Please note that starting next Sunday, May 2nd, there will be opportunity for us to join together online over Zoom. Pastor Lola will provide a link to our Zoom call in the Sunday email and we can have a chance to meet and talk together at 1 pm. If you are not familiar with Zoom and have not used it before, it is something that we can figure out with each other’s help.
The transcript of the service is below.
John 21:1-17
Afterward Jesus appeared again to His disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), 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.4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered.6 He 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.7 Then 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 around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So 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. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread, and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to His disciples after He was raised from the dead.
15 When 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.” 16 Again 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.” 17 The 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.
JOHN 21:1-17 LISTENING AND DOING
Springford Baptist Church: April 25, 2021.
The father patiently explained again to his children how to bait the hook and showed them how to cast the line over the side of the boat. They had watched him do this over and over from the time they were very young. Today was the time when they needed to take what they had learned and to try it out themselves. Today they were going to take the listening to the instructions and practice the doing of fishing.
There always comes a time to put things into practice. When you think of various skills that you have learned, recall how uncertain you felt when you were first trying to do it yourself: knitting, carpentry, driving a car, or looking after a baby. If all we ever do is listen to someone else describe what needs to happen and how to do something, we will never move from listening to doing.
I could listen to the instructions of how to drive a car but getting behind the wheel and driving was a whole different thing. Do you remember your first experiences of driving and how you may have wondered if you would be able to remember everything that you needed to do? Some of us learned with a stick shift and that required even more things to remember than an automatic transmission.
I notice here in our Scripture for today that a crucial time had come for Jesus’ disciples. They had been listening to Jesus’ teaching and instruction all the time that He was with them. Obedience to God seemed to come so naturally to Jesus. In recent days, they had been eyewitnesses to the miracle of the resurrection, Jesus being raised back to life. Now what? How would their listening result in doing and just what were they to do?
Some of the disciples named were together. (John 21:2) Peter decided in all the turmoil that they had been through to go and do something familiar. Now fishing was something he knew how to do. The others said, “We’ll go with you.” (vs. 3) They climb into the boat to do something they know how to do so well. We would not expect to go down to a lake and tell some of the experienced fishermen there how to fish. It would not be well received. Their years of experience would not result in them thinking to listen to you and your ideas about how to fish.
Here are Peter and some of the other disciples out fishing and they were fishing at night, which was favoured in these times. What do they catch? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. They would have thought that they knew what they were doing and that they could certainly still catch fish, but their nets are empty and they do not have any success even after fishing all night. (vs. 3b).
Someone on the shore calls out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish”? (vs.5) Now when we are trying to do something and it is not going well, we may not appreciate someone else’s suggestions. I recall a time when I was packing the car when one of our daughters was going away for University. There were some items that were not fitting in and a well-intentioned neighbour came over with suggestions about how a different approach could work better. Sometimes, those kind of suggestions don’t seem welcome.
In this instance of Scripture, the disciples do listen to the instruction to, “Throw your net on the right side of boat and you will find some.” (vs. 6)
They listened and the result was a huge haul of fish.
Listening and doing is a key principle here and it will be expanded upon. It is realized that it was not just anyone standing on the shore, “It is the Lord!” (vs. 7)
When we realize that it is God speaking to us, what will our response be?
Jesus’ next instruction is, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” (vs. 10) As a result of listening and doing, now they can enjoy breakfast together. There is immediate blessing that has come from listening and doing. There is this delightful time of sitting on the shore enjoying breakfast with Jesus. It does not end there. Jesus has some special instructions for Peter and Peter will need to choose if He will both listen and do.
We are told that when they
had finished eating, Jesus asks Peter, not just once but three times,
“Do you love Me”? (vss. 15,16)
Each
time, Peter repeats the truth of his heart, “Yes
Lord, You know that I love You”. Peter has
listened to the question each time and has responded as honestly as
he possibly can to Jesus.
He has listened to the question, but now he must do more than listen to the answer that Jesus gives. He must do the answer. This is not just an answer that gives information. It is an answer that demands action.
Jesus says to Peter if you really love me, “Feed my lambs.” “Take care of my sheep.” Feed my sheep.”
Peter, there is more here than listening and loving me. There must be doing. The way that you will demonstrate your love for me is to care for those I care for and to love them as I love them.
Just as the disciples needed to listen to the instruction from Jesus in order to catch fish, now they will need to listen and do what Jesus is telling them in learning to love His sheep.
As we are listening for God, what is He telling us to do?
We have the same instruction as Jesus gave to Peter. If we say that we love Jesus, then we are also called to love as He loves. We are called to feed and take care of His sheep. Jesus fed his disciples breakfast and met their need. Jesus can use us to care for others and to meet their needs as He intends. But this only happens as we both listen and do.
This past week, I was impacted by a message that I heard about extravagant love. The love of Jesus for us has been extravagant and generous and so our love for others must be the same. Not stingy, but extravagant. Our extreme love for Jesus must result in extreme love for all those He loves. That is everyone.
In this same message about extravagant love, I heard the speaker say, “None of us has time to just fill in time.” This is true.
Our listening and doing cannot wait until we get past this pandemic and it may seem easier to find ways to carry out both listening and doing. There are so many people who are struggling and losing hope and we who love Jesus are being called to respond with love.
We can listen to message after message about listening for God. Without the doing of what we can clearly hear from Him about loving as He loves, it all goes nowhere.
We may feel uncertain about how to do. We might think that we need some more instruction before we venture to do what we have been told to do. We can trust God in this. He equipped the disciples and He equips us for what He calls us to.
Do we love Jesus? Then we must listen to what He says to do, “Take care of my sheep.” (vs. 16)
Having listened and heard, what will we now do?