John 6:52-71

John 6:52-59 Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

Jesus gets more challenging here. He brings up His blood. Now He’s not just describing Himself as the bread from heaven, but the Passover Lamb. Remember it was the Israelites placing the blood of the slain lamb over their door that protected them at the first Passover.

But here’s Jesus talking about drinking His blood. In the law of Moses, God sternly forbade drinking or eating meat with blood remaining in it. The only permissible use for blood in the Old Testament was to make atonement for sin. Because of this law, Orthodox Jews today drain all blood from meat before cooking. But Jesus now said, “Unless you drink of this blood you have no life in you.”

This shocked and deeply offended the people who refused to acknowledge the spiritual meaning of His words. But, remember when John the Baptist saw Him in the crowd and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.’

God’s grand story of redemption in the Old and New Testaments and Jesus’ historical death on the cross make the spiritual meaning of these words clear. With the pictures of the Old Testament sacrifices in mind, the New Testament states, “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness”. Because shed blood points to death, to “drink” Jesus’ blood is to participate personally in His death. It means more than simply knowing He died for sinners. It means trusting that He died for you and for the forgiveness of your specific sins.

Jesus’ blood shed on the cross not only cleanses believers from the guilt of sin, but also delivers us from the power of sin. His very name was given to Him because it means, “He will save his people from their sins.”

To “drink Christ’s blood” is, through faith in His death, to count yourself as having died with Him to your old life. This means you renounce your own rights and all merit, strength and wisdom that come from your own resources. Instead you trust in His sacrifice as the only atonement for your sins acceptable to God and experience deliverance from sin’s power

When we receive Christ “eating His flesh” and “drinking His blood” we share in His nature. We trust His promises, fight our sin in His strength and apply His reactions to human circumstances, to our own lives. Christ gives us His thoughts and feelings, His will, actions and words. Christ is then lived out in every believer.

The way Jesus lived on earth is the way God designed each of us to live – that’s why as believers we are to become more and more like Him – and one day when we stand before Him in Heaven we will be completely transformed.

John 6:60 – 66 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”
61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”

66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

Jesus’ tremendous statements and personal claims brought His followers to a crisis of decision. We ALL have to make a decision about Christ. Some of His disciples left Him. When they said, “this is a hard teaching,” they didn’t mean difficult to understand. They meant unacceptable, harsh, even offensive.

Jesus was offering them eternal life. But they wanted a Messiah who gave them their earthly desires: miraculous manna, material blessings, political freedom. They didn’t want a suffering Messiah who would die on the cross even though He told them it would save them from their sins.

The Apostle Paul described their mindset when he wrote, “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” Paul preached that a crucified Savior is “a stumbling block” to the religious Jews and “foolishness” to the intellectual Gentiles.

Jesus answers their grumbling in 4 parts.

First, aware of their heart attitude, He asked, “Does this offend you?”
Second, He mentions His death, “What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?”
His resurrection and ascension prove He is who He said He was.
He started out in Heaven and came to earth and rose again as a man to His authority back in Heaven.
Third, He mentions the Spirit. It is the Spirit that gives us understanding.
And fourth, He mentions unbelievers. “Yet there are some of you who do not believe.”

John 6:67-71  “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.

68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”

70 Then Jesus replied, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” 71 (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.)

Jesus seems to have intended to separate those who were swept up by the excitement of the miracles from those who truly believed in Him. The fact many who formerly followed Him no longer wanted to be with Him proved they had never truly believed. They were swayed by the crowds and mere passing desire.

It still must have hurt. You can hear it in His words to the 12, “You do not want to leave, too, do you?”

Peter’s glorious reply marks a turning point in Jesus’ ministry and in the lives of the disciples. Speaking for the faithful 11, Peter and the other 10 committed themselves to follow Jesus all the way to the cross. There would be no turning back, even as His earlier popularity declined and persecution began. The Father had drawn them to Christ, and they were God’s gift to His Son for eternity.

People today still refuse to believe if they think what He calls them to do is “too hard.” They don’t want the new way of life – so they turn their backs on Him.

John 4:31-38 Doing the Will of God

31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” 32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”

34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

Christians have a mission statement. A guiding light of how we should operate. Jesus told every one of us to “go and make disciples of every nation baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28: 19)

We are to be reaching souls for the sake of Jesus Christ. We are to spread the Gospel.

To make disciples we have to first be a disciple. A follower of Christ who puts God first. Jesus always did the will of God. He was always about His Father’s work. Nothing derailed Him from sharing God’s message: not hunger or thirst or weariness or the fact that the person in His path may or may not have been receptive.

The will of God is that people are saved! When we participate in His will, the reward will be eternal!

What is the Will of God?

Psalm 40:8 I desire to do your will, my God; your law is within my heart.”

Pastor Kurt Gebhards gives us 6 verses that clearly tell us what God’s will is:

John 6:40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.

1 Timothy 2:3-4 3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

So first that we are saved!

Ephesians 5:16-18 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,

Be filled and led by the Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 4:4-6 4 that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, 5 not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; 6 and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told you and warned you before.

That we have self-control and are sanctified.

1 Peter 2:13-16 13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves.

Submit to the authority we are placed under.

1 Peter 4:19; 5:10 So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

Stay steadfast. Continue to do what is right.

Psalms 37: 1-7 1 Do not fret because of those who are evil
or be envious of those who do wrong;
2 for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away.
3 Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
4 Take delight in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him and he will do this:
6 He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
your vindication like the noonday sun.
7 Be still before the LORD
and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Seek God first! Trust Him always!

The First 15 Minutes

Last week we were visiting our daughter in Charleston and went to her church, Coastal Community. The pastor, Chris Rollins was just starting a new series called Get Fit. He challenged people to begin everyday by spending the first 15 minutes with God. It was an awesome sermon.

Psalm 5:3 “Lord, every morning you hear my voice. Every morning, I tell you what I need, and I wait for your answer.”

He started by saying that the beginning of a year is a good time to get fit spiritually. (Seems to be a common theme this month!) But then he asked, “What’s a “win” going to be like for you this year?” And I was immediately able to think of my answer:

To make my life a positive witness for Christ and to serve as an act of worship.

Somehow just the way he asked it, I was able to get beyond the “spend more time reading the Bible” and “go on a mission trip.”

He said when we have our answer, then we need to make every step we take full of purpose toward that. No wasted steps!

1 Corinthians 8:26 So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step.

And that’s where the first 15 minutes of our day come in. Let God speak to you before you start your day.

Psalm 143:8 Let me hear of your unfailing love to me in the morning, for I am trusting you. Show me where to walk, for I have come to you in prayer.

How we start our day will impact how the rest of the day goes.

The pastor went on to say we are to give God the first part of our week. Meaning we should be in church every Sunday! And not with the motive, “What can I get out of church today?” but to encourage others and to worship God.

Next we are to give God the first part of our relationships. We need to build relationships and then share our faith with those people. All of life is an opportunity to make a positive witness for Christ. And wayward people coming home are very dear to God’s heart!

And lastly give God the best part of your energy. We don’t just go to church, we are the church.

Romans 14:17–19 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.
19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.

In every situation you can test yourself by asking, “Am I willingly doing this as an act of worship to You, God?”

Colossians 1:9-12

Colossians 1:9-12 9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives 10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.

On the first Sunday in January, our associate minister, Mark Schmitz, said the New Year is a great time to decide to submit our will to God. And He used these verses to show us how.

These verses are all about wanting wisdom from God and then getting it and what to do with it. In verse 9 the “for” refers back to verse 4 “because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people". Verse 9 is also a great prayer you can pray for yourself or anyone else: “ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in knowledge of God.”

The Holy Spirit and the Bible guide us in learning about God and His will. What pleases Him. What His point of view is. The Holy Spirit gives us the ability to do God’s will and we will bear good fruit when we do it.

Pastor Schmitz also said that when we do this we will be able to bear adverse reactions in the way we should. He said this is important because, “If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, God has called you to minister to people.” And most likely you are already where He wants you to be to do that! One way we minister is by being a good example. And people who face adverse circumstances “in the Lord” can be a great example.

We are accountable to God. We can honor Him by what we do.

The Joy of Holiness

This is the last post from my lesson from the book The Pursuit of Holiness. I hope you've learned as much as I did. And that we are both obedient to what we've learned!

God intends for a Christian’s life to be full of joy. We should not be serving with sour faces!

John 15:10-11 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
Jesus links joy and obedience in a cause and effect manner. There is joy in fellowship with God.

David said: Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

True joy only comes from God. When David committed adultery and murder he lost his joy and his prayer of repentance said, Psalm 51:12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

We also feel joy just in knowing we are obeying God. Especially if a certain sin or disobedience is something we’ve struggled with for a long time. And we have the joy of anticipated reward. Even about Jesus it is said that:

Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

As we grow as Christian we begin to find that the joy of a holy walk is infinitely more satisfying than the fleeting pleasures of sin. And just that knowledge brings us ever more joy!

God has given us everything we need. When we were saved He put the Holy Spirit in us. He freed us from the reign of sin. He revealed His will for holy living in His Word. He works in us to will and to act according to His good purposes. He has sent pastors and teachers to teach and encourage us. He asks us to pray to Him for help and comfort. We have to choose to accept all of this and discipline ourselves to live a holy life. Every time we fail we have to get up again.

The farmer we mentioned way back in the beginning of this study doesn’t sit back waiting for God to send rain and sun. He does his part, trusting God will do His. We must take the step of obedience. We must pursue holiness!

Holiness and Faith

We are to obey, by faith what we believe is God’s will. Whether it makes sense or not.

Holiness is not just separation from impurity, but obedience to God. No one can pursue holiness who is not prepared to obey God in every area of his life. Even when it’s costly.

Faith enables us to claim the promises of God and it also enables us to obey the commands of God. Hebrews is the great “faith chapter” and the author of Hebrews uses the words obey (or obedience) interchangeably with faith.

The world tells us “we deserve it”, “go for the gusto”, “get ahead” and “be #1!” The Bible tells us “whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first must be your slave. That’s Matthew 20:26-27. We’re not to have as our goal, being rich in money, but being rich in good deeds.

It takes faith to pursue such Biblical values when the society around us is pursuing goals that are totally opposite. We believe that God ultimately upholds and blesses those who obey Him and trust Him for the consequences of obedience. We must have conviction in the necessity of obeying the revealed will of God as well as confidence in the promises of God.

Think about what we do all the time:

Because we don’t believe that humility is the path to God’s exaltation, we jockey for a place of position and power in our relations with others.

Because we don’t believe that God takes note of and will in His time avenge all wrongs done to us, we work at “getting back”” at someone who has wronged us.

Because we are not convinced of how bad sin is in God’s eyes, we play with it.

And because we don’t have a firm conviction that “without holiness no one will see the Lord” we don’t seriously pursue holiness on a priority in our lives. Obeying the commands of God involves believing the promises of God.

Holiness and Our Wills

The author of The Pursuit of Holiness says our wills were corrupted in the fall. The will became rebellious and stubborn and wouldn’t listen to reason and it gave in to emotion. While the will is the ultimate determiner of all choices, it is influenced in its choices by the strongest focus brought to bear upon it. These forces come from a variety of sources. Subtle suggestions from Satan and his world system, an urgent voice of conscience, a Christian friend or the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Whatever source, they reach our wills through our reasons or our emotions.

But in our rebirth, emotions and reason are renewed, not immediately, but a little at a time. James 4:7 tells us to submit our wills to God. That’s the start.

How do we guard our minds and emotions? David wrote in Psalm 119:9 How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word.

The Word of God. The Bible speaks to us primarily through our reason and that’s why it is so important for our minds to be constantly brought under its influence. The Bible is a priority in a Christian’s life.

Solomon told us in Proverbs 2:10 – 12, that wisdom, understanding and discretion will guard us from the evil way. How do we get those qualities?

Proverbs 2:6 For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

From God. Through His Word. His sayings, His stories, His commandments. We need to read it diligently, prayerfully and seeking to understand. Not just for the spiritual information it gives, but also for the daily application of it in our everyday lives.

Be Perfect

In Mathew 5:48 Jesus instructs us, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

To do this we must be transformed. To be transformed Paul says we must “renew our minds, so that we may desire the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect.” For our minds to be renewed we must read, study and meditate on the Word of God in the Bible.

Paul also tells us in Philippians 2; that this inner transformation of our nature will make us more like Jesus – humble obedience to God’s will rather then sin’s rebellion. We are no longer self-centered. We live with the mind of a humble servant of God to be about what is good and helpful to people around us.