”John, The Gospel of Belief” by Edwin Jones Part 7

October 21 2020 - Wednesday PM Bible Class

JOHN, THE GOSPEL OF BELIEF

Feeding 5000 and the Aftermath

John 6:1-71

 

CHAPTER SIX VERSES ONE thru FOURTEEN

(The Feeding of the 5000)

 

• The Feeding of the Five Thousand is rare in that all four of the gospel writers mention it. Commonly, John goes a separate path, emphasizing the Judean aspects of Jesus’ ministry. Here, however, although they converge, John takes the account in a different direction. The Synoptics emphasize Jesus’ power “miracles,” John emphasizes the meaning behind the power, “sign” that which signifies something.
  • The crowd followed because of the signs associated with “healing the sick.”
    • Their emphasis was temporal rather than eternal.
    • The “sign” emphasis of John is being brought to the forefront.
  • Needs and Needs.
    • Philip’s observation that Two hundred denarii would not satisfy the need, two hundred day’s wages, far more than Jesus and the Apostles had in their group treasury
    • Andrew’s five loaves and two fish were as nothing.
    • Physical inadequacy is overcome to show that the real need is a spiritual one and that in that area of need the resources are always sufficient for the task at hand (Phi. 4:13; Rom. 8:28).
  • “This is truly the prophet …” (Deut. 18:18).
    • Odd, isn’t it, that the very thing most men covet, a large following, is the very thing that Jesus so often discouraged.
    • He only wanted followers who wanted God’s will to rule their lives.

CHAPTER SIX VERSES FIFTEEN THRU TWENTY-ONE

Jesus Walks on Water)

 

• The persistence of the crowd
  • Mammon is a powerful motivator (Matt. 6:24).
  • Alas, there is no such thing as a free lunch.
• The walk on water.
  • Storms and storms
  • Keeping our eyes on Jesus (Col. 3:1-3).
  • The physical can so easily divert us from God and His care (Jn. 14:27; 16:33).

 

CHAPTER SIX VERSES TWENTY-TWO THRU SEVENTY-ONE

(The Cost of Being a Disciple)

 

• An excellent commentary on Matthew 7:13-14 and the difference between the broad and narrow roads. It also makes similar commentary on Matthew 7:21-27. Talk alone just simply will not do (Lk.6:46; I Jn. 3:18).
  • Remember that John uses the word “Jew” to mean the religious establishment, not just any group of Jewish people.
  • It is decision time for those who follow Jesus. The Christ represents His Father’s agenda perfectly; only those who recognize God’s will and sacrificially submit to it can follow Him (Jn. 6:44-45).
  • The peoples’ thinly veiled demand for more signs, like those Moses worked, only betrays their desire for a meal ticket, not a Messiah ( 6:26, 30-31).
  • Jesus puts the meal issue in stark perspective ( 6:49).
  • The contrasts of John chapter six center on the difference in quality between the temporal and spiritual, between God’s will and man’s will.
  • Jesus metaphor of “eating His flesh and drinking His blood,” was another way of speaking of the need to consume or internalize Jesus ( 6:48-59).
  • They didn’t want to accept the implications of self-denial, so they feigned ignorance.
  • This chapter is not about the Lord’s Supper, but about discipleship. The imagery Jesus uses her to indicate feeding on Him as a teacher really relates to internalizing Him through digesting His words ( 6:44-45, 63).
    • While the Lord’s Supper uses similar imagery to represent Jesus’ sacrifice and atoning blood, the Supper is not a “sacrament” in the sense of offering intrinsic value in itself (I Cor. 11:23-26).
    • At most, any allusion to the Supper is a case of metonymy.
  • In this pivotal meeting with a large crowd of Israelites, Jesus deals with the multitude (masses, vv. 22, 24), the Jews (religious leaders, vv. 41, 52), disciples (followers, vv. 60, 66), and the twelve (closest followers, v. 67). All depart, except the twelve, and one of them is a devil ( 6:70).
    • In the turmoil of disbelief and failing faith, Simon Peter gets it right. Whether we always understand Jesus, or even like what He says, there is nowhere else to go ( 6:68)!
    • The Greek of the way Jesus forms His question to the twelve is instructive. There are three ways to ask a question in Greek:
      • No indication of the expected answer.
      • If the question begins with a form of the word ouk, the speaker expects an affirmative answer (cf. Mk. 4:38).
      • If the question begins with a form of me that indicates the speaker expects a negative answer (cf. I Cor. 12:29).
      • When Jesus asks the twelve if they want to go, He expects that they will say “no” they do not want to go.
    • The narrow road will be traveled by those who realize that there is no other road available to get where they want to go.
    • Questions that arise about Judas being known as the betrayer even before the deed was done do not at all demand accepting Calvinistic predestination.
    • Just remember, the order of God’s operation is foreknowledge before predestination (Rom. 8:29).
    • Foreknowledge does not overrule the will of man; it simply knows how it will be expressed.

 

• Christianity is genuine to the extent that it listens only to God.
• The church must not be formed and maintained out of personal desires.
• Christianity cannot be a religion of convenience.
• When we do not have receptive hearts, our hearts harden—there is no middle ground!

 

Edwin

 

 

 

Duration 38:00