Message: Bread of Life part 2
John 6:35-60
Theme: Who does He think He is?
Date: Feb 5, 2023
ICEBREAKERS
-Read John 6:35-60 and Matthew 11:20-24
-What exactly were the people grumbling about?
-Luke 2:19 says that “Mary kept these things (Incarnation) to herself.” Why?
-Were there any hurdles you had to overcome before you committing your life to Jesus?
-What does it mean to internalize something?
John 6:41-60
So the Jews grumbled about Him, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43 Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ 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 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, 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 feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.56 Whoever feeds on 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 whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum.
60 When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?”
BACKGROUND
6:41 Grumbling (gogguvzw / gonguzo) is speaking and complaining in low tones; murmuring. Ironically, this is the same thing their ancestors did to Moses. They were not happy with what Jesus had said, that He's the bread of life, and they were talking it over among themselves in such a way that they did not want Jesus to over hear them directly. We have all seen and heard this kind of thing happen.
ILLUS: Seeker Movement. A lot of people were born again through it but its basic premise was to make church a bit more palatable for baby boomers. In retrospect even the founders of the movement acknowledge that at some point you have to talk about Jesus. Specifically, who is He and what it means for us. One of the reasons Christians don’t do so is because of what we just read…we know that like Jesus people will reject us. It's to be expected. Some live a life fearing this reality and as a result never talk about Jesus.
Prior to this discussion, like the paparazzi, they’d tracked Him down into the middle of nowhere and although He’d given them the slip by walking across the lake, they’d found Him again. Seeking more bread, Jesus had used the opportunity to teach them that there was something much more important than biological life-everlasting life. He tells them that what they really need is the true bread. Furthermore, He makes it crystal clear that He is that true bread-The Bread of Life.
It doesn’t go over well. What are their issues?
1-They’d wanted more physical bread, but Jesus has told them that what they really need is Him. Misunderstanding about a Messianic prophecy in Dt. 18:15-18. We do the same thing today; we read too much into certain prophecies. The misunderstanding of some in the first century was that like Moses, the Messiah would provide free meals.
-6:31 (passive aggressive) “Moses fed our ancestors a daily meal”. Resentment generally results from unmet expectations. The question is-is it a realistic expectation? There’s as you recall is a misunderstanding of a messianic prophecy that the Messiah would be like Moses; falsely presuming this meant a daily meal, after all Jesus had just miraculously fed them to the point where they had leftovers.
They want more bread but Jesus informs them that He's the bread of life.
6:35 – “I Am the Bread of Life.”
It’s not exactly the answer they wanted.
Deep down everyone is looking for some type of a Savior. However, just what kind of a Savior depends upon what type of crisis or need they have. People struggling with loneliness want a companion. Those with an id crisis are looking for someone to give them a purpose and id. The poor want money. The oppressed want a champion. But the proud don’t need a Savior-they have themselves.
Resentment is generally birthed out of unmet expectations.
The Question is are those expectations legitimate?
They want more physical bread for their well being, “bios” life, but Jesus is saying that they need Him for their spiritual “zoe” everlasting life.
They push back by challenging His heavenly origins.
2-His Origins. So, the Jews grumbled about Him, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven?” (6:41-42).
Monday Morning QB.
We have the benefit of hindsight, e.g., 1:14 - And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
We know that the Shepherds spread the news of the angelic announcement (Lk. 2:17) and indeed saw Jesus in the manger, but that was in Bethlehem (2 states away) and 30 years ago. For security, timeline, and reasons known only to God, apparently Joseph and Mary had kept a rather tight lid on the Incarnation.
After the unexpected arrival of the Shepherds at the manger we’re told, “Mary treasured these things to herself” (Lk. 2:19) meaning that she kept it private and seemingly didn’t go around telling everyone that her child was God.
Treasure-just like a buried treasure. It’s something that’s hidden away but will be accessed later.
Why Not?
-would anyone believe her?
-Herod the Great had arranged for the murder of all of the boys 2yrs and younger resulting in them fleeing to Egypt where they resided until Herod’s death. Even though she’s Mary, this probably greatly affected her psyche and besides that, all women are protective, sometimes a bit overly protective of their firstborn. -Afterwards Joseph was warned in a dream that whereas it was safe for them to return to Israel, it wasn’t safe to go back to Judea (Jerusalem/Bethlehem), but rather back to Galilee, specifically Nazareth. (Mt. 2:19-23).
Thus, aside from the parents of John the Baptist, the incarnation seems to have been a tight family secret.
Mary and family seems to have kept this a secret that is until Cana.
So, in Galilee, when they say, “We know His parents” they’re unaware of the Christmas story. Thus, here in John 6, 30 years later, they’re saying He’s not from heaven, He’s an ordinary guy, just like us.
[-Generally speaking, this is the case for many skeptics. Buddhists & New Agers-He’s very enlightened. Muslims-he’s a prophet. JWs-first created being but not God. Many today will teach that He was a very good moral teacher but not God.]
His statement of being the true bread that has come down from heaven, nonetheless, has become an obstacle.
Sometimes, however, people who have a root of resentment are looking for reasons not to like you. Imo, that’s a facet of the situation here.
They’ve just experienced first hand, not second, an amazing miracle. What if Jesus would just do another miracle? What if He would fly a few laps around the Sea of Galilee? Would that convince them?
Maybe? Maybe not?
Luke 16 Lazarus and the Rich Man. The Rich man says, let me go back and warn my five brothers. But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’” (Lk. 16:29-31)
Moses and the prophets are sufficient. This group is Galilee has had more than Moses and the prophets. They’ve just witnessed first hand Him feeding 5k+ from one 2 piece dinner from Long John Silver's, but they don’t believe He’s the Messiah.
Jesus is not an entertainer to ooh and ahh the crowds. His miracles are snapshots of how things should be and will be in His kingdom. Rather than seeking to convince them or to perform another miracle...
3-JESUS WANTS TO BE TAKEN AT HIS WORD
6:36- But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe.
Mark 8:11-12 (*following the feeding of the 4,000, not 5,000)
The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him.12 And He sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” 13 And He left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.
You’ve seen this with your own eyes. You’ve seen God in the flesh yet you don’t believe.
It’s Important that we act upon the Revelation you’ve already been given.
[Incidentally, after healing the man in Jerusalem who’d been handicapped for 38 years at the Pool of Bethesda (house of mercy) in John 5, Jesus is asked by who’s authority He’s performing these miracles. He creates a make-shift jury and Jesus calls forth 5 witnesses: God the Father, Jn the Baptist, Scriptures, Moses and the Signs.]
Mt 11:20-24
Then He began to denounce the cities where most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.” (Mt. 11:20-24)
3 Cities: Chorazin, Bethsaida, Capernaum. All three are within close proximity of each other on the northern shores of the Sea of Galilee.
Why did Jesus single out these three?
Capernaum: It was in Capernaum that Jesus healed the centurion’s servant (Mt. 8:5-13), paralyzed man (Mt. 9:1-2), Town Councilmembers son (Jn. 4:46-53), raised Jairus daughter to life (Mk. 5:21-42) and healed the woman who’d been hemorrhaging for 12 years (cf. Mal. 4:12). He also cast out demons. It was His ministry HQ.
Bethsaida and Chorazin is the area in which Jesus fed the 5k.
Sodom was the ultimate example of a “city of sin” (see Gen. 18:20). Yet, Jesus says, even Sodom would have repented if it had witnessed what Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum had witnessed.
Jesus says that it will be more tolerable for Sodom & Gomorrah than for these three cities in the day of Judgment. Why?
These cities represent those who have been exposed to the gospel, signs, and miracles and yet still refuse to accept Jesus as Christ.
It will go better for Sodom and Gomorrah than they in the day of judgment.
I’m a little concerned for the USA. We’ve had more than our share of revelation. If we should ever forsake or betray Israel things could get dicey.
In spite of the miracles, they’ve experienced first hand they refuse to believe.
Perhaps today, God has been speaking to you about something. Perhaps it’s about something you should do or stop doing. I encourage you to act upon what God has already revealed to you. For some of you He’s been speaking to you about salvation. I encourage you to let today be the day you receive Jesus as your Savior and Lord. You’ve been given sufficient revelation and you know deep down that Jesus is God. Let today be the day you ask for His forgiveness and salvation. Don’t leave here without doing so. Failure to do so can result in a hardened heart, like Pharaoh.
Back to our narrative here in John 6, Jesus now uses Rabbinic hyperbole to get their attention. He doubles down and this is the real kicker…
4-They confuse the metaphorical with the literal. (6:53-55) Eating flesh and drinking blood.
So, Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, 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 feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. (6:53-55)
Holy Grail: The most popular of these stories says that the Holy Grail was the cup that Jesus used at the Last Supper and that Joseph of Arimathea later used to collect drops of Jesus’ blood at the crucifixion. This legend has it that Joseph of Arimathea or his descendants brought the cup to Britain where it was lost and becomes intertwined with the legend of King Arthur and his knights. The myth was that, like the fountain of youth, if you were able to drink from this cup, holy grail, you wouldn’t age and thus you’d obtain everlasting life from drinking from a cup. Even if it does still exist drinking from it will not make you any younger, you’d be better off getting botox.
JOKE: When I was growing up plastic surgery was somewhat taboo but these days if you mention botox no one raises an eyebrow…get it.
As born-again believers in Christ, our hope is not in some cup that might have held Christ’s blood. Rather, it’s in Jesus Himself.
SYMBOLIC
John 4:14 – “living water.”
John 6:35-I’m the bread of life.
John 6:54-He’s also speaking metaphorically of flesh and blood.
Flesh and blood are symbolic of His upcoming sacrifice, as the Lamb of God.
Ex. 12:8 – Eat the Passover lamb
Lev 6:26 -Priests to eat sin offerings
ALL are saying the same thing-Jesus = life. Jesus is essential for everlasting life.
Long before scientists understood the life-sustaining properties of blood, the Bible said that “the life of every creature is in its blood” (Lev. 17:14 NLT). In ancient Israel, blood was not only a metaphor or symbol for life; it was equivalent to life itself. In most occurrences where blood was shed in Scripture, it meant that life had ended. To remove the blood is to terminate life. Today we have blood banks and we give blood for this very reason.
Blood was God’s ordained means for symbolizing atonement: “For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life” (Lev. 17:11). Atonement for sin was achieved by sacrificing an animal’s life in substitution for one’s own life. The shedding of blood was the most critical element—it was the blood of the guiltless substitute offered on the altar that served as payment for the people’s sins (Lev. 16:15).
John the Baptist had already declared, "Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world" (Jn. 1:29). He wasnt talking about a wooly four legged creature but he was pointing to Jesus.
Water of life, bread of life, are things that have to be digested to do any good physically for the bios life. The same is true of Jesus. The truth of who He is must be digested for providing everlasting life.
The same is the case with the blood of life. Jesus told the woman at the well she’d be thirsty again. The 5k had eaten their fill of bread and fish but are hungry again. Even after sacrificing a Passover lamb at Passover you’d sin again and need to make another sacrifice.
So, you’re probably wondering but why drink it? It means that this has to be digested. It means that this truth that accepting Jesus as the Son of God has to be digested, i.e., it has to be internalized. Incorporate. Wine and crackers will not save anyone's soul. It's symbolic for the sacrifice of Jesus as the payment for our sins. Have you placed your faith in Jesus or are you still hoping your good deeds will outweigh your bad deeds? Earlier in John 6:28 the crowd had asked what works must we do? The answer is Jesus. Believe in Jesus. To believe that He's who He said He was. That because He's God, He alone has the credentials to offer forgiveness and everlasting life. Have you received this truth? Have you internalized it? If not I'm going to ask you to at this very moment pray to receive Jesus as your Savior and Lord. Simply pray after me, out loud please: Dear Jesus. I believe that you are God. I believe that you died as a substitute for my sins and that you rose bodily from the grave on the third day. I confess that I'm a sinner. Please save me. Forgive me. Take me to heaven when I did and please fill me now with the Holy Spirit. Use my life for your purposes. Amen.
CONCLUSION/COMMUNION
Water, Bread, and Blood are all symbolically meant to communicate the same thing-Jesus is Life. It’s a truth we must internalize.
Mt. 26:26-29:
Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.”
Administer communion
PRAYER
