#1541 John 21 Part 1 So You Thought You Were A Fisherman

 

After these things Jesus manifested Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and He manifested Himself in this way. 2 Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. 3 Simon Peter *said to them, “I am going fishing.” They *said to him, “We will also come with you.” They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing.

4 But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 So Jesus *said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered Him, “No.” 6 And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. 7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved *said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and cast himself into the sea. 8 But the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from the land, but about two hundred cubits away, dragging the net full of fish.

9 So when they got out on the land, they *saw a charcoal fire in place and fish placed on it, and bread. 10 Jesus *said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have now caught.” 11 Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of large fish, 153; and although there were so many, the net was not torn.

Jesus Provides Breakfast

12 Jesus *said to them, “Come, have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared to question Him, “Who are You?” knowing that it was the Lord. 13 Jesus *came and *took the bread and *gave it to them, and the fish likewise. 14 This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after He was raised from the dead. John 21: 1-14 LSB

John 21: 1-14

At the Sea of Tiberius - This is also called the Sea of Galilee. Jesus had already met with Mary Magdalene, the skeptic Thomas, and other disciples. John fills in some details between Jesus' prior appearances to them and this on the Sea of Galilee. They were given instruction to return to Galilee, to a mountain that Jesus had designated. Verse 16 of Matthew 28 tells us that this is what they originally did, but then something happens.

0 Then Jesus *said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and report to My brothers to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.”

11 Now while they were on their way, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and took counsel together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this is heard before the governor, we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.” 15 And they took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was widely spread among the Jews, and is to this day.

The Great Commission

16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. Matthew 28: 10-16

I am going fishing - One of my favorite lines, but there is more here than meets the eye. They were to meet Jesus on the mountain, right? That was His instructions in Matthew, but now Peter makes this statement, and MacArthur points out what this means from the fullness of the Greek. It's disobedience, and Jesus coming in and going out, that has to way on you. Peter is a tempest, a microburst, not a planner. He goes head long into everything, his mouth runs faster than he can think, and he can't be still in this. Everyone has to count the cost, and there is so much uncertainty in this. He knows how to fish, it's been his whole life. There are dangers associated with fishing, but typically less people to deal with and they don't try to kill you over a bad day fishing. It's the peaceful life, the sea, the air, the birds, your buddies and the fish. Being close to Jesus was great, seeing the miracles was fantastic, but now He is talking about ascending to the Father, now He is not with us all the time. Being a fisher of men, well, people will hate you to the point of wanting to kill you for that. Saying Jesus is the only way, that's a terrible message, as true as it is, it doesn't make you very popular. Peter is weighing out his supposed options, and fishing is looking much more certain now, even with the storms, the east winds, the north winds; it's the more logical choice. This is what we do, this is how we were raised. What kind of 401K plan does being an apostle, a preacher, an evangelist offer? What's the health insurance like, I mean Jesus was hung on a cross, right? So yeah, I'm going fishing. 

Back in chapter 20, verse 21, “The Lord said to the disciples, ‘Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you. I’m sending you. Sending you to do what? To be preachers, to be fishers of men.’”

But Peter has self-doubt. Peter doesn’t know what the future’s going to bring. He doesn’t yet, and none of them have received the Holy Spirit; so that hasn’t occurred to give them power. They’re really unsure about what’s going to happen. Peter proposes to go back to his career. When he says, “I’m going fishing,” he means, “I’m going back to what I used to do.” So he disobeys, and he’s a leader; so like rubber ducks, they all line up behind him: “We will also come with you.”

They went out, out of the mountain, got into the boat – not a boat, the boat. And we know they were boat owners, and we know Peter had a boat, because his boat is identified, and I’ll show you that. I think he went back to his own boat and his own nets and his own paraphernalia saying something like this: “I don’t know about this commission to fish for men. I do not know about this commission to go preach the gospel. I don’t know about that. But one thing I can do, I can catch fish.” They all said, “We can too, we’re going with you.” And that night they caught nothing. So much for self-confidence.

They had three years before been told that they were to drop their nets. Do you remember that? They were to drop their nets, stop fishing for fish and start fishing for men. Luke 5, listen: “Crowds pressing Jesus, He’s on the edge of the lake. He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake. The fishermen had gotten out of them, washing their nets. So He got into one of the boats, the boat was Simon’s boat. Got into Peter’s boat and asked him to put out a little way from the land. He had to push off from the shore because the crowd was pressing Him, and He needed a little distance and the water’s a pretty good conductor of voice. So when he had finished speaking from Peter’s boat He said to Simon, ‘Put out in the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’

“Simon answered Him and said, ‘Master, I need to inform you about fishing. We worked hard all night and caught nothing; this doesn’t make sense. I know you’re not a fisherman, but I’m telling You we’ve been there, done that; this is not a good time to fish. But’ – he says – ‘I will do as you say and let down the nets. I’m going to go prove my point that I know more about fishing that You do.’

“When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break; so they signaled to their partners in the other boat” – probably belonged to some of the other disciples – “for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus’ feet, saying, ‘Go away from me Lord, for I’m a sinful man!’” He knew who he was dealing with: Lord God, and he saw his own wretched sinfulness. He was so sinful in the attitude that he had conveyed to the Lord. - J Mac

V. 4 The disciples did not know that it was Jesus - This is the same at every meeting they have with the Lord after His resurrection. His appearance itself is not what enables them to see or know that it is Him. Someone conscientious of skeptics wouldn't write the gospel this way, nor gospels. 

V. 6 Cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will find some - This had happened to them some 3 years ago. Peter had argued with Jesus before that they had fished all night, but because it was Jesus asking then they would do it. How could anyone know that there would be fish there? The one giving them the command also commands the fish, and He can make it so they never catch fish again, or tell them it's time to cast the net. This goes with being fishers of men to, it is the Lord Who provides the increase. It is the Lord Who shuts the mouth of lions. It is the Lord Who owns men's talents. 

…7So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees. “Go away from me, Lord,” he said, “for I am a sinful man.” 9For he and his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken,… Luke 5: 7-9

More from Luke 5

V. 7 It is the Lord - They recognized Him by His works. His risen form was different to them, but the works were unmistakable. Who can call the fish in like this? I have known some great fishermen, but they have their bad days, like Peter, yet this figure standing on the beach, far from the boat, knows where the fish are that these men have failed to catch all night. Once Peter hears it's the Lord, he can't even finish hauling in the nets, it's Peter, so of course he jumps out of the boat. 

…19And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day. 20And God said, “Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.” 21So God created the great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters teemed according to their kinds, and every bird of flight after its kind. And God saw that it was good.… Genesis 1: 19-21

…26“You of little faith,” Jesus replied, “why are you so afraid?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it was perfectly calm. 27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the sea obey Him!” Matthew 8: 26-27

Vs. 11-14 Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of large fish - It says there were 153, and here we see large, so even if that meant two pounds a piece then Peter was a strong guy. Jesus has a fire going, some fish and some bread. The risen Lord is inviting them to eat with Him, and He is serving them, still concerned with their needs. We also know that this is the third time that Jesus made Himself known to the disciples since His resurrection.