Article for August 4, 2024
John 6:22 22On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone.
What would you do? You just had your fill of bread and fish, and you didn’t have to go to Long-John’s because it was free. Not only was this food free, but it was delivered to you where you were. Here they came to hear and listen to this man who claims to be the savior. And Jesus also had His close followers with Him who helped to deliver the food but, also were there to clean-up after all the crowd you ate with.
What would you do? Jesus and His apostles are leaving. Not that they were abandoning the crowd but that they knew they had fed the people with bread and the word of God. But the people looked as if they were still hungry, or wondering how this Jesus was able to feed them all out in the wilderness.
We live in a wilderness, not like that of a barren desert, but a wilderness full of danger as it does not provide life but provides death. Yes, we are surrounded by a wilderness that causes many to starve for life. This wilderness we live in gives us false hope and at times strips hope away. We, at times, are surrounded by mirages, false pictures of grandeur, and many pictures of those who starve for a Savior.
John 6:23–24 23Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
We may not always know what we seek. Many think they are seeking happiness, riches, even a better life. We believe in what we think we seek and therefore look in all the wrong places. Maybe we find it in America’s Got Talent, or American Idol. Maybe we will win the big lottery, or someone will gift us through some lost inheritance. Whatever we think we are seeking we cannot find.
We all love sensationalism spelled with sin. We deny it, but the truth is, we are fascinated with anything out of the normal that makes us feel excited. We see a crowd of people, a very large crowd, and this crowd is hungry for something, but they can’t quite figure it out.
Jesus and the Apostles have left, and they see them floating away in boats. They cannot let this mysterious phenomenon escape them, so they all get into boats to follow the apostles. There must have been a lot of boats for all of those who were looking for Jesus and His apostles. We’re also, not just talking about 5000 men but also the women and children with them. That is a lot of water to displace for the sake of getting more free food.
John 6:25–26 25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.
Wow, really, Jesus, did you just get here? When did you get here? Like they could hide the truth from the one who is the all-knowing God. Jesus has been traveling the cities and countryside of Israel. Jesus has seen and spoken to many. But even if Jesus did not talk to anyone, remember He is God and knows our mind better than we do.
Yet we still try to fool Jesus, not realizing we are really trying to fool ourselves. We get so caught-up in what we do in life, and yes, I am talking about our daily sin, that we do not realize we make ourselves fools in the presence of God. And we try to fool ourselves everyday hoping we have fooled God and others. Sorry, but to God, and to most, we are an open book with torn pages.
John 6:27 27Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.”
We labor at fooling ourselves instead of laboring for the true riches that only God can give. We look for free bread, free money, free riches, free anything and everything. But these breads we seek are manmade and truly have no worth. Oh, maybe for a time manmade will give some satisfaction, but the real Bread of Life gives eternal satisfaction.
God gave His people coming out of Egypt manna, bread from heaven to eat. Even if this bread had expiration date, you could not keep the manna for the next day. But we are given the real bread from heaven, and we know this bread is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the real bread that gives life of no hunger and Jesus gives His blood as the flow of eternal life.
John 6:22–29 28Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” 29Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
What must “we” do? Our works are in our belief of God. Not belief alone, but a belief that makes us disciples of Jesus. And to be a disciple of Jesus, is to follow everything and imitate all that Jesus did through His love for us all. We can do good works without believing in Jesus, but we can’t by any means of works, enter heaven on our own. So, to believe in Jesus is also to believe He is our Savior. We need Jesus to be saved because He is the key of life, the bread of life, Jesus is our guarantee of life eternal.
John 6:30–31 30So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
Spoken like true skeptics, give us a sign so that may believe. The sign is Jesus, the sign is the suffering and death of Jesus for our sins. The sign is the empty grave of Jesus and the resurrection of Jesus who was raised from the dead and lives for us in eternity. Did you get that part. Jesus still lives for us today, tomorrow, and for all eternity.
John 6:35 35Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”
Jesus is not just talking about feeding for a time, a day, or a lifetime on earth. Jesus is talking about keeping us fed for eternity, where we will never hunger or thirst, for we will be nourished in His joy that becomes our joy.
Amen.
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