Reflections...

A sermon preached at Kowloon Union Church on Forth Sunday of Easter 8 May 2022, by Rev. Phyllis Wong. The scripture readings that day were Psalm 23 and John 10:22-30. 

A sermon preached at Kowloon Union Church on Third Sunday of Easter 1 May 2022, by Rev. John Snelgrove. The scripture readings that day were Psalm 30 (O.T), John 21: 1 – 25 (N.T)

 

Today is a story about fish. The 21st chapter of John's Gospel is at first glance a ‘fish out of water’

What do I mean by that? Well.....The average reader of the Gospel would conclude that John had already completed his book with the dramatic testimony of Thomas in John 20. By the end of John 20, Doubting Thomas had become Believing Thomas.

We then have two verses which the heading in my Bible describes as ‘The Purpose of John's Gospel’

30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. 

Sounds like a good ending to me. And.. the reader would wonder why John added another chapter. Let me make a suggestion to answer that question

I believe that the main reason is the apostle Peter, John's close associate in ministry. In Acts 3: 1 we see them together at the gate of the temple called Beautiful

John did not want to end his gospel without telling his readers that Peter was restored to his apostleship.

Without John 21, we would wonder why Peter was such a key figure in the book of Acts. For example, his sermon at Pentecost would make little sense if he was still the ‘disciple who had denied Jesus’

Three years ago, I was privileged to lead a team from Hong Kong to Israel. And we visited the beach on the Sea of Galilee shoreline where The Restoration of Peter (also known as the Re-commissioning  of Peter) described in John 21 took place.

In our gospel reading this morning, we see that......

Three times Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him - in response to the three times that Peter had denied Jesus. The restoration was complete.

And we can learn a lot from these verses

I see in these verses two pictures of the believer and a responsibility attached to each picture.

And the first one is this......

Are Fishers of Men-Obey Him (21:1-8)

As fishers of men, our responsibility is to OBEY Him

This is the story of Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish

The Lord had instructed His disciples to meet Him in Galilee, which helps to explain why they were at the Sea of Galilee

But John did not explain why Peter decided to go fishing, and Bible students are not in agreement in their suggestions.

Some claim that he was perfectly within his rights, that he needed to pay his bills and the best way to get money was to go fishing. Why sit around idle? Get busy!

Others believe that Peter had been called from that kind of life and that it was wrong for him to return.

Furthermore, when he went fishing, Peter took six other men with him! If he was wrong, they were wrong too.

Whether Peter and his friends were right or wrong we cannot prove but we do know this: their efforts were in vain.

They toiled all night and caught nothing.

Certainly, Peter must have remembered what happened two years before, when Jesus called him into 

full-time discipleship On that occasion, Peter had fished all night and caught nothing, but Jesus had turned his failure into success.

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 labours are in vain. They are serving without direction from the Lord, so they cannot expect blessing from the Lord.

After His resurrection, our Lord was sometimes not recognised, so it was that His disciples did not recognise Him when, at dawn, He appeared on the shore.

His question expected a negative reply: “You have not caught anything to eat, have you?” Their reply was brief and perhaps a bit embarrassed: “No,”

It was time for Jesus to take over the situation, just as He did when He called Peter into discipleship. He told them where to cast the net; they obeyed, and they caught 153 fish! The difference between success and failure was the width of the ship! We are never far from success when we permit Jesus to give the orders, and we are usually closer to success than we realise.

It was John (describing himself as the disciple Jesus loved) who first realised that the stranger on the shore was their own Lord and Master.

It is love that recognises the Lord and shares that good news with others: “It is the Lord!”

With characteristic impulsiveness, Peter quickly put on his outer garment (“naked” simply means “stripped for work”) and dove into the water!

He wanted to get to Jesus!

This is in contrast to Luke 5:8, where Peter told the Lord to depart from him. The other six men followed in the boat, bringing the net full of fish. In the experience recorded in Luke

5, the nets began to break, but in this experience, the net held fast.

Perhaps we can see in these two "fishing miracles" an illustration of how the Lord helps His people fish for lost souls. All of our efforts are useless apart from His direction and blessing.

Jesus called the disciples and us to be "fishers of men." This phrase was not invented by Jesus; it had been used for years by Greek and Roman teachers. To be a "fisher of men" in that day meant to seek to persuade men and "catch" them with the truth.

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!

We are indeed "fishers of men," and there are "fish" all around us. If we obey His directions, we will catch the fish.

The second picture is.....

We Are Shepherds—Love Him (21:9-18) 

As shepherds, our responsibility is to LOVE Him

Jesus met His disciples on the beach where He had already prepared breakfast for them. This entire scene must have stirred Peter's memory and touched his conscience. Surely he was recalling that first catch of fish in Luke 5 and perhaps even the feeding of the five thousand with bread and fish.

I had a thought.....How loving of Jesus to feed Peter before He dealt with his spiritual needs.

He gave Peter opportunity to dry off, get warm, satisfy his hunger, and enjoy personal fellowship. This is a good example for us to follow as we care for God's people. CertainIy the spiritual is more important than the physical, but caring for the physical can prepare the way for spiritual ministry.

Since Peter had denied his Lord three times, Jesus asked him three personal questions. He also encouraged him by giving a threefold commission that restored Peter to his ministry.

The key issue is Peter's love for the Lord Jesus, and that should be a key matter with us today. But what did the Lord mean by “more than these”?

Was He asking, “Do you love Me more than you love these other men?”

Perhaps Jesus meant, “Do you love Me more than you love these boats and nets and fish?”

I would like to contend that....

The question probably meant, “Do you love Me—as you claimed—more than these other disciples love Me?”

Peter had boasted of his love for Christ and had even contrasted it with that of the other men.

“I will lay down my life for thy sake” (John 13:37).

“Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended” (Matt. 26:33).

There is more than a hint in these boastful statements that Peter believed that he loved the Lord more than did the other disciples.

As an aside.....Some scholars have made play on the use of the different words for love ‘agape’ and ‘phileo’ in their interplay.

Whilst it is an interesting point, I'm inclined not to read too much into it.

Before we judge Peter too severely, we should consider that .. In spite of his faults and failures, Peter did indeed love the Lord, and he was not ashamed to admit it.

The other men were certainly listening "over Peter's shoulder" and benefiting from the conversation, for they too had failed the Lord after boasting of their devotion. Peter had already confessed his sin and been forgiven. Now he was being restored to leadership and apostleship.

The image, however, changes from that of the fisherman to that of the shepherd. Peter was to minister both as an evangelist (catching the fish) and a pastor (shepherding the flock). It is unfortunate when we divorce these two because they should go together. Pastors ought to evangelise    (2 Tim. 4:5) and then shepherd the people they have won so that they  mature in the Lord.

Jesus gave three admonitions to Peter: "Feed My lambs," "Shepherd My sheep," and "Feed My sheep." Both the lambs and the more mature sheep need feeding and leading, and that is the task of the spiritual shepherd. It is an awesome responsibility to be a shepherd of God's flock. There are enemies that want to destroy the flock, and the shepherd must be alert and courageous. By nature, sheep are ignorant and defenseless, and they need the protection and guidance of the shepherd.

Church pastors are often referred to as shepherds.

But it is also true that each individual Christian must help to care for the flock. Each of us has a gift or gifts from the Lord, and we should use what He has given us to help protect and perfect the flock. Sheep are prone to wander, and we must look after each other and encourage each other. Jesus Christ is described in scripture as the Good Shepherd (John 10:11), the Great Shepherd (Heb. 13:20-21), and the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:4). Pastors are "under-shepherds" who must obey Him as they minister to the flock. The most important thing the pastor can do is to love Jesus Christ. If he or she truly loves Jesus Christ, the pastor will also love His sheep and tenderly care for them. The Greek word for "sheep" at the end of John 21:17 means "dear sheep." Our Lord's sheep are dear to Him and He wants His ministers to love them and care for them personally and lovingly.

A pastor who loves the flock will serve it faithfully, no matter what the cost.

As John came to the close of his book, he affirmed again the credibility of his witness. (Remember, witness is a key theme in the gospel of John. The word is used forty-seven times.)

John witnessed these events himself and wrote them for us as he was led by the Holy Spirit. He could have included so much more, but he wrote only what the Spirit told him to write.

The book ends with Peter and John together following Jesus, and He led them right into the book of 

Acts! What an exciting thing it was to receive the power of the Spirit and to bear witness of Jesus Christ! Had they not trusted Him, been transformed by Him, and followed Him, they would have remained successful fishermen on the Sea of Galilee, and the world would never have heard of them.

Jesus Christ is transforming lives today. Wherever He finds a believer who is willing to yield to His will, listen to His Word, and follow His way, He begins to transform that believer and accomplish remarkable things in that life. He also begins to do wonderful things through that life. Peter and John have been off the scene (except for their books) for centuries, but you and I are still here.

We are taking His place and taking their place. What a responsibility! What a privilege!

We can succeed only as we permit Him to transform us.