Message 07-16-06
Series: Longing for Life
Scripture: John 6:25-37
Title: Hunger
Intro:
Jesus claims to be the bread of life.
So here’s my question.
How do we lift up the bread of life to a society that is on a low-carb diet?
Our society is hungering for life. Our society is hungering for satisfaction. But, our society is choosing a low-carb diet.
For the next several weeks we’re going to look at the claims of Jesus. In the Gospel of John we find seven statements of Jesus that begin with the words “I Am”. Jesus identifies himself to the world, to the people of his time and to the people of our time. You may or may not realize that Jesus is identifying himself in a subtle way as well as an explicit way.
Jesus keeps saying “I Am...” as he begins. Now for a first century Jew – especially one who is reading the Gospel of John those words “I Am” are also the name of God. This was the name God gave to Moses when he asked, who should I say sent me, when he’s been told by God to go to Egypt and confront Pharaoh. God response was “Tell them ‘I Am’ sent you.” God tells Moses that his name is “I Am.”
John remembers that Jesus gave this subtle statement of identification to the people around him.
The claim of Jesus is that he is the one who will satisfy our longings. If we are aching for life, real life, abundant life then we need to look to him he says. As we go through the next weeks what we will see is that Jesus claims to have life, he claims to give life, he claims to secure life and he claims to restore life. he claims to have life, to give life, to secure life and to restore life. He claims to be the one source of meeting our deepest needs. But, as always, in doing that Jesus points us to God.
Let’s look at this.
Study:
Our story starts before the passage I read. Jesus has performed two incredible miracles. The first is the feeding of the five thousand. This is one of the events repeated in all four Gospels. Always take note of the things that are repeated in the Bible. No one could get past this miracle. One Gospel holds up a miracle that the others never mention, two or three Gospels mention a miracle that the rest leave out, but the feeding of the five thousand is mentioned in all four Gospels. Jesus proved bread.
Now, if we were to say this in modern terms it might be that Jesus’ somehow manipulated the molecules of the substance that was in his hand – bread and fish and somehow through the power of God he created more of it. He duplicated the molecules in measurable ways – and so everyone was filled and satisfied and there were leftovers.
I’m not adverse to the idea that Jesus learned things. In fact, if anything, I am adverse to the way some of my Christian brothers and sisters will put into the mouths of Joseph, Mary and even Jesus words that are the theology of today or the understandings of today. It is not necessary to claim that the people of the Bible knew everything. We don’t know everything there is to know about God. We have to trust. Jesus claimed that he had to trust God.
So when I read that Jesus first multiplied the fish and the loaves and then walked on water, I wonder if Jesus learned something. I wonder if Jesus, as the fully human being he was, learned something of the power of God. I wonder if there was a connection, a discovery, between watching God’s power provide food through his hands that gave him the confidence to walk out on water. It is difficult to keep the divinity of Jesus and the humanity of Jesus together, but it is a tension that Christ followers have been unwilling to give up. It is a paradox. It seems to conflict, but because it was the experience of the people who first walked and talked with Jesus Christ followers have remained faithful to that witness. It is hard to explain. It is hard to even tie it together, but the Church, through the ages has said it is better to do that hard work then to deny anything that was seen or heard.
So in your imaginations see the moment when Jesus came off the shore and stepped up onto the fluid? Imagine the shallow water, the little waves in the evening light. Don’t use one of the images of people that we see in so many movies now. People really can’t get over the walking on water miracle. And now that Hollywood has found a way to fake it, they do it all the time. But don’t use the movies to guide your imaginations. Imagine that Jesus isn’t just doing something on his own, but that he is doing it with God’s presence and guidance.
After walking in prayer… was he just amazed at the feeding of the five thousand? After walking in prayer, he walks out onto water.
And, in our Scripture, the next day the people get to Capernaum, they come to the Synagogue, following the direction of Jesus’ disciples. And when they arrive, knowing that Jesus wasn’t in the boat when they saw the disciples leave, they find Jesus with them.
They ask three questions
1. When did you get here?
2. What must we do to do the works God requires?
3. What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you?
When did you get here?
In the conversations with Jesus that we find recorded in John’s Gospel the people Jesus talks with seem to follow a pattern. They make a comment or ask a question and Jesus responds with something that doesn’t seem to be the point. Nicodemus comes and says, “We know you’re a teacher sent from God.” And Jesus responds by saying that unless a man is born again he can’t enter the kingdom of heaven. The woman at the well says that it is inappropriate for him to be talking to her and he says that if she knew the gift of God she would have asked him for living water. The people who came following the disciples ask when did you get here and Jesus responds with a caution about materialism.
Jesus speaks to the heart of the person, to the actual, real circumstance.
John lifts up these various conversations as if to say these are the kinds of conversations Jesus had with people. This was the kind of confusing way Jesus had of responding.
Jesus tells the people who came after him not to get so caught up in materialism, in the stuff of the world. He tells them that the gift of God – eternal life that can simply be given to them is the thing to hunger for… not just food.
Stop and imagine what you would look like physically if you hungered for eternal life instead of food. I understand that Oprah tells us that we won’t stop eating until we figure out what’s eating us. There are many things that we hunger for, aren’t there. We’ll eat for acceptance. We’ll eat just to feel good. We’ll eat because we hurt.
I just learned Village Inn’s slogan. Do you know Village Inn? Do you know their slogan? Village Inn – satisfying people’s hunger for life’s simple pleasures. Jesus calls people to answer an even deeper need.
So what do we have to do to get it?
These people missed the point didn’t they? Jesus just said it was a gift. The way to get it is to believe. These people thought that it was a process. Jesus tells them it is a gift.
Wives… do you ever wish your husband was more spiritual? Do you ever lift up to him the need for him to be studying the Bible, the need you have for him to be better, more a man of God? Do you realize that you can be leading him into thinking that he’s not good enough, not good enough for God? Do you realize that you might be breaking down his self-worth because you treat him as if he isn’t spiritual enough? Husbands… do you ever wish you were more spiritual? Do you ever ache inside yourself because you know your wife knows the Bible way better than you do, that she can quote verses and give guidance to you or your kids? Do you ever hear those words that you should be a workman, unashamed, handling the word of God correctly and feel ashamed? Men and women of this community, married or not, do you live around “spiritual giants” who make you feel inadequate? Ease up on yourself. Love God. Love People. Nothing else matters. Give yourselves a break.
Read your Bibles, but read them so you can learn about how great God is. Read them to enjoy him. Read the stories. And when you come to something that makes you question or that’s hard to understand, tell God about that. Take a couple of years and think it over. Talk it over with friends at church. Ask me about it. Come to an answer in the time it takes to come to an answer.
Read your Bible to get to know God and to enjoy him.
Believe in Jesus and talk with him about how you’re living life and how to love people better. You know if you’re not loving God the way you should. You know if you’re not loving people the way you should. You know if you’re following Christ. Confess that and ask for help and then try a different approach.
If you’re having trouble believing in Jesus, don’t be looking for someone else to be your standard. The people of Jesus’ time had a standard. It was Moses. Moses, the man of God, the prophet who led the people and did miraculous signs again and again to demonstrate the God was with his people. What sign are you going to give, they ask Jesus. Pretty amazing question after he’s just fed them. But this question again reveals the heart of the people – they are looking for competence. Their definition of belief was that they believed what they saw.
Jesus definition of belief was commitment. Jesus definition of belief was to act. Do you have some big question about what it means to love others as you love yourself? You understand that, right? Treat others the way you want to be treated. Commit yourself to do that. Don’t commit yourself because it’s going to make you look good to other people and to God. Commit yourself to it because you’re going to follow Jesus. Believe in him by committing yourself to follow him and not other people. You know when someone’s telling you something you shouldn’t do. You know when you’re choosing something that will hurt someone else or won’t support your growth or someone else’s growth. You know it and the Holy Spirit is reminding you of it. It’s not Moses. It’s God who is behind satisfying our need. It is Jesus who provides the way for us to find that satisfaction.
Anyone who comes to Jesus will never go hungry and whoever believes in him will never go thirsty. Jesus knew God and committed himself to God. Jesus knew “I Am”. Do you know I AM? Say it to your heart. I Know I Am.
