I AM the source of true life

Well, good morning, everyone. This morning, as Alex said, we're going to get back into John's Gospel after a break of eight or nine weeks.

And of course, I want to do that by way of some revision, so as we actually pick up the big picture of the story of John.

And you remember, we've cast the whole biography of John a bit like a courtroom drama.

And John is the barrister. And in chapter one, he outlines his case against or for Jesus.

Regarding Jesus. And he says in chapter one, several really key things.

So he says that Jesus is truly and completely God.

And he alleges that Jesus is truly and completely human at the same time.

God and man perfectly together.

And he alleges that Jesus has come into the world as the fulfiller of God's purposes and salvation.

He's come to give light.

He's come to give life.

He's come to give family privilege.

And he's come to do that for all who will receive him.

On his terms.

The flip side is that the rest, those who won't receive him on his terms,

he then confirms in darkness.

In death.

In alienation from God's family.

In spite of their religious lifestyle.

So John's biography about Jesus plunks Jesus right into the middle of a context where people are busy being religious.

And Jesus is saying that's not enough.

You can be religious and still only know death and darkness and alienation from God.

John's brief is to show that Jesus has come to turn that around.

In chapter two onwards, then, John systematically presents the supporting evidence for these claims.

And he builds his case like a good barrister does, step by step, with seven signs or miracles.

And the associated teaching that goes with each of those miracles.

Teaching that explains and illustrates the significance of the spiritual significance of the signs or the miracles themselves.

And as we track through that, then we're actually getting, and again, the best traditions of the law courts nowadays,

we're getting an identikit picture of Jesus built.

Piece by piece, it's becoming clear who this Jesus is and how he wants people to respond to.

And as he does that, John also introduces seven key sayings of Jesus,

which spell out the nature of the life that Jesus offers.

And this morning, as we jump back into John's gospel, we're jumping back into the context in which Jesus uses the first of these things.

Jesus says, I am the bread of life.

I am the bread from heaven.

It's a profound thing.

Hopefully we'll see what it means as we go through.

Alex has already sort of gone before me.

So just remember Alex's stuff if you've done me any sense of mine.

So let's just pick up the context there.

So the day before, we start verse 22 the next day, so I'm just going to the day before.

So what's the day before, verses 1 to 15?

Well, the day before, a massive, hungry crowd had experienced personally, not just theoretically,

but personally, an astounding miracle.

As Jesus not only fed the lot of them, 5,000, more than 5,000, could be twice that number if you count women and children,

but at least 5,000, fed from the lunchbox of some random young boy.

Not only that, but ending up with 12 baskets, ending up with far, far more than what he started with.

And everything about the context of that reminded the crowd of the story of Moses feeding God's people in the wilderness.

So quite correctly, if you look at verse 14, quite correctly, when the people saw the sign he had done, they said,

this is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world.

So they got it right.

They recognized in Jesus the prophet, the Messiah.

But look at verse 15.

No sooner had they got it right than they'd get it wrong.

Their own agenda derails them.

Only thinking about the need for salvation or deliverance from the external enemy of Roman occupation, Roman oppression,

and being convinced that what they've just seen of Jesus marked him out as the guy who had the credentials to lead a rebellion against the Romans,

they then seized Jesus, or they then intend to seize Jesus and make him a king by force.

In other words, they're imposing their agenda onto what it means for Jesus to be the prophet.

The result?

Jesus just slips away.

It doesn't really tell us why, but I think at least we can say that Jesus wasn't remotely interested in their agenda of what it meant for him to be king.

Perhaps he withdrew with deep sadness that the crowds could not see their need to be delivered from something far more fundamental, far more profound than the Romans.

That is, they couldn't see the need to be delivered from their own sinful hearts, from their own alienation from relationship with God.

You can just sense the sadness that these guys are still working, operating on the outside in.

Well, the next day, verses 22, then we pick up the story, the crowd's still hanging around.

And I presume we're meant to understand that it's sort of 16 hours later, at least, if not more, and so they're hungry again.

They're hanging around, and they're looking for a repeat performance.

But Jesus is nowhere to be found.

Knowing that his disciples had gone to Capernaum, and probably undeterred in their plans to make him king, according to their terms,

they commandeered whatever boats they could find to take as many as possible across the lake to track down Jesus.

And when they drag him down in Capernaum, we know from verse 59 that in the meantime, Jesus had gone into the synagogue.

So presumably, it's a much smaller crowd that Jesus is dealing with in these verses.

But the pattern of their thinking is revealed in their opening question.

The question is, how did you get here?

When did you get here?

When did you get here?

They were struggling to work out how Jesus could have gotten to Capernaum so quickly on foot.

That was their problem.

And you see what we've been told there very subtly?

The day before, they'd just witnessed Jesus as they'd seen and heard of him before, doing many miracles.

They personally had experienced the day before, but still, it doesn't occur to them that perhaps he could have got to Capernaum in some miraculous way.

They're just not thinking about Jesus.

They're just not thinking about Jesus in the terms that Jesus presents.

And likewise, in verse 25 through 65, then we see the pattern of Jesus' thinking.

So we see their thinking pattern.

And in these verses, we see the pattern of Jesus' thinking revealed.

And so verse, he just ignores them, verse 26.

He just ignores their question.

What a dumb question he's thinking to himself.

He just ignores it.

And instead, exposes their crummy motives and even their willful blindness.

And all of that, remember, in the context as they protest that they're seeking and following him.

I think John uses the wording very carefully in verse 24.

They go to Capernaum seeking Jesus.

But the question is, we keep bouncing against it.

What are they seeking?

Who are they seeking?

On what terms are they seeking?

And Jesus responds, truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me.

See, you get this play on this word.

You're seeking me not because you saw signs.

In other words, you're not seeing me as I'm presenting.

You're seeing me as you think I ought to be and as you want me to be.

First and foremost, the filler of a belly.

A pretty handy guy to have around when you find yourself stuck in the desert.

We know shops within Cooey.

And so Jesus says to them,

you are deliberately short-sighted in the things you think will satisfy.

Jesus accused them, as I said, of being interested in him only on their own terms.

Yeah, you could provide us with a free feed, Jesus.

Your remarkable powers are just what we need to galvanize the nation,

to rise in insurrection against these Romans and be done with them once for all.

Well, you're the sort of leader we need to get the good life that we deserve as the people of Israel.

And indeed, the life that God promised us.

So they were more than willing to sign up as his disciples at this point,

while ever he kept delivering their needs or what they imagined their needs to be.

Do you see what's happened?

They've taken this incredible miracle that they personally experienced.

They were caught up in.

They actually had a physical result.

Hunger was stopped and replaced with a sense of fullness.

They couldn't eat anymore.

And yet they still reduced that miracle to their own small-minded agenda

of immediate personal benefit.

We see nothing in these verses of the crowd being drawn to Jesus

as the Son of God.

As the Savior.

As someone who's altogether beautiful.

Desirable or even necessary for them.

We're not drawn.

There's no evidence that we've been drawn into a deeper desire

for a deeper relationship with Christ.

More accountability to him as God.

Or even a sense of rest and fulfillment in him.

So friends, I want to say to you this morning as we move into this passage,

that I think you and I need to see ourselves in this crowd.

Not just looking on dispassionately from the vantage point of history.

We need to see ourselves in this crowd.

These people want God as long as he delivers what they want and demand and imagine they need.

Failed to deliver?

Well, they'll simply move on to another source of supply.

And that's what we're told at the end of this chapter.

Verse whatever, 59, 60, 66 it is.

Many of the disciples turned away from him.

They stopped following him because they started to work out that he wasn't going to deliver the things they wanted him to deliver.

And so they just packed up their swag and moved on, looking for the next source.

Now, you say to yourself, well, isn't Jesus the provider of all our needs?

And I have to say, yes, he is the provider of all our needs.

And then you say, well, isn't it right then that we should bring our needs before him?

And I say, yes, it is.

It is right that we should bring our needs before him.

But here's the catch, you see, because it's possible, like these people,

to be so focused on what we imagine our needs to be

that we actually have focused on ourselves

and not focused on Jesus at all,

except to see him as the agency or the conduit

who will deliver what we want.

And so the result is that we don't see our needs

as Jesus defines them.

And therefore, we never pursue the solutions

that Jesus offers.

In fact, we think it's quite strange.

Why would Jesus push us down this track?

It just doesn't seem relevant to me.

And it doesn't seem relevant because we haven't identified our needs properly.

As the article in the front of the bulletin suggests,

young people in particular, the evidence is coming out now,

young people in particular treat God like a phone app.

It's a useful tool there to be used at your command

to get what you want,

but it's only one of a range of apps.

It might be a good app,

maybe even the best app you have,

but it's only a range.

It's only one of a range.

And it will provide this

where another app will provide that.

Oops, now we're stuck here.

That wasn't meant to be a pregnant pause, young people.

We often think like that ourselves, don't we?

As adults,

we're shocked when we see thinking like that in our children.

Where did our children get it from?

Perhaps we modeled it to them.

Perhaps we've been better teachers of our children than we realized.

We just didn't realize what it was we were teaching them.

A horrible consumerist view of God.

So Jesus challenged the crowd then,

and he says to you and me today as well,

you're short-sighted in the things you think will satisfy.

You should put your energy into pursuing real heart satisfaction.

So Jesus recognizes here the efforts and energy

they're using in chasing after the good life of peace

and security and satisfaction.

He acknowledges that.

He said, yeah, I can see you guys are chasing the good life.

But he exposes

their pointless fixation

with physical appetites,

the outside-in approach

to finding the good life.

Looking at their desires

and the material blessings,

things that push them

to the deeper,

more urgent level of spiritual need

when they understand properly

the failures of these things.

And Jesus wants them to look for

real heart satisfaction.

That's where the idea of bread comes in.

Just as bread is the basic staple

and source of physical life,

nourishment and health

and growth into maturity,

so Jesus pushes them

to desire him as their bread.

Put your effort into pursuing me

and you'll find the truly satisfying life

which will sustain throughout eternity,

says Jesus.

Augustine famously said of the Lord,

you have formed us for yourself

and our hearts are restless

until they find rest in you.

He was echoing Jesus' words here.

If you want that which gives you the good life,

it will satisfy you.

And everybody does.

I recognize it,

in you,

says Jesus,

as he speaks to the crowd.

Well,

the good life of

rich,

satisfying nourishment

which every person on this earth

ultimately longs for

and seeks after

is not just a reality,

but get this,

what Jesus says,

he says to the crowd,

it's not just a reality,

but it's actually a gift,

a reality that comes to you

as a gift

to those who will accept it.

It's a reality

guaranteed by God.

That's what it means

when it says that

God has set a seal on Jesus.

In those days,

a seal was essentially

like a signature.

It authenticated a document.

So Jesus is saying,

look,

I come to you

as the authenticated one,

the only accredited outlet,

if you like,

for the real satisfying life

we are created to enjoy

in relationship with God.

Jesus comes,

he says,

with the authority

and the power

to deliver this life.

He truly is the bread,

the satisfying bread,

if only they will ingest him.

John's made that point

repeatedly in his biography.

And in the end,

there only is one point.

If you want to read,

if you're not a Christian

here this morning,

there only is one point

to get through John's biography.

He makes it over and over

and over again,

like a barrister

building his case.

It just revolves around

this one thing.

Jesus says,

if you want life,

I'm the person

you're looking for.

There's so many other places

that offer life,

but I'm the only accredited

outlet

for satisfying

true life.

Jesus says in his own words,

I am the deeply satisfying

life you long for.

And hopefully you're seeing

the progression in the text.

You know,

you are,

you should be,

and now we've got to

Jesus' main point,

I am.

I am the deeply satisfying

life you long for.

Recognizing that Jesus

is speaking about

spiritual bread,

spiritual nourishment,

spiritual life,

the crowd now respond.

Verse 28,

and that's such a sad response.

Sometimes commentators

suggest this is the crowd

searching for truth.

I don't think that

for a moment.

I think this is just

an expression of unbelief

thrown back in the face

of Jesus.

Jesus says,

look,

I am the life

you're looking for

and I will give this life

to you as a gift.

What does the crowd say?

Tell us what we have to do

to earn it.

Tell us what we have to do

to make God happy.

It's an expression

of stubborn unbelief

in which they push back

Jesus.

Why?

I can only assume

because they're determined

to keep control

through a typical

religious response.

If you tell us

what we need to do

so that God will be happy

so that in turn

he will deliver

the good life we want.

So my friends,

the crowd are actually

refusing the terms

that Jesus just offered them.

He's offered them

deep spiritual life

and heart satisfaction

and they're rejecting it

determined to keep

salvation

and the good life

under their own control

and in their own agenda.

You see,

in stating

that he gives

the good life

of satisfaction

as a gift,

I take it that Jesus

expects them

to recognize

and acknowledge

the need for the gift

because they've tried

really hard

to find the good life

through religion

and through other things

and it's failed them.

And he would expect them

therefore to be more

attentive to

a viable alternative.

But no,

they're committed

to the same old path.

And remember back

in chapter 5,

Jesus has already

had the similar argument

with the Jewish

religious leaders.

They too should have

realized

their rebellious hearts

meant they were

hard-wired

to reject the good life

of obedience to God

and replace it

with a cheap,

unsatisfying

substitute

of their own making.

They weren't looking

for Jesus

in the Old Testament.

Why not?

That's the Jewish

religious leaders.

Jesus tells them,

you weren't looking for me

because you don't

see any need for me.

they thought

eternal life

was to be gained

simply by

going through the motions,

by reading the Bible

and keeping all the

religious festivals

and doing all the

religious things.

That's what Jesus

said to them.

You think in doing

these things

you have eternal life?

Well, he said,

no.

And Jesus pushes

back again

on this crowd

and said,

I'm offering life

much easier

than you think.

Verse 29.

So Jesus comes

back again.

You can see this

tussle,

this to and fro.

Jesus says,

it's a gift.

They say,

tell me what to do.

Jesus says,

it's real easy.

You don't have to do

anything.

You just have to believe.

He rejects

the religious

determination

that they will

please God.

He says,

no,

you won't do that.

He says,

what do you need

to do to get

this life?

He's believing,

believe in me.

I'm the one sent

by the Father

to be your bread.

Now,

I take it this answer

would have been

shocking to the crowd

because Jesus

is totally at odds

with their way

of thinking.

They're talking

about this life.

They want to earn it.

And Jesus says,

well,

you can't earn it.

What you have to do

is accept it.

And I am that life.

I am God

giving himself

to you.

to be your life,

to be your nourishment,

to be your future.

But now they hold back

and push back

for a religious option

of something

they can do

to cure

God's blessing

without having to accept

God himself

in Jesus.

And my friends,

it sounds so much

like us,

doesn't it?

I've used before

the notion

that we run

all the time

and we're not alone.

We commonly run

it as Christians.

We run

what I call

formulaic living.

If we do

A, B, and C

for God,

then it's only

right and proper

that we expect

God to do

X, Y, and Z

for us

in return.

And so when we have

a contract like that,

we get what we want

but in a sense

don't have to give up

our independence

or our sense

of entitlement.

And we don't have

to treasure God.

We don't have to

delight in him

generally.

We just recognize

that we need him

to complete

his part

of the formula.

We recognize

we need him

to resolve

the problems

which block

our happiness.

Jesus said,

I'm offering you

a way,

I'm offering you

a life that's

way better

than anything

you dare to think.

I'm offering you

the gift of God

himself,

verses 33,

35.

Again,

the crowd

hold their line.

And it's a real

struggle that's

happening here.

They hold their

line determined

to keep control

and determined

now to manipulate

Jesus into doing

what they want.

And how do they

do that?

Well,

the question is

credentials.

Remember the day

before?

They'd just seen

him and experienced

the miracle he's

done.

What do they do

now?

They say,

well,

I say Jesus,

that was all

very impressive.

You fed 5,000

from a schoolboy's

lunchbox.

Very good,

but not enough.

If you really

are the prophet

of God,

if you really

are,

who you

say you

are,

then we

want to see

something bigger

and better.

It's pretty

aggressive,

demanding,

manipulative

stuff.

They're really

saying to

Jesus,

they're really

putting pressure

on Jesus

to do what

they say

needs to be

done for

Jesus to

prove himself.

Claim to be

bigger and

better than

Moses?

Then we expect

bigger and

better miracles.

What did

Moses do?

He fed

the people,

the whole

of the

people of

Israel,

not just

for one

meal on

one day,

Jesus,

but how

many times a

day?

Twice?

Is that right?

All right,

regularly,

six days a

week for

40 years.

I suddenly

realized I

didn't know

myself there.

No,

I was actually

just testing you

guys.

I do know.

And Jesus

holds his

line,

correcting

them and

pushing them

back to

recognize and

accept him

as the

bread from

heaven,

the bread

of life

who alone

satisfies the

real hunger

of the human

heart.

And once

again,

you see,

this interaction

shows how

earthbound and

full of

unbelief they

are.

They actually

ascribe manna

to Moses,

for goodness

sake.

And Jesus

just in

passing corrects

them,

but it's a

pretty serious

correction.

Listen,

you idiots,

it wasn't

Moses that

gave you

manna,

it was God.

And that

manna was

stuff that

perished,

it was only

a temporary

fix.

I'm telling

you that I'm

giving you

a bread,

I am a

bread that's

far,

far better

than anything

you've ever

experienced in

manna.

That was the

focus of your

salvation picture

for the people

of Israel,

this manna.

Well,

I'm telling

you,

I'm now

going to be

the focus of

God's

salvation

picture with

a complete

permanent

fix.

I am

the bread

of heaven,

the bread

from heaven.

I am

among you,

God is

among you,

giving you

bread from

heaven that's

far,

far better,

way better

than you

could ever

think or

imagine.

In me,

God has

given you

himself as

the source

of true

satisfying life.

If only you

would ingest

me,

he says,

Jesus,

take me

into you

like bread,

I will

nourish not

only your

body,

but your

soul.

See,

manna was

only ever

temporary for

the physical

body.

Jesus says,

I'm total and

permanent fix

to the basic

and deepest

longing of the

human heart.

As you

ingest me as

the basic

ingredient of

life,

I will

nourish your

soul.

I will

reconnect you

to the

eternal

community of

Father,

Son,

and Spirit,

which was

what you

were made

for in

the first

place,

and the

context in

which you

will thrive

and grow

and be

healthy.

And I

am the

bread for

the whole

world,

says Jesus.

Verse 34,

they said,

Sir,

give us

this bread

always.

Now,

what do you

think?

Believing

statement?

Or another

expression of

unbelief,

shallowness.

Yeah,

not much

belief,

I don't

think.

It's a

shallowness.

It's like

the woman

of the

Samaria

at the

well.

Senses

there's

something in

it,

but doesn't

really have

a clue.

Unbelief

again.

Genuine

but shallow.

They respond

as their

sin-distorted

selves,

anticipating

having

something to

make life

better for

them,

rather than

expressing any

sort of

connection with

Jesus as

the Savior,

as a person.

But none of

that unsettles

Jesus.

And so the

last point I

want to point

you to this

morning is,

Jesus says,

I'm offering

life which is

real and

secure in

spite of your

persistent,

unreasonable

unbelief.

Verses 35 and

40.

I should say

that lots of

commentators

launch into

these verses

with doctrine

of election

and predestination

and stuff like

that, which is

all true, but I

just don't think

that's the point

of the narrative.

I think Jesus

is just saying,

look, what I'm

talking about here

is real and

secure and it's

not under threat

because of your

unbelief.

It will happen.

It's a reality

that will happen.

And Jesus says

this to the

crowd knowing

that he is the

one the crowd

are hungering for,

they just don't

recognize it.

You know,

sometimes we

experience that.

We get really

hungry and we're

longing for really

good food, but

then what happens?

We see Coke in

the fridge and we

get sidetracked by

our addiction to

sugar.

And so we settle

for something that's

absolute crap.

it's a bit like

that here.

Jesus knows that

this crowd are

longing for him.

They need him.

But their sugar

addiction is just

meaning they can't

see him or won't

see him.

They just want the

quick fix of

something that's

familiar and

comfortable to

them.

Jesus points out

something very,

very clear in

verse 36.

The only thing

between people and

true satisfaction of

deep longings is

the response to

Jesus.

In this case,

the response of

unbelief.

The question for

the crowd, you see,

ultimately, and this

is the question for

you and me today as

well.

The question for the

crowd ultimately is

not, do they

understand?

will they accept

Jesus and the

life, the eternal

life, the good

life that he offers

on his terms?

And that's exactly

the question you and

I will be divided on

today.

Okay.

But Jesus says in

spite of massive

unbelief, he will

deliver perfectly his

father's salvation

purpose.

Every single person

that the father

intends to save and

bring into eternal

life will be saved

and brought into

eternal life.

Every person that

God intends to

give life to as a

gift will come to

Jesus in trust

because the father

will powerfully

draw them to

Jesus.

Every single person

that is drawn to

Jesus will be kept

totally safe and

secure until finally

they're raised into

a full experience of

eternal life.

And eternal life,

remember, is not

just life without end,

which we might think

about, but it's

actually a life of

total satisfaction,

complete joy,

absolute security.

All of that's

involved in eternal

life.

It's the life we

were created to

enjoy.

We don't enjoy

because of sin.

It's the life we

long for.

What keeps you from

having it this

morning if you're

not already a

Christian?

Well, your

response to

Jesus.

Simple as that.

And you get two

options.

You can say, well,

this doesn't make

any sense.

Or you can come to

Jesus and say, well,

look, Jesus, I don't

fully understand, but I

want to understand.

I know I'm longing

for this life.

You're telling me that

life is to be found in

you and not in some of

these other places I've

pursued all my life.

Well, Jesus, I want to

really pursue that with

you now.

open my eyes, break my

addiction to crappy

sugars, and help me to

see what's really new.

It's a wonderful picture

of God's goodness and

generosity for his

people.

But look at the

response, verse 41.

I'm just going to leave

it hanging.

We've got two more

weeks to deal with this

passage.

I'm just going to leave

it hanging this morning.

Look at the response in

verse 41.

They've heard of the

goodness of God in

Jesus, wanting to give

them this good life, that

satisfying bread as a

gift, not that they have

to earn or work for, but

just believe and take and

accept as a gift.

And they grumble.

Nice.

Thank you.

Thank you.