< Previous31 FOOD FOR THOUGHT Read: John 6:1-13 There is no record of Jesus ever telling His disciples who He was before they had come to believe in Him for themselves. His miracles, along with His life and teaching, were sufficient to convince anybody that He was the Son of God. His works are called signs. They point to the person behind the miracle, and reveal His true identity as the Son of God. For almost two years Philip had observed Jesus at close quarters. He could not count the number of amazing wonders his Master had performed. The time had come for the Lord to bring Philip (and the other disciples) to a crisis of faith. Was Philip convinced that Jesus was God’s Son? He tests Philip with a question: “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” Never before had Jesus asked advice of anyone! Sadly Philip’s faith could not rise above a mathematical calculation as he looked out at the thousands of hungry faces around them. Even if they had enough money to buy everyone a small snack, where would they obtain it? Andrew suggested a small boy’s lunch as a possible solution, but immediately recognized the impossibility of sharing such a tiny morsel with the multitude spread out across the hillside. He said: “but how will this small lunch go among so many?” Jesus did not rebuke either of His disciples for their lack of faith, but took the few small wafers of dry bread and the two small fish into His hands. He broke the bread and handed it out. He kept on breaking it and passing it around until all had eaten as much as they wanted. When this same Divine Person had created mankind back at the beginning of history, He had taken a little dirt and made from it Adam’s body. Then He took a rib from Adam and created a woman (Genesis 2 & 3). Now this same Creator was seated with the descendants of Adam and Eve, and was creating bread and fish. Was it a trick? An illusion? Each person that day would have to say a definite “No!”. It was no illusion when their hunger was satisfied. There was no illusion in the twelve baskets of fragments left over at the end. The next day the disciples would still have those baskets full of bread and dried fish to reassure them after a good night's sleep that they had witnessed one of the most amazing miracles ever. Jesus Christ is the Creator-God who entered His creation as a man. He deserves the faith and worship of His creatures. 2332 CUPBOARD LOVE Read: John 6:14-27 A full stomach is a good feeling! The prospect of Jesus being their king filled everyone’s conversation. He could provide unlimited social security and free medical care! He was just the kind of Messiah the people wanted! Even today there are those who would gladly acknowledge Jesus as king if He were to satisfy their desires for a better lot in life. But Jesus will not be moved by cupboard love. He sent His disciples to the other side of the lake and went to a mountain area to pray. The Lord Jesus will only respond to faith. Even weak faith will be rewarded. The disciples had set out in obedience to the Lord’s command (Mark 6:45). The dusk sky quietly grew dark, and the noise of the thinning crowd gradually gave way to the splash and groan of the oars. Then unexpectedly the breeze on their necks grew strong. Soon it was a furious gale which whipped the sea into a frenzy. Rowing harder, yet making no progress, they realised they were at the mercy of the elements. But there is One who has power over the wind and the waves. Jesus drew near to the helpless disciples, walking on the water. Knowing of their fear, He said: “It is I, don’t be afraid”. They accepted Him by faith into their boat and they found themselves instantly in calm waters at the shore where they had been going. To the crowds seeking a bread-king, Jesus hid Himself; but those who believed in Him (though their faith was weak), they experienced His presence and power in their time of need. The next day some of the crowd caught up with Jesus and His disciples. They had gone to considerable lengths to find Him, but Jesus knew that their interest was not in Him, but in the bread He could provide. “I tell you the truth”, He said, “you are looking for Me, not because you saw miraculous signs, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill” (verse 26). They had missed the point of the miracle. “Instead of seeing in the bread the sign, they had seen in the sign only the bread” (Lange). Through this sign God put His divine seal on Jesus. He openly declared that Jesus is the Son of God who had come to give eternal life to all who hunger for it. Why put all your effort into satisfying bodily desires when the body is going to perish one day. Rather, put your energy into seeking the “Bread” which will prepare you for an eternity ahead. Don’t seek Christ as a means to improve your health and happiness, but seek Him for the gift of eternal life which will bring fulfilment of the deepest hunger of all- the hunger for the gift of life. 2433 BREAD FROM HEAVEN Read: John 6:28-50 It is unbelievable that those who had witnessed Jesus feeding the multitude by His divine power, could then say to Him the very next day: “What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you?”(verse 30). In their estimation, Jesus was inferior to Moses, as His miracle was not as spectacular as the bread from heaven at Moses’ time. The Israelites during their forty years of living in the desert under the leadership of Moses had been fed daily with sweet “manna” bread that came down 'from heaven' with the morn- ing dew. Yet Jesus claimed to be greater than Moses! Jesus replied to their challenge by showing that it was not Moses who fed their fathers with the miraculous bread. God had done it. He then presented Himself as the true bread from heaven who could nourish the hungry soul. He is the life of God who had come down from heaven in a visible, tangible form. He had come for the very purpose of giving new life to all who are hungry enough to want it. Jesus exposed their unbelief: “You have seen Me and still you do not believe” (verse 36). Then He contrasted them with true believers of all times. Those who are sincere, whom the Father calls, will come to Him. They will not seek Him merely for fulfilment. Nor will they be stumbled because His miracles may not meet their expectations. Those who come to Him in genuine faith receive two great assurances: 1. Assurance of acceptance by Christ (verse 37) He will not drive them away. He will not hide Himself so that they cannot find Him, as He had done the previous day (verse 15). He recognizes the ones who seek Him sincerely. They will be freely forgiven and receive God’s gift of eternal life. 2. Assurance of resurrection and heaven (verse 39) Christ recognizes the work of His Father in the lives of those who sincerely seek Him. God stirs their hearts, opens their minds and moves them to trust in Christ. Then the Father gives them to the Son as a gift. Jesus had come down from heaven to do His Father’s will, and that was to be the Saviour of all whom the Father gave Him. True believers need never worry that they may not go to heaven. Christ’s responsi- bility is to lose none of those whom the Father gives Him. The miracle bread of Moses’ time did not give the people life, it only sustained the natural life they already had received at birth. The Bread of life which Jesus offered would give them eternal life. 2534 GIVING AND RECEIVING Read: John 6:51-59 I remember my daughter spending all her pocket money on a gift for me. I received the gift with deep gratitude, knowing she had spent all she had in order to purchase it. But the gift, lovingly given as it was, could not be mine until I had personally reached out and received it. These two components, the giving by one party, and the receiving by the other, are both spoken of by Jesus in relation to God’s gift of eternal life. 1. The Gift is given at God’s expense. The value of my daughter’s gift was far more than the mere two dollars she had spent. The gift was costly to her as she gave all she had. What value can be put on God’s gift of eternal life? How much did it cost Him? Jesus spoke of the Bread of Life as His own flesh and blood. In this way He referred to His forthcoming crucifixion. God’s gift of eternal life could not be given to anyone while Jesus lived and walked among us. The bread had to be broken. Christ had to give His life on the cross, so that it would be shared with those who receive it. 2. The Gift is to be received by a personal act of faith. My daughter’s gift cost me nothing. But it was not mine until I reached out and took hold of it. Eternal life cannot be earned, merited or achieved. It is a genuine gift from the loving hand of God. However it must be taken by faith. Jesus explains this faith-response in a graphic way. “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life ... so the one who feeds on Me will live forever” (verses 53,54,57,58). Some people have falsely applied these words of Jesus to the com- munion feast (Eucharist, or Lord’s supper), which is an ordinance of the Church. However, the bread and the wine on the communion table are not themselves the body and blood of Jesus, nor do they impart eternal life to those who receive them. They are simply symbols of the broken body and outpoured blood of the Lord. The communion is a remem- brance feast: “Do this in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:25). Jesus was addressing unbelievers (verse 36). He warned that until they personally reached out in faith and received the Lord Jesus into their lives, they would have no life and hope. Knowing that Jesus offers eternal life, will never be enough. You must personally receive Him. You must trust Him to be your own Saviour, just as a starving man must eat food in order to live. In 1 John 5:11-12 we read: “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” 2635 STUMBLED Read: John 6:60-66 This time Jesus had gone too far! True, He had said and done many magnificent things, but to say that one must eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to have eternal life was not acceptable! Doubts began to flood into the listener’s minds. “Maybe we have been mistaken” some would reflect. “One who insists that we must eat his flesh and drink his blood is not a suitable candidate for Messiah!” But Jesus had purposely caused them to stumble at His words. He knew that their attraction to Him did not spring from an inward work of God. It was outward and lacked deep conviction. “Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray Him” (verse 64). Recognizing them as a harvest which would never ripen, He makes the pathway to faith difficult. Taken in its natural sense (without God’s enabling) His words would cause offence, and stumble them. He wanted to prevent them from following Him on a merely superficial level. Jesus went on to show that if they stumbled over the little obstacle of His preceding teaching, they would certainly stumble over the large obstacle of His claim to share God’s glory as the Son of God. He explained that flesh itself (as a material substance) is not able to impart life. The eternal life which God promises does not enter us by eating something physical. His life is imparted by His Spirit. He does this through God’s Word, and in particular, the Word of Christ. “The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life” (verse 63). Thus Peter explains how believers have received eternal life: “Through the living and enduring Word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). The Spirit of life uses the living Word to impart life into the person who responds to it in faith. This teaching of Jesus was hard, and the people lacked spiritual understanding. Many turned back and ceased to follow Him. The Holy Spirit is needed to open our eyes and interpret the Lord’s words correctly. The Bible says that “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). Some people still stumble over the teaching of God’s Word. Their search for the truth is short-circuited by a lack of genuine faith. God allows a variety of challenges to prevent people accepting Jesus Christ with a superficial faith. Some have excuses like: "I tried it and it didn't work" or "My intellect prevents me from believing in God" and "If God is loving, why am I suffering?" But today as at the time of Jesus, those who are genuine will not fail to find Him and receive eternal life. 2736 THE TRUE AND THE FALSE Read: John 6:67-71 Jesus was deserted by the majority of His disciples. Their outward attachment to Him had proven inadequate. He knew all along that a division among His followers must inevitably come. For many, the truth could not displace their fixed idea of what the Messiah should be. Not long before this event Jesus had chosen out from among them a small group of men who were receptive to the truth (Luke 6:13). They were men whom He would prepare to be His ambassadors. To these Jesus now addressed the question: “You do not want to leave too, do you?” He did not encourage them to leave, but opened the door. He said in effect, “You are free to go if you wish.” The Lord was aware that one of the twelve had the same attitude as those who had just departed from Him. The heart of Judas was alien to the rest of the small group. Those who openly turned away and ceased to follow the Lord were honest with themselves and their own understanding. They did not believe, so they disassociated themselves from the ones who did. Many of these probably came to faith in Jesus Christ at a later date. Their understanding changed after the Lord had risen from the dead. Judas was different. The Lord saw his heart. He was a deceiver - a liar. Outwardly he was a follower of Christ, but inwardly he was far from Him. There will always be the true and the false disciples in the Christian church. Hypocrites are not merely those who fail to reach a standard of behaviour they claim to live by, but actors who play the part when in actual fact they are something quite different. Hypocrites may deceive them- selves and others, but the Lord searches men’s hearts and is not fooled. “... He knows the secrets of the heart” (Psalm 44:21). To His small group of disciples Jesus asked: “You do not want to leave too, do you?” The apostle Peter is spokesman for the others and answers that they would not turn back from following Jesus. “To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” Peter said (verse 68). Other teachers were no comparison to the Lord. His words were rich with life and power. They fed the soul, they satisfied the mind, they lifted the listeners up into unexplored spiritual realms. These unique qualities of Jesus’ teaching caused Peter and the others to believe, even though they did not understand many things. The other distinctive quality which Peter recognized was the absolute holiness of Jesus: “We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” The spotless perfection of Christ was a most impressive seal of His divinity. Peter well knew the weakness of sinful human nature! Thus, in the midst of unbelief and desertion, the faith of the apostles climbs to greater heights. 2837 THINKING IT THROUGH John 5:31 - 6:71 1. Why was it important for Jesus to “show His credentials” to the people of His day? What do you consider is the greatest proof that Jesus is the Son of God? 2. How would the miracle of feeding the multitude help the disciples to believe? What does Mark 8:18-21,29-30 tell us about the disciples faith? 3. How did Jesus respond to those who only sought Him for what He could do for them (6:26-27)? What has Jesus promised to those who seek Him sincerely (verses 37 and 40)? 4. What does verse 35 tell us about our need of eternal life? 5. How do we “eat” the Lord’s flesh and “drink” His blood (compare verses 53-54 with verse 35)? 6. When many turned back from following Jesus, what caused the true disciples to stay (6:66-69)? What does this tell us about a true disciple? QUESTIONS AND DIFFICULTIES:38 PLEASING GOD OR MAN? Read: John 7:1-13 If God made known to us the person He regarded as the most suited to be the next President of the United States of America, His choice may well come as a big surprise. The person ideally suited for a position of such power and prominence would probably be reluctant to aspire to it. Imagine this person learning that God had chosen him to become the President, even though he is an unknown businessman from a country town in Mississippi. He may be the right man for the job, and even aware of God’s choice of him, but it’s still a long way from a small business operation to the most powerful office on earth! He would be tempted to orchestrate his own rise to power; to jostle and manoeuvre himself into a place of prominence. His humble attitude to life which had once gained God’s commendation, could change in order to gain the praise of men and public recognition. He would be tempted to turn a blind eye to corruption and wrongs within the political system if by exposing them his new career would be jeopardised. Jesus, the small-town carpenter, knew His high calling, but He was not looking for votes. His aim was to please His Father, and this led Him into a collision course with the religious hierarchy. “The world hates me”, He said, “because I testify that what it does is evil” (verse 7). Neither would He manipulate people or circumstances to achieve His own ends. Jesus’ family knew that He claimed to be the Messiah - chosen by God to eventually rule the world. But they couldn’t reconcile His unassuming, quiet nature, and His lack of worldly ambition, with His calling as King. If He was on the path to power and glory He should not continue with His aversion to prominence - doing the bulk of His work in the seclusion of rural (and despised) Galilee. “Get out into the limelight” they said. “Leave here and go to Judea” (verse 3). The feast in Jerusalem at that particular time was one which, more than others, inspired national hope that their Messiah would soon be revealed. They urged Him to go up and do His miracles, and capitalise on the people’s expectancy. “Go to Judea, that your disciples may see the works you are doing; for no man works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world” (verses 3-4). The Lord would not in any way be aligned with this attitude. He remained in Galilee until the others had left on their pilgrimage, and then He privately made His way to Jerusalem. If He was to be revealed as King, it must be in a way that pleased His Father in Heaven. 2939 THE TEST OF A TEACHER Read: John 7:14-24 Jesus’ teaching was unique. Even His enemies had to admit “never a man spoke like this man” (John 7:46). But Jesus lacked formal Bible training. The people wondered: “How did this man get such learning without having studied?”. Jesus knew their thoughts and told them: “Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgement” (verse 24). In the same way, we tend to judge Bible teachers by their position in the church, or the letters after their names, rather than their individual qualities. Jesus gave three reasons why we should accept His teaching: 1. The source of his teaching is God (verse 16). Jesus said: “My teaching is not my own. It comes from Him who sent me.” If a man’s teaching comes from his own wisdom, intellect or imagination, he is not a messenger of God. Even though Christ was the Truth, He did not teach independently of His Father, nor did He disregard what God had already said in the Scriptures. 2. The hearts of the hearers (verse 17). Lack of acceptance by the hearers does not prove a teacher is false. If our desire is to do God’s will, we will have no trouble recognizing true and false teaching. When we refuse to live in a way that pleases God, we become blind to the truth and open to false teaching (Romans 1:19-25 and Ephesians 4:17-19). 3. The Lord’s motivation (verse 18). "He who speaks on his own does so to gain honour for himself". There is no glory in merely passing on the thoughts and words of another. But one who proclaims his own insights and thoughts can easily be motivated by self-interest. A teacher who works for the honour of another (as Jesus did) can be trusted to teach what is true. Jesus then gives an example of His teaching. He had been accused of being a false teacher because He had healed a man on the sabbath (chapter 5). Jesus showed that His action was consistent with God’s Word. The Law commanded all Hebrew males to be circumcised on the eighth day. Some therefore had to be circumcised on the sabbath, a day when God commanded that no work was to be done. Jesus had healed a man’s whole body on the sabbath; was that not more important than a minor skin operation? So skilful and honest was His application of God’s Word to the point in question, that anyone desiring to do God’s will would have no difficulty accepting Him as a true Teacher. 3040 SHROUDED IN MYSTERY Read: John 7:25-52 Jesus did nothing to calm the turmoil of questions and opinions concerning Him. He seemed to allow His true identity to be shrouded in mystery. Instead of direct answers to the people’s dilemma, He spoke somewhat vaguely of His being the One sent by His Father. The division among the people was now quite apparent. Those who believed became even more convinced that He was Messiah. Those who did not, grew more opposed to Him. Jesus was acting in harmony with God’s usual method of revealing truth: God reveals Himself and conceals Himself at the same time (Mathew 16:16-17). In so doing He forces people to stand with Him or stand apart from Him. There can be no middle ground. Today it is exactly the same. The Scriptures have enough evidence to convince anybody who humbly and honestly seeks the truth about Jesus. But there is insufficient proof to convince the self-opinionated sceptic. Many are confused about who Jesus really is. There are those who are outwardly Christians, but are not clearly with Him or against Him. Some believe He is the Son of God. Others do not. Some are even strongly opposed to Him. Like it was at the time of Jesus, all are forced to 'take sides' at some point in their lives. Jesus stood up on the last and great day of the feast, aware of all the argument and diversity of opinion. The feast was instituted to com- memorate the time in Israel’s history when the whole nation was dying of thirst during their desert journey from Egypt to Canaan. God told Moses to strike a certain rock, and upon doing so, a fountain of fresh water gushed out in abundance. Jesus presented Himself to Israel as the One who had come to provide the living water of the Spirit to a thirsty nation. In saying “If anyone is thirsty, let them come to me and drink”, Jesus was stating that He was the fulfilment of that Old Testament picture. Part of the ritual of the feast was that a priest lead all the people in a procession from the temple to the fountain of Siloam. He would fill a golden pitcher with water and, surrounded by much joy and singing, would return to the temple where the water would be ceremonially poured out. Jesus applied this symbolic action to Himself, and said that He would pour the Spirit into all who come to Him. They would be filled with the water of life. Jesus was referring to the Holy Spirit who comes to live in any person at the moment they trust in Him personally as Lord and Saviour. He is the answer to the deep spiritual need that even religion has no power to fully satisfy. Do you have the Holy Spirit in you? Give yourself in faith to the Lord Jesus. Trust Him now to wash you clean of your sin and fill you with His Spirit. 31Next >