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How To Eat Breakfast With Jesus

John 21:1-15

• What does it say
• Well here in the story, we see the Disciples, back to fishing. Jesus apears on the shore, and asks them if they have any food- meaning fish. They say no, he tells them to cast on the right side of the boat, and then they pull up a ton of fish. Simon peter realizes its Jesus, so he jumps into the sea to get to Jesus. They pull up 153 fish on to the shore, and then they have a great breakfast of fish and bread with Jesus.
• Intro

• Now, whenever a preacher preaches- they have to listen to the HS and preach what God puts on their heart and mind from the text at hand. There is a lot inside this chapter.
• We can’t cover it all- I encourage you to meditate and study on this portion. There is a ton in there Seven Disciples signifying spiritual completion, Night signifying spiritual darkness, Daybreaking Jesus breaking the darkness, Peter putting on clothes in reverence to Jesus, Charcoal fire from John 18 where Peter denied Christ, to 21 where his redemption happens
• This is a chapter about redemption.
• Here’s what I see in it

1. Don’t go back

You can’t go back to where you came from

• After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. 3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We are going with you also.”
• I think the life of Peter is so interesting. He goes from follower, to denier to leader.
• In this part of the story- Jesus shows himself to these disciples as they are going out to fish
• These guys have just come from a whirlwind experience of 3.5 years of following Jesus. They’ve given it all up. Forsaken all to follow Jesus- he dies and I’m sure they are distraught because of it
• Simon Peter’s response- “I’m Going Fishing”
• Now for some of you fisher types, you can probably identify with this a bit-
• I’m not a fisherman. I’ve gone fishing, and I’ll go fishing, but its not the thing that I want to do
• If I’m in peril- I’ll probably say- Lets go get some donuts, or sushi, or I’m taking a nap
• Everyone has an escape that they go to when they are distraught.  We should go to prayer
• Simon Peter-“I’m going fishing” – This is where Peter came from- This is where it started
• its not just that he is going fishing- he’s going back to where he came from
• Matt 4:18 And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.
• Simon Peter is a fisherman- but when Jesus called him- he told him to come and follow him and he would become a ‘fisher of men’ and he dropped his nets and followed Jesus
• But now- He’s gone back to what Jesus has brought him out of
• Jesus called him, told him, instructed him what he was supposed to do leave the nets, go fish for men
• Now, since Jesus appears to have gone from this place, Simon Peter says, thats it- I’m fishing
• Its what he knows. He only was with Jesus 3 years. Probably fishing for a dozen or more
• Its natural- I get it- Our natural tendencies are to gravitate back to where we came from
• Good or bad- its what our flesh knows and desires- to go back to where we came from

• But here’s the deal- you’re not supposed to go back to where you came from-

• 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
• If we are made new in Christ we cannot return to where we came from
• Proverbs 26:11 As a dog returns to his own vomit, So a fool repeats his folly.
• Dont be a vomit eater! Don’t Go back to the disgusting things of your past! You’ve been delivered!
• Luke 9:62 But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
• We’re not supposed to even LOOK BACK to our past!
• This is what 2 Peter has to say about False teachers who corrupt the Gospel
• 2 peter 2:20 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. 21 For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them.
• It would be better to have not even known it- OUCH
• Friend- there are things that God has delivered you from that you have no business going back to
• Don’t drive by it, dont think about it, dont entertain it, Don’t dabble in it.
• Pastor Jay told me once- its not about how close you can get to the line- its how far you can stay away from it

1. Dont go out

• I think its interesting- Simon Peter decides to go fishing- and in the process, entices his buddies to go with him also- “They went out and immediately got into the boat”
• It wasn’t enough that Simon Peter was discouraged and disenfranchised with the whole thing-
• He somehow convinced the others to come along also- To follow HIM instead of following JESUS
• Think about it- Jesus comes and calls the group- then the main dissenter calls the group away
• You’re either a Sheep or a shepherd and if you’re  shepherd you better be leading people to Jesus, if you’re a sheep, make sure you’re following a good leader. Not everyone who can lead is a good leader
• So they go out- back to their old ways- These guys are fisherman- they fish “and that night they caught nothing” verse 3
• Out on their own- away from Jesus They catch nothing
• Did you know there isn’t a place in the Gospel where the disciples caught any fish without Jesus?
• I think its clear- You can’t catch any fish without Jesus

• Inevitably when people go through something- right after they go back to where they came from- they venture out without Jesus by their side and it produces absolutely nothing
• were they not listening? John 15:5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”
• Human nature being what it is, they go out without Jesus expecting to fish, and they can’t do it
• What does it mean to you? You don’t want to go out without Jesus!
• If you ever find yourself in the thick of it- you’re downtrodden and worried- THATS the time to put your full faith and assurance in Jesus-

• Psalm 40:4 Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust, And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
• Many times I have seen people who were serving God, and then something happens in their life and they turn away from the faith
• One mishap away from Serving Jesus- one unanswered prayer away from turning away
• Isaiah 26:4 Trust in the Lord forever, For in YAH, the Lord, is everlasting strength
• God IS an everlasting strength! He WILL supply- He WILL sustain you in strength!
• But you don’t want to be out there without Jesus because you’re not going to flourish
• Here’s a question that people ask me- why do the unrighteous flourish and the faithful struggle?
• Here’s what I think- Those of us who know God have ASKED him to grow us- and since we’ve ASKED him- he answers that prayer! We’ve asked him to grow us!
• Philippians 4:19 And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

1. Be Obedient! Obedience brings abundance

• Next part of this story Jesus shows up and says  “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.”
• Now, I’m not exactly sure what was going on in these guys heads at this time- but me, I’m thinking- whos this guy on the side of the lake telling me how to fish?
• Out there all night, not catching a fish. Maybe it was just out of frustration- they listened
• it wasn’t a huge change- I’m guessing the boat wasn’t that wide- I think Jesus was trying to prove a point to them and to anyone who would hear of this story for years to come
• Do what I say and you’ll be blessed with abundance
• “now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.”
• They went from not having any fish to an abundance of fish
• Now, some people would argue that this is a foreshadowing of things to come- Fish representing people- and I dont think thats a stretch
• But this fish had VALUE- a monetary value- Here is 7 guys plus Jesus and they pull in a hoarde of 153 fish! a Multitude
• Now I dont care what kind of fisherman you are, 153 fish in one net is a bunch of fish, and I’m guessing that these guys aren’t going to be able to keep all these for themselves so they’ll have to sell them or donate them or share them- but they have Value!
• Here’s the deal- Obedience always brings abundance- These guys listened to Jesus and they got what was coming to them in abundance!
• Psalm 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.
• Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,
• I love Jeremiah 7:23 But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’
• “I will be your God” If God be for us, who can be against us? Now, I am the farthest thing from a prosperity preacher- The prosperity Gospel to me is that the Gospel is financial increase.
• That is not the Gospel- The Gospel is Jesus Christ came to save sinners
• but I do believe that Obedience brings Blessings. And that means everything- Health, Heart, Pocketbook, Mind, Body, Soul, all of it.
• Will you experience calamity as a christian? of course! But I believe God blesses obedience
• Notice- These guys boloed and Jesus fills their nets! He didn’t have to- he was showing something!
• Read Deuteronomy 28:1-2 “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God:
• People say “i’m obeying God” you peel back the onion- no tithes, unrepentant sin, not listening to the HS, envious decietful heart, not judging here- I’m just saying God’s idea of obedience and your idea may not line up if you’re not looking at scripture.
• Job 36:11If they obey and serve Him,They shall spend their days in prosperity, And their years in pleasures.
• Proverbs 28:25 He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, But he who trusts in the Lord will be prospered

• Be Counted! A Fisherman Counts his Fish
• 11 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.
• what does the 153 stand for?
• A representation of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH)which allegedly appears 153 times in genesis
• A representation of each species of fish in the Sea at this time.
• 1+12 x 153 = 1989 which Jesus called the 12 in 28 plus 1989 = 2017
• The argument that 153 is the 17th triangular number and that since 10 (Law) + 7 (grace) = 17, that this is a picture of the Law and grace.
• Here’s what I think- You talk to any fisherman in the world and they’ll tell you exactly how many fish they caught- Not about 10. its 10. Its 7
• Jesus counts his fish. He knows how many he has in the net Luke 12:7 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
• The fact that he has you in the net means that he is not letting you go
• John 6:39 This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.”
• John 10:28-30 and I give eternal life to them and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; and no one is able to to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
• John 18:9 Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one