He Reinstates The Repentant Series

Who Is This Jesus?

20. He Reinstates the Repentant

John 21

Don Jaques

April 2/3, 2005

MAIN IDEA: Jesus reinstates and recommissions those who have fallen and repented of their sin. If we have failed him we can be sure we will receive the same treatment. We need to be sure and offer others the same grace our Lord offers them.

OBJECTIVES: Those who have failed will be encouraged to move ahead and start serving the Lord again.

Those who have had others fail them will be encouraged to accept their apologies and move ahead in their relationships.

INTRO:

I want to do a real quick survey. If you have ever had someone disappoint you in some way that hurt you, would you raise your hand?

Now – if YOU have ever failed someone else, would you be brave enough to raise your hand?

What a bunch of failures we are! Who among us hasn’t known the sting of feeling that we failed to live up to a commitment we had made, or a promise we made to someone close to us.

Sometimes the pain comes from knowing we hurt someone else, even unintentionally.

Whatever the source, one thing is certain – we’re going to have to learn how to deal with failures in our lives and in the lives of those around us. We can’t escape it!

As we come to the end of the Gospel of John, this series called “Who is This Jesus?”, we are going to see how Jesus responded to one of his closest friends who failed him, and how this friend responded to his own failure. As we read this final chapter of John, we’ll discover that Jesus is the one who REINSTATES THE REPENTANT.

Let’s read…

Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish

1Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: 2Simon Peter, Thomas (called 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.

4Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

5He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

6He 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.

7Then 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. 8The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

10Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”

11Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

Jesus Reinstates Peter

15When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

16Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?”

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

17The 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.”

18Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." 19Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

The title of the passage in the NIV is “Jesus reinstates Peter”.