In a loosely biblical fantasy I imagine that several of Jesus’ disciples had dream jobs. They were fishermen. Imagine being paid to do what you do for recreation! Of course, reality quickly clobbers my fantasy when I consider that Peter, Andrew, James and John were what today we would call “commercial” fishermen, that they fished with nets (except in Matthew 17:27!) rather than lightweight fly rods, and that they probably regarded their fishing activity largely as everyday labor rather than happy sport.
Yet because of my fantasy, in the season of Easter my favorite post-resurrection appearances of the Lord is found in this Sunday’s text, John 21:1-19. I like to suppose that after the crucifixion and resurrection the disciples found themselves at a loss for what to do next. So led by that impulsive fisherman Peter in verse 3, they simply returned to their first and beloved occupation of fishing.
Again I indulge my imagination by supposing that Jesus Himself so enjoyed His followers’ love of fishing that He blessed them once again in verse 6 with a miraculously large catch. And He patiently waited while they counted this haul (verse 11) because He too wanted to know the number!
There may be some justification for a bit of my fantasy in that we Christians do believe our Lord created all things and takes great delight in them, including His delight in our delight in them. Yet a more sober appraisal of this text suggests that the fishing was simply a distraction and time-filler for worried men at loose ends (but again not so different from those of us who fish in other ways today). Jesus arrived there on the beach not so much to bless the fishing as to call them, and in particular Peter, back to their primary occupation as His followers and witnesses.
So the text continues with Jesus’ conversation with Peter in which He asks the disciple three times whether he loves Jesus more than “these.” There are several exegetical rabbit trails here which have often been followed by well-meaning interpreters and preachers. One is to note the difference in the words for “love” used in the original Greek by Jesus and Peter, and suggest that Jesus asked Peter the first two times for a deep sort of love while Peter affirmed only a shallow love. This is a bogus notion, since the conversation was in Aramaic not Greek, and in any case the Greek words for love are often interchangeable in the New Testament.
Another false start is to suppose that “Do you love me more than these?” is asking Peter whether he loves Jesus more than his boat, his nets, the whole occupation of fishing. But that really cannot be. This disciple leapt from his boat when he realized Jesus was present. At the very beginning he had left all that behind to follow Jesus. There is no real comparison to his love for fishing and his love for Jesus.
No, the point of Jesus question is to put back to Peter the claim which he made in the face of Jesus’ arrest and impending death (see Mark 14:2) that even if all the other disciples deserted Jesus, he would not. Jesus is asking, three times, in memory of the three times Peter denied Him (John 18), whether Peter does in fact love Him more than the other disciples do.
Jesus is not really inviting Peter to compare his devotion to that of others. He is trying to steer Peter away from a mere, and possibly fallible, vocal profession of faith toward a life of doing what really matters to Jesus. If Peter truly loves Jesus, then he will care for those for whom Jesus cares, His “sheep.” That is to be his lifelong occupation now, not just a brief departure from a career of fishing or something else.
This conversation with Peter invites us to consider how we as Christians regard the work by which we make a living. For some of us what earns a living may bear directly on that occupation which Jesus gave all His followers, to tend and care for each other as His flock. Others will need to let that first and foremost Christian occupation to care for others rise up in the midst of selling insurance or teaching algebra or building houses or bagging groceries. It may not be entirely possible to love our work, but Jesus asks us to love Him and love those He loves while we work. May He give us the grace He gave Peter to make that love possible.