The Church of Divine Guidance Sunday morning Adult Bible Study is embarking on an exhaustive study of the book of John. Of the four gospels, John’s gospel presents Jesus as God most forcefully. John explicitly declared Jesus to be God who brought all things into existence. John’s gospel confirmed that Jesus was YHVH of the Jews . He is light and life . These are the notes of that study along with the recorded audio of the session.
Bible Study Audio
(Subscribe to my YouTube Channel, it's free)
Last Week
We talked about the conversation that Jesus had with the religious leaders who confronted Him and accused Him of working and causing a man He had healed to work on the Sabbath, which was against the law as interpreted by them.
He told them that He was only doing with His Father wanted Him to do in fact He was only doing what He had seen His father doing.
John 5:19-23 (HCSB)19 Then Jesus replied, “I assure you: The Son is not able to do anything on His own, but only what He sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, the Son also does these things in the same way.20 For the Father loves the Son and shows Him everything He is doing, and He will show Him greater works than these so that you will be amazed.21 And just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to anyone He wants to.22 The Father, in fact, judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son,23 so that all people will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him
He also told them that if they believed in the Father who had sent Him, which meant believing in Him, that they would have eternal or everlasting life.
John 5:24 (HCSB)24 “I assure you: Anyone who hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment but has passed from death to life.
He was talking about passing from both physical and spiritual death to life, culminating in the resurrection from the dead. Those who believed in Him to life and the other folk to judgement which was going to result in eternity in torment outside the presence of God. And HIs Father had given Him the authority to do the judging.
John 5:28-30 (HCSB) 28 Do not be amazed at this, because a time is coming when all who are in the graves will hear His voice 29 and come out—those who have done good things, to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked things, to the resurrection of judgment.30 “I can do nothing on My own. I judge only as I hear, and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
He ended the conversation by saying you don’t have to take my word for it there are witnesses that agree about who I am and that is the Son of God, The witnesses were John the Baptist, the works that He did, His Father God, and the scriptures that they prided themselves in being expert at. He told them that He wouldn’t accuse them of not believing Him that their hero, Moses would accuse them because he wrote about Him.
Then He left after hitting them with that statement.
This Week - John Chapter 6
Do you realize that during your lifetime you will probably spend over thirty-five thousand hours eating? That's the equivalent of eight years of nonstop meals, twelve hours a day! The problem, of course, is that even after a big meal we get hungry again. At best, food only satisfies us for a few hours.
Yet in this chapter, Jesus offers us food that satisfies our hunger forever. You can't buy it in a grocery store. It is found only in Jesus himself.
How do you usually respond to an "impossible" situation—a problem in your life that doesn't seem to have a solution?
John 6:1-4 (NLT)1 After this, Jesus crossed over to the far side of the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Sea of Tiberias.2 A huge crowd kept following him wherever he went, because they saw his miraculous signs as he healed the sick.3 Then Jesus climbed a hill and sat down with his disciples around him.4 (It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration.)
This apparently takes place some time after the events in Jerusalem when Jesus healed the paralyzed man and was confronted by the religious leaders for working Himself and having the healed man work on the Sabbath which was against the religious laws. Because it says they crowd kept following him and mentions signs it would indicate a period or several months perhaps in Galilee.
John parenthetically mentions that it was near Passover which is significant because as we will see as we study the chapter Jesus says some things that, we see in the other Gospels, that He said at the Last Supper however, John doesn’t mention the Lord’s Suppe in his gospel.
John 6:5-9 (NKJV)5 Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?"6 But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.7 Philip answered Him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little."8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him,9 "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?"
How would you characterize Philip's and Andrew's response to the problem of feeding this enormous crowd?
They may have thought that Jesus was joking or they may have thought “what a silly comment, doesn’t he see all these people.”
Here’s why they might have thought that.
- The nearest town was Bethsaida. It would have been difficult for the people to get bread, due to the distance and the lateness of the hour.
- Two hundred denarii worth of bread, the apostle estimated, would hardly be enough to feed all those people. Here’s how Philip could have made his calculations that 200 denarii would not be enough. A denarius equaled about twenty cents and was the usual daily wage of a laborer. A laborer with an average-size family of five probably spent half his daily income for food. Assuming that the family ate three meals a day, we can conclude that a half denarius would have furnished them a day's food or fifteen meals. A whole denarius would have provided two days' rations or thirty meals. Two hundred denarii would have provided one meal for some 6,000 people. In this crowd the men alone numbered about 5,000. Well see that in the next verse.
John 6:10-13 (NKJV)10 Then Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.11 And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted.12 So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost."13 Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.
 |
| Jesus feeds more than 5000 with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish |
If Jesus knew what he was going to do, why do you think he asked these two disciples for advice?
Perhaps to test the faith of His disciples. They had seen him change water to wine, heal a nobleman’s son without even being there, heal the paralyzed man when he didn’t even ask, and according to John he had also done other miraculous things. That’s why the big crowds were following Him. So maybe He was testing them to see if they would would have thought we don’t know how but we know that you can do it. But they didn’t.
Jesus here used a real life problem to build the faith of His disciples and the same thing can happen in our lives. The problems that we face everyday rather than causing us to become depressed or bitter can build our faith. We’ve talked about that in other studies how we should look to God and how big He is and how much He loves us rather than at our problems.
What happened next is the only miracle mentioned in all four Gospels. Many evangelical scholars estimate the size of the crowd to have been around fifteen thousand. John says there were about 5000 men, Matthew says that his figure of about 5000 men didn’t include women and children.
New King James Version - Matt 14:2121 Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children
Luke’s account is in Luke 9:10-17, in Mark it’s Mark 6:30-44
Have you ever noticed that the miracle happened as the food was being distributed? Jesus only gave the disciples the five loaves and two fish. As they passed it out there was enough. As a matter of fact it says that they had as much as they wanted. Then Jesus told them to gather what was left over. That would indicate to not waste God's blessing.
How do you think the disciples felt as they gathered up the pieces leftover?
Embarrassed, amazed,
What insights does this passage give you into how Christ may be at work in the difficult situations in your life?
John 6:14-15 (NKJV)14 Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world."15 Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.
There was no doubt that a miracle had been performed. The people saw it and were impressed by it. All had been benefited. Jesus had the power to do something that did not seem possible. The crowd had seen this. So they wanted to make him their king. They wanted a political and military ruler who would lead them to fight against the Romans.
So Jesus escaped from them. Later, in the synagogue at Capernaum, he tried to explain more about who he was. He wanted them to understand better the real reason why he had come to the earth. Well take about that later.
John 6:16-21 (NKJV)16 Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,
17 got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them.18 Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing.19 So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid.20 But He said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid."21 Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.
The disciples left apparently expecting Jesus to join them in Capernaum. But as they were nearing the shore not only was it dark but now there was a storm. So in the middle of a storm at night they now see what they think is a ghost. When Jesus said calm down it’s Me the storm did settle down and He got in the boat with them. Then another miracle, the boat was all of a sudden at the shore where they were going. This shows that gravity and space are under His control.
Matthew records that Peter also walked on the water too until he took His eyes off Jesus and looked at where he was he started to sink and Jesus reached out and saved his life.
Matthew 14:25-31 (NKJV)25 Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out for fear.27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid."28 And Peter answered Him and said, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water."29 So He said, "Come." And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!"
31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"
How would your concept of Jesus have been altered by seeing him walk on water?
John 6:22-34 (NKJV)22 On the following day, when the people who were standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except that one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away alone--23 however, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks--24 when the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.25 And 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 and said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him."28 Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"29 Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."30 Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do?31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' "32 Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven.33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."34 Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."
The next day the people knew that the disciples had left in the boat without him. So the people were waiting for him to return from the hills. But when then they realised that he was not coming back they crossed the lake in some boats that had come from Tiberias.
When they found Him Jesus told them that the only reason they were looking for them was because they had seen the things that He did.
How does he try to redirect their thinking?
He told them that they were concentrating on the wrong things. They had seen him feed over 5000 people with only a small amount of food. This was a wonderful miracle. But they did not understand the real meaning of the miracle. They saw only that Jesus had satisfied their physical hunger. They were concentrating only on the things of earth, not on the things of heaven.
Food is essential for our bodies. We need food to remain alive and healthy. But we are more than just bodies. We have spirits, too. And even as we have physical hunger, we have spiritual hunger, too. When we are hungry for physical food, we feel empty inside our bodies. But also we can feel empty inside our hearts and our spirits. This is spiritual hunger. Only God can satisfy it, because he created this spiritual hunger in us. This hunger is the desire to know him and to love him. It is hunger (desire) for the life that only he can give to us by means of his Son, Jesus.
Without God people feel there is something missing but they don’t know how to get it. So they try to fill the emptiness with possessions, sex, work, drugs, etc., but physical things can never satisfy spiritual hunger. Physical things do not last.
So Jesus told the people that they should desire to find eternal life, instead. He told them that he could give eternal life to them. That was why God had sent him to the earth.
The Jews thought that to get eternal life they had to follow rules. So they wanted Jesus to tell them what kind of works they needed to do.
But we can never earn eternal life. Eternal life is God’s gift to us. We must do just one thing to receive it. We must believe in God’s Son, Jesus. We must have faith in him. Faith is not a set of rules. But when we have faith in Jesus, we want to obey him. We want him to control every part of our lives.
Jesus had told them that God had sent him. He had God’s authority. They had to believe in him to have eternal life. Jesus was really telling them that he was the Messiah. So they asked for proof.
30 Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do?31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' "
Jesus reminded them that ‘he’ in this Scripture referred to God, not to Moses.
32 Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
Exodus 16:13-15 (NKJV)13 So it was that quails came up at evening and covered the camp, and in the morning the dew lay all around the camp.14 And when the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance, as fine as frost on the ground.
15 So when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "This is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat.
Again, Jesus referred to God as ‘my Father’. But the manna did not last. And it satisfied only their physical hunger. It was just a symbol of the real bread from heaven. The real bread from heaven gives life to people and it satisfies their spiritual hunger. So the real bread from heaven isn’t physical but spiritual and Jesus said that He was that spiritual food.
 |
| Jesus said that He is the bread of life |
John 6:35-40 (NKJV)35 And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.36 But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day."
How does Jesus' claim to be the bread of life relate to his miraculous feeding of the five thousand?
They had seen a miracle, but it did not focus their attention on Jesus. Rather, he was seen as a means to the filling of their stomachs (v. 26). Jesus did not come to fill stomachs with food, but to fill lives with the very presence of God. This crowd is focusing on the physical realm. In John the physical and the spiritual are interconnected. We have seen that throughout the book.
These folk had to work hard for their daily bread, so when they found a miraculous source of food this was good news. But Jesus tries to redirect their attention. Their focus is on physical food, which is temporal. Like the manna in the wilderness, it does not last long. But more profoundly, the life it nourishes is also all too brief. Our physical lives of flesh and blood are given by God, and they are significant, but they are not the whole story; this life is transitory. In verse He said
John 6:27 (HCSB)27 Don’t work for the food that perishes but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal of approval on Him.”
Then He repeats what He told the Samaritan woman:
John 4:14 (HCSB)14 But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again—ever! In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up within him for eternal life.”
Verses 39 and 40 are evidence, in my opinion, that salvation is permanent and nothing can can it. Once saved always saved.
In verse 35 we see the first of the “I am” statements in John. There are seven of them in this book. Each of these statements explained something about his nature and why he had come to the earth. This is very important because “I am was the name that God used when Moses asked who he should tell the Israelites sent him to deliver them.
Exodus 3:13-14 (HCSB)13 Then Moses asked God, “If I go to the Israelites and say to them: The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’ what should I tell them?”14 God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.”
This name means that God has always existed. He will always exist. So Jesus used the words ‘I am’ on purpose in these statements. He wanted people to understand, by means of these words, that he is God.
The first I am statement say that Jesus is ‘the bread that gives life’. Bread is the most important daily food in many parts of the world. It gives energy and strength to our bodies. It helps us to stay alive. But Jesus does more than this on our behalf. He gives to us the life that comes only from God. When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, we can know God as our friend and our Father. He satisfies our spiritual hunger and thirst) for His love.
The people had seen Jesus do a wonderful miracle in feeding the 5000. But still they did not believe in him because they wanted to see other signs. Even so, the Son was not discouraged, for all who were the gift of the Father to him would come, and in coming would find in him no spirit of rejection but rather glad welcome. This reception was inevitable, for the will of the Father was the delight of the Son. Jesus will never reject anybody who has faith in him. They believe because the Father has caused them to come to Jesus. In other words, the Father has given these people to Jesus.
How does that happen?
By the gospel.
Romans 10:14-17 (HCSB)14 But how can they call on Him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about Him? And how can they hear without a preacher?15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who announce the gospel of good things!16 But all did not obey the gospel. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our message?17 So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ.
Jesus saves all who believe in him. ‘The last day’ is when Jesus returns to the earth. Then he will raise from death all who have believed in him. They will live again. And they will be with him always
1 Corinthians 15:50-52 (HCSB)50 Brothers, I tell you this: Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and corruption cannot inherit incorruption.51 Listen! I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed,52 in a moment, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (HCSB)16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.17 Then we who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and so we will always be with the Lord.18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
John 6:41-42 (NKJV)41 The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven."42 And they said, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, 'I have come down from heaven'?"
Based on the remarks of some in the crowd, do you think they finally understood what Jesus was saying? Explain.
No because they were complaining that they knew this guy so he obviously didn’t come from heaven. Some of them may have know Him all His life. They knew too much about Him. So they did not believe that Jesus had come down from heaven. They refused to believe that he was really God’s Son.
John 6:43-47 (NKJV)43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, "Do not murmur among yourselves.44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.45 It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.46 Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father.47 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.
Those who murmured (as did their fathers in the desert) at the high claim of the Son of man showed that they did not know what it was to have the Father draw them. When Jesus said that they would be taught by God He was quoting from
Isaiah 54:13 (NKJV)13 All your children shall be taught by the LORD, And great shall be the peace of your children.
The one doing the teaching must come from the One who has seen the Father and that person was Jesus.
Nobody has seen God, except for Jesus. Today we are taught by the Holy Spirit.
John 14:25-26 (HCSB)25 “I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you.26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit—the Father will send Him in My name—will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.
John 6:48-59 (NKJV)48 I am the bread of life.49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead.50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."52 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?"53 Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.54 Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.55 For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.58 This is the bread which came down from heaven--not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever."59 These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.
When Jesus said, "This bread is my flesh," the crowd could think only of cannibalism).
What do you think it means to eat Jesus' flesh and drink his blood ?
What do you think it means to eat Jesus' flesh and drink his blood ?
Some Christians think Jesus' statement about "eating [his flesh" and "drinking [his] blood" refers to the communion service, the Lord's Supper. On the basis of this passage they believe that the bread (Jesus' body) and the wine (Jesus' blood) of the Lord's Supper are required to be saved.
It seems better to understand Jesus' statement as a figure of speech, picturing belief in him as the source of spiritual life. Just as we eat bread and drink water to sustain physical life, so we receive Christ to sustain spiritual life.
Jesus did not mean that we must eat his physical flesh to have eternal life. He meant that we have to receive him into our spirits. When we eat, we take food into our bodies. We unite ourselves with the food! Then our bodies can continue to live. In the same way, we must unite ourselves with Jesus to receive life in our spirits.
This is how we can unite ourselves with him:
Verses 52-59 The people did not understand what Jesus meant. He told them that they had to drink his blood. And these words upset them very much. Jews would never drink blood. In fact, they would not even eat meat with any blood in it. Their Law did not allow them to do this. They believed that the blood was the life of an animal or a person. The blood, and therefore the life, belonged to God
Genesis 9:1-4 (HCSB)1 God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.2 The fear and terror of you will be in every living creature on the earth, every bird of the sky, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are placed under your authority.3 Every living creature will be food for you; as ⌊I gave⌋ the green plants, I have given you everything.4 However, you must not eat meat with its lifeblood in it.
Deuteronomy 12:23 (HCSB) But don’t eat the blood, since the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat.
Christians eat bread and drink wine together to remember Jesus’ death. The bread is a symbol of his body and the wine is a symbol of his blood. At his last meal with his disciples before his death, Jesus gave instructions to do this.
Matthew 26:26-30 (NKJV)26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is My body."27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you.28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom."30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Mark 14:22-26 (NKJV)22 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, "Take, eat; this is My body."23 Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it.24 And He said to them, "This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.25 Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."
26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Luke 22:19-21 (NKJV)19 And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
20 Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.21 But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table.
However, John did not include these instructions in his Gospel. Many experts think that he included this passage instead. They think this because, in the same way, Jesus was referring to his body and blood as food and drink. And probably, he was explaining the meaning of the symbols of bread and wine. To take bread and wine as Jesus’ body and blood reminds us that now our sinful life has ended. And now we have eternal life.
In these next verses Jesus turns away from the crowd and focuses on his disciples.
John 6:60-66 (NKJV)60 Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, "This is a hard saying; who can understand it?"61 When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, "Does this offend you?62 What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.64 But there are some of you who do not believe." For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.65 And He said, "Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father."66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
This was the parting of the ways for many who had been disciples. We can learn from this. Some of Jesus’ words are difficult for us to understand or to accept. But we should not reject what he has said. Instead, we should ask him to show us what he meant. Also we should ask him what he wants to say to us personally by means of those words.
Their departure prompted the question of Jesus to the Twelve as to their intentions. Peter, as the rock, stood his ground. His confession is similar to that recorded in
Matthew 16:13-20 (HCSB)13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”15 “But you,” He asked them, “who do you say that I am?”16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!”17 And Jesus responded, “Simon son of Jonah, you are blessed because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father in heaven.18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it.19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth is already bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth is already loosed in heaven.”20 And He gave the disciples orders to tell no one that He was the Messiah.
Mark 8:29-30 (HCSB)29 “But you,” He asked them again, “who do you say that I am?” Peter answered Him, “You are the Messiah!”30 And He strictly warned them to tell no one about Him.
Luke 9:20 (HCSB)20 “But you,” He asked them, “who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “God’s Messiah!”
John 6:67-71 (NKJV)67 Then Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?"
68 But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."70 Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?"71 He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.
How would you describe their responses to his "hard teaching"?
Jesus had chosen 12 men to be his special friends and disciples. But they could not have understood everything that Jesus had said. But they knew enough to trust him. Although they did not understand everything, they believed in him. They knew that God had sent him. So they wanted to stay with him. Simon Peter spoke on their behalf.
People today have the same choice: to accept or to reject Jesus. But there is nobody else who can give eternal life to us. Only Jesus can give it to us.
Jesus knew that one of his disciples would betray him. In verse 70, the Greek word for ‘devil’ is “diabolos” which means false accuser, devil, slanderer. Jesus was referring to what Judas would do. Jesus said this because Judas would hand him (Jesus) over to the Jewish leaders. And they accused Jesus of crimes against God and against the Roman Emperor.
The meaning is not that he was an instrument of Satan when Christ chose him, but that he had become such.
Which response best describes your present attitude toward Jesus? Explain.
Jesus has contrasted the two appetites found in every person—the appetite for food that perishes and the appetite for food that endures. In what ways has Jesus satisfied the spiritual hunger in your heart?
<====IF YOU DON'T HAVE A BIBLE OR WANT ANOTHER ONE CLICK HERE====>
No comments:
Post a Comment