Everything Is New

He is risen!

The celebration of Easter is a great time.

Life has a few monumental times, where one goes through it and your life completely changes.

Marriage. The birth of a child. Death of a parent, a spouse, a child.

There a few times where life completely changes and you are never the same again.

I remember when we were pregnant with Grace and Dean told me that my life would never be the same again. And then, Dean was telling PC the same thing as the time was approaching for Samuel’s birth.

Lives change, and there is no going back. Everything is new.

Another one of those monumental times of life is when one accepts the resurrection life that Christ offers. Everything is new. Nothing is the same.

Just like the holding your child for the first time. Nothing is the same. Everything is new. But it is so good.

Let’s read our text for today. We are going to start by reading what we read this morning for the sunrise service.

John 21:1–25 NIV

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “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. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered. 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. 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. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead. When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!” Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”) When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” Because of this, the rumor spread among the believers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true. Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.

Because of the resurrection, we can have a new status, a new life, and a new hope.

Will you pray with me?

1. A New Status

Because of the resurrection, we can have a new status. We move from one who has sinned against God, bearing a debt we cannot repay to one who has been forgiven everything.

I think about Peter. Strong, brave Peter, who promised that he would remain true and faithful to Jesus, that he would even die with Jesus if necessary.

But, when Jesus was arrested in the Garden, he fled like everyone else.

He came back though and followed Jesus to the High Priest’s house where Jesus was getting interrogated by the religious leaders.

We know what happened there.

John 18:15–17 NIV

Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard, but Peter had to wait outside at the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, came back, spoke to the servant girl on duty there and brought Peter in. “You aren’t one of this man’s disciples too, are you?” she asked Peter. He replied, “I am not.”

He went on to deny Jesus two more times.

Judas just denied him once. Peter did it three times.

I can just imagine how low Peter felt afterwards. The other Gospels record that he went out and wept bitterly. He loved Jesus, but he couldn’t stand up for him.

But, in our text today, Jesus turns to Peter and says:

John 21:15 NIV

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Three times, Jesus asks Peter if he loves him. One for each of the times that Peter denied him.

And each time, Jesus invites Peter into the work that God is doing.

More on that later.

Jesus offers Peter forgiveness. He didn’t rail on Peter, yelling at him for why he did what he did. No, offered Peter a chance to say what he really wanted to say in the High Priest’s courtyard.

Each one of us has lived in a way that is against God.

Romans 3:23 NIV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

This verse is very succinct, but it doesn’t convey the weight of what we do. Yes, we fall short of the glory of God. We miss the mark that we are called to live, and we are judged for missing that mark.

But, we don’t just miss the mark. We turn around and aim for the King of Kings. Every time we sin, we are living as God’s enemies, acting and speaking in ways that hurt his holiness and his justice and his righteousness.

We deny him through our sin.

But, because of the death of Christ and the resurrection, we stand forgiven. Our status is not the one who denied Christ, but the one who loved him.

Acts 13:38 NIV

“Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.

When we turn to Jesus in faith, our sins are wiped clean. We don’t have to do anything, no confession, no penance, no works, it is a free gift. And once we accept it, he swoops in to wipe us clean and gives us the ability to say:

Lord, you know all things, you know that I love you.

We have a new status.

2. A New Life

We have a new life.

This is part of what we talked about this morning at the sunrise service.

Before he talks to Peter, he is standing on the beach watching the disciples fishing, because they didn’t have anything else to do.

They had caught anything, and he yells to them:

John 21:5–6 (NIV)

He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered. 

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.

In that exchange, he shares two things about their new life.

First, he calls them friends.

This speaks of an identity and a relationship. This is what forgiveness earns for us. When Christ bought us out of slavery to sin, death, and the devil. He offered us new life, and that life is found in a relationship with him.

John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Life is found in him. And this isn’t just a “thanks for dying for me, Jesus.” But, a return investment. “I owe everything to you and I never want to leave your side.”

While we should want to pursue a relationship with him, a friendship, he wants to as well. He calls us friends. And he proved it by dying for us.

John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

We get to go through life and have an uninterrupted conversation with him, if we enter into it, through prayer, Bible study, and the fellowship of believers.

Not only does he call us friends, showing that identity and relationship, but he gives us a task.

He turned to the disciples and told them to throw their net on the other side of the boat and they would find more fish.

As I said this morning,

These were fishermen by trade. They knew how to fish. They knew all the signs, where to catch and where not to catch.

But, the thing was, they were fishing for the wrong things.

When they first started following Jesus, he had told them that their task had changed.

Matthew 4:19 ““Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.””

Here, on this morning a few days after the crucifixion, he tells the disciples to throw their nets out and then bring the fish to the shore to Jesus.

With a new identity, comes a new task, the followers of Jesus are to fish. Not for fish, but for humanity. We are supposed to throw the nets of the Gospel out into our families, our friend groups, our work, our communities, and bring them in to Jesus.

Why? Because they need to know the amazing new status and new life that comes through Jesus Christ. Do you remember what it was like when you first met Jesus. Some of you might remember, and that causes us to want to share more.

Others of us have forgotten. We don’t experience the awe of being forgiven anymore. We don’t experience the awe of having a personal relationship anymore, which is why we allow ourselves to get busy doing so many other things.

And so, in that apathy, we don’t grab the task with enthusiasm.

Whether we are in awe or not, we have a new status. We have a new life.

3. A New Hope

And we have a new hope.

Now, some may not consider what I am about to read to pertain to hope at all.

John 21:17–19 “The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!””

And Peter did die this way.

Approximately 34 years after this discussion, Peter was killed under the reign of Nero. His sentence was to be crucified. Not feeling worthy to be killed the same way that his savior was, he requested to be crucified upside down.

The question is: why was Peter able to go through this?

Well, he had hope for what was to come.

Jesus died and rose from the grave and he promised that everyone who believes in him will not perish but will have everlasting life.

Let’s put it in hope words.

Hebrews 12:1–2 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jesus knew what was going to happen after the cross. Therefore he could endure the cross.

Peter believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus was king of kings and lord of lords. He believed that since Jesus rose from the grave, he would too.

He had hope.

The same hope that Paul talks about in Titus.

Titus 2:13–14 “while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.”

Because of hope, he kept preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, no matter what was going on.

Because of hope, he allowed himself to be led where he did not want to go.

Because of hope, he allowed his arms to be stretched out.

Because of hope, he breathed his last, knowing that eternity with his savior awaits.

That same hope is ours and it changes everything. Death doesn’t mean the same thing to us. Hardship and unmet dreams don’t mean the same to us. Loneliness doesn’t mean the same.

When we are guaranteed an eternity in perfection, life changes.

The resurrection life that Jesus offers us completely changes us. We have a new status, a new life, and a new hope.

If your life has changed, tell someone about it.

If you do not have the change that is discussed today, talk to someone about it.

He is risen!