Friendship With the Risen King

Grace Evangelical Free Church // Wyoming, MN

John 21:1–14 After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. ² Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, 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 go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

⁴ Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. ⁵ Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” ⁶ He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. ⁷ That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea. ⁸ The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred yards off.

⁹ When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. ¹⁰ Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” ¹¹ So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn. ¹² Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. ¹³ Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. ¹⁴ This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

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My name is Colin Rueter, honored to be one of the pastors here at Grace Church. We are continuing our walk through the Gospel of John this morning, so please turn in your bibles to John 21.

Have any of you told a story and, as you are coming to the end, remember an additional piece to that story and you say something like, “Oh, wait! There’s one more thing!” Here, it seems that John was closing his gospel account, with the closing remarks in John 20, vs 30 and 31, with the purpose of his writings. I hope you all were helped last week as Pastor Dave walked through the recounting of the story and the amazing reality for those who believe: Life in Jesus’ name.

As John writes about the many things Jesus did, he admits that there were many other things Jesus did that are not written in the book. After he does this, he continues by sharing one more account of the Risen King to His disciples. This is an intimate and important interaction with 7 of His followers… . His friends. In John 15, Jesus says this to His disciples:

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command you. ¹⁵ No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. ¹⁷ These things I command you, so that you will love one another.”

It is this point that I think we need the reminder: Jesus is our friend who interacts with us, shows us compassion, and with whom we will sit with in eternity soon. Jesus is King, yes. He sits upon the throne in heaven, with the earth as His footstool, yes. In addition, He is present, He sees you, His grace sufficient because if you believe in Jesus – trust in Him alone – you are His and He cares for His own, none can snatch you from His hand, and there is no condemnation for those in Jesus.

The beauty of this friendship is vital to our theology. We rightly exalt the Lord; we praise Jesus as Holy King and Savior… . but we miss the vital truth that we have been brought into a relationship with Him – to worship Him, yes – but also to be close to Him and be known by Him. From this, we show the watching world what a relationship with Jesus is: showing grace to one another like He has to us. Right now, as Jesus’ friends, we are to love one another.

The main point of this passage is: Jesus cares for His people as a true friend and King, with compassion, grace, and fellowship.

We are breaking this text up into three parts

1. The Disciples together
2. The King appears
3. Breakfast as friends

1) The Disciples together [vs 1-3]

It is important to remember that they went to Galilee because Jesus told them to (Matthew 28:7, 28:10, 28:16). This event in John 21 happens before the Great Commission at the end of Matthew 28.

They had spent three years together and so it makes sense that they remain in the relationships that have been built over that course of time, through the events they have navigated, with support for one another in the mysterious place they are in. Jesus is risen, we were told to wait for Him in Galilee… but what now? Uncertainty now, unlike the coming Day of Pentecost where they receive purpose and power. Such is the life of a follow of Christ. Living with one another, in and out of mysteries of life, trusting and growing in our trust of Jesus and the power of the Spirit. So, in verse 2, we find seven disciples together: Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee (James & John), and two others of His disciples. We don’t know who the two other disciples are, assumptions can be made, but I don’t think the point of remaining unnamed is to create a game of “who are they?” Jesus had many disciples, He had 11 close ones (plus one who betrayed), 3 of whom He was closest with, but there are two who remained unknown by us, yet mentioned by John because they are known by Jesus. One commentator said this: “They may represent the anonymous and hidden multitudes of faithful souls, whose names are never published in human documents, whose deeds are never reported in human reports. To these Jesus manifested Himself as surely as to the others who are named.”

Maybe you will never be known in world history as a follower of Jesus, maybe only known by this family at Grace, but rejoice that your King knows you and sees you. These disciples gathered makes me think of the phrase: Birds of a feather flock together – not just in prayer meetings or worship services, but as we will see, doing life. This is key, friends. We gather on Sundays, yes, vital. But the work of the Church is more than one day a week, more than prayer meetings and Sunday worship. We should hang out with one another – on a beach, in a garage, in our living rooms. It is why connecting with your DG (discipleship group) is so important for the sake of being shepherded and being a blessing to others. If you don’t see one another besides Sundays, there is no way you can love one another the way Christ loves you. So, Peter and the others were hanging out, maybe at the beach discussing what has occurred over the last days. Peter, as the sun sets, decides he is going fishing and the others said, “Sounds good, we’ll go with you!”

Their reasons for fishing are unknown, John does not say. We can theorize: they were hungry, they were thinking they could earn some money since the time of charity for the ministry had ceased since the cross, maybe simply out of boredom. I DON’T think it was a sinful response, they were not rejecting a command of Jesus, they weren’t straying from where they should have gone, like Jonah. These were friends who, wile waiting for Jesus, did a familiar activity in fellowship and that would bring God glory. So, don’t justify sin, but also, see the freedom in Christ to fish, knit, write poetry, cook/grill/smoke meat, throw the baseball around with friends/kids… for the glory of God, even while you may be waiting for Him and His direction for you.

So, night comes, they shove the boat out into the sea and fish in the pale moonlight. One of John’s favorite themes is light and darkness. Darkness representing worldliness and the absence of God’s presence, while light represents righteousness and God’s presence. This should cause you to look at verse 3 a little differently: “They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.” In other words, they went fishing by themselves, at night, and Jesus is nowhere to be found. But light is coming.

Awake all night, hungry, living in mystery, and the disciples head back to shore empty-handed. Here is where Jesus meets them. This is glorious.

2) The King appears [vs 4-11]

I say King here because Jesus is in control here, as He always is, ruling with grace and love. Jesus meets them in a common place, the sea, where they had been before. The previous resurrection appearances in John’s Gospel were each unexpected. This occurrence also seemed to be unexpected; the disciples did not know that it was Jesus (vs 4). It’s wonderful to think that Jesus showed up at their place of leisure and in the time of disappointment in their efforts. He was interested in all their life, not just when they attended religious service. The risen Redeemer and Ruler was showing His disciples His interest and power in the commonplaces of their lives. Jesus just doesn’t care about when we pray or sing to Him… but cares deeply about every aspect of our lives: changing diapers, vacuuming, completing the spreadsheet at work for your weekly report, playing Uno for the 800th time with your kids… Jesus is there.

Jesus asks them a question, to which He knows the answer: “Children, do you have any fish?” He made them express an unsuccessful night of fishing in their answer of “no.” They express no excuses and complaining, but tell truth.

His choice word, translated ‘children,’ shows the care and nature that He felt towards them. The Greek word is often used to describe the immature Christian, not in a demeaning way, but with compassion towards those who need care and direction.

So, they have replied with a simple answer, saddened, and weary I am sure, though I hear that fishermen should expect disappointment.

Jesus shows compassion and works a miracle for His friends. He tells them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” Jesus made a strange suggestion to His disciples. There was no logical reason why fishing in the morning light would be better than fishing at night. There was no reason why fishing on one side of the boat would be better than the other side. It wasn’t even directly a test of trust in Jesus, because they did not know it was Him until the fish were caught. This was probably a test of their ability to find the guidance of God in small and unsuspected ways – such as a stranger calling out fishing instructions from the shore.

This account illustrates the principle that we should never be afraid to change our methods or thinking, if it is at the direction of Jesus through principles in His word.

So, they follow the direction and were not able to haul in the net because of the quantity of the fish. The disciples did as the Man on the shore asked and were successful beyond expectation. There is no need to seek symbolic meanings for the right and left side. The difference is not between right and left, but between working with and without Divine guidance.

This outstanding catch at sea may have reminded the disciples of what happened to them earlier in their following Jesus. In Luke 5, we see a contrast with this account in John 21.

John 21:1-7 “On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, ² and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. ³ Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. ⁴ And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” ⁵ And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” ⁶ And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. ⁷ They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink.”

Peter responds to Jesus in the account in Luke before acting, but in John, they simply act on the direction. In Luke, the nets break and boats sink, but in John the net does not break and the boat is safe. In Luke, Jesus tells them they will be fishers of men, they dropped their nets and followed Him. In John, they haven’t quite figured out the “fishing for men” thing.

Love what one theologian says about this passage: “Christ’s presence, if he would but come among us in the fullness of his strength, would do so much more for us than anything that we have ever seen yet that we should be as much astounded by the increase as the apostles were by the two great draughts of fishes. Christ had but to will it, and the fish came swimming in shoals to the net, and he has but to will it, and souls will be converted by millions to himself and his gospel… Perhaps, if they had not fished at night, Christ would not, have given them fish in the day time. He does not often come to bless idlers; he acts sovereignly, as I have said, but he generally gives his blessing to those churches that do the most for him.”

Before we move onto our last section, I want us to notice the response of two disciples, John and Peter. John is the first to recognize that this is Jesus – “It is the Lord!” John reached the tomb before Peter (John 20:4) and recognized the fact of Jesus’ resurrection before Peter (John 20:8). Here John also recognized the identity of the stranger on the shore before Peter did. John knew that anything this wonderful had to come from Jesus.

But Peter is first in devotion. He threw on his outer garment and threw himself into the water to reach Jesus as soon as possible. The boat couldn’t move quickly enough for Peter, and he didn’t want John to be first again. Perhaps – perhaps – Peter thought he might walk on the water to the shore. We are to love God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength… even throwing ourselves into the sea to get to our Friend and Savior. Devote yourself to Him, Grace.

3) Breakfast as friends [vs 12-14]

Jesus serves them. When the disciples came to shore – including a wet Peter – they noticed that the resurrected Jesus was still a humble servant. He took the trouble to prepare a fire and cook food for His disciples. He already has a fish on the coals and bread nearby. The disciples brought in the net of fish only to add to what Jesus already has prepared. Jesus tells them to bring some of the fish they caught to add to, not create, the breakfast.

In vs 11: So, Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were many, the net was not torn. John is so gracious to point out that Peter, alone, hauled the net to ashore, which probably weighed close to 300 pounds fish/wet net, attributing Peter’s strength. Maybe John felt bad about being a faster runner than Peter.

The observation of the exact number of fish and the fact that the net did not break reflect both an eyewitness account and a true fisherman’s perspective. Peter never landed a haul of fish without counting them, and John, a fisherman as well, would never forget the number of his largest takes.

Through the centuries there have been many attempts to explain why the number was 153. truth is that all we know for certain is that 153 represents the number of fish in the net. The many allegorical interpretations of the number warn us against creating hidden meanings in the Biblical text that are not there nor meant to be created.

Jesus welcomes them to “Come and have breakfast.” We should note the servant nature of Jesus, even in His resurrection. He prepared breakfast for His disciples, still serving and setting an example for us.

It is important to note the many invitations of Jesus in the Gospels. For our King invites us to Himself with abounding grace, loving care, and a gentle spirit: Come and see (John 1:39); Come and learn (Matthew 11:28-29); Come and rest (Mark 6:31); Come and dine (John 21:12); Come and inherit (Matthew 25:34-36).

So, then we see in vs. 12: Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord; they knew it was Jesus.

The verb “ask” could be rendered into a questioning, interrogating, proving it was Him. This is another indication that there was something unusual about the appearance of Jesus after His resurrection. Possibly it was a result of the beatings He endured at the cross, the scars of which remained still on His body after the resurrection. There was no need to question if this was Jesus – each man felt convinced it was Jesus.

This is the crux of John’s gospel – do you believe, are you convinced, that Jesus is the Son of God, the Redeemer, God Incarnate, the Messiah, and King of all creation? Then come.

This Jesus, who called them friends, serves them fish and bread with great joy.

Continuing in vs 14: Jesus was really with them in fellowship, raised from the dead. This the third time Jesus has appeared to them in John’s gospel, there is not doubt that Jesus is alive, Jesus defeated death, and Jesus is near to those who are His.

Let me close with what may be a familiar phrase for some of you: “Christianity is not a religion, it’s a relationship.” Which may have truth in it, but I have come to dislike these pithy statements trying to simplify complex ideas and understandings.

Some think Christianity is you doing all the righteous things you hate and avoiding all the wicked things you love to go to Heaven. That’s a lost man with religion alone, as Pastor Dave said last week: “They are an unbelieving believer.” Christianity is about a person whose heart has been changed by the Holy Spirit to see and treasure Jesus; they have new affections, all grounded in the Living God.

To be a Christian is to have a set of beliefs, commands that we follow with great joy, and this is built upon the person of Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God. We love Him because He loved us first.

Maybe you have questions of about this Christian faith. Maybe you grew up in the church, but this is the first you have been presented with a gracious, loving, kind, and relational God. Maybe you think questions about the faith, church, and Jesus are not allowed… let’s chat after service, connect with one of the other elders, connect with the person who invited you.

My invitation is simply that of Jesus: “Come and see, come and rest, come and find life in Jesus.”

So, as we have walked through this passage, before I close – there’s just one more thing I need to mention!

As the disciples left that beach, then heard the Great Commission and watched Jesus ascend, they were to wait for the Spirit. When the Spirit came, they now had specific purposes for the glory of Christ… and they worked out those purposes as friends with one another and friends with their Savior. In Acts, we see their fellowship, breaking bread together, and prayer. We see them doing life together and worshipping together. We see Jesus building the Church with the same compassion, power, and grace He showed those disciples on the beach with bread and fish. Jesus invites you to sit with Him, the Bread of Life, the feast on His word, rest in His presence, and rejoice in His provision. Today, Jesus continues that mission, building His Church, providing for His friends, and showing mercy and grace in our times of need. He does all this through those who sit around you this morning. Someday soon, we will be sitting on a beach with Jesus, face-to-face, maybe eating some fish and bread in glory… what a Savior, what a friend.