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 

 John 5:18-24   John wrote in Chapter 1 verse 18 "No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him."  Jesus came to "explain" or "declare" .. to unfold, recount...the Father, the Holy One, the God Who sent Him. 

In these verses from chapter 5 John records the Words of Jesus that explain and declare Truths regarding His Father.   Jesus said that the "Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever He does, these things the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and greater works that these will He show Him, that you may marvel." ( v19-20)   Things like raising the dead.. like judging.. separating those condemned to those given true life. 

The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His Hands.. He expects His Son to be honored because He is His Son.. To honor the Son is to honor the Father, Jesus says.  To hear and believe the Words of Jesus .. to believe the Words of the Father Who sent His Son.. is the means of eternal life.  There is no other way but God's way. 

The Jews sought to kill Jesus because He called God His Father  "making Himself equal with God."  (v18)   They didn't know the Father or honor Him and would stand in condemnation from God Himself unless they repented and believed.  Jesus explained this relationship between Himself.. the Sent One. the Son.. and the Father, revealing and declaring that this was what the Father was doing.. The Father was working and the Son was that Work.. the Word.. the Life.  The oneness of the Father and the Son is revealed here and we are given the privilege to witness the Work of the Father in the life of the Son. 

"In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it." (1:4-5)

Father in heaven, we give You all praise and thanksgiving for the Life we have been given through the Beloved, Only Begotten Son.  Jesus Christ is our Lord and King, sent to speak Your Words, to do Your Works, and to deliver us from death into Life eternal.  We honor the Son and we honor You, our Father and God to whom all glory and power belongs. Amen. 

 John 5:9-17   The man who was healed by the pool carried his pallet..  and headed to the temple. It was the Sabbath.. and for the first time in 38 years he was able to walk!  He had much to be thankful for and he was ready to worship and praise God for this wonderful miracle.  But.. the first thing he runs into is judgement.. "therefore the Jews were saying to him who was cured, 'It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.' "  An incredible work of God had just been done and the Jews missed it because of a pallet... because of their hard hearts. 

The man had heard Jesus and obeyed Jesus.  He was headed to the Temple to thank and praise God, not even knowing who Jesus was until He found the man in the temple and said to him, "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse may befall you." 

This man went to the Jews and told them that it was Jesus who healed him.  They, in return,  turned on Jesus because He did this on the Sabbath. Jesus had one answer for His actions.. " My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.." 

The work of God .. His business... is not bound by the Law that He gave to men. He is always working and is not limited by earthly expectations and rules.  The Jews continually missed the Truth.. they missed Who was the Sovereign God.. the One who made the rules.  They missed God..completely. 

Psalm 86:5  "For Thou, O Lord, art good and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon Thee."  Verse 8 " There is no one like Thee among the gods, O Lord. Nor are there any works like Thine."  Verse 10 "For Thou art great and doest wondrous deeds, Thou alone are God." 

If only the Jews would remember the Words of God and given Him glory..  Let us not miss Him either..

Father in heaven, You are still at work.. in us, in our world, in the church.  You are working to bring us to know Your greatness and Your wondrous deeds.. to honor Your Holy Name.. to celebrate Your forgiveness and Your love that You have granted to us who will believe.  May our hearts be ever yielded and still before You that all You desire to do in us will bring glory to the Name of our great  Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

 John 5:1-8  Jesus went back to Jerusalem.. back to celebrate one of the feasts, perhaps Passover.   Jesus went first to Bethesda where there was a pool of water surrounded by "a multitude of of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered.. "   A hospital without any doctors or nurses.. a place where the only hope was that the water would be stirred by an angel and one person might be healed.  A place where most of the residents stayed in hopelessness. 

Jesus approached one man.  He had suffered for 38 years.  He could not even hope to reach the healing waters.. he had tried and failed too many times to try again.  Jesus asked him, "Do you wish to get well?" He didn't know who Jesus was.. he didn't have much hope.. but when Jesus spoke the Words, "Arise, take up your pallet and walk."  this man did not hesitate!  It was immediate.  He felt it. He believed.. He obeyed. 

Two quotes from the Bible Knowledge Commentary:

"His Word has power to work; people are simply to believe His Word." 

"Jesus' word accomplished His will... When people obey His command to believe, God works in and through His Word." 

" In the beginning was the Word... And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us.. " John's gospel shares with us the power of the Word and leads us to "simply believe".  

What words do we need to hear today? What is the Word of God, Jesus Christ, speaking to us.. personally?  Let us have ears to hear.. to believe and to obey. 

Father in heaven, let me hear the voice of Jesus Christ, the living Word today..in Jesus' name Amen.