Breakfast on the Beach - Pt. I

Following instructions

The resurrected Lord had appeared and given instructions (Mt28:7-10) that He was going before them and where to go.

Matthew 28:7–8 NASB95

7 “Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you.” 8 And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.

Matthew 28:9–10 NASB95

9 And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.”

Other instructions when Jesus appeared was peace be with you (21:19). And as I have been sent, I will send you (21:21).

Jesus also gave purpose for the gospel (21:31)

(Trans) now we get to our passage today. Where the disciples are where Jesus told them to go. They were obedient and are about to be blessed.

Setting up for breakfast on the beach

John 21:1–2 NASB95

1 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.

John 21:3–4 NASB95

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.

John 21:5–6 NASB95

5 So Jesus said to them, “Children, you do not have any fish, do you?” They answered Him, “No.” 6 And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch.” So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish.

John 21:7 NASB95

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 threw himself into the sea.

What sticks out to you in this passage?

Who did Jesus manifest himself to and where (vv.1-2)?

Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, Sons of Zebedee (John, James) and two other disciples

At the Sea of Tiberias (Sea of Galilee).

Peter made a decision to go fishing, who else went, and when did they go (vv.3-4)?

All the others as noted in (v.2) went and it was at night.

What did Jesus ask, and then tell them to do (vv.5-6)?

Asked a negative question, you did not catch any fish

Told them to cast night on right side of the boat and gave them promise of a catch.

What did Peter do when learned it was the Lord on the beach (v.7)?

Put on outer garment, threw himself in the sea

Return to fishing, good or bad?

After these things (v.1)

Appeared to Mary, Peter, the Apostles

Direction, instructions given as noted before

John identifies who is there with him, when Peter announces going fishing (v.2-3)

There are two unnamed disciples there, Guzik in his commentary said they represent those saved souls behind the scenes that do not need to be known, that is why they are not named.

Was going fishing right or wrong?

There is much debate on this and John does not elaborate on why Peter decided to go fishing.

We can know that by his decision, all the others decide to go with him.

Some believe Peter was wrong in returning to his former profession when Jesus had told him to leave, follow him and would be fishers of men (see Mt4:18-20) - also believe Peter was wrong in taking others with him, so if he was wrong they were wrong too. Our actions impact others. Peter’s did.

The other camp on this was Peter was not wrong, Peter was being wise and practical. Jesus provided everything prior to His death, now they were going to need to provide for themselves and fishing is what they did.

Only Peter’s heart could determine right or wrong here for John does not expound on it.

Adam Clarke said this:

“Previously to the crucifixion of our Lord, the temporal necessities of himself and his disciples appear to have been supplied by the charity of individuals; (consider Lk8:3). As it is probable that the scandal of the cross had now shut up this source of support, the disciples, not fully knowing how they were to be employed, purposed to return to their former occupation of fishing, in order to gain a livelihood; and therefore the seven, mentioned Jn21:2, embarked on the sea of Tiberias, otherwise called the sea of Galilee.”

Not sure if covered about why so many fishermen before, and what about them, so I will quickly touch on this for several commentators bring it up.

Fisherman are courageous

Fishermen are brave

Fishermen are dedicated and not easily distracted

Fishermen do not quit, they do not give up

Fishermen know how to work with one another

Fishermen know how to follow orders

A night of fishing availed nothing (v.5). Reminiscent to the results in (Lk5:1-11)

Think of this though too, Jesus had told them “without Me, ye can do nothing” (Jn15:5).

Wiersbe said this:

“Perhaps Peter’s impulsiveness and self-confidence were revealing themselves again. He was sincere, and he worked hard, but there were no results. How like some believers in the service of the Lord! They sincerely believe that they are doing God’s will, but their labors are in vain. They are serving without direction from the Lord, so they cannot expect blessing from the Lord.”

The fishing availing nothing, Spurgeon said this:

“To be a fisherman, a man must expect disappointments; he must often cast in the net and bring up nothing but weeds. The minister of Christ must reckon upon being disappointed; and he must not be weary in well-doing for all his disappointments, but must in faith continue in prayer and labor, expecting that at the end he shall receive His reward.”

One more thing on fishermen.

“A fisherman catches living fish, but when he gets them, they die. A Christian witness seeks to catch ‘dead fish’ (dead in their sins), and when he or she ‘catches’ them, they are made alive in Christ.”

Do this to receive a catch

John 21:4–6 NKJV

4 But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?” 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 now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.

When Jesus directs the work, things happen. Jesus in this passage directs the work.

Jesus, one more time appears in unexpected time and place (v.14). (ref: Jn20:15-18, 19,21, 26-29)

Mary (Jn20:15-18)

Apostles without Thomas (Jn20:19-21)

Apostles with Thomas (Jn20:26-29)

Each of these times Jesus gives direction

Tell the Apostles

Go to Galilee

Touch and believe

Cast on the right-hand side and you will find a catch. (v.6)

Jesus directed the work and the disciples obeyed, Jesus blessed their obedience.

Again, like in Luke, this made no sense to cast out during the day, fishing was done at night. Like Luke, at the words of a man on the beach (they did not know it was the Lord yet) they obeyed.

Guzik says this about that:

“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 shore.”

Sometimes we are called to do things out of the norm, out of our usual way of doing things. Here we see the results of Jesus directing the work and the disciples obeying the word.

“There is no need to seek symbolical meanings from the right and left side. The difference is not between right and left, but between working with and without Divine guidance.” (Plummer)

The results of their obedience, “a great number of fish.”

F. F. Bruce, I know lots of quotes tonight, but in all the resources there was so much good stuff and these are just a few.

“The disciples’ haul of fish is a parable of their missionary activity in the time that lies ahead. But this activity, with its pastoral sequel, will be attended by success only as they follow the directions of the risen Lord.” (emphasis mine)

Jesus directs the work, are we following Jesus directions, are there adjustments we need to make to be obedient to His directions so to get the results He desires?

(Prayer) (Close)