John 21:10-11

Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.”  So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them.  And although there were so many, the net was not torn.”

If you believe in Jesus Christ it’s because of the testimony of sacred Scripture.  Maybe someone from your family was the influence God used to bring you to Himself.  Perhaps it was a co-worker or friend.  Whatever the case, no matter how beautiful and rare it was, to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is a product of the testimonies of the sacred writings.  When we say with Thomas, “My Lord and My God,” we say it because faith comes from hearing and hearing through this, the word of Christ (Romans 10:17).  

With that said, what do we make of this passage?  So many great figures in church history have zeroed in on the fact that John records the exact number of fish – 153.  For instance, Jerome pointed out that the naturalists of his era believed there were one hundred and fifty three known species of fish.  From this, Jerome reasoned that John was teaching us that in the work of fishing for men we would catch people from every tribe and nation.  Unfortunately, as R.C. Sproul points out, the naturalists that Jerome cited actually counted 157 different varieties of fish.  He was off by four.  Oh, well.  Others taught that the disciples wanted to divide the fish to make a fair distribution amongst themselves.  Sproul again pointed out that the number wasn’t divisible by seven.  

Whatever the case, the simple fact is that we aren’t told why the disciples counted the fish, nor what the larger relevance, if any, was in the exact number.  More than likely, we’re looking for the wrong thing.  The number is large, indeed.  That’s the point.  We should think, “Wow…that’s a lot of fish.”  That’s probably the point.  When God blesses us, He does it in ways that cancel out our taking the credit for it, lest our pride destroy us and, moreover, He often does it with super abundance.  We may work hard and that labor might yield nothing for many seasons but it’s the Lord that brings us the true successes in life.  

What else is on open display?  Well, notice how Peter responds to the presence of Jesus.  We can’t possibly fathom the shame that he must be feeling after his desultory performance on the night of Jesus’ arrest.  But he sees Jesus and jumps in the water to go to Him.  One thing we see that’s odd, though, is that he paused to put on his outer garment before jumping in the water.  This is strange because rarely do people put their clothing back on before going in the water.  Peter does this probably because he’s preparing himself to stand before the Lord and doesn’t want to be disrespectful.  Isn’t that amazing?  He’s overwhelmed just at the sight of Him and wants to rush to Him but doesn’t want to go as he was, so he put his garment back on.  He’s excited and nervous.  What a scene!  We learn such a great lesson from this. Go to Jesus as you are!  Go.  Go as Peter goes for assuredly your sin wasn’t denying Him on His way to the cross.  There’s no perfect way to go…you might swim, you might run, you might crawl.  All that matters is that you go in faith.  

Furthermore, watch how quick Peter is to obey the Lord.  He hurries to haul in the fish.  There’s no hesitation.  He goes back to the boat at the behest of Jesus and hauls the net in, which, despite so great a load of fish, doesn’t tear.  Do you see this?  Peter always tried to improve on the commands of the Lord.  He always had a thing to say, a point to add, even to the point of disagreeing (Matthew 16:22-23). But now Peter is at last humbled and has come to that blessed place in the Christian walk where sanctification has taught him to simply obey.  This isn’t mindless obedience!  No.  It’s the assurance in the heart that God not only knows what’s best but, critically, loves us perfectly and has our best interest in mind in all things.  

Are you there yet, Christian?  Do you know the Word of God only so far as you agree with it or do you throw yourself onto it, knowing it’s perfect?  Do you seek to get your own way because you haven’t come to that blessed place where one knows that God’s will is sweeter than honey, more precious than gold, and greater than any created thing?  Have you really chewed on this truth of Christian life, that God’s will for you is utterly perfect and that abundant joy and bliss await you in the act of obeying of His commandments?  Do you see faithfulness to God as the supreme pursuit of your life (Ecclesiastes 12:13) or is it still some other thing?  

The Gospel of John provides so much rich theological content – enough to blow the minds of history’s greatest thinkers.  But there’s something more in this chapter, the epilogue.  We see Peter come of age in the faith and that means nothing more than his abandonment of his own premises and the full acceptance that God is not only authoritative but good too.  To know both God’s authority and His love toward you is an unsurpassed blessing and Peter has found it.  He obeys now and it’s a joyous, spontaneous submission, not a dull legalism that sees God’s commandments as a chore.  The height of Christian growth, the peak of that mountain that is spiritual maturity is where you see reality in truth – and that is that God’s will is perfect and sin is insanity,.  The soul that dabbles in a sin is one that still doesn’t really trust in God, in His unmeasurable goodness and mercy.  The soul that holds a sin is slow to understand the riches that are in Christ.  He wants the blessings of God but only on his terms.  We should know and believe that God is not only good in Himself, but means good toward us.  To commit sin by choice is to trade the blessedness of the Lord for a fleeting moment and that moment has great wings that fly far off and we’re left with nothing but shame, emptiness and despair.  Peter knows that route but Jesus has redeemed him from it all and he’s abandoned looking at the world on his own terms.  

This is where Peter is and where we should be too.  Obeying the Lord isn’t a chore, but a blessed privilege that yields life and an abundance of joy.  In keeping the commandments of the Lord and living in faith, there is great reward (Psalm 19:11).  So, the issue of this passage isn’t the number of fish but Peter’s great and wholehearted trust in the Lord.  That’s the mountain of faith to climb, the goal and essence of life – to believe in the Lord and not merely profess the faith but to possess it and act upon it.  Oh, that great peak is where one sees the splendor and magnificence of God’s grace towards sinners, which inspires the type of obedience we see in Peter.  We pray that it is ours too.