John 21
-Jerusalem was
not the only place that the resurrected-glorified Savior appeared. Jesus
manifested Himself also to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias (or the Sea of
Galilee). Simon Peter, Thomas (or Didymus, the one who initially doubted, John
20:24-25), Nathanael of Cana, James and John (the sons of Zebedee, Mark 3:17),
and two other disciples of Jesus were going fishing at the suggestion of Peter.
They went out into the boat all night, but they caught absolutely nothing. When
sun was coming up to begin a new day, Jesus stood on the beach, yet His
disciples could not perceive that it was Him standing there. So, Jesus spoke to
them, “Children, you do not have any fish, do you?” They all replied, “No.” He
spoke further, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will
find a catch.” They cast in obedience
and were so many fish they unable to haul them all in. Recognizing a repeat of
a previous miracle (Luke 5:1-11), that disciple whom Jesus loved (probably
John) remarked to Peter, “It is the Lord.” When Peter realized this, he jumped
out of the boat, again like a previous occasion (Matthew 14:22-33). He put his
outer garments on and threw himself into the sea in excitement. The other
disciples were more dignified. They came quickly to dock in the little boat, “for
they were not far from the land,” only about 100 yards away or so. Plus, they
had to drag in all the fish they’d just caught. When they arrived back on the
land, they saw that a charcoal fire had already been started with fish placed
on it, along with some bread. I’m sure this was a welcome sight for tired,
hard-working eyes. Jesus commanded them to bring some of the fish they’d caught,
so Peter went up and drew the full net of large fish to land (153 fish in
fact). It was undoubtedly heavy, yet the net was not torn in this exercise.
Jesus beckoned them now, “Come and
have breakfast.” At this point, none of the disciples ventured to question Him
any longer desiring to know who He was. It was quite apparent that this was the
Lord. Jesus took the bread and gave it to them along with the fish. This, John
says, was the third manifestation of Jesus to the disciples after He was raised
from the dead (John 21:1-14).
-The discussion after breakfast turned pretty serious. Jesus
questioned Simon Peter, “Simon, son
of John, do you love (agapaō) Me more than these?” Peter responded
that he loved him with a brotherly love (phileō). So, Jesus told him, “Tend
My lambs.” Again, the Lord asked, “Simon, son
of John, do you love (agapaō) Me?” Peter again replied with the same
identification towards the Savior, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love (phileō)
You.” Jesus said, “Shepherd My sheep.” Now came a third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love (agapaō)
Me?” By now Peter was grieved in his spirit and stated a third time, “Lord, You
know all things; You know that I love (phileō) You.” This time, Jesus
said, “Tend My sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you
used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you
will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where
you do not wish to go.” Jesus
prophetically spoke here, and John was remembering these words under the
direction of the Holy Spirit. The Lord was signifying by what kind of death
Peter would eventually endure, and then He said one more time, “Follow Me!” As
Peter turned around, he saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. This
was the one who leaned back on His bosom at the last supper before His death
and asked who would betray the King (John 13:21-25). This seems to be the
author, the Apostle John, from what comes next in the text. Peter asks, “Lord,
and what about this man?” Jesus explained, “If I want him to remain until I
come, what is that to you? You follow
Me!” This statement went out to the brethren that this disciple would not die,
but it was a misnomer. Jesus did state he would not die, but only that it could
be His will to do that if He desired. John now states that this is the
disciple, who was by the time of the writing of this gospel very aged but still
testifying to these remarkable things. Then comes some form of collaboration from
others in the conclusion of the text, “and we know that his testimony is true.”
They go on to relate, “And there are also many other things which Jesus did,
which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself
would not contain the books that would be written (John 21:15-25).”
-*Application*- Our
job as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ is to follow Him and make disciples
of people preaching His gospel (good news) into all the world (Matthew 28:19-20,
Mark 16:15). The Lord is with us to keep writing new stories of His abundant
love, truth, and grace. Keep believing, keep working, the Kingdom is alive and
active! This is how we all can tend and shepherd His sheep.
Verse to Memorize:
John 21:25
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