The Hospitable Leader DevotionalSample

One can imagine the many important things Jesus had to do after his resurrection. In a short amount of time, he needed to set up the rest of the ministry that was to be carried out by his disciples. There were, surely, many tasks to be accomplished, and so little time. Imagine if you were given just forty days to set up a world-changing movement? Imagine the project plans, on-the-fly mentoring, strategic overview, and so on, that you would spend your time developing.

Certainly, Christ specifically provided instructions to his apostles on how to begin the movement that would change the world. But Christ never seemed to be beyond creating small, intimate moments. And it seems that the most important moments were those glimpses of inordinate and surprising hospitality.

In our passage today, Jesus surprises his apostles while they are fishing and provides them with a miraculous catch of fish. Peter realizes, at this point, that it’s their resurrected Lord, and he jumps out of the boat and swims to him. Envision the passionate, longing joy in Peter’s heart. But the joy isn’t the full story. When Jesus was being crucified, Peter denied that he was a follower of Christ. It’s impossible to imagine the deep emotions swirling around Peter’s head, as he was a passionate follower of Christ but now felt presumably foolish for believing this crucified leader. But if Peter had intense emotions after the death of Christ, imagine the level of emotional turmoil when Christ rose from the dead. Now he isn’t ashamed of Christ; he’s ashamed at himself for being ashamed. He’s now constituted as a betrayer of the Messiah of the world, the divine man he so loved.

This is the context for Peter jumping out of the boat and swimming toward his resurrected Lord. Not only would he be excitedly seeking Christ, but seeking reconciliation for his wrongdoing or seeking affirmation from his leader. Jesus, aptly sensing this need, invites them to eat, spends time preparing bread and fish and serving it to them, and engages Peter in a reconciliatory but difficult conversation. Jesus lets Peter affirm that he loves him, and then instructs him to take care of the “sheep,” and tells him that Peter’s calling will lead to his death, but a death glorifying to God.

In one sense, this was Jesus’ strategy meeting. This is where he lays out his plan with his team and encourages them forward in their callings. But he sets the table, literally and figuratively, by inviting them to sit and share a meal, and then to go on a walk and talk about the future plan. Time was not too short; he wasn’t too busy; he couldn’t have spent his time more effectively. The most effective strategy was to prepare their hearts with hospitality.