.” Then I asked how his day was. He said, “Long.” His day starts at 4 a.m.
with bloodwork. He often watches the parking lot through the window. Workers
with leaf blowers arrive before 6 a.m. People come and go. He watches the trees
sway in the wind. He is learning to be patient. He is learning to depend—fully
rely on God.
Our Lord Jesus
is the humble Christ. He was born a baby—totally helpless and dependent on
others. He needed to be fed, washed, held. And at the end, on the cross, He
again became completely vulnerable and dependent—unable to move. Yet He never
lost His divine dignity.
Follow Me…
Again
For many, this
narrow path—the path of discipleship—is not appealing. A sense of duty alone
won’t sustain the path of being “all in,” of “obedience,” or “dependence.” But
love makes all things possible. Christ’s love compels us. He died for
us, so that we may no longer live for ourselves, but for Him who died and was
raised again (2 Cor. 5:14–15)!
What does
it look like to follow Jesus? For Peter, it meant being literally crucified
with Christ. According to early church tradition, Peter requested to be
crucified upside down because he felt unworthy to die in the same way as Jesus.
By this, he glorified God.
What does
it look like to follow Jesus today? If we hold fast to the Gospel of
Christ—Christ crucified for sinners—this message will be a stumbling block to
the proud. If we uphold the high moral standards of Jesus—honesty, integrity,
purity, fidelity, self-denial, and self-sacrificial love—many will call it
“old-fashioned rubbish.” If we speak the truth in love against injustice in
this polarized world, we may be ridiculed or ostracized. And for some of us,
following Jesus means enduring pain, staying the course faithfully, and
learning to be dependent even in suffering.
Jesus says to
each of us, “Do you love me?” “Feed my sheep.” “Follow me!” May we joyfully and
willingly respond, “Yes, Lord, I love you.” “Yes, Lord, I will follow you.”
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
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