Church of the Nazarene - East Rockingham Campus

We conclude our teaching series in the Gospel of John called “Five Keys of John” today.

The gospel of John was written around 80-90AD, by Jesus’ closest friend; The Apostle John.

John was the oldest and last surviving eyewitness of the 12 disciples who were with Jesus.

He is writing for a very specific purpose. He says in Chapter 20:31 “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

John believes that the Jesus we discover through the stories in his gospel account is real and alive. And when we come to know who he is and believe in him, we will find true and eternal life.

After the closing scene of chapter 20, the story advances here several days and moves to the sea of Galilee. Earlier in the gospels, Jesus had told his disciples that he would meet them there.

For whatever reason, these guys do what the stranger says, and the results are, well, miraculous.

They drop the net over the right side of the boat and come up with so many fish they can’t even lift it out of the water.

In the fog of the moment, one person makes an important connection.

They couldn’t recognize the man on the shore by his appearance, but his power to perform miracles was undeniable.

They had seen this before. They had seen Him before. This is Jesus.

We know from the gospels that Peter had denied Jesus 3 times. He fell flat on his faith and his commitment to the Lord.
Was he racing to the shore for redemption?
Was he so excited that he just didn’t think it through? We don’t know.

All we know is that he adjusts his wardrobe and takes off.

The disciples arrive to find that Jesus already has breakfast prepared. He invites them to bring some of the fish that they had just caught.

The miraculous catch of fish fades into the background as the greater miracle begins to unfold.

Jesus, resurrected from the dead, shares a meal with his friends.

Throughout the gospel, John has gone to great lengths to make sure that we properly understand who Jesus is.

That he is One with the father, Lord of all, creator and sustainer of the universe, source of all life.

That he is the savior, messiah, come to deliver his people from the power of sin and death. That’s who Jesus is.

Now that he is tying up loose ends, John wants to make sure that we see This same Jesus, Lord and savior of the word, now back from the dead, does something no more dramatic than fixing his friends breakfast.

Who is Jesus? He is the servant king. He is the gracious friend.

As this story comes to a close John has meticulously cleared up all the missing pieces. That is all but one final cliffhanger. One story still isnt resolved.

A cliffhanger is a part of the story that remains un-resolved, in suspense.

That’s what John has left us with here. A key part of the story, still un-resolved. In suspense, unsure of what will happen next.

What is it, you ask? What’s the cliffhanger of this story?

It's you, friend. Your story, your life in response to your encounter with the person of Jesus through Johns gospel is the cliff hanger ending.

What will your story be after this?