Why Jesus Restores You and your Purpose (John 21:1-23)

I want to start with a question. What matters to you in life? What do you think is important for a good life? This week I came across this policy document from our very own Treasury Department. It’s called the “measuring what matters framework” and it identifies five things that Australians think matter for a good life. The top five are health, security, sustainability, cohesion, and prosperity. I don’t know about you, but that sounds like the Australian dream. All those things. If you had all those things, life would be pretty good.

The interesting thing about the framework is that it doesn’t just say what Australians think matter. No, it says the framework will track our progress towards these things. It wants us as a country to actively pursue these things, making these things a reality. I think this makes sense because we chase, we go after the things that we desire most in life, the things that matter to us. But for us, I think this raises a very, very big question. If this is the kind of stuff that matters to the average person, to the average Australian, why is it that Christians throughout history have given up all these things for the sake of Jesus?

We see this all the time in our churches. People who give up their time, they give up their money, they give up prosperity and comforts for the sake of Jesus. Christians throughout history from the very beginning have given up all these things, even their lives for the sake of Jesus. And so the question before us today is if we follow Jesus, what should matter to us?

If you weren’t aware, maybe you’ve come back from holidays today. It’s your first week back at church this year. John 21, our chapter for today in our Meals with Jesus series, is the very last chapter of John’s gospel. And it’s a very joyful, miraculous scene, isn’t it? But it’s more than that. It’s more than just a joyful meal. In this concluding meal, what we have is a clear, focused picture of what matters to Jesus, of what he cherishes, and what he loves. My hope is that what we’ll see is this: if we love Jesus, the things that matter to him must change the things that matter to us. They must change the things that we chase after in life. I think we’ll see this by looking at the three parts or the three scenes of this chapter. Scene one, we have the miraculous catch. Then we have the miraculous restoration. And then we have the miraculous predictions.

The Miraculous Catch

Funnily enough, the backdrop of our meal is a failed fishing trip on the Sea of Galilee. The meal starts out with no food. In verse 3, Simon Peter along with six other disciples, they go fishing at night, but we’re told that they came back with nothing. Now, I’ve only ever been properly fishing once, on a boat kind of thing. I went with my old pastor and trainer, Mike, and to cut a long story short, once we were out on the water and we stopped the boat from moving to actually start fishing, pretty much instantly, I am just horrifically seasick. It felt like 10 seconds, I started feeling it. And before I know it, probably within 30 seconds, I’m spending the whole trip over the side of the boat. You can guess what I was doing. But what I remember at the time is realizing that fishing, man, it’s a lot of work. For a hobby that’s meant to be relaxing, it is a lot of work. We worked really hard for hours to catch maybe what was 10 or 11 fish. And I’m told that’s a pretty good yield. So, I can imagine, hopefully you can imagine how the disciples were feeling after this failed fishing trip. They went fishing. They worked hard all night only to catch nothing, as we’re told in verse 3.

But what happens next is pretty crazy. In the morning, a man calls out from the shore. Verse 5, “Fellows, have you caught any fish?” “No,” they reply. But then the man, the same man yells out in verse 6, “Throw your net out on the right hand side of the boat and you’ll get some.” Now imagine what the disciples are thinking. They’re probably thinking, “Is this guy thick?” Does he think we haven’t tried throwing the net in every side of the boat, like in the right hand side of the boat? But maybe in some crazy act of faith or just desperation, they do it and suddenly the net we’re told is totally, instantly full, overflowing, probably so heavy that seven seasoned fishermen, remember these guys are all fishermen, they can’t pull it in. It’s probably over half a ton, maybe close to a ton.

And from verse 7, everything changes. Who else could do this but the Lord Jesus? We read from verse 7 that the disciple, then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It’s the Lord.” And so when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his tunic, for he had been stripped for work. He jumped into the water and headed to shore. The others stayed with the boat and pulled the loaded net to the shore, for they were only about 100 yards from shore. When they got there, they found breakfast waiting for them: fish cooking over a charcoal fire and some bread. I just think the breakfast, ready, already made there, is such a lovely touch, isn’t it? I remember on my fishing trip after a sore, empty stomach, the best thing was the breakfast afterwards. And so I imagine that’s how the disciples felt after a long, hard, exhausting, fruitless night. Here’s the resurrected Messiah, the Lord of glory, the son of God cooking for you. He has it ready for you. This lovely fish and bread.

This really is an amazing miracle just on the face of it. But here’s the thing about miracles in John’s gospel. To give you a bit of background on how John’s gospel works, miracles are never just miracles. As amazing as they are, they’re actually signs. They point towards something or someone even greater. We get a whiff of this or a hint at this in chapter 2:11, right back at the beginning of John’s gospel. Jesus has just done something very similar as he’s done in this scene. He’s redeemed a bad situation, a failing wedding that had run out of wine by turning all this water into just a ridiculous amount of wine. And after he’s done this, John writes that this miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time that Jesus revealed his glory. We see this throughout John’s gospel. The miracles point us towards Jesus and how amazing he is and why he came. And so what we have here is John giving us one last sign in his gospel to reveal to us something about Jesus, and in this case, what matters to him.

So what matters to him? After his death and resurrection, Jesus’ priority has not changed. What matters to Jesus is that his disciples are provided for. He is still the good shepherd who will continue to provide and serve his sheep. He’s still the servant king who is willing to serve those who follow him. Now granted, this lesson isn’t immediately obvious from the miracle itself, but as I said, that’s how John’s gospel works. John is a very clever writer in how he puts together his account of Jesus’ life. The miracles and signs, they never happen on their own. The pattern is that generally there’s the miracle, there’s the sign, and then afterwards to really understand, to really appreciate the sign, you have to see what happens after. There’s all this interaction and dialogue and relationship stuff that goes along with the miracle to reveal to us something about Jesus. And it’s almost to show us that this is the real miracle. The miracles are amazing, but the real miracle is all the relationship stuff that happens. And that’s what we have here. We have scene one, the miraculous catch. But to really appreciate what this scene is about, we need scene two. We need the miraculous restoration.

The Miraculous Restoration

Here we see that as Jesus provides for his disciples, he now entrusts them with feeding his sheep as well. Read verses 15 to 17 with me. It’s a beautiful scene. After breakfast, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter replied, “you know that I love you.” “Then feed my lambs,” Jesus told him. Jesus repeated the question. “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter said, “you know I love you.” “Then take care of my sheep,” Jesus said. A third time he asked him, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep.”

You might remember if you’ve read John’s gospel before that the last time Peter was sitting over a fire near Jesus was at his trial. Here, Peter denies Jesus three times. Flat out denies him. And so imagine the shame that Peter would have felt if those three denials had been the final words he’d said about Jesus. Even over breakfast now after Jesus’ resurrection, it probably felt like the elephant in the room. When are we going to talk about the fact that Peter and all of us just flat out abandoned him? But you see, Jesus declared on the cross those marvelous words for all of us. It is finished. Sin was paid for. And just to make sure that everybody knows that Peter is forgiven and restored, Jesus brings Peter to declare once again his love for him. And in such a poetic fashion, a beautiful fashion, not once but three times. Do you love me? Yes, I love you, Lord. And so imagine Peter’s relief, the shame and regret that he would have felt. It’s totally reversed. It’s totally turned around. Such restoration and forgiveness is only possible with our Lord Jesus.

On its own, this scene really is just a beautiful picture of the gospel, isn’t it? Jesus forgiving those who have sinned against him and betrayed him. But there’s something else really important going on here. Peter isn’t just forgiven. What we see is that Peter is lifted up. He is elevated to a position of honor, to a task of eternal significance. Jesus tasks Peter three times with feeding his sheep, with looking after his sheep. And this really is the most important job that anyone could have. It’s the most important job that Jesus could give him.

You see, earlier in John’s gospel, Jesus said in chapter 10, “I am the good shepherd.” The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. He saves his sheep. But not only that, he says that his purpose is to give them a rich and a satisfying life, a life to the full as other versions have. He also said that he has other sheep to call into his pen, into his sheepfold. And in John 17, Jesus says that it’s his disciples who will take up this task of bringing Jesus’ sheep into his fold by bringing the message of him to those other sheep.

And so what does it mean for Peter to feed Jesus’s sheep? Put simply, it means to tell people about Jesus. It means to call his sheep into this rich, satisfying, eternal life with him. It means to continue teaching them about how good, how precious this life is so that they remain with Jesus. Sheep have a tendency to wander. We need to be taught about and reminded of how good this is. This is what the miraculous catch points to. Jesus, we see, feeds his disciples. He serves them. And that gives the disciples a pattern for what they’re meant to do. The disciples are then to feed Jesus’s sheep by taking the news of him to the world. And so what we see is that Peter isn’t just forgiven. He’s lifted up. He is commissioned for the most important job, a matter of eternal importance, life and death. And so what matters to Jesus in this scene? What matters is that all his sheep are fed. This means that they pass out of darkness and judgment and come to him and stay with him for eternity. It’s quite amazing, isn’t it, that he would charge Peter with this task. And that’s why it’s a miraculous restoration, our second scene.

The Miraculous Predictions

If you’re not convinced by this scene that this is what matters to Jesus, we see it even more in scene three, the miraculous predictions. I’ll read verse 18 again where Jesus says to Peter, “I tell you the truth. When you were young, you were able to do as you liked. You dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you’re old, you will stretch out your hands and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go.” I don’t know about you, but when you read these words, they feel a bit like a riddle. But thankfully, John explains in verse 19 that what Jesus is talking about here is Peter’s death. Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God.

Now we know from history that Peter was killed along with most of the other disciples for testifying to Jesus. And so whatever the specifics of the prediction might mean, it’s quite striking given what Jesus has just said, isn’t it? Because Jesus has just given Peter the amazing privilege of looking after his sheep. But here he’s saying, “Peter, this task is amazing, but it’s going to be hard. So hard and dangerous, in fact, that it’s going to cost you your life.” And so, if Jesus is asking Peter to do that, it means it must matter to Jesus. It must be a job that is worth it.

And we see this pattern continue in verse 20. Jesus focuses on John. Read verse 20 with me. Peter turned around and saw behind them the disciple Jesus loved. That’s John, we find out throughout John’s gospel. The one who had leaned over to Jesus during supper and asked, “Lord, who will betray you?” Peter asked Jesus, “What about him, Lord?” Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? As for you, follow me.”

Like Jesus’ prediction about Peter, this again is a little bit confusing. But verse 23 is helpful. We read, “So the rumor spread among the community of believers that this disciple wouldn’t die.” But that isn’t what Jesus said at all. He only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” It seems like in the early church, in the early history of Christianity, there was a saying going around that John the Apostle wouldn’t die until Jesus returned. And again, we know from history that John was one of the few, the handful of disciples who didn’t die for testifying to Jesus. He did live a long time. He wasn’t killed like Peter for testifying to Jesus. So, you can imagine maybe being at church with John in the early days of Christianity and with each passing year, with each gray hair on John’s head, with each of his birthdays, you would have thought, “Wow, John’s getting really old now. So Jesus must be returning soon.”

Essentially, John is correcting this idea. He’s saying Jesus didn’t say, “I definitely wouldn’t die until I return.” He was simply telling Peter to focus on the mission that I gave him, not on John’s mission. I think once we get that, verse 24 makes more sense. John is trying to show us that both he and Peter had a mission from Jesus to do. We read in verse 24, “This disciple,” that is John, “is the one who testifies to these events and has recorded them here. And we know that his account of these things is accurate.”

To bring this scene together, Peter’s mission was to keep feeding Jesus’ sheep. Jesus says to him, “Keep feeding my sheep, even if it costs you your life.” John’s mission: write these events down. Testify about me by writing down your account so that it can be spread to the world, so that my sheep can be fed through your testimony. And here we are 2,000 years later, reading them and being fed by them. Believers, people have come to faith in Christ throughout history through John’s gospel. Even though their missions look different, they’re actually the same. Witness. Tell others about Jesus. Feed his sheep. Call them into life with him by telling them about him. And there’s nothing more important, of more eternal significance than that, is there?

What Matters to Jesus?

To bring this all together and to head towards a close, what matters to Jesus? What do we see as precious to him from this final chapter of John’s gospel? Put simply, his sheep. His sheep are what matter to him. That they would be called into his fold, out of darkness and death, and into light and eternal life with him, that they would be fed. It matters so much that Jesus continues to provide for his disciples so that they can feed all of his sheep. It matters so much that he would call his disciples to give up everything to be sacrificial and live a life of telling others about him even to the point of death.

And so what does this mean for us in modern Australia? If I can be so bold, I think this passage exposes a real danger for us as modern first world Christians. We live in a country, a world that believes things like health, wealth, security, and prosperity are the things that matter most in life, the things that we should be chasing for. And whilst these things are important on one level, they are also dangerously alluring. These things promise such great reward, don’t they? These are the things you need in order to have a good life. And it becomes so easy for us to fall into the trap of prioritizing what the world thinks rather than what matters to our Lord, to our shepherd. Our time gets prioritized by what the world says is important and time for Jesus is squeezed in. We give Jesus our leftovers. The thoughts of our hearts, our worries, our desires are more concerned with daily needs and comforts and not with matters of eternity. In modern Australia with all its comforts and luxuries, we are in danger of losing sight of what matters to Jesus.

But here’s the thing. If you’ve ever been close to someone, a family member, a good friend, when you love someone and when they love you, the things that matter to them, suddenly they matter to you. It’s just something that love and relationships does. And so as we think about this, a line from a great poem came to mind. It’s this one. Only one life will soon be passed. Only what’s done for Christ will last. Only one life will soon be passed. Only what’s done for Christ will last.

The guy who wrote it, a guy named C.T. Studd, he had everything that a modern Australian would want. He had health. He was a pro-sports person. He had wealth. He inherited a bunch of money. And therefore, he had security, prosperity, and opportunity as well. But he gave it all up. He said, “If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for him.” He faced hardship so that he could feed Jesus’ sheep in parts of the world that were pretty much unreached with the good news of Jesus. He faced hardship to call Jesus’ sheep into salvation, into eternal life and peace with him. Because he knew that this call to feed Jesus’ sheep was of eternal significance, more important than anything in this world, the temporal things in this world or this life. And we read that in that last line, don’t we? Only one life will soon be passed. Only what’s done for Christ will last.

And whilst it can be a life of service and sacrifice like we’ve seen with Peter and John, I want us to think about that there’s nothing really more joyful or exciting to be involved in this work of feeding Jesus’s sheep. Over the past 18 months, I had the joy of watching someone come to Jesus as part of a Bible study that I was part of. Listening to her describe how amazing and wonderful she now finds Jesus is just a beautiful thing. And hearing her describe the joy and the peace that she now knows that she has because Jesus is her savior, because she is now one of his sheep for eternity is just, there’s just nothing quite like it. There’s nothing quite like seeing one of Jesus’ sheep come home. It’s a mistake. It’s foolish, as our Lord says, to think that the path to joy is in temporary things like wealth, health, security, and such. Real joy is found in eternity with our shepherd and seeing other sheep come into his fold.

And so to finish, two questions. If we love Jesus, what should matter to us? Two questions for us to think about.

• Number one, am I being fed? Like Peter, have you come to Jesus? Have you come to him to receive that most precious gift there is, forgiveness and eternal life with him? And if you have come to him, are you continuing to come to him? Ask yourself, am I prioritizing, and I mean really prioritizing, time to be fed by Jesus through his word? Am I setting apart Sunday for time with his people? Am I invested deeply with other brothers and sisters during the week? A Bible study is a great way to do this. Don’t make your growth as a follower of Jesus like fast food. “Oh, I don’t think I have time for a proper healthy meal to sit down for it, so I’ll just get something quick, even though I know it’s not really going to be that good for me.” We’ve said several times that January is our sign up season. Make sure you sign up for a Bible study. Get into a Bible study. Am I being fed?
• And number two, am I feeding others? Who are the friends that I am investing in or could be investing in, praying for with the hope to tell them about Jesus, maybe to invite them to our Alpha course later in this year? Or which brother or sister, maybe someone who is new to Jesus, new to following Jesus, which brother or sister could I be loving by opening up God’s word together and praying together? January is our signup season. There’s plenty of places where as we serve together, we can be feeding each other and feeding each other the word of our Lord. Am I feeding others?

Because these are the things that matter to Jesus. And if we love him, they should matter to us. Only one life will soon be passed. Only what’s done for Christ will last.