It is the Lord

John 21:1-14

If you brought your bibles turn with me over to the gospel of John chapter 21. The gospel of John chapter 21 and in a moment we are going to read verses 1-14 of the gospel of John chapter 21.

We have come to the final chapter of the gospel of John. It has been an unusual journey through this book. It is a book I began without you, back at FBC, we went through the first three chapters. However in the providence of God, it is a book, it at least appears, I will finished here at NCBC.

The point of tonight’s study is: As disciples of Christ we have to learn to trust and depend on Him. This is a very unusual story of Jesus appearing to His disciples a third time. This time He appears to them in Galilee.

I titled this study “It is the Lord” from John’s statement in Vs. 7. In a moment John realizes that Jesus is the one providing for His disciples after a long night of fishing with no results.

While that may seem trivial to us, fishing was how the disciples not only made a living, but fed themselves and their families. Most of the disciples of Jesus were fisherman and very hard workers.

So, this miracle we have from Jesus points to the fact He meets the most important needs of His people. This statement of faith from John needs to be our statement of faith, when we realize all Christ has done for us.

We exclaim, “It is the Lord.” It is all provided for by the hand of God!! He gets the glory and our hearts are grateful for what He has done.

John 21:1–14 KJV

After these things Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias; and on this wise shewed he himself. There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples. Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher’s coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea. And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes. As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread. Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now caught. Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken. Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise. This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself to his disciples, after that he was risen from the dead.

When you read John’s gospel, it reads as though it should stop at the end of chapter 20. We saw last week that great confession from Thomas, where he went from doubter to commited disciple in Vs. 28, He said, “My Lord and My God.”

And truly that is the point of John’s gospel. Not only that Thomas would make that great confession but that would become our confession as well. He tells us in Vs. 30 and 31.

John 20:30–31 “Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.”

That is John’s purpose and one would think it to be the climax of his gospel but it isn’t. John keeps writing, and he gives us chapter 21.

In fact, chapter 20 was such a good conclusion that some scholars throughout the centuries have said John didn’t write chapter 21 but it was added later, but there is no evidence of that, or any literary reason to think this.

There are some scholars, James Montgomery Boice for example, who says, chapter 21 gives us a glimpse of what the ministry of Jesus will be like when He has ascended into heaven.

He says John begins his gospel with a prologue and ends it with an epilogue. In other words chapter 1 gives us a glimpse of Jesus before He came in to the world, (In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God) and chapter 21 gives us a glimpse of Jesus when He leaves this world, (meeting the needs of His people, restoring them from their sin, and guiding them into the future, all things we see Him doing in this chapter).

I don’t know if that is true, what I do know is: John through the Holy Spirit gives us chapter 21 and teaches us some great truths about the ministry of Jesus in the life of His disciples. These are truths that apply to us today.

The first thing I want to show you in this passage is:

I. The Setting of Jesus’ Appearance Vs. 1-4

John begins by providing us with the setting or the situation, if you will for the appearance of Jesus.

Notice Vs. 1, “After these things Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias; and on this wise shewed he himself.”

The phrase “after these things” refers to the two times earlier, Jesus had revealed Himself to His disciples. Once on the very night of His resurrection. He appeared to the disciples minus Thomas and then eight days later, He appeared a second time with Thomas included.

This took place near Jerusalem, many scholars believe in the upper room where Jesus met with His disciples for the Passover.

We know the first two appearances of Jesus had to take place in Jerusalem because there was not time for the disciples to travel home to Galilee before Jesus appeared to them.

They likely stayed in Jerusalem until after the feast of tabernacles and then traveled back home to Galilee as they were instructed to do. (Matt. 28:5-7)

Now, the disciples follow that command and they return to Galilee.

We learn from John 6:1 that the sea of Tiberias is actually the sea of Galilee. Tiberias was a city that sat on the west side of the sea and was named by the Romans after their Emperor Tiberias, and in Donald Trump fashion they decided to name it after themselves.

John rounds out Vs. 1 with an explanation. He says, this is the way Jesus chose to show Himself or reveal Himself to His disciples this third time.

I think John’s purpose here was to provide evidence of Jesus resurrection, not only in Jerusalem but in another city far away. John wanted to show the resurrection was not a centrally located phenomenon, but Jesus was truly alive in other parts of the world.

Notice the unusual order for the disciples in Vs. 2, “There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples.”

I say this is an unusual order because typically Peter, James, and John are listed first. They were the ones who formed an inner circle with Jesus. If you remember, it was these three who went with Jesus into the garden as He prayed. It was these three that went with Jesus up to the Mount of transfiguration. And these three are mentioned here.

The sons of Zebedee represent James and John, but now we have Simon Peter, Thomas, and Nathanael mentioned first. I can’t help but wonder why? We can only speculate, but I know nothing in the bible is given to us by chance. So, there is a reason.

Perhaps, it’s because John wanted to list the denier and the doubter first, to signal to us the change that has taken place in their lives. And why is Nathanael mentioned here. Nathanael has not been mentioned since chapter 1 in the gospel of John. Why bring him into the picture in this the final chapter?

Notice we are told Nathanael is from Cana. That’s new information. Cana was where the very first miracle of Jesus took place, where Jesus changed the water into wine. Well, now Nathanael from Cana is present for the final miracle of Jesus, maybe that is why he is mentioned here.

Perhaps, Peter, Thomas, and Nathanael are mentioned first on this list because they represent the three great confessions of faith we see in John’s gospel. We saw Thomas confession in 20:28.

Nathanael made a great confession when Jesus told him he saw him under the fig tree in John 1:49 “Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.””

And Peter’s great confession was the turning point in each of the gospel’s recorded for us in John 6:68–69 “Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. “We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.””

Maybe, this is why these three are listed first here. We don’t know, but this is an unusual list and we are not given an explanation but we do know, nothing is insignificant in the bible.

Notice John humbly included himself and his brother here. They are the sons of Zebedee. He does this so his readers know He is an eyewitness to these events.

Furthermore, we do not know who these two other disciples are. Some say they are Andrew and Philip but we don’t know.

What we do know is that brings the number of disciples present to seven, and seven is the Hebrew number of completion. So, there was a complete number of disciples present to authenticate and verify the event.

Notice the situation that takes place before Jesus appears in Vs. 3, “Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing.”

Now, it is important we understand there are 2 different opinions about what is taking place here. Some scholars say, this is a spiritual regression from Peter and the other disciples. In other words, God called them to be fishers of men, not of fish anymore. They are backsliding.

This is a legitimate view because Matthew 28:16 tells us Jesus had designated a mountain to meet the disciples on, not the sea. And it would be just like Peter to become impatient and go fishing instead.

So many say, what we see here is Peter turning back to his old ways, and as the leader of the disciples they point out the negative influence He had on the others. Notice they say, “we also go with thee.”

But there is a second opinion about this verse. Other say, Peter goes to work while he waits on the Lord. Throughout the bible work is commendable, and idleness is an opportunity for sin. And after all, Jesus told the disciples to go to Galilee, He didn’t tell them to be idle.

The disciples needed to eat and Peter, being a strong leader of the disciples, leads them to work while they wait for the Lord.

Both opinions represent biblical truth. One could make an argument for either. Those who argue for the former say, this was obviously spiritual regression, based on the results: they fished all night and caught nothing.

But, what I think is more important is: this scene sets up the lesson Jesus wanted to teach them. A truth we find in John 15:5 ““I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” And that s what the disciples accomplished without Christ: nothing.

Jesus was teaching His disciples a valuable lesson of depending on Him and it is a lesson we need to learn today. A life apart from Christ is a fruitless life; an empty life before God.

Now that doesn’t mean a person who doesn’t know Christ, cannot do good deeds in this life. It means a person who doesn’t know Christ in this life cannot please God, and does not inherit the life to come.

The fact that the disciples caught nothing that night is a lesson in dependence on God because:

Notice Vs. 4, “ But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus.”

The word “but” is a contrast. The disciples caught nothing but, Jesus was watching!! The emphasis here is on their separation from Christ. That’s the reason they were unsuccessful.

The truth is: the disciples could have fished for a week, a month, or a decade and without Christ they were going to be unsuccessful.

They were operating in their own strength and whenever we operate in our own strength we are unsuccessful. We need to acknowledge the Lord and our dependence on Him every step of the way.

The children of Israel in the book of Exodus are our example of depending on God. When they were wandering through the wilderness and they were tired and hungry they cried out to the Lord, and He fed them with bread from heaven and water from a rock and they had everything they needed for each day.

That should remind us to depend on God everyday for the things we need. He may not provide everything we want but He provides everything we need.

In Matthew 6:26 Jesus tells us, to look at the birds of the air. They don’t sow or reap yet our heavenly Father feeds them how much more important are you, created in the image of God, than the birds of the air.

That is the point of the passage: we are to learn to trust and depend on Christ to meet our need.

The next thing I want you to see in this passage is:

III. The Instruction Jesus gives Vs. 5-7

Here Jesus reveals Himself to the disciples in a way that teaches them to trust and depend on Him.

Notice Vs. 5, “Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No.”

Jesus begins here with a question, and it’s important we understand Jesus already knows the answer. So, this is not a question to gain information, this is a question to teach them a lesson.

He says, “Children, have you any meat? The word” children” here is not a term of endearment. A better translation of this would be “lads” or boys, did you catch any fish? And their answer is an obvious ‘no.’

Jesus intends to cause them to admit their failure. And you can here their defeat in the tone of their answer: no!!

Then notice His question is followed by a request in Vs. 6, “And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find.

Now, this is a request from Jesus that is more of a command and it is followed by a promise. Notice He doesn’t say, Why don’t you try casting your net on the other side of the boat. He says, do what I say and you shall find!! But, you shall find what? success, fish!!

So, this is a command with a promise. The question is: will you be obedient? Will you do as I have commanded you? And they did and they were greatly rewarded for it.

Look at the rest of Vs. 6, “They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes.”

The disciples were obedient to the command and they were rewarded for it.

Notice that with their reward came the realization of where their blessing came from. Look at Vs. 7, “Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord.”

We know the disciple whom Jesus loved is John, but the emphasis here is on John’s spiritual perception. He realizes it’s Jesus. John has spiritual perception. Remember he was the first one to believe in the resurrection.

Once he saw the way the linens were laid, he knew Jesus had risen from the tomb. And now, John knows and recognizes where his blessing comes from. “It is the Lord!”

The question is: do you recognize where your blessings come from? Do you acknowledge “It is the Lord?” In other words, can you see what God is doing in your life and do you give God the glory?

Notice Peter’s reaction Vs. 7 continues, “Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher’s coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.”

When Peter hears John’s praise, he comes unglued. He is an emotional mess. Thankfully, he has enough since to put his clothes on before throwing himself into the sea.

Now, It is important we understand, Peter was not naked, as the KJV reports. He had taken his outer garment off because he was working. He was still covered around the waist.

But now, he puts his coat on and dives in to the sea. Again this is Peter being Peter. He goes a hundred miles an hour even if it is in the wrong direction. But you see this whole event has played out before in Peter’s life. I want you to look at Luke 5:1-9.

Now in the same way we see Peter was again running and falling before Jesus in amazement and repentance, because of the blessing of Christ.

In this passage so far, we have seen the setting of Jesus appearance and we have seen the instructions Jesus gave. The next thing I want you to see is:

IV. The Provision Jesus Supplied Vs. 8-11

What we learn here is: Jesus is a caring provider of our need.

Notice Vs. 8, “And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes.”

So, apparently the disciples, minus Peter, because he had already made it there, brought the boat ashore. We learn they were a little over a hundred yards away. A cubit being a foot and a half.

This could explain why the disciples didn’t recognize it was Jesus. Some scholars say, it was His glorified body that kept them from knowing it was Him. But the emphasis in this verse is on the abundance of the supply.

Notice Jesus was prepared for them when they arrive on shore Vs. 9 says, “As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread.”

Jesus has not only brought home the bacon but He has fried it up in the pan!! The disciples have everything they need prepared for them already.

They came to Galilee with nothing to eat. They spent all night out on the sea with nothing to show for it. Bu now, instead of being ashamed they are partaking in abundance.

Notice that even though it’s not necessary and He doesn’t need it, He offers them the opportunity to participate in the miracle. Look at Vs. 10, “Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now caught.”

You know what I find interesting about this: even the fish the disciples caught were provided by Jesus. Yet, He gives them the credit for the blessing He supplied.

What that teaches us is:, when we trust in Jesus we get to share in the glory of His provisions. He allows us to receive honor in the world for the work He does in our life. That’s why it is so important we praise Him and say, not me, ‘It is the Lord!”

Notice Vs. 11, “Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken.”

First of all, notice again the leader Peter is. He pulled the net to shore. The other disciples brought the net in, but Peter finished the job. It is no wonder why the others followed him.

But, the emphasis here is on the abundance of fish and the strength of the net. This time the net is not broken, and what we learn is: Jesus doesn’t do anything half way: not when He provides food and not when He provides salvation.

John 10:10 Jesus said, ““The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” The point is: because Jesus is so willing to provide what we need in this life, we can be sure of what He has provided for us in eternity.

The final thing I want to show you in this passage is:

V. The Invitation Vs. 12-14

Notice Vs. 12, “Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.”

This is another of the great invitations from Jesus in the gospel of John. Jesus always invites us into a deeper relationship with Him.

In John 1:39 He invites the first disciples to “ come and see.” At the feast of tabernacles in John 7:37 He invites anyone who is thirsty to come to Him and drink, and now He invite the disciples to come to Him and eat.

Typically, the invitations in the gospels represent Jesus inviting the sinner to come to Him and be saved.

The disciples in our passage had already come!! They knew Christ as their Lord and Savior. Notice none of them were confused about His identity anymore. We are told, “ they knew it was the Lord.”

The question is: do you? Are you certain about the identity of Jesus in your life? Do you know He is the Lord?

Notice Vs. 13, “Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise.”

This is simple. We see Jesus not only providing for our need but serving us in our need. He come, He takes, and He gives the bread and the fish.

This reminds me of the two miracles of the feeding of the multitudes. Jesus took the bread and after giving thanks He broke them and began distributing them through the disciples to the people. And the disciples picked up baskets of leftovers.

Now Jesus is supplying them and serving them in their need. This is an example of who Christ is in our life. When we trust Him and allow Him to sit on the throne of our life, He serves us and supplies us with everything we need, not only in this life, but in the life to come in the kingdom of God.

Matthew 6:33 says ““But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” The provisions of Christ come to those who make Him their priority.

Notice John’s summary in Vs. 14, “This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself to his disciples, after that he was risen from the dead.”

John turns us back now to the evidence of his eyewitness account. His purpose for writing was that we might believe and have life in His name.

In other words, John does not just want Jesus to be the provider of his needs, but of your needs and mine as well, and that begins with faith.

So, John tells us, three times Jesus has appeared to us and He was alive. He had indeed risen from the dead.

Conclusion

The point is: in the same way Jesus provided for the disciples, He will provide for you and me, and the most important provision He has made for us is: eternal life.

The lesson we learn is: we must trust and depend on Christ. We are to recognize where our blessings come from and give God the glory. That’s the example John gives us in this passage when he proclaims “it is the Lord!!”