The Sermon for Sunday, May 4th, the Second Sunday after Easter
The Lessons: Acts 9:1-19a; Psalm 33:1-11; Revelation 5:6-14; John 21:1-14
The Text: John 21:1-14
INTRODUCTION
There was a certain preacher who used the technique of automatically dividing up his sermon into several major points. He liked to preach on the “David and Goliath” story because it enabled him to use David’s “five, smooth stones” as the basis for dividing the sermon into five parts. He also loved to preach about a passage in the Book of Acts in which “four anchors” are dropped from a storm-ravaged ship. One Sunday morning, the congregation shook with terror when the preacher announced that he would now preach on the Gospel text in which Peter throws out a net and catches one hundred and fifty-three fish.
– #756, p.399, James F. Colaianni (ed.): Sunday Sermons Treasury of Illustrations. Pleasantville, NJ: Voicings Publications, 1982. Second Printing, 1986.
The Gospel according to St. John we would expect to be concluded with the statement of the author’s purposes in writing the Gospel at the end of Chapter 20. John 21 seems to be an epilogue to the Gospel, but there is no evidence that John’s Gospel was ever circulated in a shorter version that did not include the twenty-first chapter.
What was the purpose of the twenty-first chapter then? It records a unique post-resurrection appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ to seven of the eleven Apostles, including Peter, Thomas, Nathaniel, James, and John. Not only does it record this appearance, but it also contains the question that Jesus asks three times of Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” (John 21:15, 16,17) and Peter’s three affirmations of his love for Jesus, as well as the three commands given by our Lord to Peter to be a shepherd to God’s people. Finally, after the Lord predicts Peter’s crucifixion, when Peter asks what will become of John, the beloved disciple, the Lord emphasizes that Peter should follow Him, and not be concerned, even if John should carry on living on earth until the second coming of the Lord. Really, John is concerned to dispel the rumor that came to circulate among the disciples that he would never die.
Our Gospel Lesson, though, deals with the disciples’ fishing trip that ended with a miraculous draught of fish. A similar miracle is recorded in Luke 5, where the disciples also labored all night on the Sea of Galilee without catching any fish. The lesson of that miracle story for Peter was that from then on, he would be a fisher of men (Luke 5:10). At the end of this account, Peter and Andrew leave everything behind and follow Jesus. At the beginning of this account in John 21, we are tempted to wonder why these Apostles are going fishing again. Whatever the reason, the disciples in this account are not rebuked by the Lord for going fishing again, but the Lord gives St. Peter direction for his future ministry.
THE RISEN LORD JESUS CHRIST ON THE BEACH AT DAWN WAS NOT AT FIRST RECOGNIZED
After no yield of fish for the whole night, at the disciples in the ship saw someone standing on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias (Sea of Galilee), but did not recognize him as Jesus (John 21:4). When they reply in the negative to his question if they had any food, he told them to cast the net to starboard (the right side of the ship). When they did so, and drew in so many fish that they could hardly draw the net in, the beloved disciple is the first to realize that the figure on the shore is the Lord Jesus Christ. When Peter hears this, he puts on his cloak, jumps into the lake and swims ashore. On reaching the shore with the net full of one hundred and fifty-three fishes, they see the Lord has made a fire and laid bread and fish on it. He then tells them to bring some of the fish they have just caught.
After this, the Lord invites them to have breakfast with him, and he distributes the bread and the fish. This appearance of the risen Lord to his disciples is recorded as the third appearance of the Lord to his disciples (John 21:14).
It is significant that at this breakfast, none of the disciples dared to ask who he was, for they all knew he was the Lord. The disciples’ recognition of the Lord Jesus is now complete. From a distance, they had not known who he was, but now they knew. We are reminded of how the two disciples at Emmaus recognized the Lord Jesus Christ as he gave thanks, broke bread with them, and gave it to them (Luke 24:30-31).
LESSONS WE CAN LEARN FROM THIS PASSAGE
From this account, we can learn a few lessons.
Firstly, the Lord’s guidance and direction is crucial to our ministry, and to his provision, just as the Lord’s instruction to the disciples to cast their net to the starboard side of the ship led to a net full of fish.
Secondly, it is important to recognize and give grateful thanks to the Lord, who gives us his abundant provision. It is an abundant spiritual provision of salvation and sanctification, healing and edification, the gift of the Holy Spirit and his gifts, and the ministries that he gives us to fulfill on this earth.
Thirdly, it is in sharing in spiritual communion with the Lord Jesus Christ that we can know him more fully and receive his calling for our lives, as St. Peter did for his. The Church provides us with the Sacrament of Holy Communion for us to meet with the Lord Jesus Christ and commune with him.
CONCLUSION
Are you strengthening your prayer life and your relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ? Are you making sure you obey the Lord’s direction for your life?