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Weekly Message | April 27th, 2008
Passage: John 6:16-34
Key Verse(s): 6:29
Last week we meditated on Jesus who feeds the five thousand. The focus was leadership training of his two disciples—Philip and Andrew. Today’s passage is about Jesus’ teaching of the crowds. Jesus does not water down his teaching because it is targeted to the ordinary people. The high quality of Jesus’ teaching is there. Jesus’ timeless truths are still relevant.
First, the work of God is the voice of Jesus. "It is I; don't be afraid" (6:16-21). Jesus had performed great miracles. He fed five thousand people with Andrew's five loaves and two fish. Jesus sent his disciples away first and remained behind for dismissing the crowds of people to the end (Mt 14:22-23). Then Jesus went to the mountain to pray after the mighty work of God.
Look at verse 18: "A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough." Life is not one miracle after another. When Jesus performed a miracle, they were able to feed thousands of people. The disciples were crossing the Sea of Galilee. The disciples were rowing their boat in the Sea of Galilee. The strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. They were trying hard but there was no change. They could not go either forward or backward. So they were stranded in the middle of the sea.
From the mountain Jesus saw his disciples’ struggles in the middle of the sea (Mk 6:37-48). He was coming toward them--walking on the sea. Seeing the moving object in the dark sea night, they were terrified. When they saw Jesus' presence, they were afraid. Jesus said, "It is I; don’t' be afraid", they were glad. It was the voice of Jesus that made them rejoice. Upon hearing Jesus' voice, "It is I; don't be afraid", they welcomed Him. All of a sudden, the strong wind was gone. They arrived on the shore with Jesus. Jesus is more than a man. Jesus is God. Through this miracle, the disciples saw that Jesus is more than a man—God. They saw who Jesus is.
We desire to meet and see God. We want to pour out our hearts. We would rather speak to God directly. What if God appears us directly? Will we be glad? No, we may rather be terrified. God is a consuming fire. We may not able to stand before his glorious and holy presence. It is not God’s visible presence but his voice that we really need.
In our life's struggles what we need is not God’s tangible presence but his voice of assurance, "It is I; don’t' be afraid." When are we afraid? In this life’s struggle we are easily become tired. The more successful, the more people bear terrible time constraints. Many simply do not have time. We all struggle hard in the wide sea of life. We are afraid. Others seem to move forward, going somewhere and doing something. We know where we should go, but cannot make any progress. We fear being left alone. We are afraid of having been left behind. We are scared with the possibility of becoming failures in this life.
In such moment, the work of God is the voice of Jesus. Simple and short words of Jesus, "It is I; don't be afraid." One time Billy Graham said, “The most frequent words and the most comforting words I must hear are the same: Do not fear”. He is such a powerful speaker. Yet, he shared his constant struggles with fear. In fact we are all afraid for various reasons. The essence of life-giving ministry is this: plant hope and assurance by the grace of God. God is with you; don’t be afraid. Jesus says, “It is I; do not be afraid.” In the moment of real struggles he may fear God and may not afraid of anything else. He may look up to Jesus. He may hear the voice of Jesus in times of need. “It is I; do not be afraid”.
Second, the work of God is to work for food that endures eternal life"(6:22-27). The crowds were looking for Jesus. They were eager to see Jesus again. The crowds of people probably ran or some of them got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus. Look at verse 25: "When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, 'Rabbi, when did you get here?'" There were unspoken words here. At first they came to Jesus without any expectation. Now, after experiencing Jesus’ miracle of feeding the five thousand, they now expect something more from him.
Look at verse 26: Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill." This is Jesus' honest rebuke. What is Jesus' point? He is in fact saying, "You are wrong coming in this way." Jesus is very straightforward. Jesus points out their wrong motives. In the first part of Chapter 6, Jesus showed His grace. He recognized their genuine needs of hunger and fed them. In this part, Jesus shows His truth. Jesus welcomed them; but not in the way they expected.
Look at verse 27: "Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval." The bread problem is very serious. Their situation was tough. The real issue for people always—even now--is the same—economics stupid! We all arrange our life activities to solve this matter. It is natural for us to be consumed by these needs. Jesus said, "Don't work for food that spoils." Why? Economic problems are serious life issues, but they are not the foundational issues of people. The ultimate quality and destiny of our lives are determined by our personal action based on faith in Jesus.
Jesus wants these people to look beyond food that spoils. Jesus urges them to look up to Jesus. Why did Jesus say this? These people came to Jesus for bread matter—more than once. This second time Jesus wanted to lead them into deeper ocean of truth. God took the people of Israel out of the land of slavery. Afterward, he led them through the wilderness for almost 40 years—with one lesson in mind. God said, “Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to each you that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD”(Dt 8:2,3). Think about this! What does God want from us? After walking with God—one, two, five, ten, even 30 and 40 years, what does God expect us? Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD!
Yesterday in Akron leaders from Great Lakes Region studied 1 Kings 8-12. It was about King Solomon. He was smart, able, handsome, rich and famous. He was not happy. His end was not good. What was wrong with him? He said, “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had tolled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun”(Ecc 2:10,11). He was a busy man with numerous building projects, countless speaking engagements and enormous responsibilities of governing a nation. At night he was busy with his many wives. In the morning he got up early and kept working hard. Then, his life was almost over. One day he found that he was so tired and weary—no joy and hope in this heart. Instead, he was full of empty feelings and sense of despair. This is the description of people who work so hard for food that spoils and do not walk with God.
This life that God blessed has balance--between what is temporary and what is eternal. We must work for what matters now. We seek what gives pleasures right now. By God’s grace we must bear the tension between the momentary needs and the eternal reality. The spiritual growth is to discern and value what lasts. The work of God is to know Jesus. Because of Jesus we overcome the dominant mindset around us and seek something enduring. What are the struggles of high school students? It is to overcome the dominant atmosphere in the school. Although all others do not seem to value hard work, you work hard. From tomorrow we will have prayer meeting every day. The world does not value prayers but God does. What is it that lasts? Prayer lasts! Why? God hears and remembers what we pray for. We may forget what we have prayed for but God does not. If you want to work for food that endures, then pray in view of God’s grace in your life. As time passes, what endures is what we do for others by personal faith in Jesus. For example, two great enduring things that Andrew did are: (1) inviting his brother Peter to Jesus with “Come and see” faith; (2) offering his five loaves and two fish to feed the five thousand. We all have such evidence of God’s grace in my life.
Last night Chad Ellis practiced for his message in Akron today. Afterward, we prayed for one another. Without even completing his Ph.D. James Roh successfully found a faculty position by prayer. His prayer is effective. His prayer is effective. I suggested that he becomes prayer servant for all those with job needs. Then, Caleb Park asks, “Is there anyone who can pray for marriage?” Daniel Choi successfully married by prayer. He is a prayer servant for happy marriages that God blesses? These days I receive various requests from people--Mexico, Germany, Brazil, Nigeria and different countries would like to send their sons, daughters, Bible students and even leaders to Toledo UBF—Some ask for one or two days and others for more than weeks. 30 German leaders would like to visit Toledo. I will not handle all these requests alone. I ask your help. From Africa, each person pays more than $2,500 just air faire alone. Is it reasonable for them to expect more than attending this International Summer Bible Conference? Two African leaders would like to come and receive faith training in Toledo. They want to see if our leaders in Toledo UBF welcome them and pray for them. I ask Chad Ellis and Caleb Park to communicate with them. We as a ministry pray together for them. Yet, some people need to assume the role of prayer servants.
How can we realistically work for food that endures? By prayer in Jesus’ name! By prayer we encourage people who are in crisis experiences. By prayer we comfort those who struggle. By prayer we impart wisdom while others wrestle with their major decisions in life. I seek God’s mercy and his blessings. By prayer I ask God to plant his hope in his people. Pray and act. Do you know why Jesus was so bold in teaching these people? He prayed. All this teaching was in fact an expression of his prayer for the people. He was praying and teaching at the same time. As we pray, we look up to God. As we pray, we enter God’s time and his ways—moving beyond the tyrannical needs of the present. We enter the presence of God. In this way, we can work for food that endures. Therefore, whatever you do, pray and work at the same time.
Third, the work of God is to believe in Jesus "(6:28-34). They asked, "What must we do that God requires?" They wanted Jesus' recipe--a cookbook that taught them three to seven steps of how-to do the work. Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent" (29). Jesus wanted them to believe. These people recognized Jesus. They came to Jesus. They experienced miracles of Jesus. They conversed with Jesus. They understood some words of Jesus. But they did not yet believe in Jesus. In fact, their real work is not directed to believe in Jesus. Rather, their focus is to get their bread from Jesus.
Why is this work of God? Those who believe in Christ say, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain" (Php 1:21). It is to be united in Jesus. The hardest work is to believe in the Son of God--Jesus Christ. "To believe" is "to live" with Jesus. "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Gal 2:20).
My wife and I work hard to raise all my four children. We have invited a few people to come to know and love Jesus. All these are by the grace of God. In the past my goal was that I help people as much as I can. These days my goal is that God helps them as much as they need. My work is to help and bless people to know Jesus and grow in personal faith. Then, I am happy that they no longer need me. Instead, they become more trusting, depending and seeking Jesus with their life’s needs. So my prayer is to raise up twelve disciples of Jesus. This does not mean that I only help twelve people throughout my life. Rather, this is to constantly focus on about twelve people who are capable to lead others and make impact for Jesus’ name in this world. So may focus is constantly pray for twelve people at any given time.
Look at verse 32-34: Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 'Sir,' they said, 'from now on give us this bread.' “The crowds considered Moses as the source of manna. They were very much excited over the quick solution for their life problems. They kept focusing on the food problem. They kept returning to the same issue—food and life security problem. This is not the way we must live.
Jesus said that it was God himself who gave manna from heaven. The true bread of heaven is Jesus who comes down from heaven. Why is it so important to put our faith in Jesus? Consider God’s blessings for us. This beautiful world! This wonderful life! What is God’s most wonderful gift? That is our faith in Jesus. Knowing God and Jesus Christ—this is the most enduring gift of God. There is nothing in this world that is worth than this. If we trust Jesus and live in integrity of heart, then we are truly successful. Sin is to seek our identity and happiness apart from personal faith in Jesus. Otherwise, we are worshipping idols in this world. Do you seek your identity based on what people think of you rather than how God thinks of you? Such is an idol worship! By the grace of God be free from that! Do you measure your value based on what you do in this world—your knowledge, positions and honor you may gain for a while? That’s what fools do. We all have to grow up. We think, speak and act like little children. But by faith in Jesus we must put away our childish ways. This fallen world may be ugly. But our life is ever more beautiful with the faith in Jesus. Trust Jesus. Love him. Work for him who alone is worthy of our devotion. This is the way we must all live.
April 27, 2008. Toledo UBF.
Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
