John 7  There was so much controversy and confusion over Jesus during this time.  It was the Feast of Booths.  It was a time to celebrate the harvest.. a time of rejoicing and feasting.. a time of worshiping the King.  Jesus' brothers challenged Him to go to Jerusalem and let everyone see Him.  They  did not believe in Him.  Jesus sent them away on their own.  He went up later in private but eventually ended up teaching in the temple. 

Some people questioned Jesus. Some accused Him of having a demon.  Some argued with Him and some called Him good. 

Meanwhile,  Jesus just kept on proclaiming the Words of His Father. 

He testified of the evil deeds of the world. 

He sought to give glory to the Father. 

He exhorted them to judge with "righteous judgement" not "according to appearance.

He testified that He was sent by the Father. 

He told them that He was going to leave and wouldn't be seen by them because they could not go where He was going. 

He offered them, once again, living water. 

He left them in their division and confusion. Each to make the choice for themselves.. to believe or to reject His Words. 

We live in a world that is in the same state of confusion, division and controversy.  We have been offered  the Word of Life.. and the Living Water.. and we have to make the same choice that those before us had to make... will we believe in Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit.. or will we turn away.. never able to go where Jesus has gone?  

Jesus says that if we seek Him we will find Him. If we believe we will have Life.  If we trust in Him we will be held in His Hands and He will never cast us away.  The Father has set this course for mankind.  He sent Jesus for this purpose and given us the opportunity to find salvation through Christ.  If.. we will believe. 

But, if we refuse. If we let our hearts stay hard and broken. If we stay in our sin and confusion.. we will never see Him for we cannot go where He is. Not everyone will go to heaven.  Death will come to everyone.  The choice has to be made now. Tomorrow may be too late. 

Father in heaven, You are Holy and good. You offered up Your Son so that we might believe on Him and receive eternal life.  Thank You. Give us faith that is living and growing by Your grace and power. Help us to love as You have loved us.  Help us to walk in the Truth.  Help us to worship and celebrate every day the blessings that You have provided. Remove any confusion and cleanse us from all evil we pray. In Jesus'  name we come. amen

 John 6:41-71  Jesus has two answers for those who were grumbling because He said He had come from heaven.. 

First, " No one can come to Me, unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up on the last day." (v44)  and again in v65 "For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me, unless it has been granted him from the Father." 

Everything begins and ends with God.  He created everything and He is control of everything.  It is by His grace that Jesus was sent into the world to be the "bread of life."  It is the Father who opens our eyes to see and our ears to hear.. that we might come to Jesus and believe and receive Life. It is the Father that offers this precious Sacrifice.. flesh and blood.. given so that we might have eternal life.  If we don't believe the Father.. we cannot know the Son. 

Secondly, Jesus continues to use this illustration of eating bread and drinking blood to reveal the most vital truth.. His Life is the only food that feeds the spirit.  He invites us to consume Him.  He is the source of life and unless we partake of His sacrifice.. His body.. His blood.. we "have no life" in us. 

Jesus says that His words are "spirit and are life".  When others moved away from Jesus because these words "hard".. the disciples chosen by Jesus chose to stay. "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life." (v68)   They believed.  All except Judas.. for even though he stayed.. he was not granted life from the Father. 

These are hard words. They challenge our understanding.  We want faith to be as simple as just saying, "Jesus come into my heart.".  And, in some ways it is.. but, here we are faced with knowing that the Father doesn't always grant that "drawing" of people to Jesus.  Some people, like Judas, have the same opportunity to believe, but don't.  Some people, whom we pray for.. don't come to faith... ever.  It breaks our hearts. I have asked that question, "Why, Lord?"  But, even when we don't understand we still believe.. for there is no other way.. and we can trust Him still. 

It is hard to understand how.. how do we eat His flesh and drink His blood?  How do we go that far?  What does that mean, really?  We need the Spirit of God to give us the life of Jesus. We need the Father to draw us to Jesus.  We need the body and blood of Jesus to abide in Him and He in us.  

Father in heaven, holy and mighty God, grant us wisdom to comprehend Your Word and to go deeper with Jesus by the work of Your holy Spirit in us. You have given us Words of Eternal Life.  Fill us now with Your Presence.  We need You, Lord. Thank You for hearing our prayers.  May Your will be done in us this day. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 

 John 6:30-40   Jesus told the people to stop working just for food for their bodies but to do the work of God -  get  food for their souls.. spiritual food.. "believe in Him whom He has sent." 

The same people who ate the multiplied loaves and fishes.. now wanted a "sign"?  Another "work"? Did they want manna?   Though their ancestors ate it and still failed to obey God's Word..did they think they needed to see it for themselves.?

Jesus told them that there was something better than manna.. it was "true bread out of heaven".. Himself. 

"I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."   He is the One who came down out of heaven to give life to the world. He is the One they must believe in so that they could have eternal life.  This "is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him, may have eternal life; and I Myself will raise him up on the last day." 

 Jesus said,  "All that the Father gives Me shall come to Me, and the one who come to Me I will certainly not cast out..  ( v37)"And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day."  (39)    What wonderful promises.. the Father gives us to Jesus and Jesus receives us who believe in Him.  He is the One who will raise us up.. from death to life.. from darkness to light.. from destruction to salvation!   He will not let us go.. He is able to do all that the Father wills.. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Thank You Father for bringing us into Your Kingdom through Your grace as we come to Jesus and find true Life.  Help us to believe and obey Your Word, wholly and completely surrendered to You.  May we continually find life in the Bread of Heaven.. who promised that He would never cast us out.  We hold on to these promises as we pray that our faith will grow stronger, deeper, and never falter.. for Christ is our Lord forever by Your great mercy and love. Thank You. amen. 

 John 6:15-29   Jesus sent the multitude away and then He sent His disciples away, while He went up to the mountain by Himself.  He knew that the people wanted to force Him to become the king.. and that they wanted Him to keep on doing miraculous things to satisfy their stomachs.  His purpose was altogether different than what the people thought. 

The disciples went into their boat and began to cross the sea. They had waited for Jesus but it was getting dark .  Matthew tells us that Jesus had told them to go ahead of Him.   "And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew."   This storm came out of nowhere and was slowing them down.  Then... they saw Jesus.  They were frightened by this sight until Jesus spoke, "It is I, do not be afraid." 

John omits the story of Peter walking on the water with Jesus.  He tells only that Jesus got in the boat and they "immediately" arrived on the shore where they were headed. 

The people who had been left on the other side of the sea realized that Jesus was gone and they found some boats to take them across to Capernaum.  They found Jesus already there and couldn't figure out how He got there without them seeing.  They were confused. All they wanted was more bread and more signs.  Instead Jesus gave them spiritual instructions.. 

"Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man shall give you, for on Him the Father, even God, has set His seal."   What work? they asked.  "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent." 

To work means to be occupied - to do-- to be engaged in..  The "work of God"  Jesus said, is believing - trusting - having faith in God and the One who He sent.  Don't be occupied with the physical things.. be occupied with the spiritual things.. this is what God requires. This is why He sent Jesus.  There is a spiritual food that is so much more vital than bread that is here today and gone tomorrow.  Jesus goes on to tell them that He is that Bread.

Father in heaven, we tend to be just as confused and mistaken as the people who were following Jesus.. who had eaten the bread until they were satisfied and wanted more of the same.  We need Jesus.. we need to eat of the spiritual Bread.  Fill us today Lord that we might walk in this Truth and live for You in all we do.. Let us do our work.. having faith in Jesus.. with all of our being. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. 

 John 6:1-14  Keeping in mind that everything that Jesus did was according to the Father's will.. revealing the Father to His people.. this miracle gives us a greater glimpse into the greatness of God. 

Jesus takes His followers across the Sea of Galilee and into a deserted area.  He then tests Phillip by asking him where he could buy some bread.  Impossible place and an impossible amount of hungry people! Phillip recognizes the futility of the situation.  But, Andrew brings a boy with a small lunch.. 5 loaves of barley bread and 2 small fish.  This is just what Jesus would use to feed over 5000 men, plus women and children..

He took the loaves and gave thanks. He distributed the loaves to His disciples and then the fish.  Everyone ate. Everyone was satisfied. The leftovers were more than the original amount they started with... 12 baskets full. 

We depend on God's provision for our daily bread.. there is no bread without grain.. there is no grain without soil and water and sunshine.  There are no fish except that God has provided.  We are as helpless to provide food for ourselves and our families as Phillip was for the multitude.  But.. God sees our need and has provided for us.. to satisfy us.. and to even provide more than we need so that we can help others. This is the greatness of our God. 

Psalm 145: 15-16 says, " The eyes of all look to Thee, and Thou dost give them their food in due time. Thou dost open Thy hand and dost satisfy the desire of every living thing,"   Jesus did what the Father does.  It was as plain as day that He was God.. the Son who came in the flesh to show us the Father.  Yet.. they still did not understand or believe. 

Father help us to see clearly.. that we might know Your greatness and the greatness of Jesus Christ who came in the flesh that we might know You and believe. Thank You for all that You have provided, we exalt and worship You.. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised!

 Amen

 John 5 : 25-32  Jesus is the Word and He speaks what His Father tells Him to speak. His work was to reveal the Father.. reveal the Truth about God's Kingdom.  In this passage Jesus reveals the Truth about life and death.  His statement in verse 25 is powerful.. "Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear shall live." 

Life.. is in the Father and in the Son.  Jesus received from the Father two things.. the authority to give life and the authority to pass judgement.  There will be a time, Jesus tells us, that "all who are in the tomb shall hear His voice." (v28)  Those who believed the Word would be resurrected into Life.  Those who refused to believe and remained in their sinful state.. would be resurrected to "judgement"....  A just verdict of condemnation and punishment will be rendered. 

Once again Jesus declared, "I can do nothing on My own initiative.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgement is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me." 

God created everything and set up His plan for all the world according to His will.  He writes the story of history.. and he determines the rules.  Life and judgment are His to give as He chooses.  He decided to give Life to those who would listen to His Word and abide in it.  He sent Jesus to reveal this absolute Truth.. From the beginning of creation to the end.. this is His will.  It is a merciful and gracious gift. It is a priceless promise from His grace and love to His creation.. mankind.   He gave Jesus to fulfill all that was needed to complete the transaction according to His own will. 

Those who refuse to hear.. refuse to believe... and refuse to surrender and obey.. will be held accountable for that decision. They will be judged by Jesus and He will render a just judgement. 

Father in heaven, You are holy, righteous, and perfect.  You are gracious and merciful, full of lovingkindness and love.  You have revealed to us the Truth. You have offered us Life.  You have told us the penalty of rejecting the Truth and the Life.  Father, there are so many who have deaf ears and blind eyes. We plead for You to send forth Your Spirit into the world, once again anointing Your church with the power and love of Jesus Christ so that more will hear and  turn from unbelief and find salvation through the Son who died for them. Let the Name of Jesus be exalted and lifted up today so that the harvest will be great to the glory and honor of Your Name. Amen 

 John 5 : 25-32  Jesus is the Word and He speaks what His Father tells Him to speak. His work was to reveal the Father.. reveal the Truth about God's Kingdom.  In this passage Jesus reveals the Truth about life and death.  His statement in verse 25 is powerful.. "Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear shall live." 

Life.. is in the Father and in the Son.  Jesus received from the Father two things.. the authority to give life and the authority to pass judgement.  There will be a time, Jesus tells us, that "all who are in the tomb shall hear His voice." (v28)  Those who believed the Word would be resurrected into Life.  Those who refused to believe and remained in their sinful state.. would be resurrected to "judgement"....  A just verdict of condemnation and punishment will be rendered. 

Once again Jesus declared, "I can do nothing on My own initiative.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgement is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me." 

God created everything and set up His plan for all the world according to His will.  He writes the story of history.. and he determines the rules.  Life and judgment are His to give as He chooses.  He decided to give Life to those who would listen to His Word and abide in it.  He sent Jesus to reveal this absolute Truth.. From the beginning of creation to the end.. this is His will.  It is a merciful and gracious gift. It is a priceless promise from His grace and love to His creation.. mankind.   He gave Jesus to fulfill all that was needed to complete the transaction according to His own will. 

Those who refuse to hear.. refuse to believe... and refuse to surrender and obey.. will be held accountable for that decision. They will be judged by Jesus and He will render a just judgement. 

Father in heaven, You are holy, righteous, and perfect.  You are gracious and merciful, full of lovingkindness and love.  You have revealed to us the Truth. You have offered us Life.  You have told us the penalty of rejecting the Truth and the Life.  Father, there are so many who have deaf ears and blind eyes. We plead for You to send forth Your Spirit into the world, once again anointing Your church with the power and love of Jesus Christ so that more will hear and  turn from unbelief and find salvation through the Son who died for them. Let the Name of Jesus be exalted and lifted up today so that the harvest will be great to the glory and honor of Your Name. Amen