Sunday 4th May – Plenty of Fish – Pastor Adrian Kitson

3C, 4-05-2025, John 21:1-19, pastor adrian kitson, Plenty of Fish

John 21:1-19

Afterwards Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee.^[^a^] It happened this way: ²Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus^[^b^]), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. ³‘I’m going out to fish,’ Simon Peter told them, and they said, ‘We’ll go with you.’ So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

⁴Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realise that it was Jesus.

⁵He called out to them, ‘Friends, haven’t you any fish?’

‘No,’ they answered.

⁶He said, ‘Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.’ When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

⁷Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, ‘It is the Lord,’ he wrapped his outer garment round him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. ⁸The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred metres. ⁹When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

¹⁰Jesus said to them, ‘Bring some of the fish you have just caught.’ ¹¹So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. ¹²Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast.’ None of the disciples dared ask him, ‘Who are you?’ They knew it was the Lord. ¹³Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. ¹⁴This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

¹⁵When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’

‘Yes, Lord,’ he said, ‘you know that I love you.’

Jesus said, ‘Feed my lambs.’

¹⁶Again Jesus said, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’

He answered, ‘Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.’

Jesus said, ‘Take care of my sheep.’

¹⁷The third time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ He said, ‘Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.’

Jesus said, ‘Feed my sheep. ¹⁸Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.’ ¹⁹Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, ‘Follow me!’

It is a lovely scene. Breakfast on the beach as the sun rises after catching a full boat of fish. Not a bad way to start the day.

These seven of the eleven are back doing what they know how to do after all the tumult of the past week. Maybe they go fishing because they are not sure what else to do.

So much has happened. That terrible death, but then that incredible word from the women and that empty tomb…. Then that incredible breath of new life in the room as the scarred and talking Jesus speaks his peace into them.

But now, here they are: Same beach. Same sea. Same Jesus who has been in their presence twice back in the city since he was raised, but now here, in their home, where they live.

They know who he is. Thomas got to it the second time Jesus showed himself

‘My Lord and my God!’ (John 20:28)

There must be something else the Risen Lord means to do in this third appearing.

It is all about Peter this time.

It involves fish again – just like it was on this same beach way back at the beginning. What a moment that was – over flowing boats fish. Back then Peter instinctively knew he was on holy ground.

‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’ (Luke 5:8b)

Once Peter recognizes this now risen holy man on the beach is the risen Jesus, he is in, boots and all. In he jumps while still 50+ metres offshore.

But I wonder what he felt as he neared the beach, the Saviour, a fire, smoke, and that smell of burning coal.

Last time these things where in the same moment was in that horrible moment he would love to forget but still probably can’t. It was that moment of complete cowardice, betrayal and failure. Maybe those words that came out of his mouth in the Good Friday moment swirl around his head now –

“I don’t know the man”…. “I am not one of his followers’…..

But then those three questions – one for every word of denials.

‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’

‘Yes, Lord,’ you know that I love you.’

‘Feed my lambs.’

¹⁶‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’

‘Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.’

‘Take care of my sheep.’

¹⁷The third time …, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’

(This is upsetting. How many times will he ask? Doesn’t he believe me?)

‘Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.’

Jesus said, ‘Shepherd my sheep.

What is Jesus probing for, and finding out and why?

It is in that word ‘love’. We only have one word for it in English. They had more, and they were graded.

‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’

“Do you ‘agape’ me”. Do you love in the highest order – self-sacrificing, self-giving, God-love. Is that in your heart for me, Peter? And even more than the others?

“Ahhh. I ‘philow’ you’; I ‘love’ you as a friend. I befriend you”.

“Hmm. Not quite there… But, feed my lambs”.

¹⁶‘Simon …, do you love me?’

“Do you agape me? Do you have within your heart a self-giving, self-sacrificial kind of love’ for me as more than friend?”

“Ahh. You know I am your friend – your close friend….”.

“Hmm. Still not quite there, but, “Shepherd my sheep”.

At this point, if this was a performance review at work, Peter would probably be asked to reconsider his application or undergo some remedial training under a probationary period to see if he could get to the ‘agape’/self-giving/ love at whatever personal cost for his Saviour.

But not in this new resurrection community. Jesus continues anyway….

“Simon, do you love me (philow me) as a close friend?”

“Yes. I ‘friend’ you. I know you as a close friend”.

“OK. It not the deepest but it is a start. Feed my sheep”.

Peter can’t reach to the full depth of Jesus’ self-giving, self-sacrificing love but Jesus seems to have all of it for Peter as he begins where Peter can start.

What grace! Even though Peter cannot quite reach the full depth of love, Jesus’ call on his life continues; the life-purpose, the hope, the vision for Peter’s life stays in place. Despite Peter’s inability to ‘find the love’, Jesus has the love that still finds the man

Gives me great hope for myself and all of us as an Easter community God’s love.

Even when you or I can’t quite pay the price of love, follow the call until it hurts or give enough of ourselves or what we have for the sake of love for Jesus and other people, he still reinstates, still calls, still gives us a future and a shape of his love for our lives.

So, as he did for Peter who made that great failure, maybe Jesus is re-commissioning you to love as you are able today even in all your failures?

Begs the question about how we be Christians of great love together: What if there is not that self-sacrificing, self-giving, costly love in your heart today? What if you still carrying scars from past failures and shame from false beliefs about who you are and who Jesus is that hinder an open-hearted trusting, faith-filled life with Jesus?

I read a comment on this text this week. The writer asked a question or two:

What does a fallen man have to go through, what does a failed woman have to do, in order to be resurrected and restored in a community like yours?

How long do they remain fallen? How long does the adjective “fallen” remain attached to their memory?

Dwight K. Nelson, D.Min., is the senior pastor of the Andrews University Church, Berrien Springs, Michigan, Requium and resurrection for a fallen brother, MinistryMag.org.

Bonhoeffer has much to say about love in a Christian community in his marvellous little book, Life Together.

He makes a disturbing observation on why we have such a hard time living in a self-sacrificing, self-giving, costly love community that is more than only general friendship.

“He who is alone with his sin is utterly alone. It may be that Christians, notwithstanding corporate worship, common prayer, and all their fellowship in service, may still be left in their loneliness. The final break through to fellowship [true community] does not occur, because, though they have fellowship with one another as believers and as devout people, they do not have fellowship as the less devout, as sinners. The pious fellowship permits no one to be a sinner. So everybody must conceal his sin from himself and from the fellowship. We dare not be sinners. Many Christians are unthinkably horrified when a real sinner is suddenly discovered among the righteous. So we remain alone with our sin, living in lies and hypocrisy. The fact is that we are sinners!”¹

Peter knew that and Jesus knew that and resurrected him fully. We are Peter. We are sinners, and yet sinners still called and commissioned by this risen Jesus to live together in this life-shaping love.

It is possible for any group of Christians to choke off any possibility of genuine self-giving/self-sacrificing/costly love for fear of being found out to be only like Peter – a failure.

We can easily wear our masks of piety but live mostly alone.

“He who is alone with his sin is utterly alone.”

Are we a church community who can share fellowship in Jesus not only as pious faithful people but also as ‘the less devout; as sinners’.

Sounds like until we can share life together as ‘less devout’ sinners, we won’t be able to progress in self-giving self-sacrificing Jesus’ kind of love.

Maybe that is what the Saviour had to do this third time he appeared – for Peter, and for them all, and for all of us who hear this moment – Name the sin and the sinner but love the sinner into life.

The resurrected Lord does this. He has done this for us. We don’t need to hide or pretend. With this costly love and this appearing of a living, breathing, still human Saviour of agape love, there is love – deep and full shared love we can give and receive.

When all I can manage is friendship, Jesus still loves with way more.

And my little love ability is still enough to make a start – to live out my calling, to work in his purposes for the good of other people, as I can.

I hear today in this beautiful scene of forgiveness and second chance that we, this pious fellowship, can permit that all of us are sinners so that none of us needs to conceal his sin from himself and from the fellowship. We are not unthinkably horrified when a real sinner is suddenly discovered among us. No one needs to remain alone with their sin.

O, how good it is to be God’s baptised people on this beach this morning with Peter having our memory of regrets and shame with the calling to love and tend people.

Go ahead, Christian – “feed my sheep’. There is plenty of fish!