John 6
http://ifcus.org/2011/02/14/in-america/ Bonnie’s notes on Dr. Dave’s Comments—John Chapter 6
This is a favorite chapter of Roman Catholics and Calvinists—it shouldn’t be!
Jesus was not looking to attract crowds. His purpose was to do the Father’s will and train His disciples. Crowds had taken to following Him around during this part of His ministry. He had been teaching them all day concerning the “kingdom of God.” In fact, He had tried to get away from them and couldn’t. When he sees them coming and gathered, He is thinking ahead about their comfort. They need to be fed. In those days, a penny was a day’s wage so when Philip mentions 200 penny worth, he’s talking about a lot of money–200 working days worth!
The Lord doesn’t ask Philip if they should buy bread but asks him whence – namely, from what source or by what means. Philip evades that part. Being a very practical one, he is at least honest in answering that even if they knew where to get such meals, a lot of money would not buy enough for this size crowd. He is not exercising faith this day but just thinking as a normal human. How like us. We often depend on ourselves and our own strength. It’s not always apparent how the Lord could work in various situations.
I like Andrew. He must have a servant type of personality because he knows a little boy’s lunch is pitifully small but he wants to be of any help he can. It’s a start. We know there are at least 5,000 here but there could be many more if you counted women and children. Some have estimated as many as 20,000. I guess we’ll find out for sure when we watch the “replay” in the heavenly records. We really have to love this little boy, too. Andrew wouldn’t commandeer his lunch, the boy must have heard and offered it: another caring person who really wants to help. [Have you noticed that if we really care and want to help, the Lord will let us help in His work too?]
John tells us that Jesus already knew what He was going to do. His question to Philip was a test. What would you have said if you were in that position? This is also the only incident on record where Jesus asks someone’s advice. He had everything well under control. You wonder why they didn’t just ask Jesus what to do. (I probably would have said, “I have no clue, surely you know what to do, Lord! Just tell us and we’ll help.) You would have thought they had seen enough miracles by now to trust Him to act appropriately.
v. 10 — Everything is organized, done decently, and orderly. (Christians are not to be disorganized.) Jesus begins to instruct them on what to do. [My questions are, “Where did the baskets come from? Were they all the same size? Did the disciples carry around supplies with them just in case? When people were taking food out and the basket was less full, did new fish and bread appear just in time? Did that happen when one person was passing it to his neighbor so you didn’t exactly see it happen? Hmm?]
v. 11 — Jesus gave thanks, the food was distributed, and people took what they wanted. There’s a type here for us to consider. The key is in the word distributed. We need to share (distribute) the “bread of life” (the Gospel) with others. The Lord starts it and we help. There was no forcing of the crowd here, they took whatever they wished from what the disciples offered. We are not capable of forcing the Gospel on people anyway, but be sure that they know it fully and what the ramifications are if they choose against Christ.
v. 12 — All were filled. When a person becomes a believer in the full sense of the word, he is filled with the Holy Spirit as the Lord regenerates him. Indwelling is permanent, but “filling” with power for service is needed repeatedly. See the book of Acts and our notes on this. The disciples cleaned up after everyone. This was a quality job. Christians are not slobs. What kind of miracle is this one? One of creation (making matter) by the One who created the whole universe! It must have been the best tasting bread and fish these people had ever had!
v. 15 — The people want to make Jesus King, but they want a King who will free them from Rome, not from their own spiritual darkness. Jesus fulfills the Messianic prophecy in Deut. 18:15-19, but it is not His time to be King. He is to lead the people out of spiritual darkness, not into political freedom. Kingship will come later. Jesus does not need the help of the people to do His work. He is in ministry mode now and so we should be as well. This modern movement of ushering in the kingdom is inappropriate and impossible. The end times see only an increase in apostasy and wickedness – see 2 Tim 3:1-5, 3:13, 4:1-4 for example. The advent of the second coming of Christ comes in Revelation 19 and His timing will be perfect as it has been throughout Scripture. After a full day with people, Jesus needs some time with His Father so He sends the disciples on ahead and He goes off alone to commune with God.
v. 16-20 — These men were seasoned fishermen and they knew how to handle boats so it probably was a rather fierce storm. A furlong is about 600 feet. The sea was reportedly 40 furlongs across so they were a little over half way (25 furlongs). Most likely they saw Jesus walking on the water and thought Him a ghost or apparition. How comforting to hear Him say, “It is I; be not afraid.” Perhaps He came in this manner to encourage them. How comforting it is to us to hear Him say, “Don’t be afraid—I will never leave thee nor forsake thee — lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
v. 21 — As soon as they receive Him, the trouble is over. Do you remember how you felt when you properly settled things with the Lord? He will be with us to the end and make sure we get there. Here is another miracle indeed, for as soon as He enters the boat, their trip is accelerated and they reach the other side quickly. That’s the kind of flight or boat ride I’d like to have! He’s the Lord of time too!
Now we go to the next day. People on the other side had seen Jesus’ disciples depart without Him. They saw no other boats and wondered where He was. Other boats arrived and took them across the water where they see the disciples and the Lord. “How did He get there?” they wonder.
v. 24-26 — “Seekers” is used frequently today when churches say they are “seeker friendly” etc. There is no such thing as a “seeker” from a Biblical view. Until you repent, you’re a rebel!
Remember these people had wanted to make Jesus king the previous day just because He filled their stomachs! They aren’t really looking for the spiritual but the physical—they want the good life now. Curiously, Jesus doesn’t answer their question. He does rebuke them and tries to steer them in the right direction. We can use the same technique when witnessing. Avoid foolish questions and keep on the important issues. (Dr. Dave says sometimes it is good to answer a person’s question if you can tell that it will truly help him to understand but, a lot of the time, questions are asked to distract or satisfy mere curiosity, so avoiding them is appropriate.) Here, Jesus ignores the curiosity of the people and tells them what their motive is: to satisfy their present day appetites and not their future spiritual condition. He steers the conversation to what He knows is most important.
v. 27 — Be concerned about your spiritual condition, not the material wants of the day. Labor for salvation. This is like sitting in a difficult college course and using your mind to understand what you are hearing and seeing. It is intense mental work to interpret what the prof is saying, put it into your own words and put the ideas to practical use. By the same token, it is mental and spiritual work to humble yourself before God because you change your mind about things to conform to His truth. You turn your thoughts and attitudes to Christ and away from what you thought previously.
“Sealed” has the sense that God approves totally of His Son. Underwriter’s Laboratory has their “seal of approval” on various products they have tested. In the past, documents were sealed with wax and the one approving them pushed his ring into the wax imprinting it with his mark to show it was official. Jesus was approved by the Father at His baptism. He is the official representative of His Father. When we get converted and reborn, we are Christ’s representative.
v.28 — They pick up on this word labor rather than the urging to put their mind on spiritual things and ask Him what works are best. They are thinking of the Law and how they can do works to obey it. They want to know how to do right but Jesus tells them to believe on Him. Ephesians says salvation is by grace (God’s part) and faith (our part) and not of works lest any man should boast. God specifies what He wants and we succeed by obeying.
v. 29 — What work is God most interested in them doing? Believing in Christ. Jesus just said this is work (labor used as a verb form denoting action) so it’s a good refutation of Calvinism. A Calvinist accuses us of works salvation by explaining that if we choose to believe then we are doing a work. He would argue that you don’t have that choice. Because he says only the elect are saved and they can only believe if God irresistibly regenerates them, you can’t even make a decision of your own to believe. Changing your mind from old beliefs to new ones is certainly mental work or processing even though it’s not physical work. If Jesus says choosing to believe in Him is a work, then so be it.
v. 30 — What foolish Israelites! They want another physical sign! They just saw Jesus feed 5,000 less than 24 hours ago and now they want another miracle?! It is often said that seeing is believing but it is seldom true. “ Seeing is seeing. Believing is being sure without seeing — (Morgan).” The manna in the wilderness lasted for 40 years — can He top that? Surely the wilderness miracle is more heroic than one meal!
v. 32 — It wasn’t Moses that brought the bread, it was God. That bread was for physical nourishment as they wandered through the wilderness but not for eternal life. The bread that God sent down from heaven (Jesus) was for spiritual life everlasting and spiritual nourishment — far more important than material wants.
v. 34 — The people are still thinking physically.
v. 35 — Just as Moses learned that God was the “I AM,” meaning “always existent,” Jesus equates Himself with God by using the same terminology. It’s the same lesson as with the woman at the well. Take care of your spiritual condition and stop thinking on the earthly level.
The word believe here means more than a onetime acknowledgement of Jesus as Lord. The belief is ongoing throughout the life of a Christian. As a believer learns to live by faith, trusting Jesus day by day, he finds he will never hunger or thirst. Knowing that the future is secure in His hands satisfies like nothing else can. It gives hope where there was none. It allows us to give that hope to others as well.
v. 36 — Some believe fully but many do not. The manna in the wilderness was for everyone and so is Jesus. He offers the truth and His saving grace to anyone who repents and turns his faith toward Him. The individual must choose. How does anyone find out what the Lord means? Study His Word. John 5 just told us to search the Scripture.
The world is full of misconception and falsehood. To discern the truth takes much familiarity with the Bible. [Bonnie — I tell people, if God has designed a way for people to be reconciled with Him, don’t you think He would make it easy for them to find it? He did. It’s in His Word. Don’t listen to people tell you truth without testing it against what the Lord Himself says.]
v. 37 — The first half of the verse is a favorite Calvinist reference, but they somehow miss the second half and also don’t seem to notice verse 40 which uses the all inclusive “every one.” All the Father hath given me refers to the Apostles. See John 17:6, 12, (Jesus is instructing his disciples in this passage); John 6: 70,71; John 17:70 — “these alone” are the 11 disciples; John 15:16.19; and John 18:8,9. Therefore it is clear that the Lord is referring to His immediate disciples, and not making a universal reference to humanity’s salvation. The second half of the verse accounts for anyone that comes to Jesus who doesn’t happen to be among His immediate disciples in 30 A.D.
Rice says there are a number of words for the heart turning to Christ for salvation. One believes, or repents, or calls on the Lord, or obeys the Gospel, or takes the cup of salvation, or comes to Christ but all these statements refer to the turning of the heart from sin to trust in Christ for salvation. Come to Christ as in Is. 1:18; Is. 55:1-2; and Matt. 19:14.
Moody was right when he said “’the whosoever wills’ are the elect and the ‘whosoever won’ts,’ are the non elect. Man gets to choose to receive a free gift. That’s grace.
v. 40 — Here “every one” means anyone who believes in the required way will have everlasting life. See 1 Tim 2 and II Peter 3.
v. 42 — Now they aren’t confused, just resistant and murmuring among themselves rather than listening and trying to understand. They knew of Mary’s situation and the birth and can’t get beyond that scandal to figure out how Jesus could say He was from above.
v. 44 — Rice: A sinner may say, “I can get saved anytime I want to.” That is a foolish statement. One holding on to sin, hardened in his deliberate rejection of Christ, is in danger of death and hell at any moment.
It’s also clear that God draws on everyone, but some get more opportunities than others. An unsaved husband will have many opportunities to hear and respond to truth manifested by a godly wife. Those raised in a cult and marrying within that cult may not have so many chances. Then how sinful and foolish to reject when God calls!
No one has a guarantee that tomorrow he will feel convicted or will want to be saved. We regularly witness to lost people who get under some conviction, but then put off the opportunity. That can harden them against another Gospel witness. Jn. 12:32-33 proves that the Lord draws “all men.”
The call may be through creation (Rom. 1:19-20) or conscience (Rom. 2:11-16) or Scripture (Is. 54:13) or from personal witnessing by a believer (Matt. 28:19-20). At any rate, all are without excuse. Light responded to will draw more light.
Sorenson: The drawing here is as in a fishing net. It is not an allusion to some form of irresistible grace but refers to the simple truth that when Jesus is lifted up, His divine grace draws men to Him. Conviction comes by the Holy Spirit. No one can say he was not called.
v. 45 — See Isaiah chapters 2 and 54 and Micah chapter 4 which describes the millennium as a time of learning.
v. 46 — Jesus is claiming a special communion with the Father.
v. 48-57 — Jesus contrasts the physical with the spiritual. The manna was physical food and the people that ate it physically died. Belief in Jesus is spiritual food and yields eternal life after physical death.
The Roman Catholics like to leap in here and do their transubstantiation thing — meaning that they believe when the elements of the supper are transformed by an ordained RC priest, they actually become the body and blood of Jesus imbuing them with some kind of miraculous spiritual power and payment for sin. A careful reading of this whole passage clearly shows that to take the Bread of Life is to believe on Christ and trust in His work of redemption. Catholics teach that there is saving power in the Eucharist, that it’s a continual bloody sacrifice of Christ. In every mass they are repeating the sacrifice that Hebrews 9:28 says was “once offered to bear the sins of many” as well as Hebrews 10:16-18 . . . “now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.” It is inexcusable to teach that Jesus meant salvation is in the mass presided over by a Roman priest.
Salvation is in personally recognizing our willful sinfulness, repenting from it and turning to Jesus in faith. Before Jesus gave up the ghost, He cried, “It is finished!” To claim to offer Christ as a repeated bloody sacrifice is blasphemous and an affront to God’s mercy.
The Jews He was talking to should have known the meaning of the showbread, the twelve loaves put on the table in the Holy Place in the Temple each week. As the candlestick pictured Christ as the light of the world, the showbread, like the manna from heaven, pictured Christ as the Bread of Life. Jesus restates it as eating His body and drinking His blood. Also remember that the Old Testament forbids drinking blood because the life is in the blood. Jesus would not go against His own Word — Lev. 17:10-12. It is clear that He is using figurative language here and the Lord’s supper is a memorial of what the Lord has done. It is not some supernatural mystical occurrence giving the participant special power. Jesus tells them that He will give His life for the life of the world.
In verse 54, Jesus is referencing the sacrifices He will make. He will give his life (flesh, body, blood) for the world that whosoever believeth in Him will gain eternal life. In turn, we give him a sacrifice as well (Rom. 12:1-2) and die to self. These concepts are a real stumbling block for this crowd. They can’t get their minds turned from the physical to the spiritual. Jesus says in verse 63 that He is speaking in a spiritual context. In verses 57 and 58 — “not as your fathers ate manna” means the physical but the living bread is the spiritual.
Morgan: Unless you enter into the experience that comes by the way of the shedding of blood (death as payment for sin demanded by a righteous God), you have no life in yourselves.
v. 62 — He’s prophesying the ascension and alluding to His pre-existence in heaven. Then they will really know who He is and how powerful He is.
v.63 — “I’ve been teaching you spiritually. Life is in God’s words.” Jesus calls Himself the Word. How can you possibly doubt that He would preserve it?
v. 65 — God has a part in drawing people.
v.66 — There is no distinction between the term believer or disciple (disciple means follower) but if a disciple walks away, he is not a believer and does not belong to Christ. You are either in or out: saved or not saved. You can believe but not enough to be converted and therefore a true disciple of the Lord. These are the ones that walked away and followed Him no more. If you believe, that means you have changed your mind and your actions will reflect it.
v. 67 — Here is a real gutsy question! [I wish I could hear the tone of voice here!] Phil. 2:1-11 tells us how Christians should be. He may be down to the last 12 disciples now.
v. 68 — Peter really got it! He says “to whom” should we go. He recognizes that salvation is in a person, that person is Jesus Christ and the words are really important. Jesus is the only way.
v. 69 — Here is a good description of salvation – faith in the Christ described so wonderfully throughout the OT Scriptures.
v. 70 — Jesus is thinking of the one He’s going to lose like the shepherd who leaves the 99 and goes to look for the one that is lost. Judas was never saved. The word devil means adversary. He didn’t lose his salvation because he never had any to begin with. He lost his position of ministry to go to his own place (Acts 1:25). What an example of a hard heart! It’s almost inconceivable that he could spend three years with Jesus and still betray him.
The Jews to whom Jesus is speaking in this passage are just as hard hearted. They refuse to understand Him because the bottom line is that they want to be their own boss and have things their own way—the complete opposite of what it takes to be born again.
~~Bonnie