Yesterday I said I was going to look at four small pictures from this text. We looked at Vignette #1 and #2: Thomas and the Purpose of the Lord’s Day; This morning
we look at our calling to obedience and the Lord’ love for His people.
As I have mentioned in the past, once again the light and darkness themes that John loves are prominent.
Peter and others are fishing…they fish all night and catch nothing. Jesus greets them and they do not recognize him and tells them to cast their nets on the right
side of the boat and they catch so many that they cannot hall it in.
Nothing but futility throughout the night and then in 21:4, just as the day was breaking, and then at obedience to Christ’s command, abundance.
Night…futility…without me you can do nothing…darkness. Then the light breaks, the command of the resurrected Jesus in obedience to His Word, we find abundance, that
is John’s point throughout His gospel.
There is not and never will be the blessing of the risen Christ upon a people, upon the church, if we are not grounded in and seeking to be obedient to all that Jesus
has commanded. Even in the great commission that is what Jesus tells us to do, to go out making disciples, not decisions, and teaching them to observe ALL that Christ commands.
But today it seems it is pick and choose…we decide what we will obey, what we want to obey and we decide if we will obey fully or only partially, but of course always
counting our partial obedience as full obedience.
In John’s first epistle, he gives a few ways to know that you are truly converted, to give Christians assurance of their faith. One of them is this: Do you want to
know for sure you are a Christian? Well then…do you obey Jesus? Because true Christians obey Jesus and heart led obedience is a good way to know that you are saved. If you are not seeking to obey Jesus, then you SHOULDN’T have assurance!
I recently was convicted watching my sons, faithfully discipline their children and I look at my grandchildren and think, you silly little people, joy, and happiness
for you is found in simply obeying what your parents say, it is not difficult at all to understand…obey; joy, happiness, disobey, and not so much. But of course, being sinful, they want what they want.
The conviction is that I do the same thing with the Lord. Jesus said that when we obey Him, we have a fullness of joy, He says that when we obey Him, He makes Himself
known more deeply to us…He says that obedience to His word, puts one standing on the highway of blessing, getting ready to be overwhelmed by what God has for us.
Like my grandchildren, the answer for me, for you is simple…really…obedience to the Word of Christ will make your life joyful…it will cause you to know this otherworldly
peace…it will bring Jesus more and more into view…it is right there…ah but for our sinful hearts.
Two simple questions: Do you believe Jesus when He says this? That joy comes with obedience? That you know Him more deeply, and have richer fellowship with Him as
the result of obedience? Do you?
Second, If I followed you around for a week, with my invisibility cloak, would I, by watching the way you live, know that you believe it? This is where the truth is
truly seen, not with our words but in our lives. The Lord’s commands are not a burden and yet we often act as though they are, as if the Lord is punishing us by calling us to obey His word.
Vignette #4 The Lord’s Love for Us
On the shore, the light penetrates the darkness, the presence of God the Son with His people, with those he loves, calling them to childlike faith, childlike trust
in every word that proceeds from His mouth.
This is seen even in his address of them, for he calls them children…an expression of paternal familiarity, of love for those who are weak, those who have yet to grow
up, fully, to those under authority and needing the presence and the power of the One looked up to.
The greetings of Jesus in John’s gospel preach to us loudly. Remember, when Mary was so upset at not finding Jesus’ body, she didn’t recognize Him, thinking He is
the gardener, until what?
Until he calls her by name…when He says to her, “Mary.” She knew. The calling of Mary by name, speaking to the intimacy of our Savior has with each one of those he
loves, that the Savior calls us by name.
And, now the resurrected Christ comes to his disciples this third time, showing himself to them, building their confidence not once not twice, but three times, in
the truths of His victory over death, his defeating of sin and hell, and all of this FOR THEM, and he comes this third time and calls them, children.
You see brothers and sisters , this is how the risen Jesus views you, in all your weakness, in all your struggles , in all your failures and in the futility of your
efforts, he calls you, children, and proclaims to you the power of the resurrection.
He knows us…He knows our weakness…He knows that we are children, but He doesn’t despise us for it, He doesn’t cast us off because of it…just the opposite…He honors
us, by coming to us, by speaking to us, by loving us.
It would have been one thing for God to simply forgive us and let us be…let us go our way. But that would not satisfy Him. He then brings us to His table…and calls
us His children. We take that for granted, don’t we…that we are children in this particular family…brought in, adopted by the Father and given everything that is His.
How could we ever forget that? How could we ever forget that as born, this was not our lot, this was not our position…but grace has made it so.
Jesus makes the usual meal of bread and fish, which the disciples have so often shared with him, into a resurrection meal, not only by sitting down with them as the
risen Savior. What we have, is an involvement, a participation in the power of the resurrection of Christ and an illustration of futility without him.
Here is the point of all of this, the presence of the resurrected Christ, changes everything! James, Jesus’ own brother, who grew up with Jesus did not think He was
really the Messiah, until…until He had an encounter with the resurrected Jesus, which we read about in I Corinthians 15.
The presence of the resurrected Jesus, changes everything…why, why would we ever miss it, what would we ever prize anything above it!
From light to darkness, from futility to abundance, from self-reliance to obedience to His Word, from strangers to family, even children…This is what Jesus has for
us…brothers and sisters, arise, shine for your light has come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.
Prayer: Father, help me that I would be focused on abiding in Christ Jesus, staying close to Him, listening intently to Him and wanting for nothing but to walk
in obedience to Him. Then my life will be pleasing to You and useful for the Kingdom. Give me a willing heart and an obedient mind that I may be useful to my King and Savior, through Jesus Christ my Lord, Amen.
Hymn: When I Survey the Wondrous Cross