Good morning, dear family in Christ. It's a joy to be standing here before you today, a joy to be sharing in the love and fellowship that binds us together as one body, one family, one community in Christ. We're here to open our hearts to the word of God, to let His wisdom fill us and guide us, to let His love be the light that illuminates our path in this world.
[Title: Breakfast with Jesus]
Studies have shown that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, as a good breakfast fuels you and gets you ready for the day. In general, those who eat breakfast have more energy, do better in school and work, and eat healthier throughout the day. Without breakfast, people can get irritable, restless, and tired. A good breakfast takes care of our physical body, but is there something similar for our spiritual? Yes, having breakfast with Jesus. So, let us look at the change in the disciples after having breakfast with Jesus.
After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together.
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.
Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?” They answered Him, “No.” And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!”
Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea. But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish.
Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.”
John 21:1-10
We open the story at a point a short time after Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, with seven disciples out fishing on the Sea of Tiberius, also known as the Sea of Galilee.
The seven were out fishing because Peter had decided to do so, as he had no idea of what else to do now that Jesus had left them without any clear instructions on what to do before His death. So, he did what he knew how to do, and that was to go fishing. We should keep this in mind as we wait for the Lord; we need to keep doing what we know how to do and not sit idle.
The fool folds his hands And consumes his own flesh.
Ecclesiastes 4:5
The book of Proverbs is ripe with verses relating to laziness, and the troubles it brings. So, Peter, not wanting to be lazy and not knowing what he should be doing because Jesus did not leave clear instructions on what to do after His death, so he reasoned that I will just do what I know how, and that is fishing.
In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul writes to the Thessalonians to not just sit around waiting, but to continue in their work. Scripture tells us that God blesses those who work, and you should remember that Jesus had never called anyone who was sitting around doing nothing; scripture shows that all the disciples he called were busy doing something. Four of the disciples were fishing, one was working in the tax collection booth, several were in church service with John the Baptist, and one was studying under a tree.
We see in verse 3: Peter and the other six disciples toiled all night and caught nothing.
How many times have you found yourself doing what you wanted to, relying on your on strength, resources, and knowledge? You found that you were just like the disciples here, toiling but showing no fruit for their efforts. Why is that?
• Was Jesus part of your plan?
• Did you come to Him and ask Him to bless your efforts?
• Did you come to Him and ask if you should even be doing whatever it was that you were doing?
o Proverbs 28:26 “He who trusts in his own heart is a fool, But whoever walks wisely will be delivered.”
Verse 4 tells us that it is now morning and Jesus is standing on the shore. He calls out to the disciples and asks if they have caught anything. They answer “no”. So, Jesus tells them to cast their nets on the right side of the boat. Lo and behold, a miraculous catch of fish, so much so that they could not haul the net aboard the boat. We see that if we do it Jesus’ way we shall be delivered, and our efforts will be fruitful. Doing it our own way gets us the bare minimum, if that; but leaning and trusting in Jesus gets us more than we asked for.
Verse 7 tells us that the one Jesus loved (we find in scripture that the one Jesus loved was John) told Peter that the man on the shore is the Lord. We need to take note here that John was the one with the greatest spiritual awareness. Because he knew it was Jesus by the miracle just performed.
Peter, being quick to act and slow to think, jumps into the water and swims for shore.
Verse 9 tells us that when they get to shore, they find that Jesus has a fire going with fish on it and some bread. Here is where our Lord and Savior provides, still being the servant, he has breakfast already set for the disciples. And Jesus is still working in our lives in the same way today.
Jesus tells them to bring some of the fish they had caught to the meal. Now we see here that God does not need us, as is shown by Jesus already having a fire and some fish of his own. This scene illustrates an important fact: God does not need us to accomplish His end goals, but He does want our willing participation. He wants us to willingly submit to His will. I use the word “willingly” because He wants you to do so out of your own desire, and not out of a sense of obligation. He wants willing workers.
For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister.
Hebrews 6:10
Jesus is saying to us, bring what little that you have, and He can work with that. In John chapter 6 Jesus feed the five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish, this after He asked His disciples “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” Here Jesus asks them to bring what they have because He has all the provisions that we need, but He wants us to bring something to the table.
Let us read verses 11-14.
Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken. Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast.” Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?”—knowing that it was the Lord.
Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish. This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead.
In verse 11 we can see how the Lord provides…a huge catch of fish that would normally break the nets. But because Jesus was part of the effort the disciples catch more than they ever could, and their equipment is not damaged.
In verse 12 Jesus says to the disciples “Come and eat breakfast” The disciples ate and did not dare ask who he was because they knew who He was. This breakfast scene is a typical one for some church goers and for those who believe in God but refuse to accept Jesus. We who are in this group want to come and eat with Him, but we are afraid or ashamed to look Him in the eye, fearing that He will tell us how our hearts are not correct before Him. So, let us change our ways so that we can dine with Jesus with a clear conscience and a pure heart.
Let us read verses 15-17.
So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Feed My lambs.” He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
He said to him, “Tend My sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
We need to understand that these verses are not a discourse in family love, but they are a call to self-evaluation, self-judgment, and an ordination to an office in the kingdom of God. In other words, it is Peter’s job interview.
After they had finished eating, Jesus asked some pointed questions to Peter; and we need to understand some important things here. First, Jesus calls Peter by his birth name, Simon son of Jonah. Jesus did this because Simon was not acting like the Peter that Jesus wanted him to be. The name Peter means, the little rock, the spiritual name given to him by Jesus. Jesus wanted Peter to be a strong and solid leader, but Peter was not acting like the solid foundation that Jesus wanted him to be.
Second, the words in the original language Jesus and Peter use for love are not the same. In verse 15 when Jesus asks Peter “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” Jesus is using the Greek word agape, which is a word that means “truly love” and refers to a love that goes beyond looks and physical attraction, but one that involves the entire personality including the will, while Peter uses the Greek word Philia, which signifies a brotherly love when he replies “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” So what Peter is saying is “Yes, Lord I like you.” Now this is quite different from the Peter we knew from before. The Peter that boasted of his great love and loyalty for Jesus as we see in Matthew 26:33 [Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble.]
When Peter made that statement, he believed himself to be strong enough to handle anything. But he in fact did stumble when he denied Jesus three times. So, it was at this moment that Peter took a self-evaluation and found that he needed to step down a little and be true to himself. He needed to answer Jesus as truthfully as possible. Peter could not truly say that he agape the Lord, but he knew in his heart that he did Philia the Lord. Peter brought what little he had, and Jesus accepted it; we know this because the third time that Jesus asks Peter if he loved him Jesus also uses the Greek word Philia. So, Jesus is asking Peter, “do you truly like me?” And Peter answers yes.
So now you can see why no one dared ask who he was, because all of them were ashamed of themselves because they ran away and denied Jesus when He was arrested and tried, at a time when they should have been by His side.
How many times have you been like Peter, boasting of your love for God while you were in church and among your Christian friends, but deny Him the minute you get around your co-workers and other non-Christians? Right now, you may be asking yourself, how do I deny Jesus?
• We deny Jesus when we think that the only day of worshiping the Lord is Sunday. He asks us to worship Him every day.
• We deny Jesus when we think we can do it all by yourself.
• We deny Jesus when we do not help those who are in need.
• We deny Jesus when He wakes us up in the middle of the night to pray from someone and we tell him that we are too sleepy.
• We deny Jesus when He calls us to serve, and we tell Him that we are too busy.
Have you had breakfast with Jesus today? Doctors and nutritionist will tell you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It is the meal that gives you the energy to get your day started. Dr. Jesus also has some nutrition to give you. The breakfast He has will give you spiritual strength, strength that you will need to overcome the weapons of the enemy. For Isaiah 40:31 says
But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.
That is the kind of energy that a breakfast with Jesus gives you.
Have breakfast with Jesus by starting you day with prayer. Allow Him to instruct you of the way to go.
Have breakfast with Jesus by reading a few scriptures. Deuteronomy 8:3 says, “that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.”
Have breakfast with Jesus by reading and singing some devotionals. Psalm 100:1-2 says “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before his presence with singing.”
Peter miserably failed his Lord when he fled with the other disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane. Later he publicly denied that he knew Jesus. Peter must have wondered if he really was a disciple when he failed the Lord at His most crucial hour. You may be wondering sometimes, like Peter, if you are a disciple.
• Perhaps you were not faithful to Jesus.
• Perhaps you disobeyed Jesus’ word to you.
• Perhaps you denied Jesus by the way you are living.
Jesus is waiting to re-instate you, as He did Peter. He will not berate you. He will not humiliate you. But He will ask you to examine yourself and your love for Him. John 14:15 says that if you truly love Him, you will obey Him.
Take the time to have breakfast with Jesus. He has a fire and some fish waiting for you, all you need to do is bring what little you have. He is waiting “come and have breakfast.”
