Chapter Six: I will Never Cast Out

In John chapter 6, we see one of the most complex and often debated chapters in the Bible. Roman Catholics and Protestants, for example, have long debated this chapter, particularly because of Jesus’s teaching on His body, bread, and His statement, “Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (John 6:51)

That debated verse is couched in a busy chapter. I say busy because at the beginning of the chapter we see the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus walking on water, and the Bread from Heaven passage, in which our focus will take place. It is important to understand this passage before we can begin to make applications from our main focus of John 6:37.

First, the people were not seeking Jesus because He was the Messiah, for eternal life, or anything of depth. Jesus tells them in 6:26, “You are seeking me…because you ate your fill of the loaves.” In other words, the crowds only cared for the physical (not very different than people in existence today).

Second, Jesus makes it clear in this passage that those who seek Him do so because the Father draws them (John 6:44). This truth has enormous implications on several fronts. First, it reminds us that we are truly saved by grace (Eph. 2:8-9). It is not what we do nor who we are, it is God’s goodness in saving us. Second, it shapes our evangelism/mission work. It reminds us that as we share the gospel with others they are responsible to response. Our efforts should be biblical, and we should aim to persuade people with everything we have. Ultimately, however, it is not our responsibility.

A second sub-point of this shaping our evangelism and mission work is that God has people from every nation, tribes, peoples, and languages. We should preach the Gospel here and abroad, and work with other churches as they share the Gospel all over the world.

Third, and finally before we move into our subject this evening, is the truth when God saves us, He saves and keeps us. He does not lead us along a path that is prone to leaving the faith. It is popular today to tell about one’s “deconstruction story,” or how someone leaves the faith. There are times where believers can fall into serious sins (a point we will take up momentarily). The difference between a believer and an unbeliever is that a believer, through God’s supernatural work, will never fall away completely. Eventually they will repent and, as the Canons of Dort state, “God’s fatherly face again [will] shine upon them.” That is encouraging!

John 6:35-40

Bunyan Quotes page 62

Now, why is this important? I want to look at this in several parts: individually, corporately, and theologically. Some of the brief comments will reappear below.

I. The Individual and Jesus

The first thing we note is the welcome of Jesus, the encouragement to come to Him. We know that we come to Jesus because the Father draws us, but notice Jesus’s posture. He tells them He will never cast them out. We just read Bunyan’s words, encouraging words, and what a wonderful truth it is! Ortlund writes, “Fallen, anxious sinners are limitless in their capacity to perceive reasons for Jesus to cast them out. We are factories of fresh resistances to Christ’s love.” (63)

We must remember that if we come to Christ, He will never cast us out. There is no sin that will cause Jesus to throw us out. There is nothing. Try as we might to bring up excuses for why Christ will not open His arms to us and we will meet with constant and utter failure. What a joyous truth! This is nothing other than Jesus’s statements that were echoed in Heb. 4:14-16.

We have no reason, on an individual level, to flee from Christ and every reason to flee to Christ. This, as we will see in a moment, should help our evangelism.

While that is on a sin-level, Ortlund also draws our attention to suffering. Suffering is a real part of life, a result of the fall, and a tool for our sanctification. Like Job, we can be tempted to doubt God (His goodness, His grace, and His love for us). Suffering will not keep you from the arms of Christ. Perhaps we should let the language of Scripture add to this thought. Romans 8:31-39 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus …”

II. Jesus and the Church

Quickly, we move on to the Church. The Church is a body of individuals, those who come to Christ and are saved and being sanctified. Just as Jesus welcomes us with open arms, we should be patient with one another as we grow in our sanctification. Now, I do not mean excusing sin or even celebrating it. That is not what we are discussing. One look at the NT epistles and you will quickly realize that there is no room for tolerance. But while there is no room for tolerance, there should be ample room for patience.

We should not look down on other believers for their progress, however slow or stagnate it may seem to us. In fact, it should remind us of our own slowness in growth toward being like Christ. The Church should be the place where sanctification is encouraged and strengthened. The Church should be a green-house for sanctification. We should be patient with one another.

III. Theological Implications

Briefly, I want to discuss one part of this whole focus that is a theological issue but wonderful nonetheless. It is the perseverance of the saints. Christ will never cast you out. You will never lose your salvation. God planned our salvation, procured it, provided it, and He protects it.

We also have the evangelistic implications as well.