In Luke 5:3-11, the Lord called Peter by a miracle in fishing. Here He also recovered him to His call by a miracle in fishing. He is consistent in His purpose.
When the disciples got out onto the land, “they saw a fire of coals laid there, and fish lying on it and bread” (v. 9). Peter and the disciples very clearly saw the fish on the coals of fire and the bread. There had been no need to catch any fish from the sea, for there were some fish on the land already. The Lord performed this miracle to teach the disciples that under His will they will find fish at any place, even on the land. But if it is not under His will, they will not find any fish even if they go to the sea. Catching fish does not depend upon the natural way; it depends upon His will. He is sovereign, and everything is under His control. Even in a place where people think that there is no fish naturally, the Lord will prepare fish for us. This is not the fish in the sea; this is the fish already cooked and prepared for us.
In this chapter we see three miracles indicating three signs: the miracle of no fish (v. 3), the miracle of a multitude of fishes (v. 6), and the miracle of the fish on the fire and the bread (v. 9). Here the Lord trained Peter’s faith in Him for his living. Peter and those with him fished the entire night, but caught nothing. Then, according to the Lord’s word, they caught an abundance of fishes. But without these fish, even on the land where the fish were not, the Lord had prepared fish and even bread for them. This was a miracle. By this, the Lord trained them to realize that without His leading, though they went to the sea where the fish were, and in the night, the right time for fishing, they could catch nothing; but with the Lord’s leading, even on the land where the fish were not, and in the morning which is not the right time for fishing, the Lord could provide fish for them. Though they caught many fish according to the Lord’s word, the Lord would not use these to feed them. This was a real lesson to Peter. For his living he should believe in the Lord who “calls the things not being as being” (Rom. 4:17).
The Lord not only moved with the disciples; He also lived with them. In verses 12 through 14 the Lord prepared breakfast and served it to His disciples. The Lord’s words, “Come and have breakfast,” indicate His gracious care for the need of His called ones. The Lord did not say, “Peter, breakfast is ready. Help yourself.” No, verse 13 says, “Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and the fish likewise.” Bread represents the riches of the land, and fish represent the riches of the sea in the Lord’s provision. How good the Lord is! He served the disciples breakfast. This picture is much better than a thousand words. Although the Lord did not rebuke Peter, I believe that Peter never forgot this lesson.
How would you have felt if you had been Peter? If I had been Peter, I would have covered my face in shame. I would not have known what to say to the Lord. Could Peter have said, “How are You, Lord?” or, “Lord, I’m sorry that I gave up the right position to come here to fish.” Although Peter did not have the face to eat, he was probably so hungry that he had to eat. Perhaps Peter did not eat very much and what he did eat, he might have eaten shamefully. Peter was in an awkward situation. On the one hand, he had some fish in his hand cooked by the Lord; on the other hand, he looked at the multitude of fish in the net. This was a glory to the Lord, but it was a lesson to Peter.
This is a very interesting lesson. We do not need any descriptive words; we only need to look at the picture. The Lord showed them that some fish had been prepared already. Thus, there was no need for them to go to the sea. In effect, the Lord was saying, “If I want you to go to the sea to catch some fish, then I will tell you to do it. Look at these one hundred fifty-three fish. There is no need for these fish, for I have already prepared some fish for you.” Once again, I say that if I had been Peter I would have felt very much ashamed. On the one hand, I would have thanked the Lord, but, on the other hand, I would have had to say to myself, “How foolish I am! There is no need for me to come here to fish outside the will of the Lord.”
The matter of our living is very practical. This is why the Gospel of John has this additional chapter. Since we are the sons of God who have been regenerated and committed with the divine commission, the Lord will certainly take care of our living. We must learn the lesson of not giving up the Lord’s commission because of our living. We must not give up the Lord’s burden in order to care for our existence. We are not the people of the world; we are the children of God. We must seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then the Lord will add the practical supply to us (Matt. 6:33). He will take care of our need. If we have been truly commissioned by the Lord for His burden, for His work, and for His testimony, we may be at peace and rest assured that the Lord will grant us the provision we need. This is the lesson in this portion of John 21.
Look at the picture once again. The disciples labored the entire night and caught nothing. Then the Lord appeared to them and told them to cast the net on the right side of the boat, and they caught a multitude of fish. Those fish were unnecessary, however, because the Lord had already prepared some fish, as well as some bread, for them to eat. This was not a lesson in words; it was a lesson by miracles. The Lord did not teach Peter and the other disciples by giving them a lecture, a sermon, or a message. He gave them a lesson by three miracles. The first miracle was that seven men fishing the whole night could not catch even one fish. The second miracle was that they finally caught one hundred fifty-three fish in one net at the Lord’s word. The third miracle was that without the fish caught from the sea, some fish and some bread had already been prepared on the land. The Lord taught His disciples a lesson by these three miracles.
The lesson the disciples learned here was that they must take care of the Lord’s commission and trust in the Lord for their living. We must take care of the Lord’s work and testimony instead of our living. If we give up the Lord’s commission to look after our living, we shall fail. In 21:2-14, the Lord gave the disciples a lesson about their sustenance, showing them that their living does not depend upon their natural means but upon the Lord’s will. If we are in the Lord’s will and under His will, He will prepare a living for us even in the impossible places. However, if we take the natural way and go to the sea, that is, to the world, to find employment for our living, we shall be faced with failure. If we have been called by the Lord, we should not worry about our living. The Lord Jesus has a way to prepare fish without fishing. He will take care of our food, for He is the One who calls the things not being as being. The Lord who has called us will take care of our living.