The final chapter of the Gospel of John is spent with a re-motivation of Peter and it’s all Love. So much love in this chapter. Enjoy!
Please read John 21:1-3
Jesus Appears at the Sea of Galilee
1 After this Jesus revealed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias (Galilee). And He did it in this way: 2 Simon Peter, and Thomas who is called Didymus (the twin), and Nathanael from Cana of Galilee, as well as [John and James] the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. 3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said, “And we are coming with you.” So they went out and got into the boat; and [a]that night they caught nothing.
Love that sentence, ‘and He did it in this way:’ then proceeds to explain the set up or background to the story. So they were on the water, fishing and not catching anything and then…
Please read John 21:4-6
4 As morning was breaking, Jesus [came and] stood on the beach; however, the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 So Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish [to eat along with your bread]?” They answered, “No.” 6 And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat (starboard) and you will find some.” So they cast [the net], and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great catch of fish.
This is so sweet. He came to have breakfast with them. Then told them where the fish are. So kind and so sweet.
Please read John 21:7-8
7 Then that disciple (John) whom Jesus loved (esteemed) said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer tunic (for he was stripped for work) and threw himself into the sea [and swam ashore]. 8 But the other disciples came in the small boat, for they were not far from shore, only about a hundred yards away, dragging the net full of fish.
Run to Jesus, or swim to Jesus like Peter did. Either way, He’s the only One we have to be near as quickly as possible. Yet also he left his companions to drag that very full net of fish in to shore.
Please read John 21:9-11
9 So when they got out on the beach, they saw a charcoal fire set up and fish on it cooking, and bread. 10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net to land, full of large fish, a hundred and fifty-three [of them]; and although there were so many, the net was not torn.
Many, many fish, too many for all those guys to eat in one meal, but it’s likely another one of God’s ‘abundance’ proofs, His way of saying, ‘I will always provide you more than you can imagine.’
Please read John 21:12-14
Jesus Provides
12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared to ask Him, “Who are You?” They knew [without any doubt] that it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish. 14 This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples, after He had risen from the dead.
Can you imagine their reactions? They don’t dare ask, but they’re not really sure, just choosing to believe beyond doubt. And then He feeds them. He’s so kind.
Please read John 21:15-17
The Love Motivation
15 So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these [others do—with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I [b]love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My lambs.” 16 Again He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with a deep, personal affection for Me, as for a close friend]?” Peter was grieved that He asked him the third time, “Do you [really] [c]love Me [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend]?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know everything; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
Let’s slow this down, there are two footnotes in this section about this, but first let’s do this:
“Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these [others do—with total commitment and devotion]?”
Love Me more than others do? I don’t know that I have seen that before, but then again, the AMP is a favorite translation for that reason, more things to see and understand.
“Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with total commitment and devotion]?”
Love Me with total commitment and devotion.
“Do you [really] [c]love Me [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend]?”
That love that is a deep, personal affection as a close friend has for another.
Did you know that in the Greek there are more than one word for love, but each one is different meaning? Agápi (Love (an intense feeling of deep affection.)) & Filió (I love you.) or Phileo how we write it and it’s more like the love of friends, are two of them.
Please read John 21:18-19
Our Times Are in His Hand
18 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and walked wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and arms, and someone else will dress you, and carry you where you do not wish to go.” 19 Now He said this to indicate the [d]kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after saying this, He said to him, “Follow Me [walk the same path of life that I have walked]!”;
Every day we are in His hands. Every moment we can spend with Him. He knows how long your life is, or how short, and precisely how, when and where it will end. Because you belong to Him, that end is but a doorway, death has lost its sting.
Please read John 21:20-23
20 Peter turned and saw the [e]disciple whom Jesus loved following them; the one who also had leaned back on His chest at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray You?” 21 So when Peter saw him, he asked Jesus, “Lord, and what about this [f]man [what is in his future]?” 22 Jesus said to him, “If I want him to stay alive until I come [again], what is that to you? You follow Me!” 23 So this word went out among the brothers that this disciple (John) was not going to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not going to die, but only, “If I want him to stay alive until I come [again], what is that to you?”
See, each of us He knows, each of us will have a different ending, depending on what He wants for each of us.
Please read John 21:24-25
24 This is the same [g]disciple who is testifying to these things and has recorded them; and we know [without any doubt] that his testimony is true.
25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were recorded [h]one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.
This Gospel is a testimony. A long one, and one with several different points, but the whole purpose of it is to have you believe in the One this gospel points to.
Footnotes
[a] John 21:3 -and [a]that night they caught nothing.- Fishing at night was commonplace and normally productive.
[b] John 21:15 -“Yes, Lord; You know that I [b]love You.”- As indicated by the amplifications, Peter uses a different Greek word for love (phileo) than Jesus does (agapao) in His first two questions to Peter (see note v 17).
[c] John 21:17 -“Do you [really] [c]love Me?- This time Jesus uses the same word for love that Peter previously used twice (phileo).
[d] John 21:19 -He said this to indicate the [d]kind of death by which Peter would glorify God- Peter ministered some thirty years after the resurrection of Jesus. He was martyred in Rome by Emperor Nero in about a.d. 67. The Roman historian, Eusebius said that Peter was crucified upside down at his own request.
[e] John 21:20 -Peter turned and saw the [e]disciple whom Jesus loved following them- John the Apostle. The mothers of Jesus and John, Mary and Salome, were related as sisters.
[f] John 21:21 -“Lord, and what about this [f]man?-It is believed that John was the only apostle to die of natural causes. He lived to the age of ninety-four and died in about a.d. 100.
[g] John 21:24 -This is the same [g]disciple who is testifying to these things- John the Apostle, author of this Gospel.
[h] John 21:25 -if they were recorded [h]one by one- Or in detail.
The Menu for this study.
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