"...and he threw himself into the sea" (John 21:7).
"Peter waits for nothing more,
Plunges in to swim ashore" (hymn).
If John is called "That disciple whom Jesus loved" (John 21:7), then Peter should be called "That disciple who loved Jesus." Not that John didn't do that too, and the others. But we may learn from Peter.
The Lord Jesus had risen, and for the third time reveals Himself to the disciples, this time by the Sea of Tiberias, which is the Sea of Galilee. When John perceives that the man on the shore is the Lord, Peter acts. And he acts out of love.
In swimming, the world record for 100 meters is 46.91 seconds. But my guess is that the real record is held by Peter.
We know that Jesus appeared to Peter on Easter Sunday. This appearance to Peter alone is mentioned twice (Luke 24:34 and 1 Cor. 15:5). Could it be that Jesus did this in order to absolve Peter of his triple denial? Anyway, we know that Jesus forgave Peter. And he who is forgiven much, loves much (cf. Luke 7:47).
And so I repeat, he acts out of love - much love.
To Peter, Christ and His love and forgiveness are worth going overboard. They move him to go overboard.
Putting the Lord Jesus first in your life, putting His Word first in your life, even when that means standing out and suffering for it - isn't that going a little overboard?
Yes, it is! And we learn to do that from Peter!
Let us be like John who knew that he was loved by Jesus. And let us be like Peter who was moved by this love to love the Lord in return - and to go overboard for Christ!
