The Great Catch Of Fish – Part 8

The same night in which he was betrayed, Jesus shared a meal with his disciples, and said, “All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee.” It was too much for the disciples, who still could not understand that their Lord had to die in the first place. Jesus now said they would forsake him. Peter protested first: “Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.” And again: “ ‘Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee.’ Likewise also said all the disciples” (Matt. 26:31-35).

It only took time for Jesus’ words to be realized. Jesus was betrayed, forsaken, crucified, and then raised from the dead. Peter had denied him — three times — just like Jesus said, and the disciples, who now numbered one less, forsook him at a time when a man needs his friends the most. All this had been fulfilled — but the Lord had not yet appeared to the disciples in Galilee, and so it is appropriate that we find seven of them in that region, occupying the passing time on the sea of Tiberias until he would come.

A testimony to the Lord’s mercy

The Lord had already appeared to the disciples twice before, though Thomas was absent the first time. On the morning of the eighth sign, Jesus’ third manifestation to his disciples, Thomas was one of those disciples present. His presence is a testimony to the Lord’s mercy, rather than to Thomas’ own faith — a testimony that Jesus’ disciples of every age appreciate, because it is true of them all. That night on the fishing boat, there was a small group of men who were perfectly fitted for the work to which they were called. They were not fitted for the work by their intellect or talent, being notably uneducated (Acts 4:13). They were not fitted for the work by their faith, because it is evident from their own writings that Jesus frequently rebuked them for lacking it. Rather, the great truth of their calling is that God extended His grace to them in spite of themselves. A true appreciation of this fact can only be received in humility ­ and it took the disciples time to understand it. The same is true of us — our Lord did not love us because we loved him. He loved us first.

After a tiring night of fishing, the disciples had caught nothing by morning. A man who called to them from the shore did not lessen their sense of futility when he asked them if they had caught any fish. After they answered tersely, “No,” he told them to cast the net on the right side of the boat (John 21:6). Maybe the disciples thought a man on the shore could see a school of fish where they could not, as the bright rising sun obscured their vision. Whatever the reason, they complied and threw in their net, and the catch was so great that they lacked the strength to pull it into the boat. It was then that the author of this record recognized the man on the shore: “It is the Lord,” he said (v. 7). Hearing John’s word, Peter flung on his fisher’s coat, and leapt in the lake — evidently so eager to be with his Lord that he decided not to wait with the rest of his fellow disciples.

They had seen this before

Some of the disciples on that boat had seen this kind of miracle before. About three years earlier, Peter, James, John, and those with them had a similar experience. They would have recalled a day when Jesus spoke to the multitudes that flocked to hear him, the Lord using Peter’s boat as a stage. When Jesus had finished speaking, he told Peter to cast the nets into the deep. At that time, too, they had already “toiled all the night, and had taken nothing.” But at Jesus’ word, he let down the net, and the catch was so great that neither net nor boat could handle it. Falling down at Jesus’ knees, Peter said, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” He could not believe that he deserved to be in the company of such a man of miracles — he clearly saw his own sinfulness contrasted with the Lord’s greatness. But now, about three years later, instead of asking Jesus to depart from him, Peter swam a hundred yards to be near his Lord as fast as he could (Luke 5:5-8).

A fire of coals

When the disciples came to the Lord on the shore, they shared a meal with him. He gave them bread, and fish cooked on a fire of coals. The fire of coals is one of several allusions of particular relevance to Peter. It was on a night in which Peter huddled around a fire of coals that he had denied his Lord — three times. And now, after a meal around a fire of coals, Jesus asked him three questions, followed by three commands to strengthen his brethren in the flock of God.

The first question for Peter was, “Lovest thou me more than these?” (John 21:15). Biblical expositors have not all interpreted Jesus’ question in the same way. Some have suggested he was asking about Peter’s priorities; in other words Jesus meant, ‘Do you love me more than your fishing?’ But it seems more appropriate that Jesus was calling to Peter’s mind the night before he was crucified, when he shared a meal with his disciples, spoke to them about his death and their temporary defection, and assured them that he would meet them in Galilee after he rose from the dead. What had Peter said that night? “Though all shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended” (Matt. 26:33). He essentially said he loved Jesus more than all the disciples. Peter truly did love his Lord, but only the flesh says, ‘I love you more.’Each of Peter’s responses was followed by a command from his Lord: “Feed my lambs… tend my sheep… feed my sheep” (John 21:15-17). It was almost as if Peter was being challenged to show his love for Jesus to the flock, over which he was made a shepherd. “This commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also” (1 John 4:21).

The benefit of failure

By briefly bringing Peter back to that night with the three questions and commands, the Lord gave Peter a great responsibility, and at the same time reminded him of his own weaknesses. This is a profound lesson. Knowledge, authority, and eminence only encourage arrogance in the hearts of men, when they are not mixed with a healthy sense of perspective and humility. Peter would never forget that he denied his Lord. His failures were more of a qualification for his calling than a reason against it. Pride is less likely to own a man after his deficiencies are publicly displayed. He would carry that with him for the rest of his life, along with the full assurance that he was forgiven.

The same is true of Thomas, who was also present at the great catch of fish. Just days before, he had refused to believe Jesus had risen, despite the testimony of the women and the other disciples. Consider the strength of the apostles’ preaching, with people like Peter and Thomas. They would have certainly come across people objecting to gospel truth because they never saw the risen Lord. What a powerful witness Thomas would have been because he had been a skeptic too. What a powerful testimony to the forgiveness of sins can be seen when we consider Peter’s denials, followed by his conversion. All the apostles were part of this great truth — that God’s offers His grace to men in spite of themselves, so “that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us” (2 Cor. 4:7).

Their calling

With this appreciation, the apostles were fitted for their calling, which is symbolically expressed in this eighth sign. After that great catch of fish early in his ministry, Jesus had said to Peter, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matt. 4:19). That phrase “fishers of men” was an expression of the ministry to which they were called. And now, after a second great catch of fish, the Lord gave Peter the same command: “Follow me” (John 21:19). Perhaps Jesus was saying that even though he was leaving, the disciples would still be fishers of men, and that he would be with them always. On a nearby Galilean mountain, not long after these events, Jesus seems to have commanded his disciples in this way, saying, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age” (Matt. 28:16-20).

There are many similarities between the two great catches of fish recorded by the gospel writers. But unlike those in the first great catch, the fish of the eighth sign were all numbered, having been preserved in an unbreakable net. They represent the called, chosen, and faithful, whom the apostles would gather from the right side into the net of the kingdom of heaven. And though Jesus referred to those fish as “the fish which ye have now caught” (John 21:10), his disciples knew very well that they could do nothing of themselves. They knew the weakness of the flesh, and how the Lord had called them in spite of it. His disciples today know this is true of them, too.

Let us watch

While the Lord remains away during this Gentile night, we live in constant danger of spiritually falling asleep: “Ye are the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober” (1 Thes. 5:5,6). The disciples, during a night on the sea of Tiberias, were awake and working, and soon found themselves in the presence of the Lord. This is part of the message for us ­ that just as the disciples shared a fellowship meal with their Lord after a long and laborious night, so would they also in the age to come. “Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them” (Luke 12:37).