Why do you Follow Him?
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Good morning,
It has been a hectic past two weeks for us and I wanted to take today to hit the reset button a little bit. Last week we looked at Chapter 6 verses 22-40, and in these verses Jesus confronts the mindset of the multitude that He just fed the day before. This is such a powerful and important part of scripture that I wanted to take a pause and dig in more than we were able to last week. Today I want you ask you one question, Why do you follow Him?
The next day the crowd that had stayed on the opposite shore of the lake realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with his disciples, but that they had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.
When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
“Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
Examination
Examination
The next day the crowd that had stayed on the opposite shore of the lake realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with his disciples, but that they had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.
Here we see the common connecting term “The next day,” this is common for John and helps us to connect the events of the prior day to those of today. We see their realization that Christ is not there and their immediate response is to head to Capernaum to find Him.
When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
While we can understand their desire to search for Christ, and probably would have had the same reaction given the miracle from the day before, we see here that Jesus sees to their heart and knows that they are only there because He fed them, not because of what He has done as a whole or who he truly is. One interesting point here is how they address Jesus, they address Him as Rabbi, or teacher. If you think back to a few week, their desire was to make him “king by force” now their attitudes have changed and they view Him as a teacher. So how does Jesus respond to their question? He, as usual, goes straight to their heart, and almost ignores their question entirely. Any time we see Christ use the phrases “Truly, Truly or Very Truly” we know that crucial information is coming. So I invite you, each time you see these phrases, to mark them. He tells them that the only reason they are even searching for him is because he fed them. The term signs here does not simply refer to the miracles Jesus was performing, clearly they knew of them and they experienced one themselves. Instead, the focus is on the sign behind the miracles, all pointing to who Christ is. Then he begins a new introduction to one of His many titles, the Bread of Life. He tells them to not spend their time working for food that spoils, but for eternal rewards.
Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Again, we are dealing with a largley Jewish audience, and there is a lot of works tied into the Jewish lifestyle. When asking what do they do, they are asking for physical works. Jesus turns it on it’s head and responds, the only work you are to do is to beleive in me. WOW!
So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
Again they launch into more questions, and Jesus responds with more about who He is. We know this is a Jewish audience, not only by location, but through their questions. They are calling back to Mosaic times, referenicng the manna given in the wilderness. Again, their focus being on physical nourishment. Almost a “They did this for us, What are you gonna do?” type of a situation. Jesus speaks to correct their focus, the manna did not come from their ancestors, the manna came from God. We see another “Very Truly” statement, and may it serve as a warning for us to handle scripture carefully. The crowd was quoting a biblical event, quoting scripture, if you will. But they missed the plot, the manna was not about Moses, it was about the Lord.
“Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
Jesus enters the final portion of this teaching by stating difinitively that He is the bread of life, in reference to their request for the eternal bread of God. He is the bread of God, the Bread that gives life to all. He explains that the supply never runs out, and the He himself has come from heaven to do the Will of the Father, which is that everyone would believe in Him. Through that belief they will forever be his and will be raised up, always remaining spiritually fed.
Application
Application
Why do you follow him?
For selfish gain?
As we see here, they came looking for Christ because He fed them
They did not come because of ALL He had done
Do we look at Jesus as Santa, or a get out of Hell free card?
I think a lot of today’s “modern christians” fall into this trap
They worship a false God
If we follow Him for our selfish desires then we are simply molding Christ to fit our image
The multitude referenced Moses with manna in the wilderness
Asked Jesus, “So what will you do?” Can you imagine!
This is surface level
Not true faith
What happens when our desires arent met?
Big problem today
When we promote this, what does it say to those struggling?
Because you’ve been “told to”
This multitude knew of Christ
Growing up in communities like this we all “know of Christ”
Many of us here grew up in Church
We dont know life any other way
We fall prey to cultural Christianity
Fruits not shown in our lives, simoply lip service
Jesus confronts this multitude with their ill advised thoughts
They ask for more, they ask what to do, but they do not fully understand
Because you truly believe?
The work of the Father if to believe in the Son
True beleief
Obedience to His commands
Submitting to His will
Belief that He will provide
Not tied to physcial excess
His supply never runs out
Belief in who He is!
Our Spiritual hunger is forever filled
