4. The Source of Satisfaction

Me.

Welcome both in person and online to part four of our sermon series, The Gospel of John. The big idea behind this series is that we are looking at five core verses that make up the book of John. Each verse pushes us to reconsider who Jesus is and challenges us to follow him more deeply. Just a reminder, you can catch up on all the past sermons. Simply go to iowacitychurch.org.

Broccoli is good for you. It’s packed with vitamins, minerals and bioactive compounds. It contains potent antioxidants, and may help reduce inflammation. It’s loaded with fiber, and may aid in digestion…and even slow the aging process. It also tastes terrible. Some of you hate it so much you classify it as a vile weed!

We have this plant that is so good for you, yet for many people they won’t touch it because it tastes bad. This is why God created moms! They are creative geniuses! They discover ways to take things that are good for us and get us to eat them. So there was this one mom, I don’t know who she is or even when it happened, I just know that a mom discovered this. One day, a mom was trying to get her kids to eat broccoli, but they hated it so much that they refused. So this super mom had a brilliant idea. I’m going to melt Velveeta cheese and pour this liquid gold over the broccoli. Voile! All of a sudden broccoli isn’t so bad! This morning, we are here to honor this mom.

But here is the dilemma? Do the kids all of a sudden like broccoli and it’s health benefits? No! They love the cheese! The broccoli has become the object that transports the cheese from the plate to their mouth. They don’t all of a sudden like broccoli. They love the cheese and tolerate the broccoli.

Isn’t that a perfect description about how we live our lives? There are a lot of things in life that are really good for us, but we avoid them because they taste bad, require us to sacrifice or are just simply too hard to do.

You:

Honestly, this is how some people approach Jesus. A lot of people agree that Jesus is good for them. He is this amazing new life giver…but he asks us to do some really difficult things. Love our enemies. Forgive those who have wronged us. Give away our positions. Take up our cross and follow him. So because there are these really hard teachings from Jesus, the church can be very guilty of covering them with cheese…to be more palatable. We will say things like, if you follow Jesus your life will be great! If you will Jesus, everything will be great and you don’t have to worry about your past anymore. If you follow Jesus you won’t every feel guilt or deal with depression again. If you follow Jesus it will be easy. Listen, that’s cheese. I know that I’ve been guilty of doing that…and not only putting on the cheese, but loving the cheese more then I love Jesus.

Here’s the problem. If I love the cheese more than Jesus will I experience any of the benefits of following Jesus? If I’m set on consuming the cheese, and not Jesus, will I really ever experience a new life? The simple answer is, no. You won’t. Just like eating cheese off of the broccoli won’t give you many health benefits.

Here’s the truth: Following Jesus is hard, but it’s so good! How can we push through the taste and experience the best life possible?

God:

If you have a Bible or a device, go to John chapter 6. If you are using the YouVersion Bible app, on your menu, look for events…then select Iowa City Church.

The previous day, on the other side of The Sea of Galilee, Jesus had fed bread to five thousand men. That is a significant detail and key in understanding what it taking place. After feeding the crowd loaves and fishes, Jesus sends his disciples off in a boat while he goes up to pray. In the middle of the night, Jesus crosses the water on foot and meets up with his disciples. In the morning, the crowd wants to know where Jesus is, but they can’t find him. They begin to search and after at least 10 miles or so of walking they find him in Capernaum on the other side of the lake. Upon finding Jesus the following conversation ensues. Look at John 6, starting with verse 25.

John 6:25–26 NIV

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.

Jesus cuts to the chase: You are chasing after me simply because I put food in your belly. The day before, on the hill overlooking The Sea of Galilee the crowd had had their fill of fish and chips and now they were back for more. Jesus obviously has no problem feeding people…but he wants them to know that they shouldn’t just settle for food in their bellies. He has more to offer. Listen to what he says. Look at verse 27.

John 6:27–35 NIV

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.

Jesus reminds them to not just work for food that spoils, but to also make sure and work for food that gives eternal life…this is the food that Jesus wants to give them. Just a reminder. Eternal life isn’t about quantity of days alone, it’s about the quality of those days. Jesus offers, the stuff it takes to live the best life now and into eternity. Of course the crowd wants this kind of bread…so Jesus tells them to believe in him…because he is the bread of life. I’m certain there was some disappointment that went through the crowd. Some dude probably leaned over to his buddy and said, “So are we getting those fish and chips or not?”

There is incredible disappointment in this crowd because they are beginning to realize that there is not going to be a free meal. However, this is an important lesson about how people view Jesus. There are a lot of people, myself included myself who have viewed Jesus has a Vending Machine Jesus, another phrase is The Transactional Gospel. In other words, I do something for Jesus and he gives me something in return. I’ll go to church and pray. In return we ask Jesus to help us have a good week. I give some money, and I expect Jesus to bless me somehow. I say a prayer acknowledging my need for Jesus and I expect him to forgive my sins in return. Or I get baptized and I put this one way ticket to heaven in my back pocket. This is a Vending Machine Jesus…where we make transaction with him to get something in return. This is what the crowd is doing, and I know I have done the same thing.

However, Jesus doesn’t want them to settle for this. He wants them to go deeper, he wants to challenge them to look at their lives and what they really need. They don’t just need another meal, they need to find satisfaction for their souls. Jesus offers what they need, not what they want.

John 6:52–59 NIV

Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, 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, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. 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. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

This is teaching from Jesus is so hard to understand…swallow? How can we possibly consume Jesus? Hopefully you understand that Jesus is using hyperbole here to shock his listeners into paying attention. He wants them to wrestle with this difficult saying. He’s calling them into a deeper understanding, a deeper commitment. The ones who get it, are the ones who recognize that they hunger they look to have satisfied isn’t in their stomachs, it’s in their soul. Here is how a person can consume Jesus. He gave us the answer back in verse 29.

John 6:29 NIV

Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

Believe/Faith. What I have come to understand is that we have a lot of different definitions of believing or having faith. The typical one I’ve had or many Christians seem to have is agreement.

Jesus is God’s Son. - Agree.

Jesus died on the cross for our sins. - Agree.

Jesus was resurrected from the dead. - Agree.

The problem is, that’s not faith…it’s agreement. Belief or faith is loyalty which moves one to action. I can measure one’s faith not in a head nod but in action. Do you agree with Jesus, hoping that that is enough to get a free meal? Or are you willing to give him your loyalty.

Here’s an example of what this look like.

VIDEO: Trust Fall

Following Jesus is hard, but it’s good.

Never forget this truth:

To live the best life possible one must daily give their loyalty to Jesus.

Here are some ways to can do that:

You must declare your loyalty to Jesus. This is your pledge of allegiance to Jesus. If you have never repented of your old way of living life, confessed you desire to follow Jesus and been baptized into him…that is a great starting point. It’s the foundation that you can begin to build your new life upon.

Daily Consume Jesus. We all need some type of daily reminder to consume Jesus. The reason is, this a difficult task because life hits us so hard and fast. We need to lock in with some type of daily routine where we remind ourselves of our decision to trust and follow Jesus. So, whether it’s a regular morning prayer time or a time to read your Bible plan. These habit keep us on mission of following Jesus.

Weekly Consume Communion. Or the Lord’s Supper in a worship service time. Here’s why. Following Jesus is hard, even after we have made our pledge of allegiance. We are going to mess up. We are going to say something we regret. We are going to ruin our relationships. We are going to hurt someone. We are going to fail. It’s one of the reasons why Jesus gave us communion. It’s that time when we go to Jesus and say, “I know I messed up, but I still believe…I still trust you.” Jesus reminds us that we are loved and forgiven. In that moment we are able to pick up and go back out into the world and live in confidence following Jesus. During communion we are reminded that following Jesus is hard, painful…but so very good for our souls.

To live the best life possible one must daily give their loyalty to Jesus.