Sermon Notes - John 21 - Littleby Baptist Church - January 28, 2024

1.        Seeing Jesus in the flesh helped Thomas overcome his doubt.

a.        He in Jesus and was ready to die with Him.

b.       But, when Jesus died, Thomas’ faith was shaken.

c.        He struggled to believe that Jesus had defeated death.

d.       This belief is needed for one to receive the gift Jesus is offering.

e.        We have to believe that Jesus is who He says He is.

f.          We have to believe that Jesus as the Son of God died on the cross to pay for our sins.

g.        We then need to believe that He defeated death so that we can have life eternal.

h.        When we say we need to believe in Jesus, it is more than Him being some historical figure.

i.          It includes who He really is, what He did, and what it means.

j.          Belief in Jesus will change our eternity.

2.        John 21:1-3

a.        Peter the one who denied Christ.

b.       Thomas who doubted but now believes.

c.        And 5 other disciples are hanging out wondering what to do next.

d.       They decided to do something that some of them were familiar with.

e.        They went fishing.

f.          Not like we would by sitting on the shore or a boat casting a line in the water.

g.        These guys were throwing nets in the water and trying to pull large amounts of fish into the boat.

h.        It wasn’t a casual voyage, it was work.

i.          Yet, they caught nothing.

3.        John 21:4-6

a.        It may have been too dark…

b.       The distance may have been too far…

c.        Or their eyesight was going.

d.       Whatever the reason they did not recognize Jesus.

e.        Then He told them to cast the nets in the water.

4.        The events would be familiar to several of the guys.

a.        Luke 5:4-11

b.       As they were catching many fish, John was reminded of what happened several years earlier.

c.        It helped John recognize Jesus.

5.        John 21:7a

a.        John the first to believe at the tomb.

b.       Was the first to realize who it was standing on the shore.

c.        Maybe John was just more receptive.

d.       Maybe Peter was focused on work or still struggling with his guilt.

e.        John realized the man on the shore was Jesus.

6.        John 21:7b-9

a.        Peter responded impulsively.

b.       He jumped in the water and swam to Jesus.

c.        The others followed in the boat dragging the fish with them.

7.        John 21:10-11

a.        If we were to go to the lake and drop our lines in the water, it would take a long time to catch 153 fish.

b.       To modern day commercial fishermen, 153 fish is not a lot.  

c.        In that day and age, it would have taken several successful full nets to catch that many fish.

d.       Yet, with a single cast of the net they had more fish than they could pull into the boats.

8.        When the guys headed out to fish on their own, working under their own power, they struggled and did not succeed.

a.        When they followed God, they received an abundance.

b.       This is not John telling us that we get more things when we follow God.

c.        Instead, this example is letting us know that God will provide when we follow Him.

d.       Matthew 17:24-27

e.        God provided what was needed.

f.          Our definition of what we need is frequently different than His.

g.        Yet, God does provide what we need.

h.        Maybe not what we think we need, but what He Knows we need.

i.          What we need to carry out His will.

j.          What we need based on eternity, not our time on this earth.

9.        John 21:12-14

a.        We have Scriptural record of Jesus appearing to His followers ten times after His resurrection.

b.       This was the third.

10.   John 21:15-17

a.        Peter denied Jesus three times.

b.       Three times Jesus asks if Peter loves Him.

c.        Three times Peter declares His love for Jesus.

d.       Everyone one of us is like Peter, we are going to sin.

e.       But here is the thing, our God loves us.

f.          If Jesus is our Lord and we repent of our sins.  

g.        Believing in who Jesus is, what He did for us, and what is means… we are forgiven.

h.        We will be shown Grace, just like Peter was.

i.          Like Peter who denied his Lord and Thomas who needed to see to believe, we are going to waver.

j.          We are going to have times when we struggle.

k.        But, through the love of Jesus and His sacrifice… we are forgiven.

11.   Each time Peter declared his love for Jesus, Peter was given a task to do.

a.        Feed my lambs… help people grow in faith, help them grow in knowledge of the Word of God.

b.       Shepherd my sheep… tend them, care for them, pour into them.

c.        Feed my sheep… help them grow.

d.       Jesus is letting Peter know that regardless of how bad he believes his sin is, God can still use him.

e.        A wonderful thing for us to hear.

f.          No matter how much sin we have stacked up, our God can still use us.

g.        He is going to call us to repent of the sin in our lives.

h.        But our sin does not disqualify us from being used by God.

i.          I would say it makes us relatable.

j.          We are human.

k.        We are going to falter.

l.          Thankfully, no matter what we have done, our God can still use us to be His witnesses and to make disciples.

12.   John 21:18-19

a.        Peter was probably feeling relieved until Jesus got to this part.

b.       After a long time, as he grows old.

c.        Peter will be found worthy to die for Jesus.

d.       In some ways it was probably scary to hear, but in others a relief in knowing that it wasn’t going to happen the following week.

e.        Jesus ended with “Follow Me.”

f.          As Jesus followed the Father’s Will, we are to follow Him.

g.        Whether that path leads us to a peaceful existence or to persecution, we are to follow Him.

h.        We are to keep our eyes on the hope we have in Jesus.

i.          As children of God, those grafted into the Vine, we need to follow Jesus.

13.   John 21:20-21

a.        For some reason Peter turned his attention to John.

b.       Maybe he wanted to change the subject.

c.        Maybe he wanted to make sure John was not left out.

d.       Either way, Peter was distracted from what should be his primary focus.

14.   John 21:22

a.        Hey Peter, don’t worry about John.

b.       Don’t get distracted by what others have, what they get to do, or what they will endure.

c.        Simply Follow Me.

d.       It is easy for us to get distracted.

e.        There are a lot of things in this world that can and do distract us.

f.          If our focus shifts to other people or things instead of Jesus we are at risk of missing what He has created us to do.

g.        Our focus needs to remain on Jesus.

h.        He is the author and perfector of our faith.

i.          We need to follow Jesus.

15.   John 21:23

a.        John corrects a misunderstanding that led some to think that he may live for a really long time.

b.       John passed from this life like the rest of us will at some point.

16.   John 21:24

a.        Some question if John wrote this verse or not.

b.       He could have been stating that he is the author, or someone else could have written it as confirmation that it came from John.

c.        Either way, we have confirmation that John is the disciple Jesus loved.

d.       He is the author of this letter.

17.   John 21:25

a.        In the Gospel of John, we get 7 signs.

b.       When you fold all the Gospels together, we still only get a sampling of Jesus’ ministry.

c.        If we combine all of Jesus’ words found in the Gospel letters, we only have a handful of hours of Him talking.

d.       Imagine how much space 3 years of ministry would take, let alone a lifetime.

18.   My hope is, as you reflect on what we have covered in 21 chapters of the Gospel of John.

a.        You clearly see that Jesus Christ while a man who walked this earth, was fully God.

b.       He came to us in order to pay our debt in full.

c.        He not only cleansed us of our sins, but He showed us how we are to live our faith.

d.       He gave us the Holy Spirit.

e.        He defeated death giving all who believe eternal life.

19.   This is a gift being offered to all of us.

If you don’t know Jesus, let’s talk.