John Chapters 21

                    John Chapter 21

This chapter tells how Jesus commissioned Peter. Perhaps Peter needed special encouragement after his denial-he may have felt completely worthless. John 21v 1-14 sets the scene for Jesus’s conversation with Peter.

Jesus purposefully appeared again to the disciples as they carried on with their daily lives. In an instance where they felt like failures. He taught them a lesson they would never forget.

In the final chapter, John describes how Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples by the sea of Tiberias, Another name for the sea of Galilee. Seven of the disciples were together. Simon Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, Zebedee’s sons (James and John), and two others. Simon Peter told them I'm going fishing. He had a family to support, and he was still reeling from his denial of the Lord. They joined him for an all-night fishing expedition but caught nothing. Before Jesus had called them, Peter and the Zebedee brothers had been fishermen. With Jesus gone, Peter returned to his old line of work. But he was proving to be unsuccessful.

Jesus was standing on the shore, but they didn't recognize him because it was only Daybreak and they were still some distance away. He called to them to cast the net on the right side of the boat, and they caught so many fish that they were unable to haul them. Peter had been a fisherman all his life. Nevertheless, he had failed without the Lord’s enablement-something that Jesus has shown him previously.

(Luk: 5v 4-11) When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, go out into deep water, and let down the Nets for a catch. Simon answered, master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the Nets. When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their Nets began to break. So, they signaled 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. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus knees and said, “go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man! For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee. Simon's partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, don't be afraid; from now on you will fish for people. So, they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Peter was not ultimately self-sufficient but entirely dependent on God, even to accomplish work that had been his whole life. As Jesus told his disciples, “You can do nothing without me”.

This account recalls (luke:5v1-11). In that narrative, Jesus was with his followers in the boat as he was always with them in his earthly ministry-sharing success, failures, and teaching moments. Here, Jesus stood on the shore, still helping, still empowering-but at a distance.

Jesus’s question helps the disciples realize they had caught nothing. He was basically asking, “You haven't caught any fish, have you? They needed to understand that they had worked all night and caught nothing because they were doing things their own way instead of following Jesus’s direction. Without Jesus, their efforts came up empty. These men had lived with Jesus for three years and had seen him after his resurrection, yet only when he supplied them with fish did, they recognize him.

Jesus had told them to cast their net to the right side of the boat and they an abundance of fish.

This miraculous catch of fish opened the eyes of John, the disciple whom Jesus loved. When he said, it is the Lord! Peter plunged into the sea and headed for sure. The impetuous disciple couldn't wait. Then the rest of the disciples followed, dragging the net full of fish behind them.

When they arrived on the beach, they saw that Jesus had cooked a breakfast of fish and bread on a charcoal fire. The Greek word for “charcoal fire” appears two times in John's gospel: here and at 18:18, when Peter was warming himself by another such blaze. On that occasion, Peter had denied three times that he knew Jesus. Though the Lord was reminding Peter of his recent past. We can be certain of this because of the conversation that followed in 21v15-19. Peter never forgot this meal; he even mentioned it in his preaching.

(Act: 10v 41) He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen-by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.

After breakfast, Jesus had a talk with Simon Peter. He asked him, Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? That is, more than these other disciples do? Why would Jesus ask this? Because when he had predicted that the disciples would fall away, Peter had vowed, “even if everyone falls away because of you, I will never fall away”.

(Matt: 26v31-33)

Peter had wanted Jesus to know that though the devotion of the other disciples might waver, he could count on Peter remaining steadfast. He would be the one disciple that Jesus could trust. But here, after Peter had shamefully denied Jesus three times, Jesus basically asked Peter, “are you still the most committed disciple?”

Yes, Lord…. You know that I love you. When Jesus asked Peter if he loved him, the Greek verb used in agape, often used to describe self-sacrificial love. But when Peter affirmed his love for Jesus, the Greek verb is Philéo, a brotherly kind of love and affection-a love between good friends. Previously, Peter had claimed that his love for a commitment to Jesus was superior to that of the others. But after his failure and denial, he wasn't willing to arrogantly say that he loved Jesus with a sacrificial love. In light of this humble response, Jesus told him, feed my lambs. In other words, since you're not thinking so highly of yourself anymore, I can use you to lead and care for my people. A second time, Jesus asked Simon, son of John, do you love me? (Using agape. Peter responded again, yes, Lord…. You know that I love you (using Philéo). And again, Jesus commanded him to look after his people: shepherd my sheep. Then, for third time, Jesus asked, Simon, son of John, do you love me? This time the verb is Philéo. So, Seeing Peter humbled, Jesus came down to peter's level and met him where he was. Peter was grieved. His three denials of his Lord had now been matched by a question from his Lord repeated three times: do you love me? It broke peter's heart. All he could do was say, Lord you know everything; you know that I love you. When Peter was proudly self-assured about his ability to stand fast at a critical moment, Jesus knew that he would actually crack under pressure. He knew peter's heart better than Peter did. The grieving disciple understood that now. And since Jesus knew all things, Peter was convinced that Jesus also knew that Peter loved him in spite of his prior failure.

Again, Jesus told him, feed my sheep. Jesus was restoring his humble disciple to ministry. Peter's repentance allowed restoration. Though Peter had previously thought highly of himself, he had come to adopt Jesus’s view of leadership in ministry. Peter understood that being a leader of God's people is not about arrogantly exercising power. Therefore, he could later write to other church leaders. “Shepherd gods flock among you…. Not lording it over those entrusting to you but being examples to the flock”.

(1Pet:5v2-3)

Peter had taken to heart Jesus’s command, “shepherd my sheep”. Sometimes God lets his people fail in order to develop them spiritually and prepare them for greater usefulness.

(Luke: 22v 31-32)

Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved him. The first time, Jesus said, “do you love (Greek agape: volitional, self-sacrificial love), me more than these? The second time, Jesus focused on Peter alone and still used the word translated into Greek as agape. The third time, Jesus used the word translated Greek as Philéo (signifying affection, affinity, or brotherly love) and asked, in effect, are you even my friend?

After this restoration, Jesus prophesied about peter's future: when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will tie you and carry you where you don't want to go.

Jesus predicted peter's death by crucifixion. Tradition indicates that Peter was crucified for his faith-upside down because he did not feel worthy of dying as his Lord did. Despite what peter's future held. John explains Jesus mysterious Prophecy: he said this to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. 

(2Pet:1v13-15) I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, Because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things.

According to tradition passed down in the early church, Peter was martyred in Rome under emperor Nero for his faith in Jesus Christ: in spite of what was to come, Jesus urged Peter, follow me. And the New Testament shows that Peter did indeed humbly follow his Lord and devoted himself to gospel ministry. Are you prepared to follow Jesus in good times and bad, at whatever the cost?

Peter turned around and saw John, the disciple Jesus loved. So, Peter asks Jesus, what about him? Peter accepted that he had a martyr's death awaiting him, but he wanted to know what Jesus’s plans were for John. Jesus was short and to the point: if I want him to remain until I come…. What is that to you? As for you, follow me.

God has a general will for all of his people. This is expressed in his biblical commands for all of his followers. But he also has a specific will for each individual Christian. Jesus graciously revealed to Peter his will for him. But he wasn't about to tell Peter his specific will for John.

We are called to follow Jesus together as the church and also personally as individuals. Each of us should seek God and ask how he wants us to serve him.

We shouldn't compare Our Calling with someone else's. God may lead one person differently than another. Our job is not to judge how God uses others, but to faithfully follow what he has called us to do.

As a result of Jesus saying this, rumors spread…. That this disciple would not die. But this was a misinterpretation. Jesus was being hyperbolic in order to make a point. He wasn't saying that John would remain alive until his second coming. He was simply saying, whatever my specific will is for John, it doesn't concern you. We must read and interpret the Bible carefully. Poor interpretation leads to erroneous conclusions.

This disciple-the one Jesus loved-is the one who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. The gospel of the apostle John, then, is based on his eyewitness testimony. And we know that his testimony is true. But this gospel contains only a small sample of what Jesus did and taught. There are also many other things that could have been written. If every one of them were written down, I suppose not even the world itself could contain the books that would be written.

The apostle John has only given us a highlight reel! But God providentially determined that what we have in scripture is enough. You don't need to know everything that Jesus did and said. But John says, you do need to “believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” Amen.