Jesus Loves to Cook
Something about roasting something over fire
Jesus loves to cook, but I’m not talking about roasting sinners in Hell. Yet sometimes, that’s the image of Jesus that drives our faith. God’s interest is not about roasting you every chance he gets. He’s not looking for us to mess up, or do something wrong so he can stoke a fire under our butts.
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 NIV
Jesus wants to be with us, not separate himself from us and he doesn’t want to so much roast us, as much as he does cook for us.
At the end of the Gospel of John, Jesus again appears to his disciples after the resurrection. They’re out on the water having a terrible night of fishing. Jesus shows up on scene, and instructs them to cast their net on the right side of the boat. Long story short, they do so, catch a ridiculous amount of fish, and they meet Jesus on the shore. In fact, the disciple Peter jumps out of the boat and swims to shore because it’s Jesus calling out.
They don’t just find Jesus waiting at the shore. They find Jesus with a campfire and loaf of bread. He’s not there to just say hi. He’s there to cook a meal for them after a long night of unproductive fishing.
To put this in perspective, this is the King of all Kings, the one by whom the heavens and the earth were made, the risen Christ taking his time to cook a meal for a bunch of fishermen who couldn’t catch anything.
Wow.
Jesus is as much flesh and blood and bones as he is divine, and I think he loves to cook for us. Serving us brings him joy.
Eating a meal with us brings him joy.
We bring him joy.
This is a year of “getting it” for me. I know I am to follow Jesus and I know Christianity is more than a set of beliefs.
Christianity is a way of life maybe demonstrated best by cooking for others in the way Jesus cooked for his disciples.
And following Jesus, it’s the simple but hard work of giving up my ways for his ways.
