John’s Epilogue: The Disciples Restoration

Intro

So this passage that we have read from is John 21 the very end of John’s Gospel. This chapter is an interesting specimen in this gospel, because it feels almost out of place. Pastor James preached on Easter Sunday John 20, where Jesus appears to His disciples, gives them the mission to go out to the nations, reveals Himself in flesh and bone to all of them, and John even writes why he wrote this gospel. He ends the last chapter with these two verses: “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

Then we go to what seems to be a fishing trip and breakfast with Jesus and the disciples. This seems to take the climax of the Gospel of John, and throw it off a cliff. It is such a drastic shift, that there are scholars who believe that this chapter was added later and wasn’t even written by John. Most of the evidence for this is the seemingly out of place nature of this passage, and the slightly different wording that John uses. Many commentators argue that John likes to use a lot of synonyms in his writings, so this alone isn’t enough evidence to justify it not being written by him, and those scholars would admit that as well. Is this chapter out of place? No. John has a prologue in his gospel to announce who Jesus is and an epilogue to tie up some loose ends. What loose ends? Well after Jesus had died, many of the disciples had spread out and abandoned Jesus, including their leader Peter who even denied knowing Jesus three times. There was some public reconciliation that needed to happen, and only Jesus could do it.

This passage reminds us that Jesus is the one who restores us, even when we retreat from Him. Jesus restores us even when we retreat from Him.

We will break down this passage into 3 parts:

The Retreat from Jesus

The Meal with Jesus

The Restoration by Jesus

The Retreat from Jesus

The Meal with Jesus

The Restoration by Jesus

Now let’s reread the passage. John 21

John 21 (ESV)

After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. 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.

Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” 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. 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. 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.

When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” 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. 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. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”

Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them, the one who also had leaned back against him during the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?” When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” So the saying spread abroad among the brothers that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?”

This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true.

Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

The Retreat From Jesus

The first thing we notice is that not all the disciples are here. Most of the fishermen are and Thomas is also in the mix. Some of you might be asking what sea they are by. This is actually the Sea of Galilee that was renamed by Rome after the city that was made there called Tiberias, which was named after Tiberius Caesar. Why are we back in Galilee? If we turn to Matthew 28 we will see why. In Matthew 28:16–17 we read “Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted.”

They were to go to the mountain that Jesus had told them to go. They were to wait for Him there to receive the Great Commission before they waited for the Holy Spirit. Instead of going to the mountain, they went fishing.

This was not just a recreational fishing trip. The wording of the Greek in the passage could make the words Peter speaks in verse 3 to sound more like “I am going back to fishing.” The wording of “the boat” instead of “a boat” also shows that they were using the boat that they had been using from their lives of fishermen. They also fished all night which is how Peter would have fished before he met Jesus in Luke 5. Why would Peter want to go back to the life of a fishermen? He had just seen the risen Christ in person. How could he doubt what Jesus had said? This is why this didn’t make sense to me at first, but I listened to John MacArthur preach on this passage and he said something that cleared it up for me. He said “Peter didn’t lose faith in Jesus. He lost faith in himself.” Now, this is my hot take, I think too many pastors are overly harsh on Peter. I hear a lot of criticisms about how he is so rash, impulsive, talks before he thinks, and is just too over the top, which are valid criticisms as will be confirmed in this passage, however I think we don’t give him enough credit. Peter was the first disciple to call Jesus the Christ, and he is the only other person to walk on water outside of Jesus. God seems to be drawn to men who work with their hands. In the Old Testament we see this with David. He was a man after God’s own heart. He was a shepherd and a man who sought the Lord in most of what he did. God raised him up to be a king and a warrior for His people. Jesus’s earthly father was a carpenter. A tradesman. Jesus could have been a direct son of David and been raised in a kingdom that was made for Him by Him, but God chose a lowly carpenter and a faithful woman to be His parents. The first disciples He gathers are fishermen. Peter is a man who works with his hands and is a man of action. He does what he thinks is right and doesn’t tend to give it a second thought. I think this is why the disciples unofficially made him the leader early on. He tends to be bolder in his statements but also says what a lot of them are thinking. While many men of action do great things, they also tend to fall the hardest. Peter was told by Jesus to “Get behind me Satan!” Peter, the one who boasts the most of His love for Jesus, then denied Jesus three times. He even cut off a guy’s ear on the day Jesus was arrested, and Jesus had to heal him! Peter didn’t have the best rap sheet anymore. So he thought, if I can’t do anything else I know I can fish. He is like Moses trusting in his staff to bring the water out, like he did before, instead of trusting what the Lord had told Moses to do. The six other disciples there followed Peter. They probably thought “If Peter isn’t good enough, what kind of shot do I have?”

So they fished all night. In verse 4 you see Jesus calling out to His disciples. They didn’t know it was Him. They were about 100 yards (or 200 cubits) away from shore. Jesus also has a new resurrected body, so He looks different. Remember in chapter 20 when He appeared to Mary Magdalene she thought Jesus, whom she had spent a large period of time with, was the gardener. Even the disciples didn’t recognize Him immediately until He showed His side and hands that were wounded. Jesus yells out to them “Children, do you have any fish?” The word here that is used for children could mean children, but it is also used as a term of endearment in the Greek, however the connotation of the wording can be read more negatively. Jesus words could be translated more as “Children, haven’t you caught anything yet?” To all my fishermen in here, after a long night of fishing with nothing to show for it, isn’t that just maddening? Even from Jesus? They respond with, a simple no. They were probably tired, annoyed, and frustrated at this point on the edge of their wit. Then Jesus tells them to cast the net on the right side of the boat and you WILL find some. There is no if, and, or, but about it. You will catch fish. They listened likely because they’re thinking, whatever I’ll get this guy off our case and he can leave us alone. After they cast out, a huge haul of fish comes into their net. So much so that they can’t bring it in the boat.

They’ve seen this miracle before. In Luke 5:4-7 we see Jesus had performed this same miracle when He first met the disciples. This is why John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, said “It is the Lord!” They had recognized the touch of their master on their labor. Then Peter, doing Peter things, jumps out of the boat and swims to shore, but not before putting on his outer garment. In our culture this seems a bit backwards to put on clothes to go swimming, but in their culture you did not meet your superior without your overcoat. So Peter swims to shore and leaves the other disciples to drag the fish to shore, even though this whole endeavor was his idea.

Jesus appears to the disciples in the midst of their apostacy. Jesus sought after them even though He knew what they were doing. He didn’t allow them to catch fish, because they were no longer fishermen. Not that they would never fish, but they were called to be fishers of men, not because they were the best men for the job, but because God had called them to do so. Jesus used this to remind them that they can do nothing apart from Him.

The Meal with Jesus

Jesus already has a meal prepared for them. He has fish and bread already prepared with a charcoal fire. If we look at verse 10 Jesus asks the disciples to bring some of the fish caught for the meal. This is a small part of this story, but it reveals an aspect of God that we can easily miss.

Let me explain this with an example. So most of you out here have kids or were kids at one time. Think about doing a project or a chore with one of your children, but it is really easy task. They may help a little bit, but more than likely they will slow you down. You’ve provided them the tools to get the job done, you teach them how to do the task, and you probably even do the first one to show them how it is done. You do this because you want your child to learn how to do this task and you want to spend time with them. This is similar to how God invites us to use the things He gives us.

Jesus doesn’t need the disciples to provide anything, and even what they bring was provided to them by Jesus’s miracle, but He invites them to be a part of it by bringing what they have been given. We have been given time, money, and ability by God in certain degrees and God invites us to use what we have been given to honor Him and be in fellowship with Him.

Another point of this meal shows that Jesus ate food. In verse 15 we see that Jesus is included in the “they” that had finished breakfast. This is a direct counter to those who say that post resurrection Jesus was a mirage/spiritual being. He was in the flesh and He ate.

The Restoration by Jesus

Now we see after they had finished breakfast Jesus asks a question. Jesus looks to Peter and asks, “Do you love me more than these?” What are the “these” that Jesus is referring to? He is referring to the other disciples. I was scrolling on YouTube shorts one day and I stumbled upon a small YouTuber who was studying the bible, and she asked a really thought provoking question. She asked, “If both Judas and Peter denied Jesus, why was the relationship with Peter restored?” The answer is in this passage. Peter loves Jesus. Judas didn’t Peter loved who Jesus was and is, but Judas loved what Jesus could give him. We need to be careful to not make our relationship with Jesus about what we get, but who Jesus is.

Jesus questions Peter’s affection not once, but three times. This was to publically restore Peter to right standing with Jesus amongst the disciples. Peter was outspoken and had said things such as “I would never betray you, I would die with you if I had to.” And he lead the disciples to say the same thing. Peter denied Jesus three times before the rooster crowed, thus Jesus made Peter say that he loved Jesus three times to restore Peter’s ministry.

Some pastors might say something to the Greek in this passage, which I will go over briefly. John uses two differing words for love in this passage, Agapeo and Phileo. Peter uses the word Phileo all three times, and Jesus uses Agapeo for the first two and the last one He uses Phileo. Some well respected preachers may use these words as evidence to say that there are two different loves being portrayed here, however based on other contexts where these words were used in John’s gospel, I’m not convinced of this argument, but really it’s all Greek to me. I did want to mention that I do think there is a significance to John using these different phrases in the middle of the chapter. John seems to point out, on the last phrase, that Jesus is questioning Peter’s love not just in general, but in the way that Peter stated it.

So it would go along the lines of something like this:

“Peter do you love and care for me?” “Yes, Lord, You know that I love you like my own flesh and blood.” “Peter, do you love and care for me?” “Yes, Lord, You know that I love you as a brother.” “Peter, do you love me like your own flesh and blood?” It seems to make sense from the text that not only the third time asking, but also the perceived double down from Jesus seems to hurt Peter. Peter doesn’t know how to prove his love outside of humbly calling on the divine foreknowledge of Jesus. Peter calls on Jesus’s all knowing nature to remind Him that Peter does love Him truly. Isn’t it comforting to us that we can do the same thing? When we are in a rough season or we are simply not doing what we should do for God, that God knows whether we love Him or not because He knows all? God doesn’t need you to be perfect to know that you love Him. He’s not insecure, in fact He eternally secures you. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t seek to do what is right, but even when Peter was failing and failing, Jesus brought Peter security.

How was Peter to love Jesus? By caring for His sheep. Jesus was showing Peter and preparing him for a leadership role in the founding of the church of the new covenant. The church that we are part of to this day. This is a reminder to us who are leaders, especially spiritual leaders, that we are only farm hands for the good shepherd. These sheep are not ours but His.

Before I start wrapping up I’m going to skip ahead a bit. To talk about John himself. In verse 20 we see that John is close to Jesus and dear to Him. Peter asks about John, because Peter was told how he was going to die, which we will touch on in a bit. Jesus’s response if we look at the end of verse 23 is “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?” This actually spread a rumor that John was never going to die amongst the disciples, but what Jesus basically said was “Is John’s fate really your business?” Peter was just told of his own fate, and really thought he deserved to know about everyone else’s. While I think his intentions were pure, he did step over the line. We are not omnipotent, and the Lord will tell us what we need to know.

Now wrapping up, I want to ironically end this sermon focusing on verse 18. “Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.”” The phrase “you will stretch out your hands” was a common way to reference crucifixion. My beloved Addison told me that there are some records that state during crucifixion your shoulders would be so dislocated that your wingspan would increase by 6 inches.

Why am I choosing to close on this gruesome passage? Earlier I paraphrased something Peter said to prove his loyalty to Jesus. He said “I will not abandon you. Even if I have to die with you.” Jesus gives Peter the ability to finally be the man who can keep this promise. He promises Peter, next time you are tempted in this way, you will not fail.

To us this shows the character of God. He cares about who we are and what we want. Even in the Old Testament, God doesn’t allow David to build a temple for God. He gets David’s son Solomon to do it, so that God could build a temple for David. David was the one who originally wanted to build a temple for the Lord. God didn’t ask him to, but made one for David because He loved Him.

Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” This is not making God out to be a wish granter, or some transactional relationship. As we draw toward God, He will give us desires that are good. He will guide our desires to His mission, so that our desires line up with His.

However, I must warn that there is a second reason I ended on this passage. The cost of discipleship may be steeper than you think. It may cost you your home, your family, and even your life. But all the things that you lose here in Christ’s name, is for ultimate glory. For just like Job who lost everything, God will restore what we had lost for His name and more in eternity.

Let us pray.