What Happens After Easter?

John 21:1-19

A true sports fan really gets wrapped up in watching his favorite game. Football is my game – as long as I can watch it on TV from the comfort of my living room!  When the season is over I feel lost – and have been known to watch a few reruns just to fill the empty spot.  Others feel that way about Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, July 4, and other holidays. We want the joy, the excitement to continue.

The disciples must have felt very empty after that first Easter. For 3 years they had spent every day with Jesus. Some days had been filled with joy and success, others with heartache and frustration. But they were always with the Man that was in charge.

The Sunday before Easter had been a fantastic day –Jesus had been welcomed by the masses. Thousands of people cheered Jesus, confirming the disciple’s hope that now was the time to set up His earthly kingdom. Little did they realize what faced them!

One can only imagine their confusion when Jesus overturned the tables of the money changers in the temple. That was out of character for their gentle leader!

Even more confusing was Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane after the last supper – and the kangaroo court that happened during the night.

Judas, their co-worker, committed suicide! Finally, Jesus died on a cross!

Confused and frightened, they hid in terror over the weekend. Then the women came rejoicing that Jesus had arisen from the dead! Their joy was restrained because they did not understand what was going on.

Things would never be the same. For the next 40 days Jesus came and went. It was frustrating and confusing!

We’ve all spent time in ‘confusion city’…if you haven’t, you will!

With their source of livelihood gone, Peter said, “I’m going fishing!” Six other disciples went with him. Our hearts hurt for them as we see them, sad and discouraged, getting into their boat for a night of fishing. Night was the best time to fish, but as dawn approached they still had not caught any fish. One can see Peter sitting there, totally depressed, and thinking ‘I’m a failure at everything!’ In the early morning light, as they neared the shore, they saw a Man standing by a small fire. At first they did not recognize Jesus.  We all know that God is always ready to help us in our time of need, but we do not always recognize Him.

Jesus called out, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

“Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.”

They obeyed, and immediately 153 fish were in their net.

John was the first one to recognize Jesus. He said to Peter, “It is the Lord!”

Peter grabbed his outer garment, jumped in the water, and headed for shore. The others followed in the boat, towing the nets (they were about 100 yards from the shore.)

Jesus had prepared breakfast for them – bread and fish. He had them add some of their fish to the fire so there would be plenty to eat.

153 fish is more than a net-full, but the net did not tear. Praise God! He meets our every need! They had to put the net in the water, but Jesus filled it.

The scene that follows is one of the most powerful scenes in Holy Scripture. Jesus was ready to reinstate Peter to his leadership responsibilities.

This is a powerful message to all of us that have blown it during our careers. (Most of us have messed up one or more times, so no finger-pointing!)

One can only imagine what Peter was thinking as Jesus called him aside – perhaps they walked along the shore line – for God will never embarrass us by correcting us in public… unless we refuse His quiet correction!

“Simon, son of John, do you truly love Me more than these?”

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “You know that I love You.”

“Feed My lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon, son of John, do you truly love Me?”

“Yes, Lord, You know that I love You.”

Jesus said, “Take care of My sheep.”

The third time Jesus said to Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?”

The third time the question was asked, it really got through to Peter. Undoubtedly Jesus did this because Peter had denied Jesus three times. However, there is also the issue of a third statement. It has a way of getting into our spirit. When people have trouble accepting their salvation I have found it helpful to have them say three times in a row, “According to the Bible I am a child of God.” The third time seems to get into their spirit.

After the third time Peter humbly said, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.”

Jesus then told Peter how he would die – and then simply said, “Follow Me.”

When Paul was converted, he too was told how much he would suffer for Christ. Sometimes we fail to understand that following Christ also means suffering. The Bible tells us not to be surprised when we have trials and tests – in fact the Bible tells us to rejoice when times are hard because God is sending the answer to your situation!

James 1:2-6 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.”

Romans 5:1-5 “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.”

When Jesus called the disciples to follow Him, they gave up their jobs and professions. With Jesus gone, they had to find a way to make a living again, so they would not be a burden to others. Perhaps you have noticed that God seems closer to us when we have experienced great losses.

Also, God knows our needs. He promised to meet all of them. In the old days this was called “Divine Providence,” meaning that God will provide our every need – but we still have to contribute our efforts.

However, we need to listen… Jesus had them cast the net on the right side of the ship. Jesus manifests Himself us by doing for us that which others cannot do.

John and Jesus were the closest in spirit.  They had a special bond, thus John refers to himself as the one Jesus loved.  John had been closer to His Master in His sufferings, and knew who it was before the others did.  When Jesus was on the cross, He turned the care of His mother over to John and his family… and Mary went to live with them.

Peter was the most zealous, and reached Jesus before the others did. We all have our own roles. The others stayed in the ship, drug the net, and brought the fish to the shore. They were not worldly, they did not love Jesus any less, they just had different assignments.

As Jesus dealt with Peter, He called him by his original name, “Simon, son of John.” The name “Peter” means “little rock” and he had not shown that strength in denying Christ. Matthew Henry notes that we must not be surprised when our sincerity is called into question, especially when our actions have made it doubtful.

The third time Jesus asked, Peter appealed to Christ, as knowing all things, even the secrets of his heart.

If our falls and mistakes make us more humble and watchful we have not failed; we have learned a valuable lesson. It appears to me that occasionally the sincerity of our love to God will be tested. When it is we need to examine and prove ourselves to see if we are on the right track.

When you and I get our driver’s license we have to pass a test – and if we are to be godly leaders, we need to plan of an occasional test as well.

Physicians have to have periodic training so they can keep up with the trends and new ideas in medicine. While our Bible never changes, our understanding of God and His ways needs to grow continually!

This morning we dedicated Bryce Cockayne to the Lord. It was a special, divine moment, because Jeff and Mellissa offered their baby to the Lord, and each of us offered to undergird them with our prayers of faith and words of encouragement. As a church, we are family. We joined Jeff and Mellissa’s biological family in rejoicing and covenanting ourselves to them.

Parenting and grand-parenting are awesome responsibilities. Making promises to the Lord is also serious business, because God takes us at our word. As far as God is concerned, our word is our bond.

We sincerely hope that all of our dreams will come true. But sometimes that does not happen. I close with the story of Oswald Smith, a man that deeply loved the Lord. When his Plan A did not work out, he asked the Lord for guidance. Rather than mourn, Oswald gave himself totally to the new assignment.

In 1920 Oswald Smith was standing before the examining board that selected missionaries. One dream had dominated his heart for years. He wanted to be a missionary.  Over and over again, he prayed, "Lord, I want to go as a missionary for you. Open a door of service for me." Now, at last, his prayer would be answered.

          However, when the examination was over, the board turned him down. He did not meet their qualifications. He failed the test. Oswald Smith had set his direction, but now life gave him a detour. What would he do?

          As Oswald prayed, God planted another idea in his heart. If he could not go as a missionary, he would build a church that would send out missionaries. And that is what he did. Oswald Smith pastored The People's Church in Toronto, Canada, which sent out more missionaries than any other church at that time.  He brought God into the situation, and God transformed his detour into a main thoroughfare of service.  ~Brian L. Harbour, Rising Above the Crowd.  (Found at www.sermons.com)

Here is one of the gospel tracts Oswald produced: