March 31: John 21
Leviticus 2–3; John 21; Proverbs 18; Colossians 1
At the outset of John 21, Peter is distracted (1-3). Unforgiven, un-dealt-with sin sidelines us, and sets us on self-focused trajectories that are socially acceptable, but useless to the kingdom.
But Jesus loves Peter and the rest and God and the church and the world too much to leave them in that state. But before he restores Peter (15-19), Jesus gives the disciples a literal, living parable of the mission he commands them to (4-16).
Jesus goes before them (4a), and yet we, his disciples, in all our “doings” for his church, are often blind to his presence (4b). Nevertheless, he is gentle and patient with us (5). Then he speaks to us, clearly and directly, “Fish here, not here. And if you do, you will catch many fish” (6a). Of course, the parable is not talking about fish, but men.
And when we obey him, the “catch” is greater than any we could have accomplished by following our own logic and leading (6b). It’s in that moment that we are reminded, in the dullness of our minds, “Oh yeah, God! It’s the Lord doing all this! Oh yeah, it was always about His power! Praise God!” Happy, jolly joy (7a). Of course, joy can look funny sometimes - there’s no script for joy (7b). Especially with men - while those who have decorum primly sing, the happy impetuousness of manhood just jumps into the water (7c). And that’s just alright.
Then the church grows, and the “haul” immediately demands more faith in the Lord, for the “catch” will be too much for us to carry in (8). The weight of it will humble our strength - it will require a team effort, no one person with enough strength to do it all. But there will be the Lord again, by his power ensuring that our nets do not break, though the fish are so large (11). The Lord does this.
What about his servants, the fishermen? The Lord sustains them in their labors. He provides their nourishment, from his very presence: “Come and have breakfast” (9-12). He gives us bread and fish, from “the catch” (13). Here is a massive principle: the provision your church needs is found in spiritual new life - spiritual vitality - not in yourself, but in others, many of whom are not yet “on the shore.”
Yet most of evangelicalism is intently focused on the left side of the boat, on that thin band of the population that is already interested in acquiring and consuming spiritual goods and services from a spiritual big-box store, called “First Church of What’s Happenin’ Now.” In doing so, we effectively write-off the massive rest of the population.
This is disobedience from disbelief. He says, “Cast your nets on the other side of the boat. If you do, you will make a great catch.” But that would require trusting his promise. Are we willing to do that?
Consider what the end goal is. John refers to himself in v. 7, as he has before, as “the one whom Jesus loved.” But this is not favoritism on Jesus’ part. Everybody, it seems, when they were befriended by Jesus, felt that they were uniquely loved by Jesus. This is how Martha and Martha described their brother (11:3), and how Paul described himself (Gal. 2:20). We are called to experience this love for ourselves, and bring others into its orbit. For there is a whole world out there that dreams of the existence of this kind of love, but for them it’s only a dream. That is, until they meet the Man walking along the shore.