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You have probably heard the saying that there are only two things we are certain of in life, death and taxes. Well, let me add a third. Failure. At some point, we will all fail at something. Maybe you failed a test in school, failed to make the cut on a sports team, or failed to get into the marching band at MSU. (OK, that was me.) Maybe you failed to get into the school you wanted or land the job you wanted, or maybe you failed in a relationship that was important to you. Failure is universal. At some point we will all fail, and how we deal with failure can determine the rest of our life.
Failure creates a barrier between who we are and who we want to be. If that failure keeps us from seeing the potential in our lives and the possibility of becoming more or our true self, it has both defined us and defeated us. If we fail to make the sports team and decide to never play sports again, our failure has defined us and defeated us. If we fail in a relationship and decide to never love anyone or let anyone love us again, we have allowed our failure to define us and defeat us. When we allow our failure to be a final barrier in moving forward, it has become fatal, but our failure never has to define us and it never has to defeat us.
We know that our failure isn’t final because of a meal the disciples had with Jesus. It wasn’t a dinner but a breakfast, and it took place on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. John 21:1-12
Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “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.
Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
“No,” they answered.
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.
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. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 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. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord.
Let’s go back and look at the first word in this passage. Afterward. After what? What has just happened? When does this meal with Jesus take place? It takes place after Jesust’ crucifixion and resurrection. It takes place after all the disciples ran away and left Jesus alone to face the guards in the Garden of Gethsemane, and most important for Peter, it takes place after he failed Jesus when Jesus needed him most.
If you remember the events around the arrest of Jesus, Peter and the rest of the disciples were with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane when Judas came and betrayed Jesus with a kiss. As the guards arrested Jesus and led him to the high priest’s house for questioning, all the disciples ran away. Peter did have the courage to follow Jesus and hide in the shadows, but when the servants at the high priest’s home asked Peter if he was a follower of Jesus, he said no. Peter didn’t just say no, however, he denied even knowing who Jesus was three times. Peter failed. But this was not the first time Peter failed. In fact, Peter is the poster child of failure.
Peter is an interesting character because we see in him great aspirations and great failure. Remember the night Peter walked on water with Jesus? The disciples were in a boat on the sea of Galilee when Jesus walked out to them on the water. When Peter saw Jesus he said, Lord if it is you, let me walk on the water with you. Jesus said, come, and Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water. Peter walked on the water with Jesus! But then his faith wavered, and doubt crept in and he began to sink. Jesus had to reach into the water to save Peter from drowning. Success and failure.
Then there was the day that Jesus asked the disciples who they thought He was and Peter said, you are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Jesus then said that as the Messiah, He was going to have to suffer and die. Peter rebuked Jesus and told him that it would never happen. Peter telling the Messiah how things are going to happen is failure. Jesus even said to Peter, get behind me Satan for you have in mind the things of man not the things of God. Success and failure.
And then in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus asked Peter to stay awake and pray with Him. Three times Peter fell asleep. And then Peter deserted Jesus when the guards came, and then he denied knowing Jesus three times at the high priest's house. Failure. Time and time again Peter fails Jesus. You have to wonder why all these stories are told about the one Jesus said was going to be the rock of the church. Why do we see all these failures of Peter in the Bible?
The answer is simple. They are recorded for you and me. They are recorded because we also fail. We fail to be faithful to Jesus and God wants us to know that our failures are never final. Peter’s failures were not final. Making breakfast for Peter and the disciples on the beach shows us that Jesus was not holding their failure against them. Reaching out to eat with them was a sign of God’s grace and mercy. Jesus forgives them and is giving them all a second chance.
What I love about this story is that it takes place at a meal. Jesus provided the bread and fish. We don’t know where He got them, but I like to think of Jesus taking the time to catch the fish and then make the bread so that He could feed His friends. We don’t often hear about Jesus fishing or baking, so this was something special. He took the time to prepare the meal. He lovingly made the bread and started the fire so that the meal would be ready when they arrived. Preparing this meal is an act of love.
This is a moment of forgiveness for all the disciples, but it becomes a special moment for Peter when the breakfast was over and Jesus took Peter aside. John 21:15-17
When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.
Three times Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him and three times Peter had the opportunity to say yes. Three times Peter had denied knowing Jesus and failed to love Him in a moment of need, so three times Jesus asked Peter to proclaim his love and commitment. This was an intimate moment between Peter and Jesus, and yet we have a record of all that was said, which means that Peter must have shared this story with his friends. Peter doesn’t share this to set himself apart as better than the others, he does it to give witness to the forgiveness that God offers to us all.
Jesus doesn’t need to hear Peter proclaim his love for Him, Jesus knows his very heart, so He must have asked Peter these questions for his own good. Peter needed to be reminded that his failure to defend Jesus and his failure to stand with Jesus in a moment of need did not define him forever. Not only does Jesus forgive Peter, but notice what Jesus does to help him. After asking Peter to share his love for Him, Jesus invites Peter to once again follow Him and he gives him a vision of who he is and who he can become. He is no longer a fisherman or even a fisher of men and women, Peter is now a shepherd of God’s people. Feed my lambs. Tend my sheep.
The first time Jesus invited Peter to follow Him it was to fish for men and women, but now Peter is being invited to be a shepherd. Jesus is asking Peter to feed His lambs and tend His sheep. Jesus is entrusting His life’s work to Peter and giving him a picture of what his future is going to be. He is not going to be a failed fisherman but a successful shepherd. God created and called Peter to be a leader and Jesus is helping Peter see this and live into this vision for his life. Jesus is not going to allow Peter’s failure to be the barrier that keeps him from becoming all God wants him to be.
More than anything, what Peter wants is to be like Jesus. He left his boat and nets and fishing business to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. He walked on the water to follow and be like Jesus. He always tried his best to follow Jesus, but at every turn he seemed to fail. In this moment, Jesus is saying, Peter, those failures do not define you. You are who I say you are. You will be the leader of my people. You will be a shepherd of God’s flock.
What we need to hear today is that God doesn’t just forgive us, God leads us beyond our failures and helps us see a better version of ourselves. Jesus leads us beyond the barrier our failures create so that we can see more of our God given potential and step into the possibilities and plans God has for us. And God does this for all of us, and God does it for one reason, and one reason alone. Love.
Why did Jesus go out of His way to make breakfast for the disciples and then take Peter aside to forgive him and show him the future God had for him? Because He loved him. Why does God work to open our eyes to the potential and possibility that lies in our future? After all our failures, why does God continue to forgive us? The answer is love. God loves us. God loves us that much. God loves us that completely, and God’s love will always work to help us see the future He has for us.
Have you ever wondered if God gets tired of your failures? Have you ever said, this failure is the final straw - God just can’t forgive me again. Or maybe you think God has just gotten tired of forgiving you and so has decided to cut you loose. The author and pastor Tim Keller said that if Jesus held on to His love for the disciples during all of their failures even as the full force of hell came against Him on the cross, and if He was willing to forgive and love and restore them in this meal, then there is nothing that He can’t forgive.
The Apostle Paul says in Romans 8:35, 37-39
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
If death and demons can’t separate us from the love of God, then neither can our failures. If trouble and hardships can’t separate us from the love of God, then neither can our failures. Our failures never have the final say - love does. When our failure meets God’s love - love wins - every time. And it is that love, that infinite love of God, that moves us forward and inspires us to be the better version of ourselves that God shows us.
Let’s go back to Peter after breakfast. Peter left that meal and went on to become the shepherd of God’s people. Peter boldly preached about the forgiveness and new life that everyone could have in Jesus and thousands of people believed and were baptized. Peter formed a new community that today we call the church, and he became the rock that Jesus said he would be.
Do you think Peter did all this out of guilt and shame for failing Jesus three times on the night He was arrested, or because he had experienced the love of Jesus three times after breakfast? It was because of love. Failure can only lead us so far, but love has the power to change our lives. Love is what needs to define our lives.
When we are confident and secure in God’s love for us, we can then honestly evaluate our failures and learn from them. When our view of God can change from the One who judges our failures to the One who forgives us in love, then our failures can become opportunities to learn and grow and we can step out in faith again. Peter was confident in his love for Jesus. Three times he said, Yes Lord, you know that I love you. He was confident in his love for Jesus and Jesus’ love for him, which meant he was able to step out in faith again to follow Jesus.
No matter what you are facing today, God loves you and there is nothing that can separate you from His love. You are forgiven and God is here to help you see the potential and possibility He has for you. Don’t let your failures define you. Allow God’s love to not only forgive you but give you the faith to step out again to follow Jesus.
Next Steps
Breakfast with Jesus - your failures are not final!
Think back to a time when you failed miserably.
● Did that failure define you? Did it defeat you?
● Were you able to step out and try again?
● What did you learn from that experience?
Read John 21:1-19
● How had Peter recently failed Jesus?
○ See John 18:15-18,25-27
● How had Peter failed Jesus before?
○ See Matthew 14:22-33, 16:21-23, 26:36-46
● How does this meal reflect the love and forgiveness of Jesus?
● Why does Jesus forgive Peter personally?
How does Jesus help Peter overcome the barrier of his own failure? What vision does Jesus give Peter for the rest of his life?
Jesus had called Peter to be a fisher of men and women and now a shepherd of God’s people.
● What might be the differences in these two callings?
● How does Peter live into both roles? (Both a fisher of people and a shepherd.)
What vision or calling do you think God has for your life?
● How have failures clouded that vision?
● How can God’s love help you see a better version of yourself?
Read Romans 8:31-39 and allow God’s love to meet and overcome your failures.
