Where are the Disciples? (John 21:1–3)
· Sea of Tiberias?
o Only called by this name in John’s Gospel (John 6:1)
o In A.D. 20, Herod Antipas built a city named Tiberias on the west shore of the Sea of Galilee, and the Sea gradually become known as the Sea of Tiberias.
o The ancient town of Gennesaret is on the northwestern shore of the sea/lake.
o Sea of Galilee, Sea of Tiberias, Lake of Gennesaret…All the same place.

Were the Disciples Wrong to Go Fishing? (John 21:1–3)
· Is this story a fulfillment of Jesus’ words in John 16:32?
· Or were the Disciples obeying Jesus’ words in Mark 14:28 and Mark 16:6–7?
· Most likely they were obeying Jesus and went to Galilee to meet Him.

“It is the Lord” (John 21:4–7)
· Why does the Beloved Disciple recognize the man on the shore as the Lord?
o Because this very thing happened to him before in Luke 5:1–11.

Jesus was Manifested (John 21:8–14)
· Jesus appeared to the 10 Disciples on the evening of the first Easter Sunday with Thomas absent (John 20:19–24).
· Jesus appeared again one week later to the Disciples with Thomas present (John 20:26–29).
· Jesus appeared to His Disciples at the Sea of Galilee/Tiberias (John 21:1–14)
· Why is John emphasizing how many times Jesus manifested Himself to the disciples? Because the historical event of Jesus’ resurrection, proven by the post resurrection appearances, are the crux of the Christian Faith. Without the resurrection of Jesus, Christianity is absurd.
o 1 Corinthians 15:13–19

Empirical Evidence for the Resurrection
· John 20:16–18 - Jesus was seen, heard, and touched.
· Matthew 28:9–10 - Jesus was touched, heard, and seen.
· Luke 24:38–43 - Jesus was heard, seen, touched, and ate food.
· John 20:26–29 - Jesus was heard, seen, and touched.
· John 21:1–14 - Jesus is heard, seen, touched, and the breakfast and fire He made are smelled and tasted.

The Gospels Claim to Be Giving Eyewitness Testimony
· John 21:24
· Luke 1:1–4

The Hallucination Theory (a skeptical/naturalistic theory for the resurrection)
· Definition: Jesus’ Disciples must have hallucinated that they saw Him risen.
· The argument is that hallucinations are common for persons experiencing grief following the death of a loved one.
· Hallucination: “a false sensory perception that has the compelling sense of reality despite the absence of an external stimulus.” APA Dictionary of Psychology (2007), 427.
· Different Modes of Hallucination: Sight, Sound, Touch, Taste, Smell
· Hallucinations occurring in a single mode are more common than multi-mode hallucinations.
· Problems with this theory:
o Can Groups Experience Hallucinations?
- Since hallucinations are mental events, you can’t share a hallucination.
- “I have surveyed the professional literature (peer-reviewed journal articles and books) written by psychologists, psychiatrists, and other relevant healthcare professionals during the past two decades and have yet to find a single documented case of a group hallucination, that is, an event for which more than one person purportedly shared in a visual or other sensory perception where there was clearly no external referent.” –Gary A. Sibcy, Ph.D., Piedmont Psychiatric Center
o Who Experiences Hallucinations in our society?
- 15% General Population.
- Hallucination-Prone Personalities.
- Females more than Males.
- Older more than Younger.
- Seniors bereaving loss of loved one account for 50% of hallucinations.
o Did the Disciples Hallucinate?
- All were males.
- Different age groups
- Different personalities
- 100% had experience
- All experienced simultaneously, multiple times
- Experiences had similar/multi modes (sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell).

The Disciples were eyewitness who told us what they had experienced, which was the resurrected Jesus!
· 1 John 1:1–3
Christianity is unique in that the claims of our faith are based on historical events communicated to us through eyewitnesses of the events.