John 5:10-47 | Bread from Heaven
Notes
Transcript
We are continuing in our series in the book of John today.
Today we are going in John 6 and we are going to see a very important comparison that is often missed in the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000.
I. Jesus Sees Crowds
I. Jesus Sees Crowds
1 After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2 Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased. 3 And Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples.
Jesus is beginning to draw a crowd
And now he would have to start taking time to separate himself
He would often do this by retreating into nature
Understand this scene, Jesus has finally got the chance to relax after an extensive time of healing and teaching in the city, and as he starts to relax, and notice what happens....
II. Compassion In Chaos
II. Compassion In Chaos
4 Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. 5 Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?”
he looks up and sees massive group of people coming his way
The Bible says that this crowd would consist of over 5,000 people. Understand the scope of what a crowd this size would look like traveling together to come to Jesus.
The Bible says in Matthew that there were also women and children here that aren’t counted.
So it is likely this crowd consisted of 10-15k people.
The entire population of Greencastle is not even 10,000 people/
Imagine if we opened our doors this morning and every person that lived in Greencastle was standing out in the streets
My first thought would go to the crowd
(How do we manage this many people)
But notice what Jesus sees....
5 Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?”
Only Jesus can be approached with 10-15k people, and immediately see the personal needs of the individual
Could you image this many people standing outside of our church, and your first thought being “WELL THEY NEED TO EAT”
Jesus was so selfless and humble, and caring, and loving, that in a crowd of 10,000 people he saw individuals
And can I just remind you today that he sees you in a crowd of not just 10,000. or 100,000 or even 100 million, but he sees you and loves you and cares for you today in the midst of 7 billion people on this earth
Picture yourself in this crowd coming to Jesus
You are Way in the back
You can barely even see him
But he sees you and cares for you smallest needs
III. Feeding The Multitude
III. Feeding The Multitude
6 But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.
7 Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little.”
8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9 “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”
Now Jesus wasn’t a rich man, the group was not rich, and they knew there was no way they would be able to buy bread for all of them
Now Jesus knows what he is about to do, so notice again what Jesus is doing
HE IS TAKING THE TIME WITH 10,000 PEOPLE WALKING UP TO HIM, TO TEACH HIS DISCIPLES A LESSON
10 Then Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11 And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted. 12 So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.” 13 Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.
At this point Jesus has just showed over 10,000 people that he has immense power
and this event would really be the start of Jesus’s fame
But once again Jesus would face the same response as he had over and over again
At first you may think that the people truly cared for Jesus and he gained 10-15k believers that day. But not quite
IV. Crowds Want Power
IV. Crowds Want Power
15 Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.
Imagine how discouraging this would have been
We already looked at how Jesus’s intent here was just love for these people
He cared for them
And their response is once again WHAT CAN WE GET OUT OF THIS MAN
They immediately look at his power and consider how they exploit him to their benefit
So Jesus once again, goes off by himself onto the mountainside to get away for a minute
V. Storm On Galilee
V. Storm On Galilee
15 Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.
16 Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them. 18 Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing.
The sea of Galilee is really more of a lake SHOW SHOW PICTURE
It is about 6 miles wide, and is surrounded by mountains and hills
Jesus was on one of these mountains looking down at the sea and the disciples are in a boat out in the middle
They would have appeared very small from his view, especially in scope of the storm overhead and the size of the sea
And Jesus looks down at them, and sees once again, individuals
He cares for them
VI. Jesus Walks Water
VI. Jesus Walks Water
19 So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid. 20 But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.
Now in the gospel of Matthew we see more of this story recounted
You may remember the story of Peter asking to come out of the boat and walk to Jesus
This was when this happened, it is just not recorded in John
But Peter would ask to come meet Jesus on the water, and he would begin to look around at the storm and sink, but Jesus reaches out, and lifts him up out of the water
Once again we see Jesus coming down to care for individuals
But understand this picture is nothing new
In fact God has acted in this same manner throughout scripture
VII. God Feeds Israel
VII. God Feeds Israel
In Exodus 16, the Israelites are in the wilderness on their way to the promised land, and they begin to complain that they have no food.
They tell Moses that it would have been better for them to just stay in Egypt instead of die of hunger in the wilderness
So what does God do, the same thing Jesus did, he looks down on a group of hundreds of thousands, and sees individual needs
Exodus 16:4 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you.
9 Then Moses spoke to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of the children of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for He has heard your complaints.’ ” 10 Now it came to pass, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud.
11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel. Speak to them, saying, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. And you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’ ”
13 So it was that quails came up at evening and covered the camp, and in the morning the dew lay all around the camp. 14 And when the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance, as fine as frost on the ground.
Now we often view manna as God just raining bread loaves onto hundreds of thousands of people
This wasn't the case
Scripture give us a fair amount of detail as to the what the manna was
It says that it was a small round substance that appeared like frost on the ground
Here are some pictures of what this would have looked like… SHOW PICTURES
What God provided for the people was exactly what they needed, and instead of being grateful and following God even more as a result, notice how they respond....
16 This is the thing which the Lord has commanded: ‘Let every man gather it according to each one’s need, one omer for each person, according to the number of persons; let every man take for those who are in his tent.’ ”
17 Then the children of Israel did so and gathered, some more, some less. 18 So when they measured it by omers, he who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack. Every man had gathered according to each one’s need. 19 And Moses said, “Let no one leave any of it till morning.” 20 Notwithstanding they did not heed Moses. But some of them left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them.
God was clear that they were only to gather what they needed
He wanted them to be reliant on him and have faith in him to sustain them, but what do they do? They collect more, exactly as God had told them not to do
But that wouldn’t be the end of their lack of faith...
25 Then Moses said, “Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field. 26 Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none.”
27 Now it happened that some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather, but they found none. 28 And the Lord said to Moses, “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws?
VIII. Jesus Gives Abundantly
VIII. Jesus Gives Abundantly
God told them that no bread would fall on the Sabbath, on the sixth day, and they were to collect extra the day before so they wouldn’t be breaking the sabbath by working and gathering bread
BUT PEOPLE WENT OUT ANYWAYS ON THE SABBATH TO GATHER UP BREAD
What do we see here...
GOD HAS PROVIDED FOR THESE PEOPLE, IN COMPLETE FULFILLMENT OF THEIR NEEDS, YET THEY STILL WANT SOMETHING MORE
NOW STOP AND LISTEN FOR A MOMENT.............… can you blame them?
Like you wouldn’t do the same thing
Oh there is something so good here in comparison to the story of Jesus
God fed them with bread from heaven, and it didn’t fully satisfy them. Now don’t misunderstand what I am saying - it satisfied their hunger - BUT GOD PROVIDING BREAD FOR THEM WAS NOT ENOUGH TO SATISFY THEIR HEARTS - clearly, the presence of bread on the ground wasn’t enough for them to rely on God
It should have been, but it wasn’t and even God himself knew that just meeting their physical needs was not enough to satisfy their hearts
And it wouldn’t be until about 1,500 years later, that God would feed his people again
But this time he wouldn’t only give them what they need physically, he gave them much more than that
Remember when Jesus was feeding the 5k, did he only give them exactly the amount they needed? NO
HE FILLED 12 BASKETS FULL OF LEFTOVERS - WHY? BECAUSE WHAT JESUS OFFERED WAS SO MUCH MORE THAN EXACTLY WHAT THEY NEEDED
A CONNECTION TO THE ISRAELITES EATING MANNA IN THE DESERT WOULD SOON BE MADE, AND I DON’T THINK IT IS ANY COINCIDENCE THAT THEN GOD WAS ADAMANT THAT THEY ONLY TAKE WHAT THEY NEED, BUT NOW GOD IS PROVIDING AN OVER ABUNDANCE
BECAUSE THEN GOD PROVIDED THEIR PHYSICAL NEEDS BUT THERE WAS SOMEHTING SO MUCH GREATER THAN JUST BREAD COMING
NOW THE BREAD OF LIFE IS HERE, AND WHAT HE OFFERS IS SO MUCH MORE THAN JUST MEETING PHYSICAL NEEDS
The people were not satisfied with the manna - and their unsatisfaction led to a lack of faith in God
THEY COULD NOT BRING THEMSELVES TO JUST BELIEVE THAT GOD WOULD SUSTAIN THEM AND THEY HAVE TO TAKE MATTERS INTO THEIR OWN HANDS
And it was no different with Jesus
Notice what happens after Jesus gets back to shore after calming the storm
IX. Chasing Jesus For Food
IX. Chasing Jesus For Food
22 On the following day, when the people who were standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except that one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away alone—23 however, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks—24 when the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. 25 And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You come here?”
The people have gone from interest, to now full on obsession
They are quite literally getting in boats to travel across the sea to find Jesus
And Jesus is clear, it isn’t because they want to believe in him, it is simply for the benefits
But Jesus takes it a step further here, at leat before they wanted him for his miracles, now they just want him for a meal
X. Shallow Following Exposed
X. Shallow Following Exposed
26 Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.
Jesus points out there error here, openly, he says you don’t even care about the signs and wonders anymore, you just want a free meal - that is how shallow the people have become
And it is amazing to think that the Israelites in the wilderness, ended up the exact same way
We have God parting a sea for them to escape the Egyptians, and when the people call out to God what do they care about - food
This is how shallow the faith in God has become - and we criticize, and we think wow thats kinda ridiculous, and then we do the same thing
I want you to look back at the past 5-10 times you have prayed to God, how many times was your prayer centered on God giving you something
Now its not wrong to ask God for what we want, we are commanded to do so, but is God nothing more than you delivery man to bring you what you want
That's all Jesus was to the multitudes and thats all God was to the Israelites, what is he to you?
Does Jesus look at you and say you don’t care about following me, you just want money, and food, and a nice car, and a better job, IS THAT HOW SURFACE LEVEL YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM HAS BECOME?
XI. Bread That Spoils
XI. Bread That Spoils
If so, Jesus gives some instruction....
27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”
Jesus already said that his food was to do the will of the father, and that should be ours too, a food that endures to everlasting life and never perishes
You see manna God sent would spoil quickly, miraculously fast, and this was intentional by God
God told the Israelites to not gather more manna than they needed, and if they did, it would spoil
Listen - IF THE BREAD YOU LIVE ON IS ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE BREAD OF LIFE, IT WILL SPOIL, AND JESUS WARNS US AGAINST THIS JUST AS THE ISRAELITES WERE WARNED
But on Friday, God told the Israelites to gather extra so they wouldn’t be gathering on the Sabbath, and that same manna, wouldn’t spoil the next day
The same bread in each situation, one spoiled in a day, the other would last 2, why, BECAUSE THE BREAD THAT GOD GIVES AND WE EAT IN OBEDIENCE, LASTS, AND THE BREAD THAT WE EAT IN DISOBEDIENCE, SPOILS
XII. Demanding Another Sign
XII. Demanding Another Sign
28 Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”
29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”
30 Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
Could you imagine being Jesus at this point, after all that he had done to care for these people, they are quite literally treating him like a circus animal in a cage
They tell him WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW, YOU WANT US TO BELIEVE, DO A TRICK
And then in such an irreverent and twisted way, notice the comparison they make
GOD GAVE US A WORK, HE GAVE OUR FATHERS MANNA IN THE DESERT, HE GAVE THEM BREAD FROM HEAVEN, WHAT WILL YOU GIVE US
XIII. Moses Didn’t Save
XIII. Moses Didn’t Save
32 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
Once again Jesus must challenge this almost God like view on Moses and the law
And he tells them don’t forget who gave you the manna, it wasn’t Moses, it was God, and now God has given you a bread from heaven once again, and this one gives life to the world
The people are so blinded in their lack of faith, and desire for pleasure that they can’t even make the connection of what Jesus is saying
XIV. The True Bread
XIV. The True Bread
34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”
35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. 40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
Jesus already said what his food was, to do the will of the father, and now he clarifies
He says that will is this, that everyone who believes in him may have everlasting life
The gospel is the food
AND THE PEOPLE LOVED WHAT JESUS HAD TO SAY RIGHT, AND THEY ALL ACCEPTED HIM AND BELEIVED IN HIM BECAUSE HE OFFERED SOMETHING SO MUCH GREATER JUST PHYSICAL BREAD RIGHT?
40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
41 The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
Understand these people just saw Jesus feed 10-15k people!
They have watched Jesus heal
They have watched Jesus do things nobody else can do, and yet they still doubt his truth
YOU SAY THAT YOU WOULD BELIEVE IF GOD JUST DID SOMETHING FOR YOU - NO YOU WOULDN’T
THESE PEOPLE PHYSICALLY WATCHED JESUS DO MIRACLES, THEY ATE THE BREAD CREATED BY THE MIRACULOUS HAND OF JESUS, AND THEY STILL DON’T BELIEVE
SO WHY DO YOU THINK YOU WOULD DO ANY DIFFERENT?
BELIEF DOESN’T COME FROM RECOGNITION, IT COMES FROM FAITH
FAITH IN THE EVIDENCE, AND TRUST IN THE MESSAGE - NOT REACTION
But Jesus still loves these people, and he still, in spite of their lack of faith, he desires that they would know the truth
42 And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father. 47 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. 48 I am the bread of life.
Now what Jesus says next here is really important, and powerful, notice the comparison
49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”
Can I just tell you real quick whatever bread it is you are living off of right now, you know where it will lead you - death
And don’t be mistaken in thinking that sitting in a church building will bring you life
Jesus reminds them - WHICH ONE OF YOUR FATHERS THAT ATE THE MANNA IS STILL ALIVE TODAY?
THEY ALL DIED - EVEN THE BREAD GOD SENT RESULTED IN DEATH
MAYBE THE MANNA WASN’T REALLY THE TRUE BREAD FROM HEAVEN?
God gave the people bread because he cared for them - but he gave them Jesus because he loves them.
And Jesus gave the people bread because he cared for them - and he gives them his life because he loves them.
But they must take part in it - they must eat of the bread, and this was the part they still couldn’t quite grasp
Like with everything else they couldn’t get out of their heads in only desiring physical things
52 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?”
53 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. 56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.
Jesus uses graphic language here because that is all they could understand - the metaphorical teaching just wasn’t working so he has to get literal in the picture
And he puts the period on the end here - what is all this about...
58 This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.”
He makes it clear, that manna God gave to your fathers, it was just bread, but I am the true bread from heaven, and if you eat of this bread, you will have eternal life
AND THEY ALL BELIEVED IN HIM RIGHT?
XV. Hard Teachings Rejected
XV. Hard Teachings Rejected
60 Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”
We criticize, we judge, but again, we do the same thing
61 When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. 65 And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.”
66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
They finally had enough - they got tired of his message, and they just left, even those who were actually following him
They didn’t like the fact that they had to actually abide in him
They didn’t like the fact that Jesus was no longer just the miracle worker - NOW THEY HAD TO DO THEIR PART, AND JUST LIKE THE ISRAELITES DID TO GOD, THEY LACK FAITH AND THEY REJECT HIM
But not all of them....
67 Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?”
I want to stop for a second.....
If Jesus looks at you right now, in the midst of multitudes leaving him, and here you stand in the midst, and he asks, you want to go with them?
What would you say?
Would you say - no I like your miracles
Would you say - no I want a meal
Would you say yeah I am going to leave and I’ll be back when I need something else
Or would you say what Peter said, the only right answer
XVI. Peter’s Great Confession and A Devil in the Midst
XVI. Peter’s Great Confession and A Devil in the Midst
68 But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
So at this point Jesus is encouraged right, at least he has 12 that will follow him for the right reason
But Jesus looks out at the 12 standing by him, and he says this...
70 Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” 71 He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.
This wouldn’t be the end of the lack of faith in Jesus
And the next chapter which we will look at next week, Jesus would be fearing for his life, and his own family wouldn’t even believe in him, and it begs the question WHY? LIKE WHAT DID JESUS DO?
ALL HE DID WAS CARE FOR PEOPLE AND BRING THEM THE GOSPEL OF ETERNAL LIFE THAT THEY DON’T EVEN DESERVE - AND ALL JESUS GETS IS REJECTION, DOUBT, AND EVEN THREATS ON HIS LIFE
It’s simple, and its the same reason we do the same thing over and over again today.
Pride - we have transformed Jesus into the same thing he was for the people
We have transformed God into the same thing he was to the Israelites
The tool by which we get what we want - and when we no longer want what he offers, we turn away
XVII. Everlasting Fulfillment
XVII. Everlasting Fulfillment
God loves us so much to send his son, and Jesus lives day after day after day in his short time of ministry on earth facing nothing but criticism, when he came to pay for the sins of mankind.
Today choose that Christ will no longer just be a temporary means of satisfaction, but put your faith in him to be your everlasting fulfillment, because he loves you, and he wants you to truly love him too.
