Our purpose and design is to glorify God.
That which Glorifies God is what Magnifies Jesus and dignifies humans.
All this is done through the power of the Holy Spirit. Resulting in Lives Changed By Christ.
Jesus calls us to follow Him.
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The People Disagree That Jesus is From Heaven John 6:41-59
OPEN:
What type of bread are you today: All natural? Rye? Moldy? Crusty? Fresh? Easy to butter up?
DIG:
In John 6:41-42, how do the crowds respond to his claims? How is the principle of the hometown prophet (John 4:44) played out here?
What part is played by God and by the people in the process of coming to know Jesus (John 6:44-45)? What promise is repeated three times for those who do come to him? Why the emphasis on this?
How is the "bread" he gives greater than that of Moses (John 6:32, 49)?
Why does Jesus develop the food analogy even more graphically (John 6:53-58)?
What does Jesus mean by "eating his flesh" and "drinking his blood" (John 6:51-58)?
REFLECT:
Has your familiarity with Jesus (from Sunday School stories, Christian school, etc.) ever kept you from seeing who he really is? What can remove the blinders?
If someone asked, "How do you hunger and thirst after God," what counsel could you offer?
God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
OPEN:
What type of bread are you today: All natural? Rye? Moldy? Crusty? Fresh? Easy to butter up?
DIG:
Why are the crowds still searching for Jesus (John 6:24-26)?
How does Jesus' response to their question show the difference between his interests and theirs?
How are they to work for the food that leads to eternal life (John 6:29)?
What does the crowd ask Jesus to do in order that they can believe him? What is their real interest?
How does Jesus use their interest in food to illustrate what he wants them to under-stand? What are the similarities and differences between manna (Exodus 16) and the "bread of life" (John 6:35)?
What claims does Jesus make in John 6:35-40? What do these claims emphasize about his being the bread of life? About the will of the Father?
REFLECT:
What is the main reason you follow Jesus?
How would you describe your daily spiritual diet: Junk food? Frozen food? Baby food? TV microwave food? Leftovers? Meat and potatoes? Pure bread and wine?
“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” (John 6:27)
We live in a busy and hectic world. In the busyness of life, it is easy to relegate God to the back seat of our lives. When people are asked to describe their daily walk with Christ, they often reply, “I pray during the day.” Upon further inquiry, there is usually no reading of the Bible outside a verse or two, while most prayer is done on the run or only in times of crisis.
In Luke 10:27, Jesus describes what our relationship with God should look like, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.”
Loving God this way is comprehensive. An examination of most of our schedules would not offer much of an excuse for not setting aside one good time period each day to feed on the Giver of life. Jesus said in John 6:32-33, “It is My Father who gives you the true Bread from heaven. For the Bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."
Most people eat two to three meals a day and snack between. If we can make time for the food that spoils, can’t we surely make time for the food that gives abundant life?
Establishing the need for satisfying your hunger and thirst for Jesus is essential for living out and experiencing your life in Christ. In John 6:28, Jesus was asked how to live the Christian life: “What must we do to do the works God requires?" They were expecting a laundry list of requirements. Jesus surprised them in John 6:29 when He answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent."
Pretty simple. Jesus said he was the Bread of Life. We demonstrate our belief by feeding on Jesus, our food, for our existence. Just as you go to the kitchen to get food, you should go to Jesus to be fed your eternal food.
The root problem of growing and experiencing Christ is our unbelief. You believe your hunger can be satisfied in the kitchen of life: priorities, entertainment, fun, sports, movies, etc. But do you really believe that Jesus can satisfy the longings of your life?
Jesus goes on to say in John 6:63, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and they are life.” Just as you feed on three meals a day plus snacks, you must also feed on Jesus through his Word, a devoted prayer life, and continual prayer throughout the day. God will take hold of your life—if you allow Him. God will satisfy your innermost needs—if you give yourself to Him. God will surround you with His love, grace, peace, and satisfaction—if you make Him the provision of your life.
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"Feeding on Jesus"
“Jesus answered, ‘The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.’” (John 6:29)
It would be easy to read this section of Scripture (John 6:29-58) rejoicing only in the salvation we have in Jesus. This teaching of Jesus goes beyond just declaring Jesus as the only Source of salvation; it shows how to live the Christian life through faith. Faith not only ushers you into the throne room of God for eternity, but your faith is also the sustaining work of God for His life in you. It is not you who accomplishes God’s work, but Jesus through the work of the Holy Spirit in you.
John 6:56-57 helps us to visualize how this happens as we find spiritual sustenance and nourishment with Jesus: “Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.”
By continuing to feed on Jesus you remain in Him. The natural result of remaining in Jesus is to grow into His likeness as you trust His leading (drink). Trusting Jesus releases the work of the Holy Spirit for His work in and through you. Jesus introduced this concept in John 4:34 when He said, “‘My food,’ said Jesus, ‘is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work.’”
As you feed on Jesus, His will and life will become a commanding presence and desire to not only follow Him, but to also obey Him. Following and obeying will always be fed by believing and not merely laboring to do so. It is the practice of continually reminding yourself of the gospel, believing it, and stepping out by trusting the work of the Holy Spirit in you.
The victorious Christian life rides on faith, while believing in the finished work of Jesus that is expressed in Philippians 1:6 that says, “Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
When fear grips you or you are at a loss on how… or you are just exhausted from where you are currently, then come back to Jesus for faith, refreshment, and rejuvenation as in John 7:37-38, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”
Never forget that the work of God begins by believing in Him and ends by believing in Him.
John 6:35 “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me will never go hungry, and he who believes in Me will never be thirsty.’” (NIV)
1. The stormy sea (6:16–18): The disciples’ boat is threatened by a sudden squall.
2. The sovereign Savior (6:19–21): A twofold miracle now occurs.
a. He walks on the water (6:19–20).
b. He brings the boat to land immediately (6:21).
3. The seeking sinners (6:22–24): A large crowd assembles to meet him.
DON'T BE AFRAID
January 3 , 2019
Dr. Joe Pettigrew
“When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself. When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, got into a boat, and started across the lake to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The lake became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the lake and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land towards which they were going.” John 6:15-21
Whenever I study this text, I am struck by two things. First, I always stop at the phrase “take him by force to make him king.” While we claim that Jesus is our King, He has always refused to be our Ruler the way we might wish He would be. We might wish He would take the world by force and make everyone act with justice, generosity, and kindness. That He would stop all the abortions, senseless killings, leaving babies in trash cans, etc...
And yet even in the beginning of His ministry with His disciples, He has always resisted our efforts to make Him follow the job description of King that you or I might write.
I am also struck by the first words out of Jesus’ mouth when the disciples see him walking on the lake. “It is I, do not be afraid,” He says immediately. Those might not be the first words we would expect. Perhaps we would expect something like, “Do you not get it yet? Do you not know who I am after all this time?”
But that is not how He responds to their wondering and doubt. That is also not the way He responds to our desire for Him to control the details of our lives.
Rather, He responds with gentleness because of who He is, and because of the way He has chosen to be our King, our Savior, our God.
Thought of the Day: Instead of trying to make God be who we want Him to be, maybe we should just sit back and celebrate who He is.
"When Jesus ... saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them ... so he began teaching them. By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came and said, 'This is a remote place. Send the people away so they can go and buy something to eat.' But Jesus answered, 'You give them something to eat!' They said, 'That would take eight months of a man's wages!'" Mark 6:34-37 (NIV)
ASSESS WHAT I HAVE TO WORK WITH
"'How many loaves do you have?' Jesus asked. 'Go and see.' When they found out, they said, 'Five small loaves of bread and two fish.'" Mark 6:38 (NIV)
"Jesus asked this only to test them, for he already had in mind what he was going to do." John 6:6 (NIV)
GIVE GOD WHATEVER I HAVE
"Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish ... He blessed the food and broke the loaves and He kept giving them to the disciples to set before the people..." Mark 6:41 (NAS)
The boy gave what he had ... willingly, cheerfully, & immediately
EXPECT HIM TO MULTIPLY IT
"Everyone ate and had enough. Afterwards they collected 12 basket full of ... leftovers!" Mark 6:42-43 (PH)
Do you prefer to socialize at large parties, have a dinner for four, or spend a quiet evening with a friend? Why?
DIG:
Why; did the crowd follow Jesus (John 6:2)? What did they think about him?
What was the test that Jesus was using on Philip (John 6:5)? From their responses, what grades would you give, Philip and Andrew?
Why was there more food after the feeding than before?
How could the nearness of the Passover feast (when Jews from all over came to Jerusalem) fuel the desires of the people (John 6:14—15)? What does Jesus' response indicate about his idea of his kingship?
REFLECT:
When has God stretched your limited resources (physically or emotionally) far beyond what you could have imagined? In what way do you need to trust him to do so now?
How are you like Philip and Andrew -- failing to remember something about Jesus when you face a difficult situation?
a. The place (6:1–4): It occurs on the banks of the Galilean Sea.
b. The problem (6:5–6): Jesus asks his disciples how they propose to feed the multitudes that surround him.
c. The pessimism (6:7–9)
(1) As demonstrated by Philip (6:7): He says it would take a small fortune to feed them.
(2) As demonstrated by Andrew (6:8–9): He brings a boy with five barley loaves and two fish but doesn’t believe that’s enough for the crowd.
2. Events during this miracle (6:10–13)
a. The scarcity of food (6:10): Jesus takes the only available food—five barley loaves and two fish—gives thanks, and orders its distribution.
b. The surplus of food (6:11–13): After all have eaten their fill, there are twelve baskets of leftover food!
3. Events following this miracle (6:14–15)
a. The determination of the people (6:14): Concluding that he is the Messiah, they plan to crown him as their king!
b. The departure of the Savior (6:15): He quickly withdraws from them into the hills.
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DON'T BE AFRAID January 3 , 2019 Dr. Joe Pettigrew
“When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself. When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, got into a boat, and started across the lake to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The lake became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the lake and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land towards which they were going.” John 6:15-21
Whenever I study this text, I am struck by two things. First, I always stop at the phrase “take him by force to make him king.” While we claim that Jesus is our King, He has always refused to be our Ruler the way we might wish He would be. We might wish He would take the world by force and make everyone act with justice, generosity, and kindness. That He would stop all the abortions, senseless killings, leaving babies in trash cans, etc...
And yet even in the beginning of His ministry with His disciples, He has always resisted our efforts to make Him follow the job description of King that you or I might write.
I am also struck by the first words out of Jesus’ mouth when the disciples see him walking on the lake. “It is I, do not be afraid,” He says immediately. Those might not be the first words we would expect. Perhaps we would expect something like, “Do you not get it yet? Do you not know who I am after all this time?”
But that is not how He responds to their wondering and doubt. That is also not the way He responds to our desire for Him to control the details of our lives.
Rather, He responds with gentleness because of who He is, and because of the way He has chosen to be our King, our Savior, our God.
Thought of the Day: Instead of trying to make God be who we want Him to be, maybe we should just sit back and celebrate who He is.
