Jesus Appears at the Sea of Galilee

John 21

After these things Jesus manifested Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and He manifested Himself in this way.2Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together.3Simon Peter said to them, "I am going fishing." They said to him, "We will also come with you." They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing.

4But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.5So Jesus said to them, "Children, you do not have any fish, do you?" They answered Him, "No."6And He said to them, "Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch." So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish.7Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord." So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea.8But the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from the land, but about one hundred yards away, dragging the net full of fish.9So when they got out on the land, they saw a charcoal fire already laid and fish placed on it, and bread. 10Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish which you have now caught."11Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of large fish, a hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not torn.

I. The Risen Lord Appears to the Disciples by the Sea of Tiberias

A. Verse 1___"Jesus revealed Himself" (was revealed). That is how this verse starts and it is intended to announce a theme.

B. Verse 2___Simon Peter heads the list,Thomas follows and we are again told that his name means "the twin." The rest of the list is as usual.

C. Verse 3___"I am going fishing" says Peter and the rest agree to go with him. There is much said about this "I am going fishing." It is implied by many that this is a sign that Peter has given up. I can't agree with that. Even with Jesus crucified, these people still had to eat. I am going fishing is just that___a method to obtain food. According to Lk. 24:34, Peter had already seen the risen Lord. This is in harmony with what Paul said in 1st Cor. 15:5. One may even come to that conclusion by reading v.7 of this chapter with that in mind.

D. Verse 4___The failure of the disciples to recognize Jesus on the shore is not to be taken as an indication that they had not seen him since his resurrection; rather it points to the mystery of resurrected state of Jesus.

E. Verses 5-6___Why the right side? It was common to the Greeks that the right side of the boat was the lucky side. I think that goes far beyond that to the supernatural.

F. Verses 7___The miracle shows the beloved disciple that the man on the shore is Jesus. Peter throws himself into the sea in order to reach the Lord.

G. Verses 8-11___On reaching land, the disciples see fish and bread prepared for them by Jesus (v.9).

Jesus Provides

12Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the disciples ventured to question Him, "Who are You?" knowing that it was the Lord.13Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and the fish likewise.14This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after He was raised from the dead.

Verses 12-14__A curious statement found in v.12 is that none of the disciples ventured to question Him although they knew it was the Lord. It is almost the same as the Emmaus story where the disciples did not know the identity of the Lord until He broke the bread. While the above sentence seems awkward here is what I think it means. The disciples are saying, "Is it really you?" It was at least the 3rd appearance of the Lord after the resurrection.

15So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You " He said to him, "Tend My lambs."16He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, "Shepherd My sheep."17He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, "Do you love Me?" And he said to Him, "Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You " Jesus said to him, "Tend My sheep.

18"Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go."19Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God And when He had spoken this, He said to him, "Follow Me!

I. The Rehabilitation of Peter and confirmation of His calling (21:15-17).

A. Verse 15___Prior to this Jesus appeared to the disciples in pairs or as a group. Jesus now appears to Peter. The threefold questioning of Peter by the Lord leaves the impression that Jesus does not trust Peter. The essence of this is Peter's commission to his pastoral duties. That is to tend the sheep. Peter was to tend the sheep because he loved Jesus.Peter completes his mission as we read in 1st Peter chapter 5ff.

15Ὅτε οὖν ἠρίστησαν, λέγει τῷ Σίμωνι Πέτρῳ ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Σίμων Ἰωάννου, ἀγαπᾷς με πλέον τούτων; λέγει αὐτῷ· ναί κύριε,

σὺ οἶδας ὅτι φιλῶ σε. λέγει αὐτῷ· βόσκε τὰ ἀρνία μου.16λέγει αὐτῷ πάλιν δεύτερον· Σίμων Ἰωάννου, ἀγαπᾷς με; λέγει

αὐτῷ· ναί κύριε, σὺ οἶδας ὅτι φιλῶ σε. λέγει αὐτῷ· ποίμαινε τὰ προβάτιά μο 17λέγει αὐτῷ τὸ τρίτον· Σίμων Ἰωάννου, φιλεῖς με; ἐλυπήθη ὁ Πέτρος ὅτι εἶπεν αὐτῷ τὸ τρίτον· φιλεῖς με; καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ· κύριε, πάντα σὺ οἶδας, σὺ γινώσκεις ὅτι φιλῶ σε. λέγει αὐτῷ· βόσκε τὰ προβάτιά μου.

In the verse above Jesus continues to ask Peter is he loves him (agape). Peter seems unable to give the correct answer. Each time Peter answers he does so with "I love (philo) you. Then at the end of the questioning, Jesus says "Do you philo me?" Was Jesus mildly scolding Peter for his failure to give the correct answer (i.e I love you somewhat but not unconditional) as some commentators claim. Whatever interpretation we put on this we know what the outcome was. Peter's love carried him on the preach the gospel of Jesus to the world. Peter's love for Jesus cost Peter his life and he also died on the cross (vs. 18-19). Real love is not free but must be paid for and Peter did pay the price.

B. Verses 16-17___Jesus is still trying to confirm the love of Peter along with the injunction to take care of His sheep. 1st Peter chapter 5 tells us of the fulfillment of this injunction.

C. Verse 18-19___This is a prophecy about the death of Peter. Peter will also go to the cross. His hands will be outstretched and they will be tied. Jesus told Peter that he was to die on the cross. Then simply said "follow Me."

"20Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them; the one who also had leaned back on His bosom at the supper and said, "Lord, who is the one who betrays You?"21So Peter seeing him said to Jesus, "Lord, and what about this man?"22Jesus said to him, "If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!" 23Therefore this saying went out among the brethren that that disciple would not die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but only, "If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?

A. Verse 20___The previous paragraph ends with the statement that Peter was to "follow" Jesus. In this verse we find out that "John" is also following. We are reminded that this one following is the one who asked Jesus at the Lord's Supper who was the betrayer and now we find out that Peter asked John to ask Jesus.

B. Verses 21-22__Peter then once again is reminded that some things are none of his business. Jesus flatly tells Him that if He (Jesus ) wants John to remain alive until Jesus comes again that really isn't any of Peter's business.

C. Verse 23__Some disciples misunderstood the point that Jesus was making to Peter and the word was spread around that John was to live forever. I am sure that this rumor gained traction as time went on and it was obvious that John outlived all the rest of the apostles. It is here that John sets the record straight. Jesus never promised that John was not to die.

24This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and wrote these things, and we know that his testimony is true.25And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books that would be written. In other words, Peter went to Jesus via the Beloved disciple.

A. Verse 24__There is the claim that verses 24-25 are additions and probably added by the Elders at the church of Ephesus. A quick glance in Metzger's textual commentary does not even hint at this being an interpolation. John puts his mark on this letter. It is his testimony that we are reading.

B. Verse 25__It is said that this is an overstatement. However, those who make such a statement have no basis for such remarks. What we have is the historical record and that is all we have. I take it at least for the moment at face value.

by Lane Rogers