John 21:1

After these things, Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias. He showed himself in a way that we would continue, by Your Spirit, to transform us by the renewing of our minds. Lord, we ask that we would be bright, shining lights in a dark world, that people would see our good works and glorify You, our Father in heaven. For we ask it in Jesus' name, amen. You can be seated.

With the remaining time we have this morning, I want to look at this passage here, hopefully getting through the whole chapter in John 21. We see that Jesus meets with his disciples for a third time in John's account of the Gospel. He is going to meet with them in the region of Galilee, where much of Jesus' ministry took place. Several of his disciples were from this area: Peter and his brother Andrew, James and his brother John, and, of course, Nathaniel, who was from Cana of Galilee.

Jesus ministered to the multitudes around this body of water, which we would really call a lake. It's not huge, but his disciples knew that Jesus was going to meet with them there around the Sea of Galilee after his resurrection. In Matthew chapter 26, before Jesus had been crucified, he told his disciples in verse 32, "But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee."

After he had risen from the dead, you remember that last week we looked at Mary Magdalene, who had gone to the tomb. While she was there, she met two angels.

We read in Matthew chapter 28, verse 7, that the angels said to her, "Go quickly, tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead, and that he goes before them into Galilee. And there shall you see him. Lo, I have told you already." Not only did the two angels tell Mary Magdalene to inform the disciples to go to Galilee, but Jesus himself, when he saw Mary, said in Matthew 28, verse 10, "Be not afraid, but go and tell my brothers, 'Go to Galilee, and there you shall see me.'"

They had explicit instruction from the Lord himself, along with a testimony from Mary to go to Galilee, where the Lord was going to meet them. Even though they had met the Lord in the upper room the night that Jesus rose from the dead, and even though they had seen him a week later when Thomas was present with them, God had told them, "Go to Galilee, I'm going to meet you there."

So, Peter, James, John, Nathaniel, and a group of the other disciples were waiting in Galilee, by the sea. As they waited, Peter, the great fisherman and apostle, was watching the water in front of him. He said, "I'm going fishing." He got antsy. Have you ever been in that place before, where you're just sitting and waiting, and you start to feel a little restless? I think that oftentimes many of us Christians here in America have spiritual ADD. I think Peter did too.

The Lord had told him to go to Galilee and wait for Him, promising that He would come and meet with them. But Peter, sitting there, just couldn't take it any longer. There was the sea, and maybe the weather was just perfect for fishing. Who knows? Perhaps it was the right conditions, and he was looking at it, knowing that the Lord had said He would meet them there. But he looked at the Sea of Galilee and said, "Guys, I'm going fishing." They often followed Peter's lead, so they replied, "Well, we'll go with you as well."

Immediately, they got into the boat, but what does it say? They caught nothing. They fished all night and caught nothing. I think of this whole situation and how it relates to you and me. Oftentimes, we, like Peter, find ourselves in the same position. The Lord has said, "This is what I want you to do," and we are doing what He has called us to do. Yet, we somehow get antsy and partially fulfill His word because we feel the need to do something else.

Notice the work, the effort, and the time they put into this endeavor.

Fishing all night yielded no fruit. It was pointless, vain, and futile. They expended energy that they didn't need to expend and wasted time that they should not have been wasting. They were doing something that was completely of themselves; it wasn't of the Lord. The Lord had said, "Go to Galilee and wait. I will come, and I'm going to meet with you there."

There they were, sitting and doing exactly what the Lord told them to do, but then they thought, "Oh, man, we've got to do something. This waiting is a waste of time." Yet we read in Isaiah chapter 40, verse 31, that the prophet tells us, "Those that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up on wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint."

It's interesting to look around the church and our nation; there are a lot of people who seem to be at the very breaking point. They are just tired. They've been going and doing, and they are spent. They are at their wit's end. Not only are they working five days a week, but they are adding to it the sixth and seventh days, trying to do all this stuff. Yet I believe that the Lord would say to you and me, "I just want you to stop and wait."

However, we have this temptation, this turmoil within our flesh, and we feel like, "Oh, I've got to do something. I can't just sit here and wait." Yet the word of the Lord, the promise of God to you and me, is that those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.

As I look around this room today, I see many who are weary and burdened. Things have been difficult, especially over the last several weeks. There are many things to be anxious and worried about. All that anxiety and worry causes you to be tired, and you come in here feeling like, "Man, I don't know if I can go anymore." But oh no, tomorrow's Monday, and I've got to get up and go again. You feel so weary and tired, about to faint. Yet the word of the Lord is that those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.

Are you without strength today? Are you weak today? Perhaps it's because you haven't been waiting upon the Lord. Jesus sent His disciples out into the work, into the field, as recorded in Matthew chapter 10. At the end of Matthew chapter 9, He said, "Look, the fields are white unto harvest. Pray for laborers to go forth into the harvest." Then He sent His disciples out two by two to cast out demons, heal the sick, and preach the gospel. They returned to Jesus, telling Him of all the great things they had done.

That they had seen, done, and said. Jesus says, "That's great. Let's come aside and go, and we'll rest a while. Let's get in the boat and go across the Sea of Galilee to some isolated place to just rest a while." The psalmist tells us in Psalm 40, verse 6, God speaking, "Be still and know that I am God." We have such a hard time with that. Oftentimes, we're struggling with it because we feel like we've got to manufacture something. Just do something. Yet the Lord would say, "You've got to wait first."

They expended all this energy and caught nothing. All the work they had put forth yielded no fruit. If you look at the church in America today, it has been largely fruitless. Why? Because there hasn't been the waiting. In our own effort, this will always be the outcome. Trying to do things in our own strength, by our own ingenuity, and by our own methods will yield no fruit; we'll catch nothing.

Why is that? Well, because to this very same group of people that went fishing on that day, Jesus had told them in John chapter 15, verse 5, "Apart from me, you can do nothing." I think that oftentimes we're trying to prove God wrong. "Oh, no, no, I can do something. Watch me do something. Here, watch me do something." And then we end up falling flat on our face. Apart from Him, we can do nothing.

But we read in the next verses, when the morning had now come, verse 4, Jesus stood on the shore, and the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Then Jesus said to them, "Children, have you caught anything? Have you caught any meat?" They answered Him and said, "No." I find it interesting that Peter, the great fisherman of the Scriptures, never caught a fish apart from Jesus' help. I think there's a reason for that. Peter was told by Jesus, when He came and called him to follow Him, "Follow me, and I will make you a fisher of men." Here was this man...

God had called Peter to be a fisher of men, but he kept trying to make himself a seeker of fish. Not a catcher of fish, because he never caught anything without Jesus' help. He was a lousy, probably the worst professional fisherman you could ever find.

So, Jesus called out to him, asking, "Have you caught any fish?" Peter replied, "No." How many of you like to fish? Let's be honest; that is the worst thing to admit, isn't it? You go out to catch fish, and when asked if you caught anything, you have to say no. You know how it is, right? I can imagine Peter, hearing that question from the shore, probably didn't want to answer it. I think one of the other disciples, maybe Nathaniel, answered for him, saying, "No, we haven't caught anything."

Then Jesus said, "Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and you shall find." Oh great, another shoreline fisherman telling him where to cast the net. But they did as Jesus instructed, and when they cast the net on the other side, there was such a great catch that they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.

Notice this in verse seven: that disciple whom Jesus loved, who we know to be John, said to Peter, "It is the Lord." How did John know it was the Lord? Peter doesn't catch fish unless Jesus helps him. So now, as Peter pulls in this big catch of fish, John recognizes, "That's the Lord." Certainly not you, Peter.

When Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his fisher's coat, for he was naked, and he cast himself into the sea. This is a guy who really gets into fishing; he had to put his clothes on to jump into the water and swim to Jesus. Meanwhile, the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from the land, about 200 cubits away.

Just about 100 meters out, they were dragging the net full of fish. As soon as they came to the land, they saw a fire of coals, and there were fish laid thereon and bread. Jesus said unto them, "Bring of the fish which you have now caught." Simon Peter went up and drew the net to the land, full of great fish—153 of them. For all, there were so many, and yet the net was not broken.

Here, Jesus speaks to this group of men who had been fishing all night long, toiling and catching nothing. He tells them to cast the net on the other side, and as they do, they catch this great catch—not just fish, but great fish, 153 of them. He had told His disciples in John 15:5, "Apart from me, you can do nothing." We also know from Philippians 4:13 that "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." Additionally, Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 17:20 that "nothing shall be impossible for you with God."

We need to come to the recognition that apart from God, there is absolutely nothing we can do. As it says in Galatians 6, "He who thinks himself to be something when he is nothing deceives himself." And in 1 Corinthians 10, we are warned to "take heed when you think you stand, lest you fall."

So many times, we try to prove God wrong, saying, "No, I can do this. I can handle this." Yet we fail and fall, only to prove God right. I believe that God wants us to recognize, "You are right, Lord, and I can do all things through You who gives me strength, but apart from You, I can do nothing."

At the word of the Lord, they received this great catch of fish—153 of them. It is interesting that John actually tells us the number of the fish. You can go through tons of commentaries and look all over the internet; there are many different ideas about why 153 fish is so significant. Some suggest that if you add up the numbers, it signifies something special. However, 153 simply signifies that there was a big catch—a pretty good-sized catch of great fish.

The more important aspect of verse 11 is that the net was not broken. Despite the size of the catch, as they were hauling it in, they couldn't bring it into the boat; it was so big that they had to drag it to the shore. Yet, remarkably, the net was not broken. I find that the same is true in my life.

In yours, just as we heard these testimonies this morning from Kelly, David, and Terry, God allows us to go out into the deep and cast forth the net to the point where we think we can't do it. I feel like I'm being stretched standing in front of these customs agents, and you're getting closer and closer. Yet, with the Lord, the net's not broken. He is able to stretch us, and He knows just how much to stretch us.

God knew that only 153 fish could fit in that net before it would break. He didn't allow 154. God knows exactly what we can handle and what we can bear, and He sends us forth. This morning, as they shared about going forth into the mission field, you might have thought, "Wow, that sounds interesting, but I don't know if I could do that." You might wonder if God might send you to Africa or somewhere else, and you might think, "Oh, I don't know if I could do that." You're right; you can't do it. You can't do it, but God can, and He wants to use you to do so.

I want you to notice in this passage the method in which God moves us out into that work. He said to those men, "Bring the fish which you have now caught to me," yet He already had fish there on the fire, along with bread and everything ready. The first thing we need to notice is that He did not need their catch. He didn't need them. For some reason, over the last three weeks, God has been regularly reminding me of this simple fact: Miles, I don't need you. The important aspect of the equation is not me; it's God.

But He graciously uses you and me in His work. Here, He graciously says to these men, who were doing what He didn't really tell them to do—fishing—"Bring some of your fish up here." But He already had fish cooking there for them, along with bread. So Simon brought some forth.

Now Jesus said to them, "Come and dine." None of the disciples asked, "Who are you?" because they knew that it was the Lord. Jesus then came, took bread, and gave it to them, and fish likewise. This was now the third time that Jesus had showed Himself to His disciples after He had risen from the dead. So He says to His disciples, "Come and dine." The first thing we want to note here...

God doesn't need me, but He graciously uses you and me. However, we've got to dine before we do. There has to be dining before doing. Our service to God is the overflow of our devotion to God. If you want to serve God and do marvelous things for the Lord, it starts first in the context of worship and prayer. It begins with gathering together as the body of Christ to worship the Lord corporately, in a home fellowship, or in a small prayer group.

We must spend time dining with the Lord before we do anything with Him. If we get the cart before the horse, so to speak, and just go out to try and do, we will fail. We will catch nothing. He wanted His disciples to go forth into the work and accomplish great things for God, but first, it had to start with sitting at His feet. Just as Jesus told Martha in the Gospel of Luke, Mary has chosen the better part as she sat at the feet of Jesus.

Serving God is wonderful. Doing great exploits for God is a marvelous thing to be a part of, yet ultimately, God desires that time of worship. In the first service, the team from China shared about one of the evenings when they were invited to the home of one of the long-term missionaries. Terry shared how they spent about three hours worshiping and praising the Lord, and how beneficial and effective that was in waiting on the Lord and renewing their strength.

I believe that Jesus desires to dine with us before He ever sends us out to do anything. However, my nature is to want to do something. I feel the urge to go and do. The Lord is constantly saying, "Okay, come back, come back." That is why, for the last couple of weeks, including last Wednesday night and this coming Wednesday night, we are having a time of worship and prayer here at the church.

How many of you were here last Wednesday night? We had such a wonderful time simply praising God and spending time in prayer and worship. One of the most beneficial times is sitting at the feet of the Lord. We have another opportunity this Wednesday night, and I encourage you to be here because it is there that the Lord moves and gives strength.

As Jesus was dining with His disciples, He began to ask Peter some very interesting questions. In verse 15, He said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these?"

Do you love me more than these? There has been a lot of discussion throughout the years about what Jesus was referring to when he asked this question. Peter had made a great show just before Jesus' arrest, declaring that even if all the other disciples departed, he would never depart. Perhaps Jesus was asking Peter if he loved Him more than these other disciples.

Alternatively, after Peter had gotten antsy and decided to go fishing, returning to his trade, Jesus might have been asking, "Do you love me more than these fish, this work?" Peter responded, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus then said, "Feed my lambs."

He asked Peter a second time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?" Peter replied again, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus answered, "Feed my sheep." A third time, Jesus asked, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?" Peter was grieved that Jesus had asked him a third time. He responded, "Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep."

When we read this in English, it may seem like a repetitive line of questioning. However, when we examine it in the Greek, we begin to understand the depth of what is happening here. In verse 15, Jesus asks Peter, "Do you agape me?" The Greek word "agape" refers to self-sacrificing love, as described in 1 Corinthians chapter 13—the love with which God has loved you and me.

Peter responds, "Yes, Lord, you know I phileo you." The Greek word "phileo" speaks of kind, tenderhearted, brotherly love. Jesus is essentially asking Peter if he is willing to give up everything for Him. Peter's response indicates a more casual affection: "Yes, Lord, I kind of like you."

Jesus then instructs him to "feed my lambs" or "feed my little lambs" in the Greek. He asks a second time, "Peter, do you agape me?" Again, Peter replies, "Yes, Lord, you know that I phileo you." Jesus responds, "Then tend my sheep," which means to lead, govern, or care for the flock of God.

Finally, Jesus asks a third time, "Simon, do you phileo me?" At this point, He questions whether Peter even possesses that kind of love.

Brotherly, tenderhearted love towards Jesus is essential. When Peter heard this, he was grieved. He was grieved because Jesus' words had changed, but I believe he was also grieved because, as you will remember, Peter was asked three times on the night that Jesus was betrayed, "Aren't you one of his disciples?" Three times he said no.

Then Jesus asked Peter, "Do you phileo me?" Peter, being grieved, responded, "Lord, you know all things. You know that I do phileo you." Jesus replied, "Feed my sheep."

The thing I want you to notice here is that whether your devotion to God today is strong in your eyes or perhaps could be a little hotter, God's command to you and to me is the same. Maybe you would confess that your love for God is not as strong as it once was or not as strong as you would like it to be. But God's command to you remains: serve my people, feed my sheep, tend my lambs.

It is God's desire that your love and my love would be hot and not cold, that it would not be lukewarm. He wants us to have a fervent, agape love for God and His people. If you find yourself in the same position as Peter and say, "Yeah, I kind of like the Lord," God's command to you and to me is still the same: tend and feed my sheep.

That call is not just to the pastor or the elder; it is to every single person who is a part of this church, who is a part of the body of Christ. God has called us to feed and tend the flock of God. He has called us to take care of one another, loving our neighbors and fulfilling the law of Christ, bearing one another's burdens and so fulfilling His command.

Peter, do you love me? Yes, Lord, you know I love you. Okay, feed my sheep. Jesus then said to him in verse 18, "Truly, I say to you, when you were young, you girded yourself and walked wherever you would. But now, when you shall be old, they shall stretch forth your hands, and another shall gird you and carry you in a way that you do not want to go."

He spoke this, identifying by what death Peter would glorify God. After saying this, Jesus said to Peter, "Follow me."

In this passage, we see that before we can do anything for the Lord, we must dine with the Lord and spend that time in devotion with Him.

To check our motives and examine our hearts, we can look to Jesus and the line of questioning He brought before Peter. The next thing we need to do is count the cost. Jesus tells Peter, "When you were your own man, you did whatever you wanted. You rose up in the morning and said, 'I'm going fishing.' But not anymore, Peter. If I'm going to be the Lord, then you're going to follow what I tell you to do. On top of that, you're going to be persecuted." He indicates this in verse 18, where He says that Peter will one day die by crucifixion.

Jesus tells Peter that he must dine with Him first, check his motives, and then count the cost. After that, He invites him to come and follow Him. Notice Peter's reaction to this. Turning around, Peter saw the disciple whom Jesus loved, the same one who laid his head upon the chest of Jesus during the Last Supper. This was the disciple who asked the question, "Lord, who is it that will betray you?"

Seeing John, Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, what about this guy?" Isn't that always the way we work? I can prove to you that even you think like this because right now, as you hear this message, you might be thinking, "I hope my husband is hearing this," or "I should buy this CD and give it to my brother; he needs to hear this." Oftentimes, when the Lord speaks to us and convicts us, we start to wonder, "What about this guy? Lord, I'm going to die; they're going to stretch forth my hands. What about John?"

Jesus responded, "If I will that he tarries until I come, what is that to you? You follow me." Paul tells the church in Philippians chapter 2 to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. I have enough to worry about walking with the Lord for myself. It's so easy to look at other people and say, "He really needs to work on that," or "She probably shouldn't talk like that," or "They probably should go on that mission trip."

But the Lord is looking at you and me, saying, "You follow me. Don't worry about John. If I will that he lives a perfect life and never dies, and I can return and he's raptured to me, what's that to you? You follow me. Get your eyes off John. Set your eyes on the Lord and follow Him."

John tells us in verse 23 that this saying went abroad. A rumor started to spread among the brethren that the disciple John should not die. After Jesus had said to Peter, "If I will that John stays until I return, then what's that to you?" there was this rumor that began to circulate that John would never die. However, Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but rather, "If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to you?"

John wanted to correct that misunderstanding. He states that Jesus didn't say that, but he is the disciple who testifies of these things. He is the very one who heard Jesus say this, the one who was standing there when Peter looked back at him and asked, "What about him?" Jesus responded, "If I will that he stays until I come, what's that to you?" John emphasizes that he testifies of these things, and we know that his testimony is true.

There are also many other things which Jesus did that, if they should be written, I suppose even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. I think that's such a cool way to end the Gospel that John recorded. He mentions that he has recorded only a few of the works that Jesus did—only seven signs and seven sayings. If someone were to write down all the works that God, through Jesus, had done, they could not be contained in the books of the world.

You might say, "Well, they didn't have computers in that day." However, I would argue that even the computers we have cannot contain the works that God has done. You may wonder how that's possible. Well, the very fact that, at this moment, there are over 6.3 billion people in this world and God is holding their breath in His hand shows that He is doing a lot of good works, isn't He? We can't even begin to imagine the wonderful things that He has done in the past, is doing at this very moment, and desires to do throughout the rest of this day.

But He has called you and me to be a part of it, and how cool that is! Let's stand and pray.

Father, thank You for the testimony of our brothers and sisters regarding this trip to China. Lord, we thank You for the great things that You have done, and we look forward to the new things that You are going to do next year. And Lord, I know that...

In this fellowship right here this morning, there are those whose hearts you are touching. You're speaking to them right now about being a part of a trip to China, a trip to Belize, a trip to Africa, or maybe just even going up the street to the senior care facility to serve on Wednesday. Lord, you are touching hearts, and it is in the place of devotion, the place of worship, that you do that. I pray that you would separate those men and women unto the work that you've called them to even this day.

Lord, help us by your Holy Spirit to be bold and to stand strong in the proclamation of the truth of the Gospel. Even as we are seeing the tide turn in our nation, there seems to be more and more opposition, and that opposition is going to grow. I pray that you would help us to be bold, for the wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion. Would you embolden us to stand strong upon the truth of your Word? For we ask it in Jesus' name. Amen.