The Post-Resurrection Appearances of Jesus (2)

We have been looking at the appearances of Christ following the resurrection and we have seen five of them already, the five that take place on the day of the resurrection. There are 10 resurrection appearances and all. We will be looking at four more. You say, wait a second, five, four, that's only nine. The tenth one is mentioned briefly in 1 Corinthians 15 where it says that Jesus appeared to above 500 at once but there's no record of that in the gospels in actually in his life. So we won't consider that. Some believe it was the time where Jesus met with them and Galilee and gave the great commission at the end of Matthew 28 but that's just not real clear. So there are either nine or 10 appearances of Christ. We've seen the five that take place on the day of resurrection and we're going to see four more hopefully two tonight of the four that we have remaining. It's interesting that there is a major shift in focus between the first and second one that we'll look at tonight. In other words, between the sixth and seventh appearance, the first six appearances of Christ are basically geared to prove to the disciples that he really was alive and to confirm their faith in him to help them begin to understand what was going on in the resurrection. That was the real thrust of the first six with the seventh one. There is a major shift. The last three that we'll look at all have more to do with with with Jesus teaching them and preparing them for their ministry. If we get to the seventh one tonight, we'll see that that shift in focus where Jesus begins to really prepare them then train them what they're supposed to be doing in their ministry in the book of Acts. All right, let's begin tonight in John chapter 20. John chapter 20. We've looked at just to bring you up to date on the screen here. The resurrection day appearances. He appears to Mary Magdalene. She goes to tell the disciples that he appears to the other women as they leave the tomb. The guards in the meantime point report to the Jewish rulers. Then Jesus at some point on that Sunday appears to Peter. We don't know exactly when that happened, but evidently was before number five on that outline. Jesus appears to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Then they go back to Jerusalem, find the disciples still gathered in the upper room and Jesus appears to the disciples in the upper room. That's the fifth appearance on resurrection Sunday that Jesus had for different groups of people. That went to the entire group of disciples gathered in the upper room. Now, the other appearances take place after that first Sunday, that first day of the resurrection. We're just entitling them the further post-resurrection appearances. The first one of those is a week later. Jesus appears a week later to the disciples. There is a week that transpires in which we have no information in the Gospels about what happened. It's just amazing to think about what might have been going through the disciples' minds during that week. What was Jesus doing? Where was he? What were the disciples thinking and doing? They obviously are still in Jerusalem. We begin in John chapter 20, verse 24 tonight, where Jesus speaks words of conviction to the disciples, particularly to Thomas. Verse 24. Now, Thomas also known as Dittamus, which by the way means twin, Thomas means twin in Aramaic and Dittamus means twin in Greek. So both of those mean twin. Thomas also known as Dittamus was one of the twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. That's referring back to what we've just seen the week before on resurrection Sunday when he appeared to the disciples. The uproar in Thomas was not with them. We have no clue as to why, but notice what happens in verse 25. So the other disciples told him, we have seen the Lord, but he said to them, unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were and put my hand into his side, I will not believe. What is Thomas saying there? I doubt. Yeah, doubting Thomas, that's where he gets his name from, right? To me, this means he must have been from Missouri. Show me. I won't believe until you actually show me the hands and the side. In fact, more than just show me, I want to touch. I want to make sure it's real. I want to put my finger in the nail prints. I want to put my hand in the hole in his side. I mean, that's pretty brazen, but certainly it is doubt. We have no idea why Thomas was not with the disciples the week before. The Bible doesn't tell us why. But I do not believe Thomas was a coward. He is, he doubts. But come on, didn't all of them doubt, all of them doubted, right? None of them could grasp at first what was going on. Thomas often gets a bad rap because he expresses his doubt so strongly. But I think the side of Thomas that's often not appreciated, maybe not even recognized, is his courage. If you go back to John chapter 11, Jesus has heard about his friend Lazarus dying. And he tells the disciples, we're going to go up to Jerusalem or we're going to go up to Bethany and the disciples, because they've been hiding out away from Jerusalem, because of the intense persecution at that point in Jesus' ministry. The disciples also all say, Lord, if you go up there again, you'll get killed. And Jesus says, we have to work the works that God's given us to do during the daytime. And the nights come when no man is going to work and we've got to keep working. And it is Thomas who speaks up in John 11, 16 and says, okay guys, come on, let's go with him that we may die also. I mean, Thomas was the one that says, if he's determined to go to Jerusalem, I'm going, I don't know about the rest, but I'm going and I'll die with him. Let's go, come on, we're with him, let's die with him if that's what it takes. So Thomas was no cowardly soul. I don't think he was missing that first Sunday because of fear. You know, everybody deals with tragedy and grief a little differently. Some people need to be alone. Some people need to deal with it on their own terms. And maybe that's Thomas. I don't know. But I think sometimes he gets a bit of a bad reputation that maybe somewhat undeserved. He's not the only doubting disciple. All of them doubt it. The thing I do appreciate about Thomas is that he's honest. He's honest. He says, I'm not going to pretend that I'm going to believe you guys. I've got to have it proven to me unless I see the nail marks in his hands, put my finger where the nails were, put my hand into his side. I'm not going to believe. So at least he's honest. And I can appreciate that about Thomas. Something else I appreciate about him is he's still with them a week later. He hasn't abandoned the disciples even though he hasn't seen the Lord yet. They have. He hasn't left them. Even though he is doubting and he expresses it very strongly. He hasn't left the disciples. And I think there's an important lesson there for us. Sometimes it's amazing. But sometimes when we go through difficult times in our lives, people pull away from other believers. Don't they? Maybe you've been there at some point in your life where you're kind of a downtime in your life. And it was in that time when you needed other believers the most that you pulled away. Well, what I appreciate about Thomas is he didn't pull away. He's still there a week later. He is still with the disciples. And so let's give the guy some credit. Maybe deserves a little more credit than what we often giving. I can remember when I was a kid, I used to think that doubting was his first name. And Thomas was a last name. Because that's all you're whenever you heard of Thomas doubting Thomas doubting Thomas doubting Thomas. I thought, yeah, that weird first name. So maybe we ought to give him a little bit more credit than that. It was the doubting disciples. Thomas just expresses his very straightforwardly and honestly. Well, notice what happens when Jesus shows up the second time in the upper room, verse 26. A week later, his disciples were in the house again and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, peace be with you. Sounds exactly like the week before it, doesn't it? Doors are locked. They're gathered in fear. Jesus suddenly appears. His greeting is that of Shalom. Peace, well-being. God's gracious favor and best for you. Again, he's seeking to calm their fears and their anxieties. And so to this point, it seems to be the exact same as what's happened the week before. But then notice what he immediately does. Then he said to Thomas, put your finger here. See my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe. What is what Jesus doing for Thomas here? He's assuring him? Okay, yes. Yes. What else do you see here in our Lord's words to Thomas? Yes. He knew exactly what Thomas had said. If you look at what Jesus challenges him to do, compare it with what Thomas said. It's exactly what Thomas said. I've got to see and I've got to feel exactly. So he just appears, greets them and then immediately turns to Thomas and basically says, I know exactly what you said last week or this past week. I know exactly what you've been thinking. And here it is. So he does show that he's God. Anything else come to mind about what our Lord is doing with Thomas here? Yes. He really is. John, he is showing a lot of compassion because he offers Thomas exactly the proof Thomas said he needed. He doesn't, you know, I don't get the impression that he's being critical or cruel of Thomas. He appears and he says, okay, this is what you needed to see and feel. Here it is. Right here. Come on. I'll give you all the proof you need. And he gives everything Thomas said he needed. And then the gentle rebuke at the end. Stop doubting and believe. Okay. So I think there is some compassion. There is that reaffirmation for Thomas certainly is the expression of his deity of who he is. Notice Thomas's response in verse 28. Thomas said to him, my Lord and my God. Do you think Thomas actually touched the nail prints and side? I kind of doubt it. I don't know. He may have. But you don't get that impression. Text certainly doesn't say he did. He has seen enough. And when he sees Jesus, he just bursts out in this amazing exclamation. My Lord and my God. This is the most direct statement of Christ's deity spoken from the lips of another person in the New Testament. My Lord and my God. I mean, there's no doubt in Thomas's mind now is there. The doubt is completely gone. He knows exactly who Jesus is. And he's not ashamed to say it and in worshipful fashion. My Lord and my God. So those are words of conviction. I think Jesus when he spoke them spoke them gently, but he spoke them very directly and he spoke them very convictingly. Here's the proof you want. Now stop doubting and believe. I thank God that there are times when we ask him for proof and he graciously grants it. He does not need to do that. He does not have to do that. But so many times when we ask God for a specific answer to prayer or a specific evidence of his guidance or a specific evidence of his, his enablement or whatever, so often he, he does that. If he doesn't, he has a reason for that in stretching our faith and purifying our faith. But certainly there are many times when he does with us, just what he did with Thomas, doesn't he? When he says, I hear you. I know what you're asking. Here it is. Here it is. Now stop doubting me. Believe. Believe. Trust me. One more thing Jesus says on that evening and that is in verse 29. These are words of commendation. Then Jesus told him, because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. Thomas, you got proof. You saw the proof you were asking for. And so you believed. But Christ speaks of blessing upon those who did not see him or would not see him and yet would believe. Who's he talking about there? Talk about us, isn't he? Yeah. None of us have seen him. Be careful if you claim that. We have not seen him, but we believe, don't we? And what do we believe? How do we believe? I say, we believe the Bible, we believe the record of those who did see him and what they recorded for us. Holy Spirit confirming the Word of God. Testimonious believers. Yeah. There's plenty of evidence, but we have not seen him. We don't have the same kind of evidence. Thomas had Jesus is not standing here saying, okay, touch me. Feel me. I'm real. Look at the prince. Look at this. Where the spear. He's not doing that with us. And so this blessing, this commendation is really for us, for those who have taken the message of the apostles who recorded it in God's Word. And by the illumination of the Holy Spirit who opens up God's Word to our minds and hearts, we have believed. Pardon me? It does warm the heart, doesn't it? That Jesus would give this commendation, this blessing on us. It is a blessed thing to trust him. And really, you go a little deeper than just the surface of what's being said here. The whole Christian life is a life of faith, isn't it? It begins in faith. We have to trust what we have not seen, a God we've never seen. We have to trust what he has said for our eternal destiny. So the whole Christian life begins in faith and God wants us to continue in faith, continue living by trusting him. And he pronounces a blessing on us when we do. Okay. Any other comments or questions about this encounter in the upper room, the week after Jesus had been resurrected? Anything else? All right. Then we're going to go on. Actually, we need to just mention verses 30 and 31. Then we'll get into chapter 21. In verses 30 and 31, John somewhat summarizes the purpose of his gospel. Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book, 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 tells us very plainly why he chose the specific incidents and teachings that he put in this book. I think I've mentioned before if I'm recalling the figure correctly, 93% of John's gospel is material that's not in the other gospels. It's just it's very different from the other gospels. The other three gospels are called the synoptics. If you can remember back about three years ago when we were introducing this series in the life of Christ, we talked about that term, the synoptics, sin, s, y, n means together. Optic means vision or sight. It's a Greek term. A lot of our medical terms come from the Greek language, by the way. Synoptic means to see the same way. The Matthew, Mark, and Luke, pretty much follow the same pattern of things. A little differences here and there, but they pretty much have the same material. John's is very different. Very different. And here's why he tells us why he is often called the most theological of the gospels because he had a particular theological point to prove in his gospel and from all of the material that was available. And he says there were a lot of other things Jesus did. A lot of other signs and he'll say at the end of chapter 21 something else about that, 21, 25, Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that could be written. So there's a lot of material draw from John selectively under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, obviously selectively chooses material to fit his theological purpose and his purpose. He tells us is to show us the things that Jesus did, the things he taught so that we may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. In other words, that he is God come down and human flesh, his deity. And that by believing you may have life in his name. So his purpose was to prove the deity of Christ, prove who Christ was so that we might trust him and believe who he was and have eternal life. So he kind of sticks that in here at the end toward the end of his gospel. Now chapter 21 takes up the next appearance of Christ and you'll begin to see that this appearance is very different from the others. He's not trying to prove who he is here. He's preparing them for ministry. And one of the beautiful things about this story, this whole incident is designed to be a training time. When Jesus appears to the seven, at least seven are mentioned, at the sea of Galilee. And the whole incident is designed to be a training time. Jesus in the whole setting and in what he does is basically reminding them of their original call to be fishers of men. Now here's the amazing thing about this story. It is very similar to another story in the gospels. Do you remember when that story took place or what it was about? Exactly. Steve. This story is going to be a story of a miracle of catching fish after they had fish and caught nothing back in Luke 5. When Jesus first called Peter, Andrew, James, and John, Luke 5 gives the same account that Matthew 4 does when he called them to become fishers of men. But Luke 5 gives the more complete story. The story in Luke 5 is of Jesus at the shore of the sea teaching a huge multitude and they're pushing him back against the water and he sees a boat there and he asks the owner of the boat if he can stand inside the boat to teach. The owner of the boat just happens to be Peter. And so he says to Peter, after he teaches, he says, Peter, launch out into the deep and catch fish. And remember Peter said, Lord, we've been fishing all night. We haven't caught a thing. Nevertheless, at your word, we will launch out into the deep. We'll do it. And they caught that tremendous number of fish that even the nets were about to break. And when they get back to the shore, Jesus says, now follow me for I'll make you fishers of men. From now on, you'll fish for men. Now, they had already met Jesus, but they had not in John 1, when they were pointed out by John the Baptist, who Jesus was, but they had not been called to follow him full time yet. And so their call to ministry, as it were, is in John, or in Luke 5. And this is almost an exact replica of that. And so I don't think that's by accident. I think God arranged this to remind them of their call. Put yourself in their shoes. They still don't understand what's happening. I think by the time we get to John 21, they have come to an understanding of the fact that Jesus is alive. That he really has come back from the dead. But there's not, there's been no instruction to this point as to what they're supposed to do. Matthew 28, the Great Commission hasn't happened yet. That's going to be the next appearance. So they've had no instruction about what they're supposed to do in the future. And so no doubt they're wondering what's next. I mean, we thought the kingdom was going to be set up and all that. And now Jesus has died. And yes, he's alive again. But what's next? What are we supposed to be doing? So I think Jesus frames this appearance and the setting and what happens to remind them of their original call and reinforce that that hasn't changed. You're still supposed to be fishing for men. Now with that in mind, let's look at the story. You know, it's not very far from now. They're going to be responsible for launching the church in the book of Acts. And so now Jesus is going to be intentionally preparing them for that. The first thing he does is to remind them of their original call and kind of call them back to that. John 21, verse 1. What he's going to do in this training for ministry to kind of jump into the outline here, he's going to show them first of all the need for his power. And he's going to do that with a miracle. All right, look at verse 1. After where Jesus appeared again to his disciples by the sea of Galilee, it happened this way. Simon Peter, Thomas, also known as Dittimus, Nathaniel from Canaan and Galilee, the sons of Zebedee. Who are they? James and John, okay. So you got two there and two other disciples were together. Now if I've done the math right, that's seven. We don't know who the last two were, but they are probably among the 11 that are still considered the disciples. So they're in Canaan or they're in Galilee now. They're back in Galilee. So how much time has he lapsed between that week after the resurrection when Jesus appears to have been Jerusalem and they have a room? And this next appearance, there's no way to know. We don't know how much time has he lapsed, but sometime has he lapsed because they're not in Jerusalem anymore. Now they'll go back to Jerusalem, but at this point they're not in Jerusalem. They're in Canaan or they're in Galilee. So verse 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. Now this verse, amazingly enough, has engendered quite a bit of controversy. It's interesting to hear people argue back and forth. I remember when I was in Bechley and we were attending faith Baptist. It was not long after we started there that this passage was taught on on a Wednesday night. And it was a discussion type setting. And there was quite an argument about the two views of this passage. I don't think anybody was close to a fist fight, but it sounded like it at times. There are some who believe that Peter is saying, forget this whole business of being a disciple. For crying out loud, I'm going back to fishing as a vocation. And then there are others who say, he's just going fishing. What's wrong with that? Which camp are you in? Any clues as to what you think Peter is saying here? Is he giving up? He's a man of action. He wants to be doing something. Yeah, we're going to see that further in the story too. Peter's not one to sit around and wait for things to happen. He's a man of action. You're exactly right. So he's got to be busy. He's got to be doing something. I really don't think Peter was giving up and saying, okay, forget this call to ministry. I'm going back to my vocation of fishing. For one thing, they haven't been told yet what they're supposed to do. They don't have any information yet as far as we know. There's no information in the scriptures about them being told yet what was next, what they're supposed to do. And so Peter and the other disciples are probably in the dark about what the next steps are. The other thing is they have no idea how long this is going to last and they have to support themselves somehow. So Peter probably is thinking, you know, good night official, give us enough food or we can sell it in the market and we can kind of help out things for a week or so here. Maybe that's what he was thinking. I don't get the impression that he's so downcast that he's giving up. Although that may be true. Yes, yes, we know he's got a mother-in-law, but Jesus healed so he must have a wife. Yeah, right. Right. Yeah, there's still a lot they're trying to assimilate in their minds and I agree with the owl. I think Peter probably is saying, okay, I can't sit around and think about this anymore. I got to go out and do some fishing. I'm going to go out on the lake tonight. I don't know about you guys, but I got to get busy. Yeah, the other said we're going to go to. It's not like Peter is the one jumping, jumping ship. He's not abandoning his call necessarily. It's all of them are saying, yeah, we're going with you. That would be good for us tonight. Let's go fishing. That's the impression I get. Pardon me? Good half. Again, we don't know if Jesus has appeared to them. We don't know how long has he lapsed here? How much time we know that the total time Jesus was on earth after the resurrection was 40 days? So it's about. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Right. That could be could be. I think we need to be very careful not to impune the worst of motives for Peter. I would rather look for other reasons and you've suggested some good ones. So let's leave it at that. They're just going fishing. Okay, just leave it at that. But they don't catch anything. And then notice what happens in verse four. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. Now, I know it. This we've talked about this several times before. It sounds like Jesus must not look the same, but that's not necessarily the case. We'll find out just a little bit later that they were about a hundred yards off shore. So there are a hundred yards away to begin with. And it's early in the morning on the edge of a lake. There probably is some mist or fog or you know, it's not there are a hundred yards out and it may not be easy to see who this is on the shore. There may be a very reasonable explanation for why they they don't realize who it is. He called out to them. Verse five, friends, haven't you any fish? No, they answered. At least they're honest. Verse six, he said, throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some. This is beginning to sound familiar, isn't it? When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. So another miracle happens with someone telling them after they've fished all night, have not caught anything and he gives them instructions. They do it and they catch a huge number of fish. They cannot miss the significance of this and they don't look at verse seven. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved again, who is that? John said the Peter, it is the Lord. He recognizes immediately. He was there back in Luke five. He saw what happened and when the same thing happens again, he immediately knows this is Christ. This is the Lord. And how you said Peter was a man of action. Well, we look at this action. As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, it is the Lord. He wrapped his outer garment around him before he had taken it off. The outer garments, the more flowing longer garment and he'd been out fishing and working. He had taken that off. We froze that around him again and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish for they were not far from the shore about a hundred yards. Can you just see this scene? I imagine Peter does a cannonball, you know, into the water and then probably did an Olympic record, a hundred yard freestyle, you know, to shore. I can just imagine him getting out of the water and coming up to the Lord. He's got a big toothy grin and there's water dripping off his beard and his hair is all matted and he's just excited to see the Lord again. I think maybe that's Peter. He evidently beat the boat to shore and the others followed him in the boat. So they get to the shore and oh, by the way, there's one thing different from the Luke 5 and it's amazing in terms of where Peter is. In Luke 5, remember when Peter recognized what was happening, he said to the Lord, depart from me from a sinful man. And here he doesn't say that. He seems to be eager to get to the shore to see the Lord. Now we could probably conjecture all evening as to why the difference. He had already had a private interview with Jesus. We're going to see he'll have another one here. We're not going to probably get to it tonight, but you'll have another interview with Jesus that really is extremely soul searching for Peter. But I think initially Peter is just excited that this or the Lord has appeared again. I want to get to him as quick as I can. And it's not that he doesn't think he's not a sinful man anymore. I don't think that's it. I think it's that he has come to understand the grace and the person of Christ over the three, three and a half years he's walked with him. And he knows he can come into the presence of his Lord. Okay. Let's see what happens once they get to shore. Verse 9. When they landed, they saw a fire burning coal's there with fish on it and some bread. Jesus said to them, bring some of the fish you have 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. This was the first men's fellowship breakfast, Sandy. Jesus did all the cooking. Come and have breakfast. None of the disciples dared to ask him who are you. They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took bread, gave it to them and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after his race from the dead. Third time, meaning what? Actually, it's the seventh time he's made an appearance, but third time with all the group of disciples. And obviously not all of them are here. But anytime you have a group of the disciples together, the 11, he's speaking of those appearances. The night of the resurrection, week later, this is the third one for the group of disciples. So he invites them in to have breakfast. You know what? Jesus really is teaching them. If this is indeed a training time, and I believe it is because it is so strikingly similar to the time he called them in the first place, I don't think they could miss the significance of the fact that Jesus is calling them again in a sense or reaffirming their original call. Because he'll challenge Peter on that specifically. He'll change the analogy a little bit. He'll be from, you'll be fishers of men from now on to feed my sheep. But it's the same idea. Still got work for you to do. And he is reaffirming their call. I don't think they could miss that. But what he's teaching them here is guys don't ever forget you need my power to do my work. Okay, they've fished all night. They've tried their best. They haven't caught a thing. And when Jesus says put your net on the right side, they catch a whole boatload of fish. And I think Jesus once again is teaching them one of your primary tasks is fishing in ministry. It's fishing for people. And sometimes our efforts at fishing seem to be failure. Don't they? We don't seem to be catching many fish. Christ is the Lord of the harvest when he says drop the net. Then he has the harvest. And he can bring in the fish. Sometimes we catch them one at a time. Sometimes it's very catch one here, one there. And then there are other times when the whole bunch come. But the Lord is the Lord of that. He is the one who in his power and his time enables us to reach people with the gospel. He's teaching them that lesson. If you're going to reach people, if you're going to fish for people, you need to depend on my power. You need to do it the way I say do it. When I say do it and trust me to give the results, certainly he gives the strength to do whatever he wants us to do. I think that lesson is very apparent in this part of the story. After this, it moves into a personal time with Peter, which is very rich, very powerful, very soul searching for Peter. And we'll have to wait till next week to get to that. But any any comment or question about the event on the shore. Up to that point. Yes, Lindsay? I'm not afraid of the child of the child of the way that he used to begin to speak to his husband, you know, when he's in a different position. And then he thinks about everything he needs to know because he's the common purpose. And making his child work with those people, he's waiting to read, getting read and fail, he's all there. That's certainly true. That is certain our experience, isn't it? And that may very well be what's happening here. If indeed they were saying, OK, we're done. We're not going to be doing this disciple thing anymore. We haven't seen Jesus for days now. We don't know when he's going to come again. OK, we're done. We're going to go back to the fishing location. If that's indeed what they were saying, it may well be. It gives whole new meaning to Jesus showing up at that time, doesn't it? And you're exactly right. That's true in our experience, isn't it? That when we get ready to throw in the towel or we get so discouraged that we just want to quit, then Jesus shows up somehow and encourages us or shows us that he's still at work. So yeah, that's an amazing thought. Lindsay, good thought. Yes, well. I'm finding interesting that somebody took the time to help those who can imagine that the net is not break as if that was in itself. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It would have it would have been highly unusual for the net not to break because it was it was standard procedure for fishermen in that day and time to mend their nets when they can't. They were not able to get their nets when they came in after fishing, which indicates they were torn. That's what they were doing when Jesus came along and saw them on the shore the first time. They were mending their nets back in Matthew 4, I believe it was. So yeah, that would have been highly unusual. And the fact that somebody did take time to count the fish. I wonder who that was. Yeah, and mentioned the net didn't break. And that's that harkens back to Luke 5 because in Luke 5, it says the nets were about to break. And maybe some of them did, but here they didn't. Maybe that was the distinction. It kind of makes me think that maybe one of the two other disciples, it's not named, was Matthew because he would be one to count the fish. He was a tax collector. He kept records. He kept books. And so I kind of think it might have been Matthew. Alright, let's pray. Father, thank you for the opportunity to study your word. Thank you for the opportunity to watch our Savior. The one who your word tells us reveals the Father. And as we watch him deal ever so gently and yet directly with Thomas. And as we watch him come to meet the disciples at a time when they need him most, we are once again reminded of your grace, of your complete control of every situation. The fact that you see us at all times and you never, you never let us go. Thank you, Father, for all that we see of you as we look at our Lord. May we fall deeper in love with both you and him our Savior. We ask in Jesus' name, amen.