Hidden in my Bible

It seems like God is always hiding new things in my Bible. You know, those passages that just jump out at you after twenty years of being a Christian, that sudden revelation about a portion of scripture that you've read hundreds of times, the connection between something you read in Luke and something else you read in John. That sort of thing. Well I had it happen again this week. I was reading the last chapter of John's gospel:

John 21: 1-14

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?"

"No," they answered.

He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water.

The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish you have just caught."

Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn.

Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the disciples dared ask him, "Who are you?" They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.

This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

*

Upon reading this I was immediately puzzled by the verse I put in blue. It's like they are scared to ask him who he is, and yet they know it is him? That makes no sense. It's obvious that He is in disguise, since the question of who He is even comes up. (These guys just spent three years with Him, they would know His face.) And their hearts recognize Him, even though their eyes are veiled. Yet, why this almost tangible nervousness?

Then the Holy Spirit took me to the book of Luke, where two followers (though not of the eleven) are on the way to Emmaus:

Luke 24: 28-36

As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them.

When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?"

They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, "It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon." Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.

While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you."

*

There it was, the answer to my question. He's appearing and disappearing all over the place. He had disappeared on some of them before, right after the disguise was lifted. It's as if they are all holding their breaths; Don't say anything that might make him disappear.

And why would Jesus do such things? I'm not sure. We can speculate that he simply wanted to talk to them without them clinging to him frantically. Which is what Mary started to do at the tomb. Remember, they'd just seen him crucified--a terrible death, certain finality. To behold him again, living--yet still bearing the marks of the nails--fills them with an initial fear, that he might be a ghost, and then uncontrollable joy. Peter leaps from the boat to run to Him!

And then there is that terrible realization that He just might leave them again.

Which is what He eventually does, but not before commissioning them and telling them to go wait for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. And did you notice, when He first calls them He tells them to throw their nets to the other side. And He does the same thing after the resurrection, once they've given up and gone back to fishing. Like bookends on His time with them, He frames it all with the simple act of telling them where to fish. Wow.

Anyway, that's what I found hidden this week. To paraphrase a famous ad:

What's in your Bible?