new church life: september/october 2014
fish also. This is symbolic of the fact that true feeding comes from the Lord’s
presence within us. Yes, we catch fish, but in reality, the fish – the spiritual
food – was already there inside us. We simply had to create the space that
could receive it.
We’re not going to spend time on the end of the story except for one thing:
The Lord goes through the “Do you love Me?” series of questions when Peter
starts asking questions about John: what about him? The Lord responds, “If I
will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.” In other
words, “Stop questioning and pondering about others. Your job is to use what
you know. Go and do it. Treat other people with love.”
To us the Lord could say, “Stop worrying about how effective others are.
Stop worrying about the state of the world or of the church. Stop thinking
about what you could do if you had more energy, money or joints that weren’t
sore. Learn to interact with everyone you see from love and compassion, using
the truth you know.”
Most people trying to live a spiritual life know lots of spiritual truth. At
times we can see its beauty and power. But truth by itself is cold and lonely. It
isolates us from others and from the Lord. If we stay with truth alone, or if we
focus too much on truth, we’ll end up discarding it as irrelevant. It has lasting
value to the extent that we fish from the right side: reaching out to those we
know, seeking to serve them from love, respecting their free will, looking to
the good in them, and seeking to inspire them to use that truth appropriately.
“Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of
My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the
world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me
drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I
was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You
hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a
stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You
sick, or in prison, and come to You?’
“And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you,
inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to
Me.’” (Matthew 25: 34-40)
The Rev. Erik J. Buss was ordained in 1990 and into the second degree
in 1992. He has served in Glenview, Illinois, Seattle, Washington, and as
pastor of the Durban Society and Principal of its Kainon School in South
Africa, and as Regional Pastor for South Africa. He is assistant pastor
of the Bryn Athyn Church, and lives in Bryn Athyn with his wife, Ann
(Gladish) and their family. Contact: [email protected]
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