“Pre-Revival: Jesus, When Did You Get Here?” Pastor Hines August 1, 2021

 

“Pre-Revival: Jesus, When Did You Get Here?”

Pastor Hines

August 1, 2021

 

The gospel of John is all about Jesus. The other gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke focus on the kingdom of God, the community of Christ. But the gospel of John is all about Jesus. John’s emphasis is on Jesus as wisdom, Jesus as the forerunner of the Holy Spirit that comforts. There are said to have been more people converted by reading the gospel of John than any other readings. So be it. Who wrote the gospel of John? God knows. We often think it was John, the son of Zebedee. Perhaps, since scriptures talk about a savior who loved justice and spoke against evil, the precious ancient scrolls had to be hidden in caves in hopes of retrieving them after persecutions, riots and wars had ended, perhaps more than one had a hand in writing the Word. Isn’t it wonderful that we have God’s word? There are some in this world who, at this time, are not allowed to possess it or read it or speak it.

In A.D. 301-304, the Roman Emperor Diocletian burned thousands of copies of the Bible, commanded that all Bibles be destroyed and decreed that any home with a Bible in it should be burned. ... Five hundred years after Diocletian's death, his grave (a huge mausoleum) became a Christian church. (Wikipedia) Even today an organization called Voices of the Martyrs works to get bibles in countries that don’t cherish it. The United Methodist Church has missionaries whose names cannot be shared because their lives are in danger for spreading the gospel in certain countries. We ought to pray for those ready to sacrifice their lives to spread good news in a terrible time.

John begins his gospel story with these words in chapter 6:

²⁴ When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus. When was the last time you came looking for Jesus? Was it to give thanks for good news? Perhaps you were looking for Jesus in order to receive good news. If you are looking for Jesus, at all, you are doing a good thing. One Bethel leader noted that so many in the world are not going to church anymore, not loving God and one another as much as we have known. The values of treating one another as human beings and caring for those who are suffering are being replaced with behavior that is foul and sad.

The crowd was looking for Jesus. Verse 25 says   ²⁵ When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” They had worked so hard to keep up with Jesus, following his every move that they could not understand how they did not see him leaving and going to the other side of the lake. Ours is to seek him even when we do not know where he is or where he is going. But he knows all about us.

  ²⁶ Jesus replied, “I assure you that you are looking for me not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate all the food you wanted. Jesus knows our hearts and if you stand still enough, he will tell you about yourself.

Perhaps that crowd had been fed along with the 5,000 a few verses earlier in John.  You might wonder if the crowd looking for Jesus was a crowd with what is called “food insecurity.” There are so many churches, synagogues, masjids, and organizations working day and night in order to feed children and their families who are otherwise without food. Not only is there a risk that some won’t have enough food, especially fresh foods, but some in this world are indeed “food insecure.” They don’t know if there will be enough food to eat. While some are stocking and over stocking shelves with food so much so that much of it becomes outdated, while some are hoping a few apples or a dozen eggs can be stretched a few more days, stores and restaurants are tossing food into garbage bins because they are overstocked or slightly irregular.

One documentary showed a very conscientious couple safely retrieving groceries on purpose for several weeks from garbage bins behind grocery stores and restaurants to show how unconscionable it is that people are food insecure when food is being tossed away.

As a public school teacher, my mother noted that government regulations required that boxes of extra, good, unopened milk and juice could not be given to children. They had to be thrown away. Sometimes, she confessed, she just broke the rules and gave some to a child according to her discretion. We do well to follow the example of Jesus with the many ways we are finding to feed those who would otherwise be hungry. 

Nevertheless, even when we are hungry, Jesus tells us in verse 27:

²⁷ Don’t work for the food that doesn’t last but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Human One will give you (or the “Son of Man will give you as other versions say in order to emphasize that Jesus was human as well as divine). God the Father has confirmed him as his agent to give life.”

Life is certainly precious and valuable in God’s sight. At the same time, as the song says, God’s lovingkindness is better than life. Culturally speaking, we are often primed to save our lives at all costs. Still, there are some things even more important even than life.

Jesus wanted the crowd to know that even though they hungered for physical food that could sustain their physical life, spiritual food is a higher priority because it nurtures us on the inside. It strengthens us, roots us and grounds us in the spiritual foundations of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. ²⁸ The crowd was willing to focus a moment on spiritual food and not just their hunger for physical food. So they asked Jesus, “What must we do in order to accomplish what God requires?”

²⁹ Jesus replied, “This is what God requires, that you believe in him whom God sent.” What a testimony that this crowd wanted directions on how to please God! But they also wanted something else. Listen to verse 30.

³⁰ They asked, “What miraculous sign will you do, that we can see and believe you? What will you do? ³¹ Our ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, just as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat.” They wanted Jesus to do a miracle. They went right back to the idea of eating physical food. Physical hunger does that to us. Dr. Oz says that in order to strengthen his body, he stops eating at a certain point in the day. While others suggest that are healthier if we don’t eat after 7 p.m. Dr. Oz has said he stops eating at 3 p.m. He says if we take his advice, we will definitely feel hunger. Don’t stay up too late because the hunger will nag at you. But for the sake of your health, give your body a chance to rest from eating for at least 12 hours, if you can.

³² Jesus told them, “I assure you, it wasn’t Moses who gave the bread from heaven to you, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ The bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Jesus moves them away from the manna, the physical food and back to the true bread of heaven.

The true bread is the real bread, not a simulation like cubic zirconia simulates a diamond. The true bread is not like a knock off perfume my friend gets in the dollar store that sort of smells like the expensive version but is missing some key ingredients. The true bread is the original, where the idea of nurture starts. The true bread is like the true vine, where God begins growing something great and doing something good. We can pinch a piece off and start new growth from that true vine. We can get a copy of the recipe of the true bread from heaven. If we miss one ingredient, we miss having the true bread from heaven, we come short of that which is most glorious.

The true bread fills you up and satisfies your needs and longings. The true bread, is the true feast, is the true sustenance. The true bread is as Jesus said, to believe in Jesus, to act like you know God is good and has a wonderful plan for our lives, to trust. Just as we sit in a seat with confidence that it will support us. We believe, we act as if Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. We act like Jesus matters, Jesus cares, Jesus knows us and will guide us to something greater than a common loaf of bread. We are guided to the bread of heaven. That is what we have today as we take communion. This is no ordinary table. This is not just any kind of bread.

The crowd believed. They understood that Jesus had a lot to offer. We pray also that our neighbors, family and friends that crowd around us will know that Jesus has a lot to offer. We pray that they will find a church or a community with rich fellowship, with the word of God preached and taught, with the spirit moving in the hearts of God’s people so much so that their souls would be satisfied. That is what we want for our loved ones, isn’t it. We want them to be in the path of all the blessings God has ordained for all of us.

³⁴ The crowd continued to listen to Jesus. They believed. They said, “Sir, give us this bread all the time!” And that is what we can say too. Give us this bread all the time. And we will receive it with thanksgiving. Remember this table all the time, every day, in every situation, in the happy moments, in the sad moments. All the blessings we need in life are at this table, all the guidance, all the help, all the hope, all the answers, it’s all here. It is a prayer a way. Remember today and always. Jesus is here for you. Jesus is all we need. He’s closer to you than your next breath.