1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
“No,” they answered.
6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Read John 21:1-14 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
While reading about the disciples fishing adventure following Jesus’ resurrection, I am impressed by two details John includes in his version of this event. Following the disciples towing the nets full of fish to the shore, and after Peter had abandoned the disciples and dove into the water to swim to shore, John tells us, “So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn.” (v. 11)
John wrote his gospel decades after this event had taken place, and even after so much time had passed, He remembered this event exceptionally well. This event had made such a deep impression on his memory that he even remembered the number of fish they had caught, which was 153, and that even with this high number of fish, the nets did not tear.
When we read about this event, we are tempted to only see one miracle: the miracle catch of fish after having come up empty the previous night. But there is another miracle here as well, and that is the miracle that the nets did not tear. This is a distinctly separate miracle because while the miracle of the fish is one of abundant blessing, the miracle of the nets is one of preservation.
This preservation miracle opens us up to seeing a new angle on how God can work. Not only should we pay attention to His abundant blessings, but we should also note that these blessings were not too much for us to bear. When God abundantly blesses us, He does so in a way that will not ultimately harm us in the long run – and this may mean that the blessing might look different than we might imagine.
Also, the miracle of the nets prompts us to see how God might work subtly – helping to preserve the things we have and helping them last longer. Similar to the children of Israel not having their sandals wear out while walking in the wilderness, God can choose to work by helping our stuff last longer as well. We might not think of this as a miracle, but it may be much more than simply a coincidence.
God’s blessings come in many ways, and the miracle of the nets, while overshadowed by the miracle of the fish, helps us focus on God’s preservation as one way He may choose to work in our lives.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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