The Work Christ Shares with Us

When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead (John 21:9-14).

I have been truly blessed to share in the work of the Lord for over thirty years now. Looking back over the years I have seen souls come to Christ, disciples grow in Christ, and His church advance in a crooked and perverse generation. The Lord has met every personal and ministry need along the way, though not without allowing the needs to humble me and keep my heart focused on Him. The greatest blessing along the way is that I know Jesus Christ better today than I ever have. I am convinced that if I continue in the special work He wants to share with me, I will know Him better every day until that day when I shall see Him face to face… “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). What is the work that occupies your energies today? Is it the work of God? I believe we all are called to share in Christ’s work… “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you” (John 6:27). In today’s text our Teacher reveals three qualities that identify the work Christ shares with us.

The results of the work are Christ’s… When we give Him the results of our work, Jesus adds to it and shares the harvest with us. The disciples had fished all night without success. When they obeyed the Lord’s instructions they caught 153 large fish! It is interesting to note that 153 is the numeric value of the expression The Passover (Ha Pesach), and also of the words Sons of God (Bene Ha Elohim). We are the sons of God… “For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith” (Galatians 3:26). We are called to take the message of Jesus our Passover lamb to all the peoples of the world… “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15).

The risks of the work are Christ’s… The net did not break. The fruitless night did not discourage their hearts. Jesus prepared their breakfast and their hunger was satisfied. It's also amusing to note that the numeric value of the Greek words fishnet and fishing are also both exactly 8 x 153. In the Bible, the number 8 always refers to the Anointed One (Christ or Messiah) and to the anointing of the Holy Spirit. When we trust Him with the circumstances and people who come against His work, Jesus promises the Holy Spirit’s power will bring victory over anything that might oppose it… “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

The revelation of the work is Christ… No one dared ask who He was because they were convinced by the results Christ provided and the risks He handled for them. It is revealing to note that the Tetragrammaton YHWH or Hebrew designation for the personal name of God (I AM) appears 153 times in the book of Genesis. When we fully engage in the work of God, Jesus promises to work alongside of us… “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations… And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20). His heart’s desire is to reveal His glory to us and to the world as we serve Him as fishers of men… “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24).

As we grow up into Christ the results are blessed, the risks removed, and He is revealed through…

The Work Christ Shares with Us.