THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

John: Believing On The Christ, The Son Of God, For Eternal Life

Part XLIX: Trusting In Christ For His Post-Resurrection Provisions For His Disciples

(John 21:1-14)

I. Introduction

A. John's Gospel presents Jesus as the Son of God Who was full of grace and truth, and the events surrounding His death, burial and resurrection reveal His grace and truth in His claim to be the Son of God and Messiah.

B. We thus view His post-resurrection provisions for His disciples in Galilee that testify of these edifying truths:

II. Trusting In Christ For His Post-Resurrection Provisions For His Disciples, John 21:1-14.

A. When the disciples met in Galilee and decided to go fishing, but then caught nothing all night long (John 21:1-3), Jesus stood on the shore unknown to the disciples and called to them, saying, "Children (Paidion), haven't you any fish?" (John 21:4 NIV) The term "Children" was a familiar address by a respected person who felt He had fatherly intimacy with those He addressed (Arndt & Gingrich, A Grk.-Eng. Lex. of the N. T., 1967, p. 609), so Jesus conveyed He was graciously exercising fatherly oversight over His beloved disciples.

B. When they answered, "No," that they had no fish, Jesus told them to cast their net on the right side of the boat for a catch similar to how He once told Peter to launch out into the deep to catch a drought of fishes after an unsuccessful night of fishing back in Luke 5:4-5; John 21:6a. However, in the current situation, instead of needing to row a ways for a catch as in Luke 5:4, Jesus told them to throw the net overboard graciously right where they were -- about 100 yards from shore, John 21:6, 8; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to John 21:8.

C. The catch the disciples thus obtained was graciously so great, they could not pull the net with its contents into the boat unlike their catch back in Luke 5:6-7, John 21:6b. In fact, the disciples had to drag the net bulging with fish in the sea behind the boat instead of emptying its contents into their boat, John 21:8.

D. In the Luke 5:7 miracle of the great catch, the boats were so filled with fish that they began to sink, a crisis for the fishermen, but in this John 21:6-8 miracle, the net of fish never made it into the boat, so they never did start to sink, a gracious provision of the Lord that avoided this crisis of the previous miracle!

E. After they recognized it was Jesus Who had provided their catch, and they made it to shore (John 21:7-9a), the disciples saw a "charcoal" (anthrakia) fire there with "little fishes" (opsarion) on it and some bread, Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1972, i, p. 683. A charcoal fire appears elsewhere in the New Testament only in John 18:18 at the high priest's home (Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich, p. 66), a special fuel not naturally available at the seashore, and as the small fishes were obtained without any fishing gear and Jesus also had bread that was obviously not acquired from the sea, the entire meal was graciously provided by way of a miracle well beyond the contrasting absence of any meal provision by the Lord back in the Luke 5 event!

F. Jesus told the disciples to bring the "little fish" (opsarion) they caught, but when Peter drew in the net, it was graciously filled with 153 ichthuon megalon, "great fishes," Ibid., Edersheim; John 21:10-11a. This supply of only large fish exceeds Jesus' supply of the small fish (opsarion) in Luke 5; Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich, p. 606.

G. In Luke 5:6, the net had broken due to the many fishes, but in John 21:11b, though the net was too full of large fishes even to pull into the boat, it did not break, revealing Christ's gracious added protection of their net.

H. When the disciples sat down to dine, Jesus graciously came and waited on them in the role of their servant. He stooped to serve in washing their feet as a servant in the Last Supper (John 13:2-17), but even now in His risen power and glory did He again graciously stoop to the status of servant to meet their needs! (John 21:13)

I. Jesus gave them the bread and "small fishes" (opsarion) He had cooked instead of using any of the large fish they brought, for it would have taken a lot of time to clean and cook the recently caught large fish, John 21:13; Ibid., Edersheim; U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966, p. 411. Thus, even the selection of the food was made in grace.

J. This miraculously supplied bread and "small fishes" recalls the miraculous bread and opsarion (Ibid., p. 342) provision by which Jesus fed the 5,000 in John 6:9-13. It shows Him to be the same Lord Who truly had performed that former miracle, and now He was miraculously providing for His disciples, Ibid., Edersheim.

Lesson: By His post-resurrection provisions for His disciples by the Sea of Galilee, the risen Lord revealed that He was not only TRULY the same Lord Who had performed such provision miracles in His earthly ministry, but that He was even more ABUNDANTLY GRACIOUS toward them now that He was risen and empowered in glory!

Application: (1) May we trust in Jesus as the Son of God and Messiah. (2) May we realize that He views us who believe in Him as a great Father does His dear children, and that He graciously, abundantly meets our every need.