Author Archives: RB3

We are still in John 6 and we left off with verse 51: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” This perplexed the creatures He was talking to. They knew Him as Jesus, son of Joseph and now this rabbi is telling them things, with such authority, (Matthew 7:29) it seemed incredulous. They were basing their knowledge of what they knew from what was being taught in the synagogues and those things imposed on them from the Pharisees. It is similar to today, where our Pastors teach us from the Bible, which is becoming much less of a given everyday, and our secular government imposes rules for living safely, trying hard to take the place of God and wanting the same trust and faith that God wants from us. Many of our church leaders seem fine with letting the government tell them what to do.

The Pharisees were mostly concerned with outward appearances and claiming Abraham as their father. They truly thought that being of that particular lineage plus all their rules, their ritual washing and tithings and fancy clothing made them a sure thing for Heaven. When confronted by Jesus and told that none of what they were doing was going to get them into heaven, they didn’t take it well. In fact, they plotted to kill God. (Matthew 12:14) When put that way it sounds strange, but that is the essence of it. They had invested their whole culture into living out their righteousness in laws they imposed, the rituals they enforced and the clothing and attitude they adopted. The people noticed this and you could say it rubbed off on them. And Jesus was never one to sugar coat the path to heaven. (Matthew 19:24). I think Ephesians 2:8-9 says it the way I like it best: For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. By Grace through Faith. That passage is really what the Reformation was about. You are saved by Grace through Faith, by God, not by a religious body that claims it and it alone is the only authority for dispensing and interpreting the word of God. If you’ve lived under a rock for most of your life and don’t know what I’m talking about, it is the Catholics and their claims of such authority.

What Jesus was doing with Him saying “The bread I give you for the life of the world is my flesh” is known to us because we have the whole word of God, breathed out into the Bible. The Jews of that day were stiff necked and unwilling to believe what He told them. And Christ was not going to offer the “greasy grace” or better known as easy believism. They grumbled amongst themselves saying “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” (v. 52)

To better understand where this negativity in His message came from, let us turn to Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers written in 1897:
Some of them have spoken of eating His flesh. Others may even have pressed this to the reductio ad horribile. Eat His flesh! Shall we, then, drink His blood too? In no less than seven passages of the Pentateuch had the eating of blood been forbidden (Genesis 9:4; Leviticus 3:17; Leviticus 7:26-27; Leviticus 17:10-14; Leviticus 19:26; Deuteronomy 12:16; Deuteronomy 12:23-24; Deuteronomy 15:23); and we find in later times the strength of the feeling of abhorrence, as in 1Samuel 14:32, and Ezekiel 33:25, and in the decree of the first Judæo-Christian Council (Acts 15:29). In the fullest of these passages (Leviticus 17:10-14), the prohibition is grounded upon the facts that the blood is the physical seat of animal life, and that the blood maketh atonement for the soul. It was the life-element poured out before God instead of the life of the soul that sinned. Such would be the thoughts of those who strove among themselves as to what His words could mean; and to these thoughts He speaks with the “Verily, verily,” which ever expresses a spiritual truth that He alone could reveal.

Much of their law was wrapped up into what they could and could not eat. For the average Jew following Jesus around, for mostly entertainment purposes, they would fall back on what they thought they knew, which when you look at it in the whole, was not much.

Jesus told them “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum. (vv. 53-59)

So what are we to make of Christ’s statements? From Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary:
The flesh and blood of the Son of man, denote the Redeemer in the nature of man; Christ and him crucified, and the redemption wrought out by him, with all the precious benefits of redemption; pardon of sin, acceptance with God, the way to the throne of grace, the promises of the covenant, and eternal life. These are called the flesh and blood of Christ, because they are purchased by the breaking his body, and the shedding of his blood. Also, because they are meat and drink to our souls. Eating this flesh and drinking this blood mean believing in Christ. We partake of Christ and his benefits by faith. The soul that rightly knows its state and wants, finds whatever can calm the conscience, and promote true holiness, in the redeemer, God manifest in the flesh. Meditating upon the cross of Christ gives life to our repentance, love, and gratitude. We live by him, as our bodies live by our food. We live by him, as the members by the head, the branches by the root: because he lives we shall live also.

Just so you’d know, that chunk of text was originally written in 1706. He is one I go to quite often for understanding scripture. “We partake of Christ and his benefits by faith” Those Jews heard what they heard and recoiled at what Christ had said. Jesus knew their hearts would not believe, so He told them the truth of the matter, yet put it in a way that they would not understand. So that their ears would not hear and eyes not see. (Matthew 13:15)

It was not just the common Jew that was grumbling about Christ’s statements. The disciples were starting to get nervous:

When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.” (vv. 60-65)

The message that we are granted to Christ, by the Father, is a strong one and throw in by Grace through Faith and you’ve got the entire understanding of your salvation, one granted by the Father, as a gift of grace. Square that with what the Pharisees did, works and looks and who you belonged to. The disciples had heard some of this before and this, as they said, was a hard message and one alien to the Jews way of thinking.

After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” (vv. 66-69) Jesus was culling those who He knew would not accept His message. We are also tested in our Faith. Who do you turn to when tested? Does your Faith waiver?

I have not known personally, a person who claimed to be a believer, and then turned away and never came back when things got challenging. This is what some of the disciples did, walk away when their rabbi started talking in such a harsh manner. It is a classic “Sower of the Seeds” parable. Their seeds had been cast into the weeds and when they were tested, they had no depth to their roots and their faith left them. Then Simon Peter speaks for the 12 and with some divine knowledge.

Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.” He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray him. (vv. 70-71)

So how does this apply to you? Christ is the Bread of Life. In fact, He is our only Hope. And that Hope brings Faith, granted by Grace, given to us by the Father. In your day to day life, do you feel that Hope? Is your Faith strong enough to withstand a test of it? Do you talk to your Father about your concerns? This should generate an interest in reading what our Father wanted us to read. How else will you know what God wants of us? Ponder on where your roots of Faith are planted. As I said before, if you have an interest in God, He’s already had an interest in you. The very Creator of the universe has an interest in you! Are you going to squander that because it’s not entertaining enough? “Let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy to gloom” (James 4:9). From MacArthur’s Devotionals:
Humor has always had a place in popular culture. But in recent decades a more worldly side to humor has emerged. Situation comedies dominate the list of top-rated TV shows, but many are far from what’s really best for people to view. The shows’ contents so often pander to the immoral and tend to put down scriptural values. Meanwhile, the world also runs headlong after activities that stress fun and self-indulgence. Most people just want to enjoy life and not take anything too seriously.

God’s Word acknowledges that there is a proper time and place for joy and laughter: “a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” (Eccles. 3:4). The psalmist tells of one appropriate time for laughter and happiness: “When the Lord brought back the captive ones of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with joyful shouting” (Ps. 126:1-2).

But the Lord requires that anyone who would have a relationship with Him must begin on a sober, serious, humble note. In today’s Scripture, James urges sinners to exchange worldly laughter and frivolity for godly mourning and gloom over their sin. The laughter spoken of here is the kind that indicates a leisurely indulging in human desires and pleasures. It pictures people who give no serious thought to God, to life, death, sin, judgment, or God’s demands for holiness. Without mincing words, it is the laughter of fools who reject God, not that of the humble who pursue Him.

James’s message is that saving faith and proper humility consist of a serious, heartfelt separation from the folly of worldliness as well as a genuine sorrow over sin. If these characteristics are present in your life, it is fairly safe evidence that you are one of the humble (see 1 John 2:15-17).

So you see, God takes our salvation seriously, so seriously that He sent His Son to die on a cross and be raised again, all for us that would believe. I would ask that you would approach your salvation with the same intent. Don’t sit back and let your Life in Christ pass you by.

We are in John 6 and it’s a big, or better said, momentus chapter. In it, Jesus fed a great many with just a few loaves and fishes, (vv. 10-11) He then walked on water (v. 19) and when the people finally caught up with Him, He told them they were following Him for the wrong reasons. (v. 26) Because the ancient Jews are like us, quite clueless and are never satisfied, they impertinently ask Him for a sign to show them who He really was. (v. 30) I don’t know that any of them were thinking beyond the end of their noses, because they had just seen Him do signs and wonders and the only other guy in the neighborhood that had been directly asked if he was the Christ, this being John the Baptist, did no signs and wonders, (John 10:41) only demand they repent get ready for the Christ. Before that, there were no miracles or prophets for a very long time.

In this dialog between Creator and created, He who created all (John 1:3) informs the created that He is the Bread of Life. This did not sit well with the created, they grumbled amongst themselves, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” (John 6: 41-42)

In Jeremiah 18 we find something that explains what’s happening here. The Potter forms the clay and decides what and where it will be used. At no point does the clay have any input, it will be what the Potter makes it to be. It is a very interesting story and one that is very pertinent to our present time, but where Jesus says He is the Bread of Life, the clay disputes this, claiming the voice of their father, satan, that this cannot be. Jesus, the Light (John 1:4-5, 9) knew their hearts and answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. (vv. 44-45) I want you to ponder this, verse 44. The Father draws you. In the Old Testament, people knew God and through Moses, were told to obey God. When you were in obedience to Him, He fought your battles, (Deuteronomy 20:1-9) righted your wrongs.

Think of Egypt (Exodus 14) and how God by His hand defeated all who opposed His people. (2 Kings 6:15-17) Those who followed His law given to them by Moses (Exodus 20) knew God to be their creator and protector. That knowledge is written into all our hearts, (Romans 2:15) the right and wrong of things, and God Himself. Notice there was a qualifier in there, that being “those”. While everybody’s heart had knowledge written into it, not everyone chose to acknowledge that. Of those that were drawn out of Egypt, a generation was lost and by saying lost (Deuteronomy 1:35) I mean that when they died, they went to eternal darkness and torment. The reason that happened is they constantly grumbled and chose not to trust or follow God. (Numbers 14:27)

The very same thing can and will happen to us if we choose not to repent, obey, trust and follow Christ. You will be lost, rather than gather with the saints, into eternal life with our Savior, Christ. So I ask, have you been drawn by the Father? For those of you that don’t know, is it too hard for you to pray to God and repent your sins? It’s not like HE doesn’t already know what they are. If you are interested in God, He has already had an interest in you. (John 2:31-31) And He will accept all who come to him, regardless of what kind of life you have lived. You are not too bad that God will not accept you, (Luke 23:39-43) He loved you before you loved him. (1 John 4:19) Repent and turn to your Lord! However, once you have submitted to your Lord, do not expect to remain in your sins. This is where Mercy comes into play. From MacArthur’s Devotionals: “The truth is God does not show mercy without punishing sin. For Him to offer mercy without punishment would negate His justice. Mercy that ignores sin is false mercy and is all too common today. Some think it is unloving and unkind to hold people responsible for their sins. That is what is known as cheap grace—which is neither merciful nor just, nor does it offer punishment or pardon for sin. Because it overlooks sin, it leaves sin untouched and unforgiven. The one who relies on this sort of mercy is left in his sin.”

This is where those creatures were, who followed Jesus around, oohing and aahing at what He did and then when He tells them that they must believe in Him, they ask for a sign so they would know. I say creatures because they speak with the voice of their lord, which again is satan, and are not children of the Light. They did not submit to their Lord.

Continuing with the words of Jesus…
It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ (v. 45) Here is where it is written: Isaiah 54:13, and a raft of other scripture references; OpenBible.info

Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— 46 not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
(vv. 45-51)

This is a complete salvation package. Jesus was offering them the Grace of saving Faith and we would do well to pay attention to it in this modern day. They heard it from the Son of Man Himself and they weren’t having it. Darkness cannot perceive the Light. (John 1:5)

So they again started grumbling. Do we see a pattern here? A pattern that has lasted for millenia? We are no different than these ancient Jews. We mock what we don’t understand and hate what convicts us. Look at what’s happening in our government. A lust for power and pride and a depraved mind. Punishing good and rewarding evil. Here is a snippet from Wretched Radio where you will hear what’s going on in Congress and the culture at large:

I am not sure, but I think the Florida Congressman was Greg Steube. Congressman Jerry Nadler was the one speaking in his father’s voice, satan. Jesus, in talking to the Pharisees, when they had said His authority and power come from satan: “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:36-37

Here is the whole audio of Wretched Radio for 3-1-21, it is very instructive:

Todd Friel is voice of Wretched Radio and one I listen to frequently.

It’s like we are living in the days of Ahab, which is found in 1 Kings 16:29. Take a read through that and compare it to our days. Then jump on over to Romans 1 and you can read the whole thing, but the pertinent part starts at verse 18. It seems as if many of our legislators would like to write into law the sins of Romans 1:18-32 and punish those of us who follow Christ.

You may wonder how the righteous lived in those days. In obedience and faith, following the laws of God and staying away from evil. It is what we can do today. Keep God at the forefront of your mind and give Him honor and praise in all things. God expects you to rely on Him, so do so. Read the Bible and worship with the saints, which is a biblical way of saying “Go to Church.” Corporate worship is asked for in the Bible. (Hebrews 10:25) Place not your hope in man but Christ. You’ve been offered a free gift of salvation. Are you going to grumble about it or accept it?

We last left Jesus as He entered a boat from the water side, where He had trod across the Sea of Galilee as if walking on land. (John 6:19) The disciples, who had been rowing but not really getting anywhere, had calmed down enough to be happy to see Him and let Him join them in the boat. (v.21) Next thing you know, they had arrived at their destination which was Capernaum, top left of the map. They had spent the day in the Tiberius area, which you will find on the map in the middle left of the map. I looked up how big the Sea of Galilee is and from North to South it’s 13 miles long. You can figure that the boys were planning to row about 5 or 6 miles in what the scripture tells us “The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing.” (v.18) It also tells us they had rowed about 3 or 4 miles (v.19) and I know from other reading and hearing from those that have been to the Holy Land, this body of water can get treacherous at times. 

The disciples had left a large crowd of people who had been fed with a few loaves and fishes. (John 6:2-14) and this being the next day, they found themselves without food or entertainment. The scripture reads thusly: “On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.” (John 6:22-24) These other boats may have been fishermen or maybe news had spread that something big had happened and they had come to see what the deal was. We are only told that these people felt compelled to chase after Jesus. When they had found Him, they questioned Him as to how He had gotten there. (John 6: 25) Jesus had withdrawn to the mountain because He had perceived them about to make a foolish decision. (v.15) Now, He advises them as to their unrepentant hearts: “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.  Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” (John 6:26-27) Jesus spoke to them this way because He saw what was in their hearts. Christ is God and is sovereign over all. 

These people had a choice to make, continue in their unrepentant ways or believe what He is telling them. For most if not all of them, they were following Him to be fed with perishable food and to be entertained. Even though He spoke to them with authority (Mark 1:22) to their eyes He was just a man, not the Son of Man. (Luke 19:10) “Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” (John 6:28) His answer was thus: “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (John 6:28) Simple, isn’t it? Just believe, a child could do it. And yet they speak the words of their father satan and ask “What sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform?” (John 6:30) They had just been fed, maybe up to 20,000 of them, with a few loaves and fishes (v. 11) and had knowledge of healing and demons cast out and now they are asking for a sign. As it is written, they claimed “He gave them bread from heaven to eat” (John 6:31) Jesus corrects them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” (John 6:32-33) 

They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” (John 6:34) It is basically the same thing the woman at the well had said in John 4:15. We always want convenience, don’t we? Provide for us so we may not have to toil for anything, really. There was no repentance in their hearts, just a want. 

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:35-40)  

This is a good place to end this study. I want you to read those last verses a couple of times. Christ is the bread of life. Anyone who believes in Him will be raised up on the last day. Simple to understand but why is it so hard for people to accept? He is the bread of life, (John 6:51) whoever comes to Him will not hunger. Trust in God to provide, (Proverbs 3:5 ) not man or the government. When you believe in Christ, it’s not a head thing, it involves the heart. You are transformed, (2 Peter 1:2-4) you are convicted and repentant. You don’t get that by just sitting in the pew most Sundays and going home and living as you see fit. You don’t get that by doing things because you think that’s what good people do. That’s what the Pharisees thought too and they hated Jesus for He showed them the unrighteousness of their hearts. You don’t want to get caught in a works based theology: https://www.gotquestions.org/salvation-by-works.html, where you do things to earn God’s love. He loved you before you (1 John 4:19) became what you are now. Nothing you do will work or take the place of just believing and trusting in God for all things. Live not in fear, for what is there to fear with a Father is sovereign over all? Death has been conquered by Christ (Hebrews 2:14) and Christ is your only hope. Bring all your fears and worries to the cross and leave them there.

 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:17-18). Those deeds come from He who indwells us and are called fruits of the Spirit. Look into your life and find those Spirit based fruits and while you’re there, search for the joy that comes with salvation. It’s there, I guarantee it. 

2 Peter 3 18

But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Last week in John 6, we learned that Jesus withdrew into the mountain when He perceived that the people who had witnessed His signs and wonders were wanting to make Him King. (John 6:15) This was due to the shallow faith that most people have when they see a thing that amazes them and they want to see more of it, just for the entertainment value more than anything else. Think of things that you yourself have seen that have attracted you. What comes to mind is musicians or movie stars, maybe even sport personalities. People of all ages are drawn to what excites their interest. Tens of thousands have gone to listen to music or fill a stadium to watch a sporting event. It was the same with these people, they had never seen such a thing as Jesus had done. His reputation as a rabbi and healer was renowned throughout the land and I’ll bet we would have been following Him too, had we lived back in those days.

However, Christ was not doing what He did to entertain them. These Jews were not prone to thinking with their hearts and were known as being stiff necked all throughout their history. Our sermon at First Baptist Church of Grove City MN focused on Numbers 13:21-33. It is where Moses sent out 12 spies into the promised land, to see what it was like. They came back after 40 days and gave their report. They all said that the land was truly one of milk and honey, but this is where their stories diverge. Ten of them then went on to say that the people were large and frightening and lived in fortified cities. They said that we should not enter into the promised land as the people living there would devour them. (Numbers 13:32)

Two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, told a different story. They said we should go into the land and take possession of it, for God had said He would fight their battles for them. (Deuteronomy 1:30) They truly had faith and believed what God had told them. All 12 of them had seen the same thing, yet the majority of them did not trust God enough to believe what He had said. Keep in mind these people had seen the power of their Creator as they walked across the Red Sea and never got their feet wet. (Exodus 14:15-16) So, a parallel to the people who witnessed Jesus feeding a great many and doing other signs and wonders that all the books in the world could not contain them. (John 21:25)

Jesus was doing these things, not out of obligation for His people, but out of Love. But this Love was not taken in by the people as Love but as attraction to a spectacle that excited them. Who would not want their day brightened by a healing or some miracle that wowed everyone? You’d have something interesting to tell those who were not there. It might even produce pride and condescension in you the storyteller to those poor rubes who had not seen this thing. Curiously, it never produced love for those of their neighbors who had been fed or healed or maybe a demon cast out of. We are told to be more like Christ, (1 Corinthians 11:1) and that does not mean to follow Him around in great crowds to ooh and aww at what He does. So, Jesus withdrew to the mountain, so that the people would not do another foolish thing and try to make Him King. It was getting dark and His disciples went down to the sea and got in a boat and started rowing toward Capernaum. They must have been a little confused as to where their rabbi was. We are not told why they left without Him, only that they did. Something could have been said earlier by Jesus and they were just doing what they were told. Notice also that these men are the parallel to our early story of the spies, these guys are the two that wanted to go to the Promised Land and the crowd following Jesus around are the ten that wanted to go back to Egypt. Why do I say that? These men in the boat followed Christ around and were almost all martyred (John 21:20-23) because of their faith in Him, and entered into the Promised land. The Jews, Jesus’s people, never accepted Him and went back to their stiff necked ways after He left them (Luke 24:51) and basically reaped what they sowed. Culminating in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD (Luke 21:5-38)

As His disciples were rowing it became stormy and the sea was tossing them about. (John 6:18) It is my opinion that at times, these boys in the boat and us in the present time, are doing what we are drawn to, by God’s hand and our vaunted free will gets tossed overboard. To put it bluntly, following a divine script, written by our Creator, before the ages began. Nothing happens by happenstance when Yahweh is involved. He is never surprised because He is the author of all, including the year of 2020 and all that happened. Ponder that a bit, and if you start wondering about the evil in the world… Man and satan are responsible for misery and evil. God knows about and allows it, because He uses what is evil for His glory and our own good. The story of Jacob is a great example. Read it: Genesis 50:20.

From the internet: There is an important distinction to be made between God controlling evil and God creating evil. God is not the author of sin, but He can use sinful men to attain an objective. Romans 8:28 says, “For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” “All things” includes both good and bad things. God can use struggles, heartbreaks and tragedies in ways to bring about His glory and our good. Such events, even though we don’t understand the reason for them, are part of His perfect, divine plan. If God could not control evil, He would not be God. His sovereignty demands that He be in control of everything, even “dreaded” nations such as Babylon. (Habakkuk 1:5-11)

God has these boys rowing in a stormy sea so that His glory in the form of his Son can be seen doing another incredible thing. Not to awe them, but to cause them to believe. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

And just like that, they were at their destination. For men who were following Jesus around, this was another example of many they would witness, that this truly was the Son of Man in their presence. What is it going to take to get you off the dime and truly believe in our Savior? For nothing else will get you into the Promised Land. There is nothing so important going on in your lives that would prevent your repenting and following the one True Hope, is there? Only believe and have faith in Him. Trust in Christ for all things and you will reap the blessing of our Father. That or wander our cultural metaphoric desert for another 40 years, and or until you die in your sin. Those ten spies convinced their people not to enter the Promised Land. Doomed their whole generation. We are seeing this same thing today with churches that have opened their doors to the world. Prosperity preaching or Love and inclusiveness for all. Yes, churches should welcome all, but don’t expect to remain in your sin and think that you’ll be heaven bound just because you’ve gone to church. As I’ve mentioned before, the word church, in Greek means “the called.” Not a building but we who obey Christ and council those that insist that God will accept them just as they are. Nowhere in the scripture does it say that. Repent your sins and follow Christ as He is the our only hope. https://www.gracechurch.org/sermons/16914

In short don’t trust any but Christ to keep you in good stead. Recently some churches in our area have closed because they are told it is not safe to worship together. What do you suppose God thinks about that? Psalm 34:3 “O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together” yet the government says it’s not safe. The government has intruded into areas where they have no legitimate authority, and yet we continue to let them. I have seen things in the Twin Cities of late that say mask wearing will be with us indefinitely, for our safety don’t you know. The government is going keep us safe from the wrath of God who has given this country over to its sins. The only sure fire and Biblical way to turn around what’s going on in this country is repent, like Nineveh did (Jonah 3). Jonah knew that God was Gracious and forgiving and would probably turn from destroying them when they truly repented, and He did. No reason it would not work here. God loves a repentant heart. He loves you too, pray to Him and ask Him to open your heart and see what happens. Call it a good start.

So, who are those churches trusting when they decided to close the doors for what, safety? If they, who should know better, had read and heeded the Bible, God is in control of all. Still is and that’s why what is happening in our country is not going to stop unless we repent. Do you know how many abortions are going on in this country, every day?  Those unborn children, whom God knew every one, are casualties of what is called women’s health care. And yet we wonder why 2020 and now 2021 are turning out the way they have. You do recall the city of Sodom who had a bit of a problem with homosexual activity. Genesis 19:1-38, Ezekiel 16:49-50 So things could be worse for us, you could say.

And if you belong to one of those churches that have closed due to wanting to be safe and to listen to their immoral masters, who have told us they know better. Who are you trusting? Pick up your bible and start reading it, and place your trust in the One who authored it. The One who created you. The One is not at all happy with how we are acting. Repent, now, for the one who will judge the quick and the dead is coming. (1 Peter 4:5)

Romans 15:13 – May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

We continue with John 6, where the people had observed the signs of His feeding of a great many, possibly up to 20,000 souls. They were impressed, how could they not be? Where in their lives had they encountered anything close to this? As such they declared “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John 6:14)

You might think this was good news, the people recognizing something extraordinary in their midst. Most if not all knew about John the Baptist and his saying he is not the Christ but repent now for the Christ coming. (John 1:19-23)

If they had paid attention to the Rabbis in the synagogues, they would have known and expected the Lamb of God to soon be among them. (John 1:29) From this last event, where so many had been fed with just a few loaves and fishes, this looked like their long predicted King had finally come. (Isaiah 9:6–7)

However, this was not what Jesus wanted. For people to see a great event and then proclaim Him to be King. Jesus knew what was in their hearts, just as He knows what’s in our hearts. You can fool those around you with what you say, but God knows what’s in your heart. Remember the story of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. They sold some property because there had been a great upwelling of the Holy Spirit in the lives of many:
32 And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. 33 And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. 34 For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales 35 and lay them at the apostles’ feet, and they would be distributed to each as any had need. (Acts 5:32-35)

Ananias and Sapphira felt moved and did what others had done, (Acts 4:36-37) but since their hearts were not involved, only their heads, which is the very reason for virtue signalling, they did something truly foolish. Shallow believers think that they can just dip their toes into the righteous waters and that will be good enough. How is it with you? Do you feel drawn to obey God or is it a “do it because that’s what good people do” kind of thing? There is a lot of that going around. God truly knows what’s on your heart so it matters not what you say to anyone, only what you say to the Father. The two who sold property did so because others had done it and they were thought well of. Wanting what Barnabas had received, and to be honored like he had been, but also not wanting to give everything, but keep some back. Keep in mind, there were no rules to giving, just like now. Give what you can, that’s what God asks. But be honest about it. They were not and Peter caught them out. (Acts 5:5-6, 10-11) The young men that did odd tasks for the Disciple were very busy that day.

What have we learned? Hopefully not that you will drop dead if you are dishonest with your Creator, however fear of He who created you is a good thing as stated here: So the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God for our good always and for our survival, as it is today. Deuteronomy 6:24

The problem that Jesus had with these people who saw what He did and then were working themselves up to make Him King is it was head knowledge. They had not repented, they were not contrite with the knowledge of their sins. The same thing with Ananias and Sapphira, they were trying to ride in on the honor given to Barnabas. The problem we have is a lack of commitment and honesty with our heart. We know the right and wrong of things as it is written into our hearts. (Hebrews 10:16–17) God wants our whole self to belong to Him, not a shallow, you pray to Him when you’re in trouble, kind of commitment. Jesus wanted these people following Him around to repent and be committed to Him. But it seems they were content to just be followers and you’ll find in scriptures what Jesus thought of that. (Luke 9:23, John 15:5-8, Matthew 10:38, Luke 14:25-35)

When these people were talking about what He had done and were thinking about making Him king, Jesus withdrew to the mountain, alone. He didn’t even bring the disciples with him. (John 6:15) What we are seeing right now in our country, God withdrawing from us. John MacArthur said in a sermon a week or so ago that sin makes us stupid. This is a proverb for our time. Look at what is going on in your life and remove the sin from it. That’s not just a good idea, it’s the Law. Exodus 20, read it if you haven’t and again if you have. Then start in the New Testament, anywhere really and see where sin made people stupid, think Ananias and Sapphira, and where God made simple fisherman into Disciples of the Lamb of God. Consider it homework for the soul. None of us knows the span of our days and when we are dead, we can no longer repent and come to Christ. Don’t be stupid. It is the kindest thing that can be said to you.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Rom. 15:13