We start this study in John’s
Gospel, chapter 21, and we are studying verses 1 to 14. Verse 1 starts with the phrase, “After these things Jesus manifested
Himself again . . ..” This is, according
to verse 14, the third time Jesus appeared to the disciples as a group. The two previous appearances to the group are recorded in chapter 20
(20:19-23 and 20:26-28). But
this is not his third appearance altogether, there are 10 separate recorded
incidents, other than these three[i].
The Story
This is a unique manifestation of the risen Savior. Seven of the disciples are present for this
revelation. They had obeyed Christ and
had gone into Galilee to wait for Him (Matthew
28:10). It is very likely they were
there at the Sea of Galilee waiting for Jesus
and the other four. Like many of us they
may have been bored and Peter came up with the idea, “I am going fishing.” Like any group of men the others thought that
was a good idea. There is no indication
that Peter was again falling away from His Lord as many seem to think. He’s got time on his hands … let’s go
fishing! It seems they fished all night.
This was not unusual. Apparently fishing on the Sea
of Galilee was often done at night. The text tells us that they
were at least 100 yards from shore.
Early in the
morning a figure appears on the shore, whom we know to be Jesus. Jesus called out to
the men in the boat, “Children,
you do not have any fish, do you?” This
term children was not derogatory, but a friendly address between men. We might translate it today: lads or
guys! It was a rhetorical question. Normally we would have asked, “How’s it
going?” Or, “Catch anything?” But Jesus’
question assumes the answer is ‘no’. And
it was! They answered Him, “No.”
Now at this point, the thinking disciples
might have said, “This picture is familiar!” There is a similarity this
incident has with the earlier one recorded in Luke 5:4 because Jesus said, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of
the boat and you will find a catch.” And like any fisherman’s dream when they
obeyed the stranger’s suggestion “they were not able to haul it in because of
the great number of fish.”
We’re going to come back to this, but John
immediately gets the picture: This is Jesus!
It is the Lord!” Peter jumps in
and runs to shore. What happens next? Jesus already had breakfast cooking. The other six disciples drag the net ashore
and Christ invites them to bring their fish and eat with Him. The number of fish was great and the net was
not torn. Both of these little details,
again, ought to have set their minds back to the events recorded in Luke 5.
Exposition
“Why does the Holy Spirit give us this story?” What is the Spirit’s intent? I believe the central point of the story is
the point that is found in the center of the story! It is found in John’s chiastic[ii]
form of writing:
A. Jesus reveals Himself to His disciples (v.1)
B. The miracle commanded (vv. 2-6).
C. The Beloved Disciple confesses, It is the Lord (v.7).
B. The miracle revealed (vv. 8-13).
A. Jesus was revealed to His disciples (v.14).
When it clicked with John that there was a
relationship between the catch of fish and the man on the shore, he said to
Peter, “It is the Lord.” This was a
confusing time for the disciples that we don’t fully understand. There was something about the appearance of
the risen Jesus which was different enough to make immediate recognition
difficult. Mary Magdalene (20:15) did not immediately recognize him, and when
he appeared to the disciples (20:19-23) he had to show them his hands and side
before they are said to have recognized him.
When John gives the reason for the
disciples’ hesitancy in approaching Jesus, he does not say it was because they
knew that it was Jesus, but because they knew that it was the LORD. Mary
Magdalene had announced to the disciples that she had seen the LORD in 20:18,
and when Jesus was recognized by the disciples in 20:20 they rejoiced when they
saw the LORD. The climax is reached in the recognition scene with Thomas
(20:28) where he exclaims, “My LORD and
my GOD”.
There is a very real sense that Jesus Christ’s
appearances were to reveal Himself these times to the Twelve, whereby they knew
they were in the presence of Deity – they knew they were in the presence of God
Himself.
Turn with me and read for yourself Jesus’ prophecy in, John 8:28
28
So Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative,
but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.”
When John said, “It is the Lord”, the
record reveals that he said, “O Kurios estin”
-- The Lord it is! Jewish rabbis
translated kurios in the LXX as Jehovah! It
is Jehovah! Gerhard Kittel, the renowned
Greek scholar says this: “The name of kurios implies a
position equal to that of God . . . The name of kurios thus designates the
position of the Risen Lord.”[1]
9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Now compare that with Isaiah 45:22-23
22 “Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other. 23 “I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance.
Jehovah God and Lord are synonymous terms. The New Testament Church viewed this Lordship of Jesus Christ critical in the life of the Believer:
1. Peter taught that the
inauguration of Christ as Lord followed the Cross. Acts
2:36 (NASB95) 36 “Therefore
let all the house of Israel
2. Paul claimed that
salvation is based upon this acknowledgement. Romans 10:9 (NASB95) 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart
that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. British scholar A. M.
Hunter concludes from the New Testament evidence, "the confession of
[Jesus'] Lordship--probably at baptism--made up the earliest Christian
confession."
3.
The affirmation of legitimate prophecy is based upon the speakers
confession that Jesus is Lord. 1 Corinthians 12:3 (NASB95) 3Therefore I make known to you
that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one
can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.” The Holy Spirit
always leads people into the Lordship of Christ.
4.
The Church believed it was this Lord who is the giver and sustainer
of life. 1 Corinthians 8:6 (NASB95) 6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom
are all things and we exist for
Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.
5.
It is this Lord who is sovereign over all authorities and is the
Head of the Church. Ephesians 1:22 (NASB95) 22 And He put all things in
subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church.
6.
It is the Lord Himself that is coming again to rapture His Church
and bring judgment. 1 Thessalonians 4:15-16
(NASB95) 15 For this we say to
you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming
of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For
the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of
God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. (see also 4:6; and 2 Thess 1:9)
7.
Jesus is Lord over all. Acts 10:36 (NASB95)
36 “The word which He sent to the sons ofIsrael
36 “The word which He sent to the sons of
The point is this: After His resurrection the predominant name given to Jesus is ‘Lord’.
Ralph P. Martin says: "The confession Jesus Christ is Lord stands as the climax of the drama of salvation. [Jesus Christ] receives the new name which is none other than God's own name the sign of a new aeon [age] already begun in the Church and the world."
When we speak of Christ as Lord, we acknowledge His sovereignty, His absolute ownership of all things, and His unlimited power. The appropriate response, of course, is obedience. Thus it becomes abhorrently hypocritical to confess Jesus as Lord and not obey Him. This is what brings the stinging indictment from our Lord:
"Not everyone who says to Me,
‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My
Father who is in heaven will enter." (Matthew 7:21)
[i] To Mary Magdalene (Mark 16:9;John 20:11-18)
To the women (Matthew 28:9, 10)
To Cleopas and his companion (Luke
24:13-35)
To Simon (Luke 24:34; I Corinthians
15:15)
To the disciples on the Emmaus Road
To the disciples on a “mountain” in Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20)
To the five hundred (I Corinthians
15:6)
To James, the Lord’s brother (I
Corinthians 15:7)
To the eleven on Olivet, near Jerusalem
To Paul, when he was on his way to Damascus
[ii] In recent years, scholars have rediscovered the importance of a
“chiastic” analysis of biblical and other literature. P.F. Ellis and J. Gerhard
have shown that the entire Gospel of John is structured according to an
A:B:C:B’:A’ chiasm or pattern of concentric parallelism . . . Chiastic analysis
of biblical texts serves multiple purposes . . . it enables the reader to
discern the “literal sense” of the Gospel, the meaning intended by the biblical
author . . ..
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