John 6:22-35
22 The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 23 Then some boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24 So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" 26 Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal." 28 Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" 29 Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." 30 So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, "He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' " 32 Then Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34 They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." 35 Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
“When People Seek Jesus”
The people in our text were looking for the easy way out. They wanted a free meal; a life without difficulty, pain, suffering. They came to Jesus for the wrong thing.
For Jesus came to give life a fulness; to open life up to all its greatness as we discover the dynamic of creative living, nourished by His presence and His spirit, nourished by the Bread of Life.
Jesus didn’t come just to give us answers; Jesus came to give us himself, a living, dynamic, creative presence with us which enables us to live abundantly no matter what.
They wanted Jesus “Not because (they) saw signs, but because (they) ate their fill of the loaves.”
They wanted Jesus for the wrong reason - and so do we.
We want Jesus as an insurance policy against bad things happening to us.
Even if we are careless, greedy, indifferent. It isn’t that we want to be “renewed in the spirit of our minds” We want to have our bases covered.
But this is not how it is with God. God did not send Jesus to dwell among us so life could be a bed of roses. God sent Jesus to dwell among us so that life could be different - strangely, powerfully, eternally different!
Faith doesn’t change anything in our world. It changes something in here (heart) and here and here and here! ((eyes, ears, head) Then everything takes on a new meaning and purpose. Nothing is left untouched by this new and different perspective, which makes a new and different person.
No comments:
Post a Comment