John 6A (2014) Jesus is our shepherd who cares for our needs. And Jesus is our comforter in times of distress

Transcription

1 Jhn 6A (2014) The pening verses f the 23rd Psalm read: Psa. 23:1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall nt want. Psa. 23:2 He makes me lie dwn in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. The first half f Jhn s 6th chapter is the apstle s case fr Jesus as the Gd Shepherd Jesus is ur shepherd wh cares fr ur needs And Jesus is ur cmfrter in times f distress The events f this chapter are set a full year after the events f chapter 5 We re within ne year f Jesus crucifixin This crrespnds t the late Galilean perid f Jesus earthly ministry That perid dminates the narratives in the ther three Gspels But Jhn devtes nly chapters 6 and 7 t this perid f Jesus ministry S let s see did Jhn wanted t emphasize abut this imprtant perid f Jesus life Jhn 6:1 After these things Jesus went away t the ther side f the Sea f Galilee (r Tiberias). Jhn 6:2 A large crwd fllwed Him, because they saw the signs which He was perfrming n thse wh were sick. Jhn 6:3 Then Jesus went up n the muntain, and there He sat dwn with His disciples. Jhn 6:4 Nw the Passver, the feast f the Jews, was near. Jhn 6:5 Therefre Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crwd was cming t Him, said t Philip, Where are we t buy bread, s that these may eat? Jhn 6:6 This He was saying t test him, fr He Himself knew what He was intending t d. Jhn 6:7 Philip answered Him, Tw hundred denarii wrth f bread is nt sufficient fr them, fr everyne t receive a little 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 6A 2 f 21 3 mi (4.5 km) Sea f Galilee (Tiberias Sea) Figure 1 Jhn pens by saying after these things... Jhn desn t mean immediately after the events f chapter 5 At the beginning f chapter 5, Jesus traveled t Jerusalem fr the Passver feast Nw in 6:4 Jhn mentins an upcming Passver feast, which means a separate Passver event - S a whle year has passed between chapters 5 & 6 Jhn skipped ver the many events that tk place in that intervening year in the Galilee Prbably because the ther writers cvered thse things in detail 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 6A 3 f 21 Still Jhn did chse t include the fllwing accunt f the feeding f the 5,000 and the disciples subsequent sailing back t Capernaum In fact, this is the nly miracle recrded in all fur Gspels Clearly, this mment is imprtant And Jhn had smething t add t the ther writers accunts f these events S we ll make sme cmparisns between his accunt and the ther Gspels as we mve alng Accrding t Mark s accunt, Jesus travels frm His hme area near Capernaum n the Nrthwestern cast f the Sea f the Galilee t Bethsaida again Jhn simply says they went t the ther side f the Galilee Jesus sails abut 3 miles (4.5 km), cutting acrss the nrthern tip f the sea Prevailing winds in that area blw frm West t East S assuming they were sailing with the wind, it wuld have taken abut an hur r tw t make that jurney The place Jesus lands is a relatively remte place, sparsely inhabited The disciples must have wndered why Jesus chse t travel int such a remte area In v.2, we re tld a large crwd fllws Jesus as He makes this jurney because they seek mre f Jesus healing ministry We learn later in this chapter that they traveled by ft walking arund the nrthern tip f the Galilee In this case, the jurney by ft is nly a slightly lnger than sailing, maybe abut 4 miles f walking An adult walks abut 3 mph S they prbably arrived in Bethsaida nly slightly later than Jesus Jesus takes advantage f this head start t retreat with His disciples int the nearby muntains abut a kilmeter away 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 6A 4 f 21 At this pint Jhn mentins that the Passver f the Jews was near Cnsider the details in this stry that Jhn has prvided already Jesus crsses a bdy f water A crwd f large crwd f needy peple fllwing Him He leads them t a wilderness with n apparent way t sustain them And then Jesus retreats up the side f muntain leaving the peple belw And all these things are happening in cnjunctin with the time f Passver, which is a memrial f Israel s exdus ut f Egypt? D these details ring any bells yet? Right away we ntice that Jhn is cnstructing his narrative t draw ur minds back t the stry f Mses leading Israel ut f Egypt There is smething abut this accunt that ties back t the Exdus Obviusly, we knw that Jesus fulfills the Passver as the Lamb f Gd sacrificed fr the sins f the wrld Jhn has already made that cnnectin fr us thrugh the wrds f Jhn the Baptist And later in the Passin f Christ, we see Jesus cmpleting the picture in His death n the crss But nw Jhn is wrking t really bring Jesus cnnectin t the Exdus accunt int clear fcus In fact, Jhn has already been at wrk in a previus chapter making this same cnnectin, thugh it was subtle Remember, after the first Passver and the resulting Exdus, the Israelites required water and fd t survive in the desert The Lrd prvided them water frm a rck And we knw frm 1Crinthians 10 that Paul says the rck was a picture f Christ 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 6A 5 f 21 S in chapter 4, Jhn shwed us hw Jesus fulfilled that picture when He tld the Samaritan wman that He was he surce f living water Jesus is the Rck that gives us the water that leads us t thirst n mre And nw ne year later, the Passver has cme again and this time Jesus will fulfill yet anther picture frm that mst imprtant f Jewish experiences S as Jesus stands n the muntain, He lifts up His eyes and sees the crwd gathering at the base f the muntain waiting fr Jesus t descend He turns t ne f the disciples, Philip, and asks him what shuld be dne t feed s many peple The questin is relevant, because the place was remte and the peple were numerus Jesus is telling the disciples t assume respnsibility fr them Since the peple have evidently fllwed Jesus withut giving much thught t hw they will eat I like t imagine that as Jesus asked Philip the questin, Jesus eyes glanced upward, tward the sky Offering Philip a hint fr hw t answer the questin Hping Philip s memry f the Exdus stry might kick in at this mment and he might remember hw Gd supplied fd fr His peple In v.6, Jhn makes sure we understand His questin was just a test, since Jesus already had a plan What was the test? I think the test was whether the disciples were recgnizing the picture f the Exdus that Jesus was carefully rchestrating arund them Did they realize they were re-enacting that mment, nly with Jesus playing the part f Charltn Hestn? Wuld they put 2 and 2 tgether and realize that Gd was capable f slving this prblem in His pwer? 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 6A 6 f 21 Mst imprtantly, wuld they understand that Jesus is the Lrd Wh fed the peple manna the first time, and He was prepared t d it again? The test emphasized Jesus identity Just as with the wman at the well, the questin is, Wh is Jesus? If yu knw Jesus is Lrd and if yu recgnize the picture f the Exdus, then yu wuld suggest that Jesus prvide bread fr the peple But that was a bridge t far fr the disciples, and Philip missed the whle pint f the questin Philip respnds with a sense f hpelessness and defeat He says nt even 200 denari wuld be enugh mney t buy even a little fd fr everyne His statement gives us an indicatin f hw many peple were assembled belw 200 denari represents abut 8 mnths salary fr a wrking man In present day U.S. standards, that might be arund $40,000 Thugh that s an enrmus sum f mney, it still wasn t enugh t even give the crwd even a little fd each Philip makes a matter-f-fact assessment f the situatin and reprts his findings There is n spiritual dimensin t his answer He desn t cnsider supernatural pssibilities He s thinking nly f what men are capable f ding t slve a prblem f this magnitude And since the disciples lack the capability, he reasns the situatin is hpeless Matthew s Gspel adds that the disciples went a step further at this pint and recmmended that Jesus send the peple away since they had n slutin 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 6A 7 f 21 This is exactly the way the Israelites were thinking when they sized up their wn situatin in the desert They tld Mses that they expected t starve in the desert And in their case, they blamed their predicament n Gd s incmpetence Ex. 16:2 The whle cngregatin f the sns f Israel grumbled against Mses and Aarn in the wilderness. Ex. 16:3 The sns f Israel said t them, Wuld that we had died by the LORD S hand in the land f Egypt, when we sat by the pts f meat, when we ate bread t the full; fr yu have brught us ut int this wilderness t kill this whle assembly with hunger. The peple knew the Lrd had lead them int the desert in miraculus ways Yet they hadn t cnsidered the pssibility that this same Gd culd feed them supernaturally in the desert Gd had a plan t free 2 millin slaves frm Egypt, but smehw He hadn t freseen the need t feed them in the wilderness S they assumed they wuld die f starvatin Here we see the same scenari develping with Jesus disciples playing the part f the Israelites Philip can t see a slutin because he s discunting Jesus ptential t perfrm a miracle He s assuming the nly way fd will appear fr this crwd is if smene rders takeut S he failed the test, a test f whether he understd Jesus identity Philip didn t recgnize Jesus t be the same Lrd wh fed Israel in the desert S Jesus mves ahead with a supernatural slutin as Gd intended 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 6A 8 f 21 Jhn 6:8 One f His disciples, Andrew, Simn Peter s brther, said t Him, Jhn 6:9 There is a lad here wh has five barley laves and tw fish, but what are these fr s many peple? Jhn 6:10 Jesus said, Have the peple sit dwn. Nw there was much grass in the place. S the men sat dwn, in number abut five thusand. Jhn 6:11 Jesus then tk the laves, and having given thanks, He distributed t thse wh were seated; likewise als f the fish as much as they wanted. Jhn 6:12 When they were filled, He said t His disciples, Gather up the leftver fragments s that nthing will be lst. Jhn 6:13 S they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments frm the five barley laves which were left ver by thse wh had eaten. The enterprising disciples Andrew ffers a ptential slutin He spies an a yung by mving arund the crwd with sme small fish and barley laves The wrd lad in Greek literally means little male child, s we re prbably talking abut a by f perhaps 6 r 7 years ld And the Greek wrd fr fish is the wrd fr a very small fish, prbably smething like anchvies intended t be eaten as a relish with the bread He may have been the child f a family in the crwd, and he sees an pprtunity t peddle his gds Why did Andrew even think t prpse this child s basket f gds as a slutin t the prblem? Philip had just said that $40,000 wrth f fd wuldn t be enugh t feed these peple But then Andrew prpses this idea? What was he thinking? At this pint in the stry, mst f us prbably run past this detail s we can fcus n what cmes next We remember Jesus turned this meager meal in a miraculus prvisin, but why did the apstles even think t suggest this surce t Jesus? Andrew s suggestin is s pathetic, it seems almst nnsensical that he even raised the ptin in the cnversatin 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 6A 9 f 21 Did he think Jesus culd d smething miraculus with these items? Given the way Andrew finishes his sentence, I dn t think s In fact, it sunds like he realized a little t late that his idea was n help at all Still, Andrew s cntributin t the stry becmes a significant detail in the stry and marks a significant departure in this stry frm the parallels t the Exdus In the desert situatin, the Lrd delivered fd t Israel literally frm Heaven The manna fell frm abve The Lrd didn t start with smething n Earth, n matter hw meager In the Exdus accunt, the Lrd brught a prvisin dwn frm Heaven supernaturally Obviusly, Jesus will perfrm an equally impressive miracle this time, but it s significant that He chses t multiply smething n Earth In this situatin, nthing new is ging t cme dwn frm Heaven This time He begins with smething very meager, barely nticeable, and hardly suitable - A slutin prpsed by a disciple - Smething that was insignificant in the eyes f men, - Hardly sufficient t slve such a pressing prblem Clearly, we shuld understand why the Lrd has changed the prgram this time arund This departure frm the stry f Exdus is an imprtant detail in the retelling f manna The purpse f this departure will becme clear in the secnd half f the chapter, as Jesus discusses the meaning f these things with the crwd S we ll wait until then t discver it fr urselves 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 6A 10 f 21 Thugh perhaps sme f yu see it already t We shuld als nte in passing that there are a ttal f seven fd items in the by s basket, which is a number that catches ur attentin bviusly Seven is a number meaning the ttal r cmplete r fulfilled number f smething - Tday, we wuld say 100% t mean the ttal f smething - The Bible uses the number 7 t mean the same thing S, smething is being cmpleted r fulfilled in this mment That s smething we als want t understand as we g frward Then Jesus gives instructins t the disciples The details are prbably familiar First, Jesus instructs the peple t sit in the grass In Mark s Gspel we re tld they sit in grups f hundreds and fifties, which simply means int small, manageable grups We can easily imagine practical purpses in why Jesus asked them t sit dwn If hungry peple see fd cming their way, they tend t rush tward it t make sure they get a share Making them sit ensures rderliness and als imparts cnfidence that there is a plan t ensure everyne is fed But thse practical reasns are the main reasn Jesus seats them dwn in grass The main purpse relates back t Psalm 23 The Shepherd is the One Wh causes His sheep t lie dwn in green pastures The Shepherd cares fr His sheep and makes sure they receive their ratins Sheep dn t have the ability t find their wn green pastures 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 6A 11 f 21 They are famusly stupid animals They mve abut in the field with their eyes dwn fllwing what s in frnt f their faces, even t the pint f stumbling int danger S they depend n a Shepherd t lead them S Jesus instructins were part f testifying that He is the Shepherd f Psalm 23, the One wh cares fr us because we can t d it fr urselves This is true fr every member f Jesus flck Even when we think we re prviding fr urselves in ur daily ccupatin r thrugh ur savings, we re nly fling urselves By that thinking, we re at risk f verlking the Lrd s prvisin and presence in ur life Because everything we have cmes frm the Lrd The fact that ur daily prvisin arrives by way f a weekly paycheck... Or in a Or thrugh ur stred up savings... Desn t mean ur security is any less the result f Gd s nging prvisin f grace At any mment, thse things culd (and ften d) disappear And when they d, we ll finally recgnize that we never had security because f thse things Our security cmes frm the Shepherds willingness t care fr His sheep By causing us t lie dwn in green pastures when we need them At this pint, Jhn gives us the head cunt f men, numbering them at abut 5,000 The verall number is nt significant (apart frm the ccurrence f the number 5, which is the number f grace), but it reinfrces the size f the prblem facing the disciples 5,000 men means 5,000 families 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 6A 12 f 21 5,000 families means a lt f peple Which wuld explain why $40,000 wasn t enugh t give everyne even a little fd There culd have been as many as 15K-30K peple at the base f that muntain! Cnsidering that this scene takes place near the end f Jesus years wrking in the Galilee, it s entirely likely He has amassed a very a large fllwing by this pint It wuld als explain why the Pharisees viewed Jesus as a serius threat t their pwer and authrity Anyne wh is fllwed by a lyal crwd f 20K peple has real pwer Next, Jesus gives thanks fr the fd and the miracle that s abut t fllw, then He begins t break the bread and divide the fish ut Jhn says Jesus distributed the fd t the peple seated, but Mark s Gspel clarifies that Jesus distributed the fd thrugh the hands f the disciples Jesus handed the fd t each disciple wh then carried it dwn t the peple in a basket Therefre, each disciple returned t Jesus many times t refill their baskets And as this prcess cntinued, the grups f peple ate their fill, n ne was left wanting Yu have t wnder what was ging thrugh the minds f the disciples as they mved up and dwn the muntain filling their baskets They knew Jesus started with nly a little fd But nw they find their their baskets filled time and time again There is n cnversatin amng the disciples recrded by any f the Gspels S I assume the disciples were speechless, unable t muster wrds 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 6A 13 f 21 Thugh I assume they prbably exchanged a few glances with each ther as they passed back and frth n the muntain After the crwd had been fed (which must have taken several hurs), Jesus rdered the disciples t cllect the excess fd frm the peple Dn t verlk that the disciples were required t cllect the fd frm the peple The Lrd culd have simply multiplied mre fd fr each disciple Instead, the disciples fd had already been handed ut t the peple belw The Lrd had literally given away the disciples fd, s that nw the disciples had t g back and retrieve it frm the peple S hw d we imagine the disciples went abut cllecting that fd? Obviusly, they had t petitin the peple fr it The peple wuld have likely wanted t keep it fr themselves S the disciples walked amng the grups f peple calling fr all excess fd t be cllected and placed in the disciples baskets The excess materialized as Jesus said, because the Lrd had ensured that there was mre prvided t the peple than they needed That excess was a reflectin f the Lrd s abundant gdness But it was als a prvisin intended t meet the needs f thse disciples wh had just wrked t serve the peple Ntice that the amunt cllected was exactly twelve baskets, reflecting the 12 apstles wh had served the peple What was Jesus trying t teach us by the way He cnstruct this prcess f feeding the peple and prviding fr the disciples? First, Jesus ften begins His greatest wrks amng His peple with meager beginnings When Jesus turned t Philip, it was Philip s pprtunity t suggest smething great 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 6A 14 f 21 Instead, Philip gave up n the situatin because n slutin was readily visible Faith isn t faith if relies nly n what can be seen, as Paul taught Sincere, active faith requires a willingness t act in hpeful expectatin Andrew was a step clser t faith because at least he suggested a slutin that depended n faith in Gd s ability t multiply But just as quickly, he retreated frm faith by abandning the pssibility What wuld have happened if smene had suggested t Jesus that they hand ut the by s fd expecting the Lrd t make it sufficient t meet the need? I believe the situatin wuld have turned ut exactly the same And that s the pint Jesus pening questin was an pprtunity fr these men t participate in a miraculus wrk f Gd that He was already planning t accmplish It was a wrk the Lrd was prepared t perfrm with r withut their participatin But by ffering them the chance t believe in it befre they saw it, they culd be blessed in having their faith strengthened There is a real spiritual blessing fr the believer when they act in faith, as Jesus tld Thmas Jhn 20:27 Then He said t Thmas, Reach here with yur finger, and see My hands; and reach here yur hand and put it int My side; and d nt be unbelieving, but believing. Jhn 20:28 Thmas answered and said t Him, My Lrd and my Gd! Jhn 20:29 Jesus said t him, Because yu have seen Me, have yu believed? Blessed are they wh did nt see, and yet believed. S the first lessn is thse wh serve the Lrd must step ut with faith expecting the Lrd is prepared t wrk thrugh meager beginnings Dn t let meager beginnings hld yu back frm meeting needs and expecting miracles 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 6A 15 f 21 Secndly, the Lrd s servant can t stray far frm the Master in ur service As many Bible cmmentaries have bserved, Jesus caused the disciples t return t Him repeatedly as they went abut the business f serving the peple Each disciple s success depended n cntinually returning t the Lrd t fill a basket - If they returned, they had smething t ffer the peple - If they didn t cme back, they sn wuld have nthing - And they wuld be useless The picture culdn t be clearer: we must abide in Christ if we are t serve in His pwer The disciples culdn t make the fd multiply n their wn They didn t pssess magic baskets They were simply waiters On the ther hand, their rle wasn t irrelevant Jesus designed the miracle s that it depended n the disciples delivering the fd t the peple At first, the peple were largely unaware f what was happening up n the muntain They just knew that the disciples were bringing them a meal N ne ministers t Gd s peple by virtue f brilliance r training r experience r sheer frce f ur persnality... Successful servants f Gd nly deliver what Jesus prvides fr His flck What He gives us tends t run ut pretty quick S we have t return time and time again - Return t His wrd - Return t Him in prayer - Return t Him in repentance and humility 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 6A 16 f 21 If we d that, we can be useful t Him and becme part f making amazing things happen Thirdly, frm ur limited perspective, the wrks we re called t jin rarely appear miraculus r even very imprtant, but Gd can accmplish much thrugh us Cnsider that these disciples prbably never witnessed the mment when Jesus multiplied the bread r fish Mre likely, it seems they simply came back t Jesus t find mre fd ready t lad int their baskets Obviusly, they knew smething special was happening, but in the mment, their jb was nthing mre than picking up fd and delivering it Often, that s what it s like t serve Gd frm ur perspective We re just delivering fish We vlunteer fr a duty in the church We participate in a service prject We hst smene in ur hme We ffer a prayer request We write a check t a missinary But as we d what the Lrd asks us t d, we becme part f a larger wrk that leads t miraculus utcmes by Gd s pwer and rchestratin Smetimes, the Lrd is willing t grant us peek int the supernatural utcmes that result frm ur wrk - Mst times, we never see it But eventually, when we enter int ur glry, we will learn all the wrks f Gd and hw we participated in thse things by faith Finally, thse wh serve the Lrd shuld expect that their hard wrk will be met by an adequate prvisin frm the Lrd But that prvisin desn t materialize ut f think air It cmes as a cnsequence f serving Gd s peple diligently 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 6A 17 f 21 I imagine the disciples were exhausted after ging up and dwn the muntain s many times ver several hurs Perhaps they wndered when it wuld be their turn t eat r even if there wuld be enugh left fr them But in the end, the Lrd tk care f them A servant f Gd shuld expect t receive Gd s prvisin as a cnsequence f wrking hard t serve Gd s peple And that prvisin will be supplied frm the hands f thse whm he serves The Lrd supplies His peple with an excess intended t meet the needs f the Lrd s servants And then the Lrd calls upn His servants t seek fr that prvisin frm amng the peple s that they may be blessed by giving back And Gd s peple must be willing t relinquish the excess t thse wh deserve it But the servant s prvisin is t be n mre luxurius than that given t Gd s peple In this case, the disciples received the same prvisin that the peple received frm the Lrd - Sme fish and bread If Jesus had been handing ut steak and lbster, then the disciples might have expected t receive the same And if the Lrd had chsen t prvide rice and beans, then the Lrd s servant culdn t expect smething better In all cases, the servant shuld be allwed t share in that prvisin But always remembering that if we have fd and cvering, we shuld be cntent Paul says 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 6A 18 f 21 Sner r later, the crwd realizes the magnitude f the miracle that has taken place, and perhaps they als recgnize the cnnectin t the Exdus stry Jhn 6:14 Therefre when the peple saw the sign which He had perfrmed, they said, This is truly the Prphet wh is t cme int the wrld. Jhn 6:15 S Jesus, perceiving that they were intending t cme and take Him by frce t make Him king, withdrew again t the muntain by Himself alne. Ntice that peple declare this miracle was a sign t them Calling smething a sign means they believed Gd was revealing smething t them thrugh these events They were crrect, but they misunderstd the meaning f the sign They said that Jesus was the Prphet wh has cme int the wrld They were referring t the prphet Mses said wuld cme t Israel ne day in the future Deut. 18:15 The LORD yur Gd will raise up fr yu a prphet like me frm amng yu, frm yur cuntrymen, yu shall listen t him. Deut. 18:16 This is accrding t all that yu asked f the LORD yur Gd in Hreb n the day f the assembly, saying, Let me nt hear again the vice f the LORD my Gd, let me nt see this great fire anymre, r I will die. Deut. 18:17 The LORD said t me, They have spken well. Deut. 18:18 I will raise up a prphet frm amng their cuntrymen like yu, and I will put My wrds in his muth, and he shall speak t them all that I cmmand him. The prphet Mses was describing was the Messiah, Jesus S the peple were crrect when they recgnize Jesus as the fulfillment f Mses prmise But then they g in the wrng directin They cnclude that the Prphet wuld cnquer Israel s plitical enemy, Rme, and lead Israel int plitical freedm just as Mses did against Egypt S they call fr Jesus t be taken t Jerusalem and install Him as their new plitical leader Ntice Jhn says they want t take Jesus by frce 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 6A 19 f 21 It s unclear if Jhn means they are preparing t frce Jesus t g t Jerusalem Or perhaps Jhn means they are calling fr peple t jin Jesus in frcing the Rmans ut f Israel Either way, they have exactly the wrng idea f why Jesus came t Israel Yes, Jesus is the prphet Mses prmised But Jesus came fr heavenly, eternal purpses, nt earthly, tempral purpses T prperly understand the cnnectin between Jesus ministry and Mses ministry, we first have t understand that pictures in scripture always frm a lessr t greater relatinship Mses life and wrk was cnstructed by Gd t frm a lessr versin f Jesus ministry Frm his birth t His exile in the desert t His return fr Israel t His rle as a mediatr and s n (see ur Exdus study), Mses pictured Christ Mses set Israel free frm slavery t Egypt, but Jesus sets men free frm slavery t sin Mses led Israel t the Old Cvenant in stne while Jesus leads men t the New Cvenant in His bdy Mses cnquered the army f Egypt, while Christ cnquers the frces f Satan S Jesus ministry was a greater ministry than Mses, thus making Mses a picture f Christ in lessr frm But the peple didn t see that relatinship They perceived Mses and the Prphet as wrking n the same level and fr the same purpses This was a cnsistent pint f cnfusin amng the peple f Israel in Jesus day They culdn t understand hw Jesus culd be greater than Mses r Abraham r even Jacb, as the wman at the well remarked 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 6A 20 f 21 Even tday peple cntinue t repeat this mistake f reducing Jesus ministry and teaching t nly earthly utcmes Tday peple will say Jesus was merely a gd teacher r spiritual leader r mral example r even prphet They deny Jesus as Gd S they can ignre questins f death and judgment and hell that Jesus ministry raised By reducing Jesus gals t nthing mre than an earthly agenda, an unbeliever can feel cmfrtable in their sin These Jews rushed t assuming an earthly purpse in Jesus miracles because they never cnsidered they were in need f a spiritual slutin They heard Jesus teaching and saw His miracles Yet they respnd by declaring Jesus will cnquer Rme When Jesus saw what was develping, He retreats back up the muntain t remain inaccessible t them Jesus wasn t ging t allw the crwd t redirect His missin tward an earthly kingdm We culd ask why didn t Jesus give the peple bth? Why didn t He defeat Rme and bring them salvatin? Because the Kingdm culdn t be installed until the citizens f the Kingdm have been prepared t enter int it And thse citizens are t be fund by faith I think Christians ccasinally make this same mistake tday We reduce the spiritual purpse f the Church and the Gspel t achieving earthly gals and establishing earthly kingdms We say Jesus fed the peple, s ur Christian gal shuld be feeding the pr Jesus healed the peple, s ur Christian ministry shuld be healing the sick And s n...seeking t better the lives f peple by addressing their physical needs 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 6A 21 f 21 Withut a dubt, the Church has a missin t shw cmpassin fr the needs f peple, but the New Testament sets bundaries fr that missin First, benevlence is t be directed t the Church, first and fremst The NT letters cmmand the church t care fr the physical needs f the saints There is n general cmmand in scripture fr the Church t make a pririty f feeding, clthing r caring fr the physical needs f all humanity Secndly, when the Church des endeavr t meet physical needs in the wrld, ur charity must be purpseful We are seeking pprtunities t preach the Gspel We want t shw them lve and gain their attentin, s we can turn that mment t a discussin f heavenly things We have sught t address an earthly need s that we can discuss their heavenly need When the church becmes preccupied with slving earthly needs nly, withut turning thse cntacts int Heavenly discussins, we ve fllwed the mistake f these Jews fllwing Jesus We are trying t take Jesus by frce in a directin He will nt g The ministry f the Church cannt be c-pted int a missin f charity r public wrks It s this thinking that eventually leads t Christian hspitals, universities, retirement hmes, and ther businesses - Irnically, many f these institutins eventual utlaw the preach f the Gspel in the spirit f tlerance The Church missin is t preach the Gspel s that suls may be saved The bdy is nt ur fcus; the sul is 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.