John 6B (2014) Last week I introduced chapter 6 of John by pointing to Psalm 23. In that Psalm, David writes that the Lord is his Shepherd

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1 Jhn 6B (2014) Last week I intrduced chapter 6 f Jhn by pinting t Psalm 23 In that Psalm, David writes that the Lrd is his Shepherd The Shepherd prvides fr his sheep such that they shall n want And he makes the sheep lie dwn in green - that is, fertile - pastures And then in the first part f Jhn 6, we studied the miracle f Jesus feeding the crwd f 5,000+ peple by multiplying bread and fish Jhn arranged the narrative t reveal tw pictures First, he cnfirmed Jesus as Psalm 23, the Shepherd wh tld the peple t sit n the grass s He culd feed them Secndly, Jhn emphasized Jesus as a latter day Mses in fulfillment f Mses wn wrds In the desert, Mses tld Israel t expect a Prphet t arrive in the future, One like him Wh wuld speak all that the Father cmmands Israel understd this prmise t pint t the Messiah And in fact, as the miracle came t an end, we heard the peple prclaim that Jesus was The Prphet Meaning they recgnized Jesus t be the One prmised by Mses The peple saw Jesus crssing a bdy f water, fllwed by a crwd f many Jews, arriving in a deslate place, ascending a muntain And then He brught the peple a miraculus surce f bread All f these details evke a memry f Israel camped in the desert fllwing Mses The peple saw this and respnded by calling Jesus the Prphet But what did they think that meant? Jhn puts that questin aside fr a shrt time s he can turn his attentin t the disciples 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Jhn 6B 2 f 21 The disciples f Jesus participated in this miracle and they must have been amazed t see it unfld S the questin is what did they learn frm this experience? Has it altered their understanding f Jesus identity? D they recgnize Jesus as the Shepherd f Psalm 23? If s, then the next events f chapter 6 wuld will give them an pprtunity t demnstrate that understanding Because the next line f Psalm 23 is: Psa. 23:2 He makes me lie dwn in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. The same Shepherd that prvides fr His sheep in green pastures als leads us beside still waters S as a cntinuatin f the test that began chapter 6, the Lrd allws His disciples t experience sme very turbulent waters Each test mves them clser t understanding Jesus as the fulfillment f Old Testament prphecy f the Messiah Jhn 6:16 Nw when evening came, His disciples went dwn t the sea, Jhn 6:17 and after getting int a bat, they started t crss the sea t Capernaum. It had already becme dark, and Jesus had nt yet cme t them. Jhn 6:18 The sea began t be stirred up because a strng wind was blwing. Jhn 6:19 Then, when they had rwed abut three r fur miles, they saw Jesus walking n the sea and drawing near t the bat; and they were frightened. Jhn 6:20 But He said t them, It is I; d nt be afraid. Jhn 6:21 S they were willing t receive Him int the bat, and immediately the bat was at the land t which they were ging. These events serve as a bridge in Jhn s narrative between Jesus feeding f the crwd and their eventual reunin n the ther side f the Sea f Galilee Jesus waits until evening t descend the muntain with His disciples He waits presumably because the crwd had been talking f taking Him t Jerusalem t install Him as king 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Jhn 6B 3 f 21 Since this was NOT smething Jesus wanted t see happen at this pint in His ministry, He retreated until evening And nw He s ready t return t Capernaum If yu re fllwing this same stry in the ther Gspels, yu may run int a pint f cnfusin when making cmparisns t Jhn s accunt Marks Gspel says they were returning t Bethesda, which is where Jhn says Jesus fed the crwd S yu might wnder are they leaving Bethesda r returning t Bethesda As it turns ut, there are tw Bethesdas arund the Sea f Galilee - The wrd Bethesda means fishtwn - S it s nt surprising that there wuld be multiple places arund a large lake called fishtwn They were leaving Bethesda Julius and returning t a Bethesda which was was part f larger Capernaum There are ther helpful things we learn abut these events in the ther Gspels Fr example, we learn in Mark and Matthew that it was Jesus Wh escrted His disciples int the bat and tld them t depart withut Him - In fact, Mark says Jesus bid the disciples farewell - S I assume the disciples were wndering why they were sent away alne and when Jesus wuld rejin them Als we re tld Jesus sent the crwds away at this pint Then He retreats up the side f the muntain again t pray All three writers tell us that Jesus sent the disciples late in the day but befre it was dark, accrding t Matthew and Mark Jhn says in v.16 that the disciples started t crss the sea in the bat headed t Capernaum They were rwing themselves accrding t Mark This makes sense since the winds were quite cntrary 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Jhn 6B 4 f 21 And n that night, they were especially strng Rwing taking lnger than sailing, and it ges especially slwly when the wind is against yu 3 mi (4.5 km) Sea f Galilee (Tiberias Sea) Figure 1 In the midst f their jurney, night falls, and as we discussed in earlier weeks, darkness is always a frequent mtif in Jhn s Gspel Darkness represents unbelief in Jhn s Gspel S when we see that these men were in darkness, we shuld understand that Jhn is emphasizing that detail t suggest smething abut them Jhn als says that Jesus had nt yet cme t them It s unclear hw the disciples expected Jesus t eventually catch up t them Perhaps they thught He wuld walk alng the shre, since the rute they tk was within site f the shre 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Jhn 6B 5 f 21 We learn later that there was ne ther small bat at the shre, s perhaps they assumed He just wanted sme alne time and then He planned t rw Himself ut t meet them Whatever they thught, they eventually give up waiting and decide t g all the way t Capernaum prbably assuming they wuld meet up with Jesus there Jhn then tells us that at sme pint in the night the seas begin t be stirred up The phrase stirred up literally in Greek is t be cmpletely awakened The ther Gspel writers tell us that the bat was battered by the waves And that the wind was against them as they tried t rw There is n indicatin they were afraid f the strm itself But they were trubled by their inability t mve ahead In fact, Matthew tells us that Jesus apprached them in the furth watch f the night - Which was between 3 6 AM S these men had been at wrk rwing fr at least 6 7 hurs fr a trip that shuld have taken less than half that time - And they are still nt at the shre as yet Jhn adds that they had rwed arund 3 miles by this pint which places them almst t their destinatin Mark s Gspel says they were in the middle f the sea but the Greek wrd can als be translated the midst f the sea In ther wrds, they were still t far frm land t get ut f the bat Then at this pint, they lk up t see Jesus walking n the water Cuntless jkes have referenced this scene and many have been said t walk n water as a way f suggesting a claim t perfectin I think it s fair t say that Jesus culdn t have selected a better entrance But it s nt altgether unprecedented 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Jhn 6B 6 f 21 In times past, the Lrd has used His cmmand ver natural elements t demnstrate His pwer and divinity Mst dramatically, in the stry f the Exdus, when Mses was called t part waters r perfrm ther dramatic miracles Here again, this scene reminds us f the Exdus accunt, at least in the sense that we see Gd demnstrating His pwer ver the elements Hw might we explain what is happening t allw Jesus t walk n water? Jesus is 100% human being He has the same physical bdy that yu and I pssess tday, thugh withut sin And when yu r I sink in water, it s nt because f ur sin It s simply a matter f physics The material f ur physical bdies is s dense that it breaks the surface tensin f water, s that we sink And we are nt mre dense than Jesus, at least nt physically S hw did Jesus flat n the water? My assumptin is that Jesus bdy didn t change The Spirit changed the water in a sense He permitted the water t supprt the weight f a man, at least in the places Jesus rested His feet My assumptin finds supprt in the fact that nt nly did Jesus walk n the water, but s did Peter at least fr a time If it was the Spirit wrking t supprt Jesus n the water, then it return us t anther f Jhn s mtif s, that f the Creatin accunt In Genesis 1 we re tld that in the beginning the Spirit was hvering ver the surface f the waters in ttal darkness And earlier in Jhn s Gspel we were tld that Jesus was the Wrd Wh created all things in the beginning 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Jhn 6B 7 f 21 S nw we see bth Jesus and the Spirit nce again demnstrating their authrity ver the surface f the water When yu cmbine this scene with a knwledge f what had just transpired earlier in Bethesda, a clear stry abut Jesus identity emerges Jesus is painting a picture f Himself fr His disciples, nce that depended n a little knwledge f the Old Testament If the disciples knew the Genesis accunt, they culd recgnize Jesus as the Creatr, with pwer ver the elements If they knew the Exdus accunt, they culd understand that Jesus is the Lrd f the Exdus, leading His peple t the muntain and feeding His peple with bread If they remembered Deuternmy, they culd recgnize Jesus as the Prphet Wh cmes in manner f Mses and fulfills the prmise f Mses And if they knew the Psalms, they might see Jesus as the Shepherd Wh causes His sheep t lie dwn in green pastures And nw as the One Wh leads them by still waters In fact, in Mark s Gspel, we read this cncerning Jesus intentins Mark 6:48 Seeing them straining at the ars, fr the wind was against them, at abut the furth watch f the night He came t them, walking n the sea; and He intended t pass by them. Ntice that Marks says it was Jesus intentin nt t enter the bat but t pass it by Jesus was intending t walk past them s He culd lead them t the shre, t still waters Had they nt expressed fear ver seeing Him, then the picture wuld have been cmplete They might have rwed the bat fllwing Jesus n still waters t their destinatin, which was very clse by already Instead, they d nt respnd t His arrival as sheep respnd t their shepherd 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Jhn 6B 8 f 21 Instead, all three Gspel writers make clear that the disciples respnd in fear t Jesus appearance Mark s accunt says they thught they had seen a ghst Nw certainly, seeing a man walk n water wuld be surprising But there is clear emphasis in the Gspel accunts that their fear was unreasnable Mark s accunt ends this way Mark 6:51 Then He gt int the bat with them, and the wind stpped; and they were utterly astnished, Mark 6:52 fr they had nt gained any insight frm the incident f the laves, but their heart was hardened. That given all that they had witnessed t this pint, they shuld have understd Jesus identity and therefre His ptential t cmmand the elements S that they wuld nt have been s disturbed by what they encuntered S surprised, yes...frightened, n When Jesus sees their cncern, He calls ut t the men t nt fear what they see And Jesus explains why they shuldn t fear by saying, It is I Literally in Greek, the phrase Jesus spke was I am Once mre, Jhn gives us a clear cnnectin back t the Exdus stry I AM was the terms the Lrd used t identify Himself t Mses at the burning bush There can be n clearer way t declare neself t be Gd than t repeat that icnic phrase The disciples were cmmanded nt t fear because the Lrd was with them Truly, can there be any mre cnvincing reasn t set fear aside? 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Jhn 6B 9 f 21 As Paul said in Rmans: Rm. 8:31 What then shall we say t these things? If Gd is fr us, wh is against us? If the Gd and Creatr f the Universe has declared He is fr us, that is He has determined t align Himself with us, then n what basis wuld we fear? What is mre pwerful than Gd? Are the waves mre pwerful? Wuld a s-called ghst be mre pwerful? Wuld death itself be a cause fr fear? Over all these things the Lrd has pwer They can nly harm us t the extent the Lrd permits And if He permits them t cme against us, then there must be sme gd reasn in it S again, what is there t fear? As Mark pints ut, there was smething missing in their understanding f Jesus They hadn t learned the lessn frm the laves, because their hearts were hardened What was Mark saying abut them? Were they unbelieving? Cnsider that in Matthew s Gspel, the scene ends this way Matt. 14:32 When they gt int the bat, the wind stpped. Matt. 14:33 And thse wh were in the bat wrshiped Him, saying, Yu are certainly Gd s Sn! After Jesus entered the bat, the wind stpped And upn seeing Jesus walk n water and the wind cease s suddenly, they began t wrship Him, declaring Him t be Gd s Sn S they are nt unbelieving And yet Mark says they hadn t learned the lessns due t hard hearts 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Jhn 6B 10 f 21 We re seeing that even amng thse wh understd Jesus t be Messiah remained in the dark abut what a Messiah came t d fr them They hadn t gained insight abut the cnnectin t the Exdus s they culd understand hw they needed setting free frm slavery t sin They hadn t understd that a man culd als be Gd Himself They didn t realize that... Psa. 23:4 Even thugh I walk thrugh the valley f the shadw f death, I fear n evil, fr Yu are with me; This episde n the water was anther test fr the disciples, a test designed t reveal whether they were prepared t walk in the faith budding in their hearts And like the test at the muntain f Bethesda, the disciples have failed The succumbed t fear because they didn t knw Jesus as Gd Twice nw, they have failed t anticipate Jesus ability t cmmand the elements This is the difference between knwing Jesus as Lrd and abiding in Jesus T knw Jesus as Lrd is t accept the Gspel T abide in Jesus is t live accrding t the Gspel These men all recgnize Jesus as the Messiah But they aren t in a psitin t live in the light f that revelatin All Christians are learning hw t make this same transitin, and sme are farther alng that path than thers But we all all challenged by the wrd f Gd t mve further and faster in the directin f spiritual maturity There will be mre lessns fr the disciples, but this ne has cme t a clse As Jesus enters the bat, Jhn says they are immediately at their destinatin 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 Jhn 6B 11 f 21 The wrd in Greek can mean instantly but it can als mean in a very shrt time S this desn t require a miraculus mvement t the shre Mre likely, it simple means they were clse enugh t the shre already that nce the wind stpped, it was a very jurney t reach the shre Jhn s descriptin f the events leaves us with a strng cntrast between the men struggling t make it t shre n their wn vs. a quick jurney with Jesus That s the flip side f ur lessn n abiding in Christ When a disciple f the Lrd isn t abiding in Him, that is nt relying n His pwer, we re rwing against the wind We re exerting a lt f energy but we re nt getting anywhere And all the while, we may be very clse t ur destinatin, but we re in the dark, s we can t knw hw clse we are Whether we re striving t btain a peaceful, lving family, r a raise gdly kids, r address an addictin r emtinal trauma r accmplish a difficult wrk f ministry... In each case, we can chse strive in ur wn pwer r abide in the Lrd s pwer Striving in ur wn pwer leaves us standing still, prblems unreslved, energy wasted But abiding in Jesus begins with recgnizing Jesus pwer t d what we cannt Then it des away with fear And ultimately, it brings us t wherever the Lrd has decided t lead us Clearly, we culd talk at length abut the lessns t be fund in this mment, but since Jhn will return t them again, we ll wait as well Meanwhile, we have unfinished business with the crwd that received the bread and the fish in Bethesda 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

12 Jhn 6B 12 f 21 They saw the miracle and then declared Jesus t be the Prphet prmised by Mses But then they respnd by seeking t take ver Jerusalem by frce Perhaps they were just making the same kind f mistake as the disciples Maybe they understd Jesus t be Messiah but they misunderstd what being Messiah meant S then Jhn explains what happens next Jhn 6:22 The next day the crwd that std n the ther side f the sea saw that there was n ther small bat there, except ne, and that Jesus had nt entered with His disciples int the bat, but that His disciples had gne away alne. Jhn 6:23 There came ther small bats frm Tiberias near t the place where they ate the bread after the Lrd had given thanks. Jhn 6:24 S when the crwd saw that Jesus was nt there, nr His disciples, they themselves gt int the small bats, and came t Capernaum seeking Jesus. Jhn 6:25 When they fund Him n the ther side f the sea, they said t Him, Rabbi, when did Yu get here? The next mrning, the crwd in Bethsaida awakes t discver that Jesus is gne They knew He didn t leave with the disciples In fact, they saw Him sending the disciples away and then return t the muntain They als see the ne small bat remaining, s they knw Jesus culdn t have left by bat And n ne saw Jesus walk ut f the camp and head back t Capernaum S they are mystified And then mre bats begin t arrive in the mrning Apparently, wrd has spread fast that Jesus had pened a fish and chips peratin at Bethsaida Because bats as far away as Tiberias are arriving in the mrning 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

13 Jhn 6B 13 f 21 Tiberias lies near the ppsite side f the sea f Galilee, abut 8 miles away by water Peple are bviusly very interested in being fed and healed After a time, the peple finally figure ut that Jesus is simply nt there any lnger, s they use the bats that have arrived t hitch rides back t Capernaum Returning t Capernaum was the lgical chice, since Capernaum was Jesus hme turf during His time in the Galilee Once they get t Capernaum, they find Jesus there with His disciples And they ask the natural questin, Hw did yu get here? Had Jesus decided t answer that questin hnestly, what a stry that wuld have been! Ntice they address Jesus as rabbi, which means teacher That s the first hint that their perspective n Jesus isn t right They address Him in a respectful manner, but nt as Messiah much less as Lrd Just a night earlier, they thught He was the Prphet But nw it appears they have retreated frm that pinin, prbably because Jesus didn t jin in with their rebellin S nw He s just teacher t them As we ve seen in past chapters f Jhn, Jesus begins an extended discussin with the crwd that presents anther ships passing in the night experience Jesus engages them in a spiritual discussin while the crwd remains stuck in earthly, fleshly cncerns Jhn 6:26 Jesus answered them and said, Truly, truly, I say t yu, yu seek Me, nt because yu saw signs, but because yu ate f the laves and were filled. Jhn 6:27 D nt wrk fr the fd which perishes, but fr the fd which endures t eternal life, which the Sn f Man will give t yu, fr n Him the Father, Gd, has set His seal. Jhn 6:28 Therefre they said t Him, What shall we d, s that we may wrk the wrks f Gd? 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

14 Jhn 6B 14 f 21 Jhn 6:29 Jesus answered and said t them, This is the wrk f Gd, that yu believe in Him whm He has sent. First, Jesus, knwing their hearts, calls them ut fr their false mtives He says they aren t seeking Him, they are seeking fd The signs that Jesus perfrmed were intended t reveal Him as Messiah and Gd incarnate Fr this crwd, the signs were nt seen in a spiritual manner They were seen nly in their physical frm That is t say, the meaning f Jesus multiplying bread and fish miraculusly was that they culd expect unlimited refills It was a message abut fd t these peple But it was intended t supply spiritual insight cncerning Jesus identity The crwd was suppsed t see the miracle and care nthing fr the fd r the prspect f mre in the future They were suppsed t be mved t cnsider the implicatins f what it means that a man stands befre them perfrming wrks that nly Gd culd perfrm It was suppsed t lead them t seek Him as Gd Instead, they embarked n lng trips back and frth acrss the sea f Galilee t find bread and fish, s Jesus says that s wrking fr the wrng thing In v.27 Jesus says dn t wrk fr things that perish He s referring t the bread and fish, but f curse He means anything f this wrld We have physical needs and Gd is prepared t meet them But we can t make the btaining them ur fcus in life Instead, we shuld seek the fd that endures t eternal life The Greek wrd fr endure is men, which is mre cmmnly translated abide 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

15 Jhn 6B 15 f 21 In effect, Jesus says we need t wrk fr t abide in eternal bread, which is the eternal life that the Messiah ffers t mankind The Messiah is the One n Whm the Father has set His seal, that is the seal f His apprval T say it simply, the Messiah is the nly One apprved by the Father t grant eternal life S if we re ging wrk fr smething, we shuld wrk t abide in Christ, but that s nt what these peple are ding The peple s respnse t Jesus cmments ffers a clear windw int their hearts They ask Jesus what wrks they need t d t please Gd They want t wrk the wrks f Gd The sense f their questin is what can I d t earn eternal life Jesus cnfrnted anther man in Matthew 19 wh asked hw he culd btain eternal life Jesus essentially answer by telling him he had t be sinless, t which the man relied he had indeed kept all the cmmandments This is the attitude f this crwd in the face f Jesus cmplaint They are telling Him if Jesus wuld nly explain what wrks they need t d t qualify fr eternal life, they wuld be happy t accmplish thse wrks They had n understanding f sin r the judgment that sin requires N ne prir t receiving Gd s grace can understand that they are incapable f entering Heaven Fr all men believe themselves gd enugh t qualify As Jesus explained t that man frm Matthew 19, there is n ne wh is gd except Gd alne S Jesus answers their questin in v.29 saying that the nly wrk that we can d t btain eternal life is t believe in the One the Father has sent, that is Jesus 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

16 Jhn 6B 16 f 21 Of curse, this is n wrk at all, since it is a matter f faith Faith is a cnfidence that a prmise f Gd is true, accrding t Hebrews 11 The prmise f Christ is that He is the Sn f Gd, and that His death in ur place satisfied the wrath f Gd against ur sin And therefre, placing trust in that prvisin will ensure we are resurrected int eternal life just as Christ Himself was resurrected frm the grave That s the s-called wrk that brings us eternal life As Jesus spke these wrds t the crwd, He was describing Himself as the Sn f Man and calling n the crwd t see Him in this way He is reaffirming His identity as the Prphet they recgnized a day earlier He is claiming t have been sent t them frm the Father He s reminding them f His miracles as prf f His claims And He calls them t embrace Him as the slutin t the prblem f their sin This was a Gspel call spken by the lips f the Lrd Himself directly t these peple S what d we suppse they did with such a clear and cmpelling call? Jhn 6:30 S they said t Him, What then d Yu d fr a sign, s that we may see, and believe Yu? What wrk d Yu perfrm? Jhn 6:31 Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OF HEAVEN TO EAT. The peple answer asking Jesus t give them a sign s they can believe in Him And just t be sure Jesus gets the hint, they ffer a suggestin f what kind f sign He shuld d fr them They remind Him f what Mses did fr the Israelites wh wandered in the desert Their ancestrs ate manna in the wilderness because Mses prvided it 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

17 Jhn 6B 17 f 21 Remember they had declared the day befre that Jesus was the Prphet that Mses prmised Nw they re telling Jesus they are willing t cnsider that pssibility nce mre, but they need Jesus t d at least what Mses did If Mses gave the peple bread frm heaven n a daily basis, then certainly if Jesus is t be a prphet like Mses, He shuld be able t accmplish as much Yu dn t have t be a genius t see thrugh their scheme They misuse scripture in an attempt t bait Jesus int prviding anther free meal Even if Jesus did what they requested, it wuldn t cnvince them He is truly the Sn f Gd If a miracle f this type was all they required t knw Him as Messiah, then the previus feeding in Bethsaida wuld have been enugh They make this request simply because they want the tree meal While they remain fcused n earthly things, Jesus sticks t a spiritual discussin Jhn 6:32 Jesus then said t them, Truly, truly, I say t yu, it is nt Mses wh has given yu the bread ut f heaven, but it is My Father wh gives yu the true bread ut f heaven. Jhn 6:33 Fr the bread f Gd is that which cmes dwn ut f heaven, and gives life t the wrld. Jhn 6:34 Then they said t Him, Lrd, always give us this bread. First, Jesus crrects their interpretatin f the scriptures Mses didn t perfrm the miracle f prviding bread It was the Father in Heaven Wh supplies the manna And ntice that Jesus says my Father in Heaven His pint is tw fld: Gd prvides bread and I am that Gd Secndly, Jesus distinguishes between the bread f earth and the bread f Heaven 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

18 Jhn 6B 18 f 21 He calls the bread f Heaven true bread This is a bread that descends frm Heaven t give men life, eternal life Very easily, we re able t see that the manna that descended fr the Israelites was designed by Gd t create a picture f Jesus First, the bread was a prvisin f the Father Secndly, the bread came ut f nting, descending frm Heaven t Earth Thirdly, the bread was a surce f life fr Israel in the desert In each f these details, the manna f the desert was a picture f Christ in a lesser-t-greater relatinship Jesus was sent by the Father fr Israel and the wrld Jesus came dwn frm Heaven ut f nthing, s t speak, being brn frm a virgin And Jesus is the surce f eternal life fr thse wh take Him in It s this last pint that Jesus is trying t make t this crwd Just as Jesus called Himself the Living Water t the wman at the well, nw He s declaring Himself t be the Bread f Life The Exdus mtif has cme full circle fr this crwd They fllw Jesus as if He s successr t Mses, yet they fllw in much the same way that Israel in the desert fllwed They see the wnders but they lack faith in the heart Jesus disciples have understd Jesus as Messiah, thugh they are sadly lacking in an appreciatin fr all that means, but this crwd is still n the utside lking in Ntice their reactin They say Lrd, always give us this bread They call Him Lrd but nt in the Messianic sense...nly as a sign f respect 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

19 Jhn 6B 19 f 21 They are flattering Him hping He will agree t their appeals fr bread Ntice they say always give us this bread They are hping the manna gravy train that Gd gave t their frefathers in the desert has cme back t stay This is a stunning example f the blindness f unbelief Fr this crwd, there is simply n ther cnsideratin beynd the physical and earthly They can t imagine a better blessing frm Gd than t have their physical needs met But Jesus keeps pint them back t their spiritual needs T put it simply, Jesus culd have agreed t their request and fed them again But the best that wuld have simply meant sustaining their earthly life a little lnger nly t see their sul spend eternity in Hell As Jesus says in Mark Mark 8:35 Fr whever wishes t save his life will lse it, but whever lses his life fr My sake and the gspel s will save it. Mark 8:36 Fr what des it prfit a man t gain the whle wrld, and frfeit his sul? Mark 8:37 Fr what will a man give in exchange fr his sul? T cnclude His pint, Jesus says Jhn 6:35 Jesus said t them, I am the bread f life; he wh cmes t Me will nt hunger, and he wh believes in Me will never thirst. Pressing the metaphr further, Jesus declares plainly He is the bread that cmes dwn t give eternal life And thse wh receive Him will stp hungering fr a slutin t their sin Once yu find the Bread f Life, yu have n need fr any ther 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

20 Jhn 6B 20 f 21 The endless search fr satisfactin and abslutin is fund nly in the slutin prvided by Gd Himself in the Persn f Jesus And tying tgether the Exdus theme frm Jhn 4, Jesus adds that n ne will thirst either Simply put, seek fr a slutin t yur spiritual needs rather than physical needs Thse wh have ears t hear will see the sense f this call t believe and seek fr Christ s that they find Him And having fund Him, they will rejice fr what they gain eternally and care little fr what they lack physically Fr whatever they lack (r gain fr that matter) n earth is temprary But what we gain eternally can never be taken away frm us Remember in the beginning f the chapter I said there was gd reasn why the miracle f the laves began with bread already n earth And I prmised t explain it later...well, Jesus just explained it In the time f Exdus, the manna was a representatin f Christ t cme He had nt yet descended frm Heaven S the symbl the Lrd prvided t the peple was f smething materializing ut f nthing frm Heaven abve That was a perfect picture f Jesus cming arrival In the miracle f the laves and fishes, the Lrd was already resident n earth...he had already descended And He came presented in a meager frm, ne that hardly appeared sufficient t meet the qualificatins He claimed S the Lrd changed the miracle f the bread t match Jesus appearance Since Jesus, the Bread f Life, had already descended, He used bread already present amng the peple 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

21 Jhn 6B 21 f 21 But it was a meager, barely nticeable and entirely inadequate prvisin t meet the peple s needs r s they wuld have thught Nevertheless, it multiplied t meet every need abundantly S it is with Christ, wh causes us t never hunger again spiritually speaking But this cnversatin isn t ver yet What s left t cnsider is hw a grup like this culd get s clse and yet be s far frm understanding Jesus as Lrd It ffers Jhn the chance t explre yet anther facet f salvatin That s is the surce f saving faith 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

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