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Come and Have Breakfast
- by Hambali Leonardi Last year, I attended my 10th year secondary school reunion dinner. It was a great time meeting up with my schoolmates and teachers. It was not difficult to recognize my schoolmates as their faces did not change except for our bodies which had expanded considerably. During the dinner, I collected name cards from my former schoolmates and I was impressed at what they have accomplished within 10 years of their graduation. You always know that the studious ones will become the government scholars or corporate highfliers. But, what struck me was that my schoolmates who were then considered mischievous or not academically inclined did not do so badly for themselves as well. 10 years ago, I admitted that I would not expect these schoolmates who were branded as failures or losers to do well but they did. And, 10 years ago, I was a shy and socially inept teenager who gets nervous on stage, but today, I stand here sharing God’s word with you. I find it truly amazing. When we look back at our lives, do we ever get amazed at how much we have accomplished or grown? The Apostle Peter must had a similar sense of amazement when he looked back at his life. I can try to imagine Peter’s last days in a prison in Rome awaiting his execution by the Emperor Nero. This was a tumultuous time for the Christians who were persecuted by the Roman Empire for their faith. Many Christian leaders, such as Peter were put into prison or executed. As Peter reflected in his cold, damp prison cell, he must be thinking of his younger days as a fisherman with his brother, Andrew. He must have recalled his first encounter with Jesus at the Sea of Galilee. Or, the episode when he proudly boasted to Jesus that he will never forsake Jesus and will even die for Him. How ironical it must have been that the bold and zealous Peter eventually denied Jesus three times. While reflecting upon his life, Peter must have remembered how remorseful he felt for denying Jesus. However, he must also have remembered with a warm smile of the day when the resurrected Jesus appeared to him at the Sea of Galilee and had breakfast with him. If we were to place ourselves in Peter’s position, it must have been an awkward time for Peter to meet with Jesus again. How would you feel if you were to meet with someone who you had recently denied or betrayed? Peter must have felt uncertain and anxious of how Jesus would react. Jesus had appeared to His disciples twice before but He has yet to mention to Peter about his denial incident. Peter must have been wondering to himself whether Jesus would scold him for his cowardly denial: “Peter, how can you deny me when you told me that you will die for Me?” Or, “Peter, where were you when I was crucified at the cross?” I can only imagine that the meeting with Jesus was a tense one for Peter but instead of scolding Peter and the disciples, Jesus provided an open invitation, “Come and have breakfast.” The breakfast invitation was Jesus’ act of reconciliation and fellowship with Peter and the disciples. Meals are occasions not only to fill our stomachs but also for a time of fellowship and celebration. In the Bible, God uses food or meals as symbols and acts of His grace and mercy. In the Old Testament, we have the Passover meal which the Israelites ate before their deliverance from Egyptian slavery. While in the wilderness, God provided them with manna, bread from heaven. In the New Testament, we have the Lord’s Supper which Jesus instituted as a memorial of His new covenant. In this breakfast with Peter and the disciples, Jesus provided everything that was needed. Not only did Jesus provide the fish by telling the disciples where to fish, but also the fire to cook the fish and some bread for the disciples. Jesus even came and took the bread and fish, and hand them over to His disciples. This is a picture that is contrary to what the world would practise. For example, if we were to offend a teacher or a person of high position in our Asian culture, we must be the first one to extend an invitation for a meal to apologize and ask for forgiveness from the offended party. We would probably invite him to the best restaurant and serve him the most expensive dish so as to appease him. But, in Jesus’ case, He was the one who provided the meal, and even gave the food to His disciples. We can learn something about God from Jesus’ invitation of breakfast to His disciples. God is gracious and merciful. He extends His invitation of reconciliation and fellowship to all, including those who have denied or offended Him like Peter. This reminds us of the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15. It was the father who ran up to his wayward son and embraced him. The father not only forgave his son who had wasted away half of his wealth, but also prepared a welcoming banquet for him. Friends, have we offended God or denied Him? Have we boasted to our relatives or friends about our strong Christian faith but quickly forsake it when the going gets tough? Have we boasted that we, Christians are highly moral people but quickly surrender our Christian morals when pressure from work or school causes us to compromise our Christian values? Have we boasted that we, Christians make good, faithful spouses but quickly forsake our Christian virtues for a one night stand? Have we boasted that we, Christians have complete trust in God Almighty for protection but we become easily gripped with fear during last year’s SARS and recent bird flu outbreaks? We are all guilty like Peter of offending and denying God one way or the other. Some of us may be struggling with a habitual sin which offends God and causes us to deny our Christian faith and identity. Every time we sin, we deny Christ as Lord of our life. We forsake the eternal goodness of Christ for the fleeting pleasure of the flesh. Even if we sin secretly where we think no one can see, we deny Christ in front of the demons who are rejoicing with our folly. But this morning’s passage reminds us of Jesus’ invitation to a fellowship breakfast. It is an invitation of reconciliation and fellowship. This morning, Jesus is extending His fellowship meal to you. “Come and have breakfast.” God has prepared the fire, bread and fish for you. Shall we come to Jesus with open and contrite hearts? Let us humble ourselves and partake in the meal that Jesus has prepared for us. Let us enjoy the warmth of His friendship and love. Let us feed on His bread of grace and mercy. Let us eat the fish that He has provided so that we can find strength for our tired body and weak spirit. Let us be reconciled and fellowship with Him. We now return several decades later to the scene of Peter in his prison cell. We can probably see Peter being overwhelmed with tears after remembering the breakfast he had with Jesus at the Sea of Galilee. These are not tears of sadness but tears of joy of remembering the reconciliation and fellowship with Jesus. In spite of his old age, Peter must have still remembered vividly of how Jesus restored him, and commanded him to take care of His church. After the breakfast and restoration by Jesus, Peter was a changed man. No longer was Peter boastful and proud; instead he commanded the church in his writings to be humble and submissive (1 Pet 5:5-6). No longer was Peter afraid to suffer for Christ that in the past, he denied Jesus three times; instead he wrote to the church that it was praiseworthy to suffer for Christ (1 Peter 4:16). And true to his words, Peter eventually suffered for Christ to the very end. He was crucified upside down because he said that was unworthy to be crucified like his Lord Jesus. When Peter looked back at his life, he saw failures like his denial of Jesus but he also saw triumphs like his reconciliation and restoration by Jesus. How about us? When we look back at our lives, certainly there will be failures but there will also be triumphs that only Jesus can provide to us through his acts of grace and mercy. This morning, let us recommit our lives to Jesus. Let us offer our failings and weaknesses to God and confess to Him of the times when we have offended and denied Him. Let us seek His reconciliation, fellowship and restoration. The invitation by Jesus to come and have breakfast is for all of us. 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Church of the Ascension, 13
Francis Thomas Drive, Singapore 359339 |