The End

The time has come to end the long series on the Gospel of John which I embarked on many months ago. For me it has been a good reminder of the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. I recently came to better understand that the gospel isn’t just the good news of how we are saved but also how we are sanctified and will ultimately be rewarded and glorified. Who Jesus is and what he did for us is something that should impact us every day. One of the best ways to serve him and know him is to understand who he is and how he lived. Certainly, some of the stories that are recorded in this gospel or amazing and inspirational. Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written to you that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:30-31).

Jesus’ story should also leave us with the realization that we are part of God’s story as we serve him on this earth. We have life in his name! Jesus spent much time with his disciples and wants us to follow him too, even though our world is so much different than theirs. Knowing the gospel story also brings with it the obligation to not be ashamed to share it with others. My hope is that this series has been an encouragement to you to live your life for the Lord. In the coming weeks I will be writing more stand-alone articles as opposed to series. For now, the disciples have some fish to catch.

Once seeing Jesus’ wounds convinced Thomas that he was there among them, he did several miracles that were an encouragement to his followers in the final days before he would ascend to heaven. None of them were specified beyond what Jesus was about to do. Just like his miracles before he was crucified, they all served a purpose.

At some point Simon Peter decided to go fishing and several of his friends offered to go along. As is the case sometimes with fishermen, they were shut out. My experience with fishing is very limited but I’m sure if I was one who fished it would drive me crazy to put the time and effort in and be empty handed. We do not know at this point if he was fishing just for a meal or two or to sell the fish, but we know that it was nighttime, and they caught nothing (21:3). Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, “Friends haven’t you any fish? (4-5)”

Likely, because it was now early in the morning, they were fishing for the purpose of selling them fresh in the market that day. So, it wasn’t unusual for fishermen to be on the water all night. You can imagine their mood wasn’t the best since they were empty-netted. They would have been tired and frustrated. They gave a one-word answer to the one inquiring if they have any fish. “No”. Just as when Peter first met Jesus, he was instructed to try one more time. They were to throw the net on the right side of the boat and were told they would “find some”. When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish (6).

Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord (7)!” Now if you are like me, you want to ask why did they not realize that back when Jesus first greeted them and told them to throw the net to the right side of the boat. Did they not recognize his voice? Did they not remember how he helped them with fishing before? When it clicked with Peter, he did something he has experience with. He jumped in the water. There is no indication that he walked on it this time around – even for a moment. He did, however, swim approximately 100 yards to the shore while the others rowed the boat. Peter was in way better shape than me.

When they got there, Jesus already had the fire going with some fish on it. They were to place some of the 153 fish on the fire. They found that the net wasn’t torn despite the big haul. Jesus did what he wants to do with us. Perhaps it was a glimpse at the marriage supper of the lamb. He ate bread and fish with them. It was his third appearance to the disciples after the resurrection.

We probably should not be too hard on the disciples for not recognizing the voice of the Lord. There are times when he is speaking to us and with us (always), but we are too busy or tired to be tuned in or be with him. He is patient. Jesus waits for us. He wants us to abide with him. He provides what we need.

Peter, the fisherman who could swim, was the one who denied Jesus. When Jesus gave him the opportunity to affirm his love (and thus commitment) to the Lord, Peter did not let him down. “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you”. Jesus said, “Feed my sheep (17)”. Jesus predicted how Peter himself would eventually die and then said the same thing to him as he did about three years earlier. Follow me. For those who have life in his name, Jesus calls us to follow him until…the end.