What we were looking at.
The Gospel of John was one of the
last books of the New Testament and of
the Bible written.
And John wrote it when he was around
95 years of age.
And he looked back to the time when
he had walked with Jesus.
And to the life of Jesus on earth
and he selected out of all the hundreds
of thousands of miracles that Jesus did.
He selected eight of them.
Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
And he called them signs.
He never uses the word miracle in the
whole Gospel.
Now we know they were miracles.
They were supernatural manifestations of God's power.
But it's interesting that John calls them signs.
Which means at least eight out of Jesus'
miracles had a specific message.
Something for our daily walk with the Lord.
And those miracles have a spiritual message to
our hearts.
So what we were looking at last Sunday
and today were these eight signs.
And we looked at seven of them.
The first was the water being turned into
wine.
Speaking of a life without the joy and
the power of the Holy Spirit.
Coming into that life of joy and power.
We saw then secondly the healing of the
royal official's son.
In John chapter 4.
Speaking of the power we have in prayer
to pray for someone else.
Who doesn't have faith for himself to bring
that person to salvation or healing or whatever
the need is.
And then we looked at the miracle of
the man who was healed at the pool
of Bethesda.
Who had been there for 38 years and
had given up all hope.
And who was healed by the power of
the Lord.
Teaching us how we are to walk and
not be lame spiritually.
And then we saw the fourth one was
the feeding of the multitude.
Where with limited resources God can still use
us to be a blessing to thousands.
And this morning we looked at Jesus walking
on the water.
And Peter walking on the water.
Speaking of the power God gives us to
overcome the law of sin in our lives.
Which is similar to the law of gravity.
And then we looked at the man born
blind whose eyes were opened.
Speaking of spiritual vision that the Lord gives
us.
And then the seventh one was the raising
of Lazarus from the dead.
Speaking of God bringing us to spiritual life.
And setting us free from the bondage of
the grave clothes of traditions and the law
etc.
So now we want to look at the
last one which is in John chapter 21.
The eighth and final sign.
And this is the one miracle that Jesus
did after his resurrection.
All the other miracles were done before he
died.
And this is the one miracle that Jesus
did after his resurrection.
It was almost like a final message that
he was giving to his disciples.
And to all of us.
And it's the miracle of the miraculous catch
of fish rather.
When the disciples had toiled all night and
caught nothing.
Now this is a miracle that was repeated
once before in Luke chapter 5.
We read something similar where they hadn't toiled
all night.
But they had been toiling and they hadn't
caught any fish.
And the Lord told them to launch out
into the deep.
And they caught a big catch of fish
that time.
And it's interesting that the Lord had to
repeat this miracle.
Because he had called them to be fishers
of men.
And he was teaching them some principles in
fishing for men.
And also it has application to many other
areas of our Christian life.
We'll come to that as we look at
it.
Now it's very interesting to see that Jesus,
most of Jesus' disciples were fishermen.
At least a large number of them.
And I think there was a reason why
he chose fishermen.
First of all they were very simple people.
They didn't have all the complications of people
who had studied in Bible seminaries and all.
There were a lot of people like that
in Jesus' time.
And it's interesting that Jesus didn't go to
this seminary that Gamaliel was running in Jerusalem
to find his disciples.
He found them among fishermen.
But more than that they were hardworking people.
Their livelihood came out of fishing.
And they had to work very hard.
And if they didn't catch fish one day
they'd have to perhaps work all night.
And Jesus was emphasizing there that that is
the type of person he calls for his
service.
One who's willing to work hard.
One who's willing to be persistent.
I mean he can't come home without any
fish.
His whole family depends on catching fish for
survival.
And the Lord was saying that those who
serve him must have that attitude in seeking
to win people to Christ or build a
church or whatever our calling is.
Hardworking people who are willing to dirty their
hands.
Who are not afraid of dirtying their hands.
Who are persistent.
That's the type of person whom the Lord
calls.
And here we read of a time after
the resurrection.
And you remember in the days immediately before
that.
How Peter had denied the Lord three times.
And I think he had come to a
place of despair.
He'd given up all hope that anything that
he would ever be able to serve the
Lord again.
Because he'd failed the Lord so badly.
And there's a message in this miracle.
Especially for those who feel that they've failed
the Lord badly.
They've let the Lord down so badly that
they wonder if anything good can ever come
out of their life anymore.
Maybe they failed in the ministry.
Maybe they've fallen into sin so often.
And they've given up hope of ever being
able to live a godly life.
Or in other ways made a mess of
your life and come to a rough bottom.
And isn't it interesting that the last message
that Jesus gave before he went up to
heaven.
Through a miracle.
Was a message for those who felt hopeless.
Who felt they had hit rock bottom.
And that nothing good could ever come out
of their life.
I think the Lord looked through 20 centuries.
And saw that there would be many among
his people.
Who would feel like that at different times.
Who would feel like giving up.
I'm amazed at the number of times that
the Apostle Paul says in his letters.
We don't give up.
Even though it's like this.
We don't give up.
Which means he was tempted to give up.
That's a temptation that comes to the greatest
of saints.
And the message in this miracle is.
No matter how much you've failed.
Don't give up.
The Lord can still do something with your
life.
Something wonderful and glorious.
Not something small.
Something big.
And that's what we see in this.
So if any of you feel like that.
Then this message is for you.
I've certainly felt like that many times.
It's for me.
And it says here in verse 2.
That Simon.
There were together Simon, Peter, Thomas.
These were all disciples of Jesus.
The sons of Zebedee, James and John.
And two others of the disciples.
And verse 3.
Simon Peter said.
I am going fishing.
Now I want to paraphrase that.
You've got to understand.
He wasn't just saying.
Well I'm going to go and catch some
fish tonight.
He wasn't going for some relaxation.
What he meant was.
I've finished with being an apostle.
I'm going back to fishing.
Permanently.
I know the Lord called me three and
a half years ago.
To leave my boat.
And my fishing job.
And to serve him.
But I tried that.
I tried it for three and a half
years.
And I'm a failure.
So I want to go back to my
old profession.
Because there at least.
I had some success.
And these other disciples.
You know when you get one discouraged person.
It's very easy for him to infect a
lot of others.
With that discouragement.
And that's why I say.
Whenever you're discouraged.
It's good to keep our mouth shut.
Not infect other people.
With how we feel.
And these other fellows.
They say.
Yeah we also feel like that.
Or giving up.
Being apostles.
That's not our calling.
We also will come with you.
And they went out.
And they decided to go back to their
fishing.
That's the temptation I was speaking about.
You know.
Giving up on following the Lord.
Giving up on something you tried.
You sincerely tried.
These folks were sincere.
They had sacrificed much.
They had sincerely given up everything.
And they were trying to follow the Lord.
And they had made a mess.
They had failed.
And they said.
Well let's go back to something.
In which we've got some experience.
And so they went out.
And they got into the boat.
Verse 3.
And that night they caught nothing.
That's interesting.
That if you go away.
From that which the Lord calls you to.
You're going to be a failure there too.
Even if you think.
That's the area.
Where you've got a lot of experience.
You know.
Peter thought.
Well.
There's one thing I'm good at.
Fishing.
Let me go back to that.
And the Lord said.
Okay.
Go ahead.
Try.
And he was going to be a failure
there.
He tried all night.
And he caught nothing.
And he was wondering.
What's happening?
I've never had a night like this.
And then it says.
When the day was now breaking.
Jesus.
Stood on the beach.
And then.
We know that later on.
He told them.
Verse 6.
Cast your net on the right side.
And they cast it.
And they were not able to haul it
in.
Because of the great number of fish.
What's the lesson that we're to learn from
this?
God seeks to break us.
In our strongest points.
Peter thought.
Well.
I'm a failure as an apostle.
I'm no good at being a preacher.
But let me go back to fishing.
Because there I'm okay.
And God says.
You'll never be a success at anything.
If you don't stick to the calling.
I gave you to.
And that's good for us.
You know.
It's a mark of God's love.
That when we try our hand at something.
Other than what God has called us to.
We fail.
When Jonah went away from.
What God had called him to.
There was calamity.
There was a storm.
And that's good for us.
Because God loved Jonah.
That he faced that storm.
It's because God loved these disciples.
That he allowed them to fail that night.
And to catch nothing.
And it's because God loves you.
That he allows you to fail.
So that you can come back to him.
Once the Lord has laid a hold of
you.
With his love.
And as a purpose for your life.
I want to tell you this.
My dear brothers and sisters.
From the many, many cases.
That I've seen in my life.
My own experience.
You'll never be a success at anything else.
To follow Jesus.
Is the greatest thing of all.
And so.
Simon Peter.
Toiled all night.
And caught nothing.
Let's imagine.
That they went to.
Let's assume they went to.
Fish at about 6 o'clock in the
evening.
And Jesus.
Did not come.
Till the day was breaking.
Let's say.
Around 5 o'clock in the morning.
11 hours.
He allowed them to fish.
And then he comes to them and.
Asks them.
Well children.
You don't have any fish do you?
Who said Jesus didn't have a sense of
humor?
He knew very well.
They didn't have any fish.
And they said no.
I've noticed this in.
As you study through the miracles that Jesus
did.
And the way he dealt with people.
Even where he knew the answer.
He wanted them to admit it.
He wanted them to acknowledge.
Their needs.
He would ask a blind man.
What do you want me to do for
you?
I mean even I'd know what a blind
man wants.
When.
He comes to Jesus.
No need to ask.
And they would say we want our blind
eyes to be open.
As if that was something.
Great which nobody else knew.
But the principle there was.
That Jesus wanted those people to admit.
Lord.
I'm blind.
Lord.
I've got no fish.
I've tried all night.
And I've been a failure.
It's the first step.
To victory.
To success in the Christian life.
Honest.
Acknowledgement.
Of failure.
And I never tire.
Of proclaiming this message.
That the first thing.
God requires from us.
Is not purity.
It's not even repentance.
It's honesty.
Acknowledging our condition.
Now why has God made that the first
condition?
Because that's the easiest thing for any of
us sitting here.
Or anywhere in the world to do.
Purity can take years.
Even repentance and restitution can take time.
But honesty.
To acknowledge that you've been a failure.
How long does that take?
To acknowledge that you're defeated.
To acknowledge your sin.
How long does that take?
That's the first thing.
Have you got any fish?
No Lord.
We haven't got any.
And he said to them.
Cast the net on the right hand side
of the boat.
And you will find a catch.
Now they had cast their net on the
left side.
And the right side.
And the front side.
And the back side.
For 11 hours.
And assuming that they cast it one side.
And tried for five minutes.
And they cast it on the other side.
They must have done that a hundred times
in 11 hours.
And they had caught nothing.
But look at their response there.
As soon as they heard that.
They did it.
There's a verse in the Old Testament.
In the book of Proverbs.
Which says.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart.
And don't lean upon your own reason.
In all your ways.
Acknowledge him.
And he will direct your paths.
Do you know the greatest enemy to.
Obedience to the Lord.
Is very often our reason.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart.
And don't lean on your reason.
If the Lord tells you to do something.
If God's word has told you to do
something.
Do it.
And you'll never regret it.
Don't argue with God.
When he's told you to do something.
When you feel an urge.
In your spirit.
In your heart.
The prompting of the Holy Spirit.
To do something.
Do it.
Immediately.
And that's what we see here.
Even though they had done it so many
times.
When the Lord told them to do it.
They did it.
And.
They were not disappointed.
They caught such a great number of fish.
It says.
They couldn't even pull it in.
To the boat.
And that's always God's way.
Now the question that.
We can ask ourselves is.
Why does it.
Why does the Lord.
Allow them to fail.
For so long.
Why didn't he come earlier.
When he knew very well.
That they were not going to catch any
fish.
Why didn't he come at least at seven
o'clock.
The previous evening.
They tried for one hour.
And there's a reason for that.
There's a principle here.
In God's dealings with man.
That God comes to help us.
When we have come to an end.
Of ourselves.
This is a principle.
That we've seen even before.
The man at the pool of Bethesda.
Had been lying there for 38 years.
He was the one person.
Sitting there.
In Bethesda.
Among the multitude of people.
Who were sick.
Who had completely.
Come to an end of himself.
He sat there.
Thinking well.
There's hope for everybody else.
Not for me.
And that's the one.
The Lord picked up.
And.
I can imagine.
That these disciples.
As they.
Fished for one hour.
Two hours.
They thought well.
Six hours.
Seven hours.
Ten hours.
They still thought.
There's some hope.
By the time.
They had fished for 11 hours.
They said.
There's no hope.
And when they had come to an end.
Of themselves.
That's the time.
The Lord came.
And met with them.
There's a wonderful message here.
It's when we hit rock bottom.
When we've come to.
A place of total failure.
When we realize.
Lord.
There's no way.
I'm able to live this life.
That is the time.
The Lord comes.
And meets with us.
When they've given up all hope.
That's the time.
When they were ready to pack.
Pack up their nets.
And go home.
It says.
That the Lord.
Appeared there.
There's a reason for this.
Many a times.
There's an answer here.
To a problem.
That many Christians face.
Why is it.
That I try so often.
Let's.
Let's take the matter of.
Overcoming sin.
You know.
Let's.
Here's a sincere Christian.
Let's say.
Who's.
Sees in God's word.
A command like.
There's a command in Ephesians 4.31. Which
says.
Put away all anger.
Now.
If I put away all anger.
How much anger is supposed to be left
in my life?
Zero.
Right?
Okay.
A person takes that seriously.
And say.
I'm supposed to put away.
All anger.
From my life.
And he tries.
And he fails.
And he tries.
And he fails.
And he tries.
And he's very sincere.
He grits his teeth.
He makes new year resolutions.
He does everything.
And he thinks.
Well.
I'm failing.
Because.
I'm not.
I'm so weak.
No.
He fails.
Because he's strong.
God has to make him weak.
And he has to make him weak.
Through failure.
And I often use this illustration.
Think of a.
A patient who comes into a hospital.
Who's sick.
And the first day.
He's losing his temper.
The doctors.
And the nurses.
And everything.
But as he gets sicker.
And weaker.
He doesn't lose his temper so often.
And then.
By the time.
He's got.
Tubes in his nose.
And here.
And there.
In his mouth.
And all.
He's completely quiet.
The weaker we become.
When did he.
Stop losing his temper?
When he became weak.
When he was strong.
He was capable of.
Getting angry.
God.
Seeks to make us weak.
We see that.
Right through scripture.
God.
Could not use Moses.
When he was 40 years old.
He was too strong.
He was so strong.
That with one blow.
He could kill an Egyptian.
And he buried him under the sand.
And God said.
You're too strong.
You can't lead my people.
I want you to lead my people.
But you have one disqualification.
You are too strong.
In yourself.
And so.
God took him out in the wilderness.
And kept him there for 40 years.
And what was he teaching him?
He had already learned.
All the.
Clever things in the world.
In Egypt.
For 40 years.
But he was teaching him something else.
Which no university in the world can ever
teach.
He was teaching him to become weak.
And finally.
40 years.
It took him.
It took God 40 years.
To bring Moses to the place.
Where he could say.
Lord.
I'm not the man.
I'm not capable of leading your people.
And God said.
That's the place I was.
Wanting you to come to.
Now you can go out.
And deliver my people.
You know.
God's ways are not our ways.
The more capable.
We think.
We are to serve the Lord.
The more unfit.
We are to serve the Lord.
That's what we learned from Moses example.
But.
If God can so break us.
Where we recognize.
That all my knowledge.
And all my ability.
And all my intelligence.
Is absolutely useless.
In God's service.
It's faith I need.
It's grace I need from God.
That.
Sense of need comes.
When we are weak.
And think what Moses could accomplish.
At the age of 80.
Which he could not accomplish at the age
of 40.
How long do you think.
It would have taken.
If he started killing the Egyptians one by
one.
With blows to their face.
To deliver the Israelites.
He would never have accomplished in his lifetime.
But when he was so weak.
And helpless.
He would just lift up his rod over
the Red Sea.
And bury the whole Egyptian army.
Under that Red Sea.
You see what God can do through a
weak man.
Which he can't do through a strong man.
And that's right through scripture.
You see in the case of Jacob.
That when he was strong.
God couldn't use him.
And God kept him 20 years.
With a difficult life with his father-in
-law.
Till he became weak.
And he became so weak.
God dislocated his hip.
So that he had to walk.
With a cane for the rest of his
life.
And God said okay.
Now.
You will be a prince of God.
You see that with Abraham.
When he was strong.
Capable of producing children.
God said no.
Can't use you.
You got to come to the place where
you are absolutely helpless.
And then God gave him a son.
The son of promise.
Throughout scripture.
It's the same lesson.
When Paul was strong.
God had to make him weak.
With a thorn in the flesh.
And when these disciples were strong.
God had to make them weak.
They thought they were good at fishing.
I believe one of the greatest lessons.
That Jesus tried to teach his disciples.
Through the miracles.
Was that word that he spoke to them
in John 15.
Without me.
You can do.
Nothing.
And I believe that's one of the greatest
lessons.
That he seeks to teach you and me.
And I want to tell you.
There are not many Christians.
Who have learned it.
How many of us really believe.
That if I do not depend on Jesus
Christ.
All that I will accomplish in life.
Will be a big zero.
Without him.
I can do nothing.
What does that mean?
There are a lot of things I can
do.
What he meant was.
I'll never be able to do anything of
eternal value.
Without him.
And that's what these folks needed to learn.
And that's what we need to learn in
our life too.
So here's a person seeking for victory over
sin.
Like I said.
Seeking victory over anger.
And he tries and he tries and he
tries and he tries.
And he doesn't get it.
What's the Lord seeking to do?
The Lord seeking to teach him.
You cannot get it.
Any amount of gritting your teeth.
And any amount of determination.
And any amount of making resolutions.
Is not going to help you to overcome
anger.
You have to come to the place where
you recognize.
I cannot make it.
I cannot overcome.
It's impossible.
You've got to toil all night.
And catch nothing.
And then you're ready for victory.
Why does God do it like that?
So that when we do get the victory.
We don't become proud of it.
You know that's the great danger.
Anger.
Is like a let's say.
A ten foot pit.
Or a hundred foot pit.
It's very difficult to get out of a
narrow hundred foot pit.
And I try and I try and I
try.
And scramble up.
And I always keep falling into it.
Then maybe one day God helps me.
And I come out of it.
And I get victory.
Over anger.
And having got victory over anger.
If I fall into another thousand foot pit.
Called.
Spiritual pride.
What sort of victory is that?
That's not victory at all.
That's often what happens.
When a man.
Accomplishes something.
He becomes proud of it.
He doesn't realize that that spiritual pride is
a far deeper pit.
Than whatever he got victory over.
And the one thing that God seeks to
do in our life.
Is to lead us to a victorious life.
To a life of useful service for him.
And to keep us humble at the end
of it all.
It's not difficult for God to bless us.
God can bless us.
And give us victory.
Overnight.
But the thing that God finds very difficult.
Is to give a man victory in his
life.
And to keep him humble at the end
of it.
God can use any of us mightily.
From this day.
But for God to use a man mightily.
And for the man to remain humble.
At the end of that period of usefulness.
Is very very difficult.
I've been around.
Quite a few years.
And observed.
So many people in my lifetime.
Who are in Christian work.
I want to say.
I can count on my fingers.
The ones whom I have seen in my
life.
Whom I can really respect.
As men mightily used by God.
And who still live in humility.
It's very difficult.
It's extremely difficult.
And that's the reason why.
God has to teach us this lesson of
failure.
Failure.
So that one day when God does give
me victory.
I can recognize.
That that was not by my own ability
or strength.
Because I'm so aware.
Of the years of failure.
In my life.
We've got to experience failure and failure and
failure in our ministry.
To recognize that without him I can do
nothing.
So that one day when God gives me
success.
I realize Lord.
That's not me.
That's your work.
So that there is the education.
That God seeks to give us in failure.
And so I want to say to any
of you.
Who are in that in between stage of.
Struggling and failing right now.
Don't get discouraged.
This is all part of.
God's education to lead you.
To a life of victory.
Now this is something which.
The world cannot understand.
In the world.
There's no room for failure.
You've got to be a success.
If you want to be great in the
world.
But in God's eyes.
He has to take us through failure.
Repeated failure.
To educate us in humility.
Which the world cares nothing for.
He's got to allow us to face failure
in our life.
Failure in our ministry.
So that we recognize.
Without Jesus.
Without him we can do nothing.
And you know you've learned the lesson.
When God can bless you.
And you're not proud of it.
When God can bless you.
And you don't boast about it.
When God can bless you.
And you can give all the glory to
him.
And when you can have victory over sin.
And you don't look down on someone else.
Who's defeated.
Then you know you've learned the lesson.
But if you can get victory in some
area.
Or you've accomplished something.
And you look down at someone.
You know you haven't learned the lesson at
all.
You came out of a hundred foot pit.
And fell into a thousand foot pit.
You got victory over one thing.
And then you fell into spiritual pride.
And spiritual pride is the deepest of all
pits.
It's the worst sin of all.
It's the thing the Pharisees were guilty of.
And that's why Jesus said to them.
You'll never escape the damnation of hell.
So God has to give us victory.
Give us blessing in our ministry.
Blessing in our life.
Give us a very blessed marriage.
And there's a reason for that.
The Bible says God gives his grace only
to the humble.
There's a law in God's dealings with man.
That he resists the proud.
It's a law.
It's like the law of gravity.
It doesn't matter whether you're a believer or
an unbeliever.
God's laws work the same.
I mean if you jump off the roof
of this building.
The law of gravity doesn't bother about whether
you're a believer or an unbeliever.
You just fall down.
It's the same with pride.
The Bible says more than once in James
4 and 1 Peter 5.
God resists the proud.
That's a law in all of God's dealings
with man.
And it doesn't matter whether you're a believer
or an unbeliever.
The moment you become proud.
God becomes your enemy.
God's not your enemy.
He's your friend.
He wants to support you and help you.
But God's word says he resists the proud.
And I picture it like this.
When it says God gives grace to the
humble but he resists the proud.
It means that if I live in humility.
Recognizing that I'm nothing in his eyes.
God will get behind me.
And support me and push me along.
Can you imagine how fast I'll go when
God's behind me pushing me forward.
And exactly the opposite happens.
The moment I become proud.
God comes in front of me and pushes
me back.
And can you imagine how fast I go
backwards when God's pushing me back.
This is the reason for backsliding.
God's not pushing you forward.
He's on the wrong side.
I mean the devil's already pushing me back.
My lusts are pushing me back.
And on top of that if God himself
pushes me back.
There's no hope for me.
God gives his grace to the humble.
And that's the lesson that he wanted these
fishermen to learn.
Many other times when they caught fish.
And they would have come home with this
catch of fish.
And they would have been proud of it.
But not this time.
They knew that they had toiled all night.
And they caught nothing.
But when the Lord told them.
They obeyed immediately.
And that's another thing I want to say.
The Lord works with those who will obey
immediately without question.
I've seen people who are newly converted.
And right from day one.
When they see something in scripture.
They're going to obey it immediately.
They see well I'm converted now and I've
got to be baptized in water.
They don't think twice about it.
They don't think about what their parents are
going to say.
Or what anybody else is going to say.
They just go ahead and obey the Lord.
And then they see something else in the
scripture.
They need to be filled with the Holy
Spirit.
And they will begin to seek God to
be filled with the Holy Spirit.
They're not bothered about theology and other things.
They're seeking God.
They see something in scripture and they're going
to obey God.
And they see in scripture that they've got
to overcome sin.
And they go after that.
You know that's the type of person who's
going to make progress.
He sees something and he says God I
want that.
And then I've seen certain other Christians.
They get converted and they see something in
scripture.
And they think about it and toss it
around in their minds.
And say yeah we'll think about it.
It never goes well with them.
Because that becomes their attitude to everything that
God says.
You know the secret of the beauty of
the universe.
Is that the planets don't question God.
The stars don't question one.
God put them in an orbit and they
just keep going round and round.
That's why there's such beauty in the universe.
It's because of obedience.
Instant obedience.
Many thousands of years ago God told the
planets.
Saturn and Jupiter and Uranus and all the
planets.
You better go in this orbit.
And they've just been going round and round
and round for years without question.
That's the secret of beauty in the universe.
That's how it is in scripture.
God told Noah to build an ark.
He did it.
God told Abraham to leave.
Go to the Chaldeans one night.
Next morning he packed his bags and left.
Right through scripture you find these are the
type of people whom God picked up.
God told Peter to leave his nets.
Immediately he left his nets and followed.
He didn't think about it for a week.
He left immediately.
We read of Matthew.
He was sitting in the tax office.
Writing his accounts and the Lord came to
him and said put your pen down and
follow me.
He put his pen down and followed the
Lord.
That's the type of person whom the Lord
uses.
And that's exactly what we see here.
The Lord spoke something to them and they
immediately put their net down.
And they were not disappointed.
And it says here in verse 7.
That disciple whom Jesus loved.
That's the apostle John who wrote this letter.
He called himself the disciple whom Jesus loved.
He was the one who recognized Jesus first.
He said to Peter it is the Lord
standing on the shore.
And when Simon Peter heard that it was
the Lord.
He.
Peter was the impetuous type.
We read about this morning.
That God has introverts and extroverts in his
church.
And he's got a place for both.
John was the meditative type of person who
thinks more.
Whereas Peter was the impetuous person who jumped
out immediately.
Jumped out of the boat.
And he put on his outer garment and
threw himself into the sea.
And it's wonderful how God uses both these
people for his work.
And when they came to the sea.
It says here the other disciples came in
a little boat.
And they had to drag the net full
of fish.
And when they got out upon.
Verse 9.
They saw a charcoal fire.
Already laid.
And fish placed on it already.
And bred.
This is.
An amazing miracle.
Here we see Jesus.
And when they came home.
He had already made breakfast for them.
You see his care.
There's something wonderful about Jesus I see here.
His care.
For the needs of his tired.
Disciples.
And he's just the same today.
He created that fish.
Where do you think that fish and bread
came from?
Jesus after his resurrection.
He didn't go to any store.
To buy fish and bread.
Where did it come from?
There was a charcoal fire there.
He created it.
And then.
Here's something.
Another thing that we see so beautiful.
Not only his care for our earthly needs.
You know a lot of people.
Think that Jesus cares only for our spiritual
needs.
It's not true.
He's concerned that you have breakfast.
In the morning.
And that's what we see here.
And.
There's something beautiful we see in verse 10.
He had this fish and bread.
Which he had created.
Breakfast made ready.
And then he told his disciples.
You bring some of the fish you caught
as well.
You know there are some Christians.
Who are so fiercely independent.
They don't need anybody's help.
They say I can manage everything on my
own.
I don't need your help.
God's gifted me.
I'm capable.
They are useless in God's work.
Look at Jesus.
He could create fish and bread.
And yet.
He tells these disciples.
Bring some of the fish you just caught.
Let's put it together.
And let's make breakfast together.
Do you see the humility there?
Do you see the.
The way he gets them involved.
And gives them a sense of.
Partnership in his ministry.
That's the mark of a godly man.
He doesn't make other people feel small.
And say I don't want any of your
fish.
There's something beautiful there.
If you think about it.
You'll see it.
As I've said in all these parables.
In all these miracles rather.
Jesus would never do anything on his own.
He could have filled their boats with fish.
Without their doing anything.
But he wanted them to have a part
in it.
He said you cast the net on the
right side.
And you'll catch the fish.
It's always a partnership.
Jesus said take my yoke upon you.
We got to work together with the Lord.
And that's what we see here.
He said bring some of your fish.
And we'll make breakfast together.
Then we read in verse 11.
This is the only place.
In the gospels by the way.
Where we're told.
The exact number of fish they caught.
And the type of fish they caught.
He drew to the net to land.
Full of large fish.
A hundred and fifty three.
Verse 11.
A hundred and fifty three.
Large fish.
Now I don't know what the size of
a large fish is.
Let's say it was about six or seven
pounds.
A hundred and fifty three of them.
And of each fish.
Cost about twenty dollars.
That was a catch worth three thousand dollars.
In one day.
Can you imagine what was going on through
Peter's mind.
Boy.
He was thinking Lord.
If you'll be a partner with me like
this every day.
I don't need to be an apostle.
I promise you I'll give you ten percent
of everything I earn.
And I'll faithfully.
I'll increase the percentage as the catch becomes
bigger.
And all these thoughts are going through his
mind.
He's never seen a catch like this in
his life.
Three thousand dollars worth of fish in one
day.
And the Lord comes to him and says.
Verse 15.
Simon.
Son of John.
Do you love me more than these fish?
Do you love me more than this catch
you got?
It's wonderful the Lord knew what Simon was
thinking about.
And the Lord was saying to him.
I have no shortage of money.
Peter.
I have shortage of people.
The Lord doesn't need money primarily.
For his work.
He needs dedicated people.
Of course there's a need for money in
God's work.
There's no doubt about that.
But I want to say that we live
in a world today.
I'm talking about Christendom.
Where if you watch all the television shows.
And you listen to all the great preachers.
You get the idea.
That the greatest lack in God's work is
money.
It's not.
It's dedicated people.
Spiritually minded people.
That's what is lacking.
And that's what the Lord was saying to
Peter.
Is it difficult for the Lord?
To make a man a millionaire?
Not at all.
He owns the heavens and the earth.
The silver and gold in all the world
belongs to him.
But what he needs.
He was telling Simon.
I don't want your tights.
I don't want you to be the richest
fisherman in Galilee.
And you support my work with your tights.
I want you Simon.
I want you.
I want you to give up all this.
And be my disciple.
And I'll send you into the world.
With no money in your pockets.
And I'll do such a work through you
in the next 30 years.
That you'll be laying the foundation for 2000
years.
For the work of the church.
Do you want to do that?
Or do you want to spend your time
making money on the shores of Galilee?
I believe that's the question that the Lord
asks many people today.
What are you going to spend your life
for?
Are you satisfied that you give something for
God's work?
And you ease your conscience.
Well I'm supporting God's work.
Well praise the Lord you're doing that.
But God wants you.
More than anything you can give him.
He wants you.
The relationship that Jesus wants to have with
us.
Is not like that of a master with
a servant.
The church is not a big corporation.
With Jesus as the CEO on top.
And he's got all of us workers.
Trying to get profit for his corporation.
No.
Not at all.
That's a wrong picture.
Sometimes you get that picture but it's not
true.
The church is like a home.
Jesus Christ is our husband.
You're supposed to be his wife.
What does a man want from his wife
first of all?
Not her money.
No.
It's her love and affection.
And that's what Jesus wanted from Peter.
And that's what he wants from you.
Simon son of John.
Do you love me more than this tremendous
catch of fish that you've got right now?
Do you love me more than you love
your money?
Do you love me more than you love
your profession?
Many people think that they can serve the
Lord.
And also love many other things in this
world at the same time.
No.
It's not possible.
It's possible to engage in a profession and
serve the Lord.
But it's not possible to love your profession
more than Jesus Christ.
And still be an effective servant of Christ.
Impossible.
It's possible to earn a lot of money.
And be an effective servant of God.
But it's impossible to love money and to
be a servant of God.
There's a lot of difference.
Love is the qualification.
Here we read when Peter says, Yes Lord,
you know that I love you.
He says, okay, tend my lands.
It's a ministry that the Lord's calling him
for.
I've not called you Peter to make money
on earth.
I've called you to build my church.
That's the thing that's going to last when
everything else in this world collapses.
Do you want to live for that?
I remember when I was an officer in
the Indian Navy.
And I remember I was converted when I
was in the Navy.
And I remember when I joined the Navy
as a young man, as a young teenager.
My goal in life was when I wasn't
converted.
My goal in life was to go right
up to the top of the Indian Navy.
And be the Admiral of the Indian Navy.
That was my goal.
And I worked towards it.
And I put everything I had into it.
And then one day Jesus Christ came into
my heart.
And he focused my eyes, my blind eyes.
He opened and showed me what had value
in eternity.
And he told me to leave these ambitions
of mine.
Give them up.
And say, I'll give you something better.
And that's what happened 37 years ago when
I quit my job.
And said, Lord, I'm going to serve you.
And I've never regretted it.
That's what the Lord was calling Peter to
here.
What are you going to live for?
Are you going to live for something that's
going to last for all eternity?
You know, when God told Noah to build
the ark.
He knew this is the only thing that's
going to survive the flood.
He didn't spend his time remodeling his house
or doing other things like that when he
knew a flood was coming.
He spent all his time and his energy
building the ark.
Because he knew this is the only thing
that will survive the flood.
It doesn't mean he didn't work and support
his family.
He was not a paid preacher, no.
He was a man who worked with his
own hands and supported his family.
But that was secondary.
The main thing was building the ark.
Do you realize there's only one thing that's
going to survive after God is finished with
this world?
And that's the church that Jesus Christ is
building.
You don't have to be a full-time
preacher.
But if you want your life to count
for eternity.
Decide that you're going to spend your time.
That your ambition in life will be to
build the church of Jesus Christ.
And do all that you can to promote
his kingdom on earth.
Do you love me, the Lord says?
Do you love me more than everything on
earth?
Okay, then I'll give you a ministry.
And so I see here that the main
qualification for ministry is not that you got
a Bible school degree.
It's that you love Jesus Christ.
I never went to a Bible school in
my life.
God never gave me the opportunity for that.
I studied the scriptures on my own.
I never went to a Bible school one
day of my life.
But I said, Lord, do I need to
go there to serve you?
No.
Do you love me more than everything else
on earth?
Do you love me more than your own
life?
Do you love me more than anything precious
to you on earth?
In that case, I'll give you something to
feed my sheep.
Again, he asked him a second time.
Verse 16.
Do you love me?
Shepherd my sheep.
A third time.
Do you love me?
And Peter was grieved.
He said, Lord, you know all things.
You know that I love you.
Tend my sheep.
Three times Peter had denied the Lord.
And three times he asked him the same
question.
And you probably heard this.
It doesn't come out in English.
But there are two different words for love.
In the original Greek here.
And Jesus was asking Peter, do you love
me with that higher kind of love that
a man has in his devotion to God?
And Peter used the other word.
A lower word.
Do you love me with agape love?
And Peter said, I love you with filial
love.
Do you love me with agape love?
And Peter said, I love you with filial
love.
And then finally Jesus came down.
The third time to Peter's level.
Do you love me at least with filial
love?
And Peter was grieved.
And he said, Lord, I can't say anything.
Once upon a time I would say, even
if everybody denies you, I won't deny you.
But I'm not so self-confident now.
I'm shattered.
I'm weak.
I can't say anything.
Lord, you know all things.
You know my heart.
I want to love you.
I love this man.
This man was so honest.
He was a total failure.
And God picked him up.
And made in his apostle.
To stand.
And serve him on the day of Pentecost.
You know that Peter was the only one
of the twelve disciples who was fit to
serve the Lord on the day of Pentecost.
Imagine.
Sometimes when we read the scriptures, it's good
to put ourselves in the place of these
people.
And see how we'd feel if we experienced
that.
Imagine if you were the preacher on the
day of Pentecost.
And you preach the sermon.
You read Acts chapter 2.
It only took about 15 minutes.
And at the end of this 15 minute
sermon, you find 3,000 people converted.
3,000 people taking baptism.
3,000 people filled with the Holy Spirit.
I think you'd find it difficult to keep
your head small at the end of this
tremendous success in your ministry.
And I can imagine what Peter would have
said if somebody had come up to Peter
and said, Boy, Peter, that was tremendous.
He'd say, yeah, I know.
I know what a failure I was six
weeks ago.
He had failed.
He'd failed in fishing.
He'd failed as an apostle.
And God said, Peter, you're the man.
You're the man who knows that you can
never be a success on your own.
You're the man who will give me credit
for anything that I accomplish through you in
your ministry.
You know the reason why God cannot use
you more than he already has is because
you take the credit to yourself.
You take the glory to yourself.
You're proud of what God's accomplished through you.
But Peter couldn't be proud.
I want to say one last thing.
The Lord told Peter, verse 18, He said,
I want to tell you something else that
will happen when you serve me.
And he told him, verse 19, with what
kind of death he would glorify God.
He says, Peter, your life's not going to
be easy.
When you were young, you girded yourself, verse
18, and you walked wherever you wished.
But when you grow old, 30 years from
now, somebody else is going to gird you,
is going to stretch out your hands, and
take you where you don't like to go.
You're going to be crucified, just like me.
And he said, having said this to him,
he said to him, follow me.
So the Lord called Peter to a ministry
and to a life of suffering.
And Peter, sure enough, like the rest of
us, came when he saw John, verse 20,
following.
And he asked him, Lord, what about this
man?
Is he going to have an easy time
in life?
It's only me who's going to suffer?
You know that question that we have?
Why is that brother having such an easy
time?
Why is it only me who has this
difficult time?
Lord, what about this man?
What about this woman?
She seems to be a disciple too, and
the Lord says, what's that to you?
If I want him to live for 2
,000 years till I come back again, that's
none of your business.
You know the Lord has an answer for
us when we have questions like that?
Mind your own business.
You follow me.
Why are you worried about that other person?
So what if I want to give him
a very comfortable life, and I want you
to have a rough time?
Because you're my disciple.
Are you still willing to follow me?
Peter learned a lesson.
May the Lord help us also to learn
that lesson, that the only thing worth, the
only life worth living is a life where
we follow Jesus and seek to glorify his
name and build a church.
Let's pray.
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