Episode 138 - "It is the Lord!" - John 21:1-8

1 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.

In the last episode, I focused on the first three verses of this story. I mentioned how the LORD revealed himself wherever and whenever he wanted. There is nothing that can prevent God’s presence with us. It would seem from this story that we never have to wonder if God is there or not. Our problem is whether we believe from one moment to the next that He is all-powerful, all-good, and is accessible to us. 

Peter had denied that he knew the Lord three times after asserting that he would die for him. It is interesting how that never seemed to come up in the two appearances Jesus made to the disciples preceding this encounter. But, you can bet that with everything that has happened, Peter has not forgotten it. My guess is that Peter’s guilt was festering like a boil. There is no record that Jesus chastised him during the times he appeared to them and it would seem that it didn’t come up. The trauma of Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion, the fear of persecution by the Jewish leaders leading them to lock themselves into a home, the shock mixed with the joy of Jesus’ resurrection and appearance to them, and the guilt of denying and abandoning the Lord had to be working heavily on these guys. They needed an outlet; something to get their mind off of it all. More importantly, they needed a purpose and a direction in life.

Verse four begins with “Just as day was breaking.” Just as day was breaking, just as the light was appearing, Jesus (the Light of the world) showed up on the shore. But, the disciples still did not recognize who it was. Jesus called to them and addressed them as “children.” I’m not exactly sure what is going on here by this address. It would not seem that Jesus was insulting them and there’s no evidence that they took it that way. He asked them if they had any fish and they replied “no.” I suspect that in doing so, Jesus had a purpose. That purpose might have been to establish this experience as a learning experience and that he was the teacher. Since we believe that our author is one of the men in the boat and is the first to recognize that it’s Jesus on the shoreline, this stuck in his mind. Still, the first reaction in the disciples’ minds might have been who does this guy think he is by calling us children? 

Jesus’ instructions to the “children” were, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will catch some.” (v. 6) The audacity of this guy. We’ve been fishing all night long. Does he really think we haven’t fished throughout this whole area on various sides of the boat? That’s what I would imagine these guys to be thinking. What surprises me a little is that they don’t seem to even argue. They just obeyed. Oh . . . maybe that’s the point. They just obeyed Jesus’ command. But, did you notice that Jesus didn’t just command them to cast the net on the right side of the boat? He made them a promise, “You will find some.” There’s the understatement of all time. They didn’t just catch some. Their net was full to the point that they would normally expect it to break causing them to lose their catch. But, it didn’t. Here is the point that all of us can learn. We experience God’s promises when we obey His commands. The promises are for our good. The most important command of the Lord for us is to believe that Jesus, God’s Son, revealed himself in this world, died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin making us just before God, and raised from the dead giving us hope that he will fulfill his promise to raise us from the dead and give us eternal life.

In an instant of realizing their tremendous catch by obeying this “stranger’s” command, the disciple whom Jesus loved (John) told Peter, “It is the Lord!” Immediately, what was more important than achieving what they had been vainly striving for on their own all night long was the identity of the person on the shore. There’s another good lesson for us, isn’t it? Our own efforts are all in vain if Jesus is not more important.

This revelation to Peter was the tipping point in his own life. Forgetting the fish, he put on his outer garment and jumped into the sea to go to Jesus. What was he going to do? What was he going to say? What would Jesus do or say when it was just the two of them alone on the shore. I don’t Peter had a clue. I think he just needed to be with Jesus and that he expected Jesus to address his guilt and pain. Perhaps that’s a good lesson for us as well. There are times when we don’t know which way is up. There are moments when we feel guilt or just inadequate and without purpose or value. We need to go to Jesus trusting that he knows where we’re at and how to comfort and encourage us in those times.