In the northern shores of Galilee, there is the land called Naphtali. After the resurrection, Jesus’ first command was to tell the disciples to go to Galilee and meet Him there. They didn’t leave though. They stayed through the whole Feast of Unleavened Bread. It was the Day after the Feast that Jesus appeared to the disciples the second time to convince Thomas as we saw last week. (It seems that the disciples were fearful of leaving, even after Jesus appeared to them and pronounced the shalom of God upon them. Jesus would only be around for 40 days, and they were wasting it hiding in Jerusalem. I think Jesus was eager for them to get it together and eventually get to Galilee. He longed to share with His friends what He had accomplished on their behalf. He wanted to show them the scars of His love for them and commission them to take the good news to the world. Finally, they obeyed and returned to their favorite, familiar surroundings. This may have been the very area where Jesus met the men (Simon, James, and John) mending their nets and called them to be fishers of men as we saw in (Luke 5:10).
It was three years since that first miraculous catch. So much had happened. The things they had seen! The many times their hearts were overwhelmed! There were the fears, the joys, the lessons, the mysteries, and then what seemed to be the end of all only to find out it was more wonderful than ever. Now they are back where their lives were changed, but He didn’t appear. The first verse tells us Jesus is going to appear again. Some translations use the word “manifest”. Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words tell us: to be manifested is to be revealed in one's true character. Keep in mind this is what is about to happen. We’re about to see again the true character of Jesus as we saw Him when He washed the feet of the disciples seen in (John 13:3-5). Seven of the disciples grew impatient waiting. The four others had probably gone to visit family since they were from the area. Peter, James and John had been partners before in the fishing business, so they decided to make a little money while waiting for Jesus. 3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. The time to fish on Galilee with shallow nets is in the night when the fish come up to the surface and can’t see the net. By fishing at night, you could avoid the heat of the day and bring fresh fish to the morning market. They cast the nets over and over and over again, but didn’t catch a single fish.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. 5 He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?" "No," they answered. Jesus was again incognito. It seems He is only recognized when He wants to be recognized. It may have been the dim light of early morning combined with the distance that caused them not to know, or it may be He didn’t want them to know yet. He knows what is about to happen. They think He’s just looking to buy some fish so they answered and said NO. Jesus is about to do a wonderful thing. You see, three years earlier He approached Peter on that same shore. Peter let Jesus use his boat as a pulpit. Then Jesus had Peter push out onto the lake to fish, to reimburse him for the use of the boat. Peter complained that he’d fished all night and caught nothing, “But alright, whatever You say.” The nets were suddenly bulging with fish. They had to get another boat to come help. Suddenly, Peter was overwhelmed with a sense of his sinfulness in the presence of Jesus’ holiness. He fell to his knees before Jesus and asked Jesus to go away from him. (Luke 5:8) says 8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!" That was when Jesus called him to be a disciple. We are about to see history repeat itself in a most profound way.
6 He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. And as the great Yogi Barra would say “It was déjà vu all over again”. They couldn’t get the net in the boat, so they would have to drag it to shore. Can you imagine the rush of thoughts that must have flooded their minds? “It has to be Jesus. He came just like He said He would and He is doing what He did when He called us. It can’t be a coincidence!” 7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. Now I don’t know if John is hinting that Peter is a little slow to catch on to things, or if Peter was just so involved in dealing with the net, but when his mind caught up with the fact that it was Jesus, he threw his outer cloak on and dove in the water. A fisherman would take their outer garment off to fish, as it would get in the way. Jews wore two layers as we saw when Jesus’ clothing was divided. Peter couldn’t wait and realized he really didn’t care about the fish anymore. To take the cloak meant he was ready to go with Jesus even if the others didn't make it back in time, otherwise he would have left it in the boat, as it was easier to swim without it. Jesus was on the shore! The last time this happened, Peter wanted to get away from Jesus. You’d think that after the betrayal, he’d be reluctant to be alone with Him, but then maybe he wanted to ask for forgiveness. He certainly had more faith in the grace and mercy of Jesus after seeing Him deal with what his world called “sinners”. He just wanted above all else to be with Him. (John 12:26) reads 26Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. Do you desire to serve Him?
I wonder if our relationship with Jesus has moved forward to the point that we have the same passionate desire that Peter had. Or are you still like Peter was after the first catch? Do you want Him to leave or are you running to Him because you know He is gracious and loving? The last time you sensed Him drawing near to you, did you get busy to avoid the encounter, or get still to hear His heart? How do we do that? In (Psalm 46:10) it says 10 "Be still, and know that I am God." The other disciples, “the friends” as Jesus called them, towed the net full of fish the hundred yards to the shore. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread. This type of fire only appeared one other place in John; it was the fire around which Peter stood when he betrayed Jesus in (John 18:18). John noticed the coincidence and mentioned the word to take us back to that memory for what follows in next week’s message. Where did Jesus get those fish? He must have called them to the shore just as He called them into the net. And where did He get the bread? Maybe He turned the stones into bread. It would have been against God to do it at Satan’s command, but now, to feed His disciples at His Father’s direction, it is obedience. I bet there was never a better tasting loaf of bread in the entire world. It should have brought their minds to the bread of the Presence in the Holy Place. There sat Jesus, the bread that came down from heaven for the life of the world. God is with us, our spiritual sustenance. 12 Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the disciples dared ask him, "Who are you?" They knew it was the Lord. The invitation He gave when He first met them was an invitation to dinner, "Come and you will see". This last meal with them was breakfast. They had the Last Supper with Jesus a few weeks before, and now they are having the Last Breakfast. This was Jesus’ third appearance to them as a group.
Did it ever seem strange to you that Jesus would bother to cook a meal after His resurrection? To dine together was to spend time in fellowship, talking about life, sharing your hearts. Have you been dining with Jesus? The risen Lord wants to fellowship with you! I know it’s hard to believe, probably as hard as it was for the disciples. You might want to ask just as they wanted to, “Lord, do You really want to spend time with me? Is it really You, the Lord of all creation?” He has prepared a table for you. We need to come and dine. King David found the table prepared by the Lord in the presence of his enemies. It’s all about love a love relationship between Jesus and us. That is where this was all heading. What were they doing out on the lake? Were they going back to an old love? Were they trusting in their ability to once again provide for themselves? Perhaps the miracle said something to them about God’s ability to provide their needs if they abandoned themselves to obey Jesus. What God leads you to do, He will provide for you to do, what ever it may be. The nets won’t break and there will be fish on the coals. One thing Peter and the disciples just learned is that provision comes from God. Provision is not the issue; a love relationship with the Giver of all good things is what we are seeing in this chapter. We never again read about Peter going fishing. Peter had a much greater calling than just fishing. God was calling him to move on. Is there a distraction in your life that God is calling you to move past so that you can be all God called you to be?
Whatever you do, however God provides for you, your calling is much more than the physical work you do. You are where God has placed you to show people what Jesus is like. The income we earn is not the main thing. To so many people, the income is what their job is all about. How sad! How meaningless! Peter laid down his nets and followed Jesus. We are all a bit like those disciples. We know the Lord has risen. We know He has said He will meet us, but sometimes we grow tired of waiting. We get impatient looking for the big revelations. We are like the children of Israel, tired of their daily manna, and wanting meat, not in God’s good time, but right now! (I’ve said this often before, to God timing is more important than time). Just doing what we know Scripture commands isn’t exciting enough for us. But wait a minute! Isn’t Jesus the Word made flesh? Isn’t He meeting us each time we read the Word? We want something that thrills our flesh; Jesus wants a daily time of dining together. We want a feast, and Jesus has another healthy fish sandwich (or a daily supply of manna). We want excitement, which is a sign of spiritual immaturity, and Jesus wants faith that believes without seeing. (Hebrews 11:6) tells us 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Maybe the problem is that we haven’t let Him be the spice in every day. Life without the spice of Jesus can get pretty bland, so we want a fix of excitement. Is Jesus without the thrills enough for you?
Jesus stands on the periphery of our life and calls, “Hey little one, don’t have anything for Me, do you?” You’ve fished all night and don’t have anything. You’ve labored all your life and don’t have anything that would impress Him. In fact, you wonder if you aren’t in for a rebuke because of the ways you’ve denied Him, but then you remember how gracious He was to Peter, and Mary Magdalene, to that wayward teen, to that criminal, even to that tax collector, name Zacheus, and you know He’ll be the same with you. It’s His nature! You don’t have anything to give Him. That’s the point. He is the One who has the miraculous breakfast for you. This is the true nature of Jesus, a servant. He, again, revealed His servant nature that we are to take upon ourselves. (John 13:14-15) says 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. He invites you to come and dine. It can be a whole new day with a whole new direction and meaning in life. What are you going to do? Sail off or jump in the water ready to go wherever He leads? I’m divin’ in, cloak and all, ready to go! You can tow in the fish or sail off, but Jesus is here, and I don’t want to be anywhere else but by His side. Ordinary fish never tasted so good, for the One that serves them is so wonderful. He serves them up every day if your eyes are open to see, and your heart is open to receive.
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