Bread of Life - Sunday, February 12, 2023
2023-02-12
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUOjeKmPhIQ

Thank you.

I'm talking from the same thing in the passage. When we got open, we got open, we got open, we got open, we got open, we got open. I don't know if it's possible. It's possible.

I don't know if it's possible. I'm going to open it right up, right up above the right center. We aren't going to go all the way to it. I'm going to open it right up above the right center. We're not going to go all the way to the top. We're going to center it here on the top of the back of the green. Love it, so what Dan said is we'll get a green draw on the top. We're going to be like a union or individuality. We're going to be going to be better. And I think we're going to break it in its form. We're going to be like you. Let's pray. Let's pray. Let's pray.

Are you telling that? Are you going to tell the Indiana Jones story, too? Good. Yes, he did. I've got lots of stories. I'm actually reviving him just so I can take him out. Yeah, exactly. Okay, are you ready? Am I supposed to start? Okay. I could say so much, but I won't. Okay, good morning. Good morning. We are going to start our service today by reading together out of Psalm 8, and then we're going to be reading, or reading, singing the new song that we've been learning, which is also called Psalm 8. And before we do that, I just wanted to read a little bit out of "How Does God Change Us?" by Dane Ortlund and the union with Christ. It says, "Let your mind and heart go way down deep into the reality of your union with the living Lord Jesus Christ.

If you are in Him, you have everything you need to grow. By the Holy Spirit, you are in Him, and He is in you. He is both your federal head and your intimate companionship. You're inexhaustibly rich, for you are one with Christ, and He is Himself inexhaustibly rich, the heir of the universe. Submerge yourself in this truth. Let it wash over you. The divine Son, through whom all things were made, who upholds the universe by the word of His power, the one whom you have been united, through no activity of your own, but by the sheer and mighty grace of God. You have been enveloped in the triumphant and tender ruler of the cosmos. Therefore, nothing can touch you that does not touch Him. To get to you, every pain, every assault, every disappointment has to go through Him. You are shielded by invincible love.

He Himself feels your anguish even more deeply than you do, because you are one with Him. And He mediates everything hard in your life through His love for you, because you are one with Him. Picture yourself standing in a circle with an invisible but impenetrable wall surrounding you. It's not a circle you're in, but it's not a circle you're in. It's a person. The person. The one before whom John fell down as he grappled with words to describe what he was looking at. As one whose eyes were like a flame of fire, and his voice like the roar of many waters, which we read in Revelation. The might of heaven, the power that flung the galaxy into existence, has swept you into Himself. And you're there to stay. Amid the storms of your little existence, the sins and sufferings, the failures and faltering, the waveredness and wandering,

is going to walk you right into heaven. He is not just with you, he is in you, and you in Him. His destiny now falls on you. His union with you, at both the macro and micro levels, guarantees your eventual glory and rest and calm. You may as well question gravity, as question the certainty of your union with Him, and what it means for your final future. So consider the darkness that remains in your life. Our sins loom large. They seem insurmountable, but Christ and your union with Him loom larger still. As far as sin in your life reaches, Christ and your union will reach further. As deep as your failure goes, Christ and your union with Him go deeper still. Rest in the knowledge that your sins and failures can never kick you out of Christ.

Let an ever-deepening awareness of your union with Him strengthen your resistance to sin. See it in the Bible. Ponder His tireless care for you. You have been strengthened with the power to fight and overcome sin. Because the power that raised Jesus from the dead now resides in you. Living and active. For Jesus Christ Himself resides in you. And he goes on to quote, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Draw your strength from your oneness with Jesus. You are no longer alone, no longer isolated. When you sin, don't give up. Let Him pick you up, put you on your feet again with fresh dignity. He lifts your chin, looks you in the eye, and defines your existence. You in me, and I in you." And so it's because of those things that we can read the Bible together and believe the words of the psalm

and the song that we're about to sing together. So let's go ahead and stand. And we're going to be reading Psalm 8 verses 1 through 4, and then we're going to jump to verse 9. And it says, "O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens, out of the mouth of babies and infants. You have established strength because of your foes to still the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him and the Son of Man that you care for him? O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!" Let's pray. God, we thank you so much for the opportunity to gather here today

and to just be reminded of your strength and your power and your grace and your mercy and how all of that is given to us, and through you we can have the hope and the certainty of a life that we can have peace and calm in, even in the biggest storms that we go through, and the certainty that even after this life we will forever have rest and peace and hope and never-ending joy with you. We thank you for those that are gathered here today and watching online and the encouragement that we can all be to each other, and we just ask that you be with our service today and allow it to glorify you. In Jesus' name, amen. They're okay. They're fine. All right. We're going to be singing Psalm 8.

We sing all glory and honor. Oh, Lord. Oh, Lord. Oh, Lord. Oh, Lord. Oh, I want us to my own words. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord. Oh, Lord. May we see your kingdom come. Father, may your will be done in the earth. In all the earth, you gave dominion to your children. And you crown them, O God, with glory and honor. So we sing without your name divine. For your greatness, O God, and your glory and honor. Oh, Lord. For us on higher ways. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord. May we see your kingdom come. Father, may your will be done in all the earth. The earth is full of the glory of God. Come, make my shove. The name above all names. Creation cries out, and every knee bows. Jesus we crown. Oh, Lord our Lord.

The glory of God. Come, make my shove. The name above all names. Creation cries out, and every knee bows. Jesus we crown. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, Lord our Lord. How awesome are your ways. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord our Lord. Will you see those kingdoms come? How the name will be done in all the earth. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, how awesome are your ways. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, Lord our Lord. May we see your kingdom come. Oh, Lord our Lord. May your will be done in all the earth. In all the earth. Oh, Lord our Lord. Oh, how awesome are your ways. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord our Lord. May we see your kingdom come. Father, may your will be done in all the earth. In all the earth. In all the earth.

So we're going to move on to our next song, which is "Never Once." And we'll be having our prayer and share time after that.

We're coming from this mountaintop, looking just how far we've come, knowing that for every step you were with us, kneeling on this battleground, seeing just how much you've done, knowing every victory, it's your power in us. We're rising struggles on the way, but with joy our hearts can say, "Yes, our hearts can say." Never once did we ever walk alone. Never once did You leave us on our own. You are faithful, God. You are faithful. Kneeling on this battleground, seeing just how much You've done, knowing every victory, Your power in us. Scars and struggles on the way, but with joy our hearts can say, Yes, our hearts can say. Never once did we ever walk alone. Never once did You leave us on our own. You are faithful, God. You are faithful. You are faithful, God.

You are faithful, God. You are faithful. There's thousand struggles on the way, but with joy our hearts can say. Never once did we ever walk alone. Carried by Your constant grace, held within Your perfect peace. Never once, knowing never walk alone. Never once did we ever walk alone. Never once did You leave us on our own. You are faithful, God. You are faithful. Every step we are breathing in Your grace. Never more we'll be breathing out Your praise. You are faithful, God. You are faithful. You are faithful, God. You are faithful. You are faithful, God. You are faithful. Alright, you may be seated. Let's pray. Let's pray. Let's pray. All right, as we move into our time of communion, we're going to be singing "Behold Our God."

Who has held the oceans in his hands? Who has numbered every grain of sand? Kings and nations tremble at his voice. All creation rises to rejoice. Behold our God, seated on his throne. Come let us adore him. Behold our King. Nothing can compare. Come let us adore him. Lord, who has given counsel to the Lord? Who can question any of his words? Who can teach the one who knows all things? Who can fathom all his wondrous deeds? Behold our God, seated on his throne. Come let us adore him. Behold our King, nothing can compare. Come let us adore him. Come let us adore him.

Who has felt the nails upon his hands? Bearing all the guilt of sinful man. God eternal, humble to the grave. Jesus, Savior risen now to reign. Behold our God, seated on His throne. Come let us adore Him. Behold our King. Nothing can compare. Come let us adore Him. Amen.

I just sang this song that calls us to fix our eyes upon the goodness of God. I want to just share with us briefly as we come around the table from Isaiah, the 40th chapter. And as you probably know, a lot of the prophets are focused on God's judgment for people who have gone astray. And in Isaiah 40, we hear this call to the prophet Isaiah to speak to God's people. "Comfort, comfort my people," says your God. "Speak tenderly to Jerusalem that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins. A voice cries in the wilderness, "Make straight the way of the Lord. Prepare the way of the Lord. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain hill shall be made low, and uneven ground shall become level, and rough places become a plain.

And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken." And then in verse 9, "Go up on the high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up and fear not. In the cities of Judah, behold your God. Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him. Behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. He will tend his flock like a shepherd. He will gather the lambs in his arms. He will carry them in his bosom, and he will gently lead those who are young." And you have this picture of God's judgment for sin, and you have this picture of beautiful and wonderful reconciliation.

A chapter of Scripture that points forward to us, to Jesus. You likely recognize those words, a voice cries in the wilderness, "Prepare the way of the Lord." Exactly what John the Baptizer does. And we have this picture of God coming, gathering us together like a shepherd gathers his sheep, carrying the lambs, dealing gently with those who are struggling, and those who are hurting. And you have in this a beautiful picture of the Gospel. That though we deserve judgment for our sins, that Jesus comes, He stands in our place and He gathers us together like a flock of sheep, dealing gently with those who are broken and hurting and are oppressed. And so as we gather this morning to celebrate the good news of the Gospel, the purpose of this meal for us is to help us see the goodness and the grace and the love of God,

to behold the sacrifice of the Son in our place for our sins. And so let's do that this morning. We're going to pray and then we'll partake together. Father in Heaven, thank You for Jesus and for grace and for hope. We thank You for the peace that You bring into us. We thank You that You gather us gently like a flock, that You watch over us, that You go before us. And we thank You most of all for Jesus and His sacrifice for us. We just ask that You would be with us as we break this bread, this bread that we would see and feel and be nourished by the sacrifice of Jesus. That as we drink this cup, we would see this new covenant, this new way of dealing with those who are broken.

That we would see the hope of the future that is before us. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. If you would take the bread with me as Jesus did with the disciples, and He said, "Do this in remembrance of me." And if you would take the cup with me, as Paul says in the same way, he also took the cup after supper, saying, "This covenant is the new covenant in my blood. Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me." And then Paul will say this, "For as often as you eat this bread and you drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes." So we're going to do something just a little bit different. To begin our sermon this morning, we're going to be in John chapter 6,

kind of there in the middle of this very long, very rich chapter. And so we're going to start by just getting a little bit of background to this chapter. Filled full. There were once 5,000 tired and hungry, and probably very grumpy, people sitting on a hillside wanting their dinner. They'd come to hear Jesus that day. They came before breakfast, stayed all morning, all afternoon, and way past dinner. No one had meant to be out there that long, but that's how it was, listening to Jesus, as if time didn't exist. They would listen to Jesus for hours, and on this particular day, that's just what they did. But they hadn't brought enough food, and they couldn't just go and buy themselves a burger and fries to go, because, of course, they were in the middle of nowhere with no shops or restaurants.

Besides, that kind of food wasn't invented yet. What would they do? Jesus' friends had an idea. "Let's send everyone home for dinner." "They don't need to go," Jesus said. "You can give them something to eat." Did Jesus want them to travel all the way to town and buy food for everyone? Jesus' friends panicked. "But we don't have enough money." "What food do you have?" Jesus asked. "Go and see." Now, there was a little boy in the crowd. He had brought a lunch that his mother had made for him that morning. He looked at his five loaves and two fish. It wasn't much. Well, not nearly enough for 5,000, but it was all he had. "I have some," he said. Jesus' friends laughed when they saw his little lunch. "That's not nearly enough," they said. But they were wrong.

Jesus knew it didn't matter how much the little boy had. God would make it enough, more than enough. Jesus said, "Bring me what you have." And so the little boy gave Jesus his lunch. Jesus winked at the little boy and whispered in his ear, "Botch." "How in the world will Jesus feed everyone with just that?" Jesus' friends said, because they thought it was impossible. But Jesus knew the one who made all the fish in the oceans, and Jesus knew the one who in the very beginning had made everything out of nothing at all. How hard would something like this be for someone like that? Jesus took the little boy's lunch, looked up to heaven, and thanked his father. Then Jesus gave the little lunch back to his friends. As Jesus' friends started to hand out the food, do you know what?

It was the strangest thing. No matter how much they broke off, there was always more. More and more and more. Enough for five thousand. Everyone ate as much as they wanted. Second helpings, third helpings, even fourths, until they were full, and still there were leftovers. Well, Jesus did many miracles like this. Things people thought couldn't happen, that weren't natural. But it was the most natural thing in all the world. It's what God had been doing from the beginning, of course. Taking the nothing and making it everything. Taking the emptiness and filling it up. Taking the darkness and making it light.

Let's pray. Father in heaven, we thank you that you take our emptiness and you fill it, not just with food, but with peace, in the midst of the storms of life, with the joys that come from the goodness of your grace. You give us courage in the midst of great difficulty. This morning, as we hear the words of your Son, may you strengthen us, encourage us, call us to yourself, that you will help us to your goodness and your provision, that you would help us to move aside from being self-centered and self-focused, and that we would see your grace and the good news of the gospel. Help us come to you, not seeking those perishable things, but that you would help us to come to see the true bread of life that is found in your Son. It's in Jesus' name we pray.

And so this miracle, the feeding of the 5,000, is immediately preceding our text this morning. And so after that feeding of the 5,000, the disciples are going to go down, they're going to get in a boat, they're going to travel across the Sea of Galilee, and their eventual destination is the city of Capernaum. Jesus, having ministered, I think both spiritually, physically, through healing and feeding to these group of people, he's going to go up on a mountain, likely, for some rest and some prayer. And then in the middle of the night, as the disciples are partway into the Sea of Galilee, he's going to kind of walk out across the water, surprise them, get into the boat with them, and the next day, which is where our text takes place, after all of these events with the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus will be in the city of Capernaum, but not just in the city of Capernaum.

What we find from the end of this chapter, where this scene begins, at the end of this scene, it will say, "Jesus said these things in the synagogue as he taught in Capernaum." And so, in a minute, we'll sort of dive into our text this morning, but we need to understand the setting, right? There's a massive group of people who are very excited about Jesus. In fact, they seek to try to make him a king, and what better king could you have? He just spent the day healing the sick, helping the hurting, and then he feeds everybody. What king could you have than a guy who can heal your injuries, heal your sicknesses, and feed you? And so, there's a very excited crowd. Jesus, understanding their excitement and understanding the wrong direction of their excitement,

will leave into the quiet of the mountain and then go with his disciples. And the next day, you'll find him teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. So, these things happen in essentially the first century Jewish version of church. The conversation that we are going to look at this morning is happening in church. Now, I don't know if you've ever fed ducks or geese or been outside eating french fries when there's seagulls around. You all know what happens, right? The geese, if they see you have bread, if ducks see that you have bread, if seagulls see that you have food, what immediately happens? They begin to sort of congregate, and as long as you have that or there is a promise of food, they just begin to follow you. And what we're going to see in this text is that's exactly what's happening, is that this group of people, like a flock of ducks, are just following Jesus,

going bread, bread, bread, bread, all sort of through the entire area. And so Jesus is headed out with the disciples, ends up in Capernaum, and this is going to be sort of the outline of our text. They're going to show up at church, right, so imagine we are worshiping here, and just the door opens, and a bunch of ducks walk in, going bread, bread, bread, bread. That would seem to be disruptful, sort of disrupting moment to our moment of study and worship. And so they're going to come in, and they're immediately going to sort of confront Jesus, not in an angry way, but in kind of a way of going, "Where's the bread?" And then Jesus will explain. And then they're going to ask him another question, "Where's the bread?" And Jesus will explain. They're going to ask him a third question. Jesus will explain. And their third question also about bread. And then, spoiler alert,

they're going to make this statement at the end that says, "Hey, give us some bread." Right? And so this is essentially a flock of hungry ducks coming to Jesus. They're so hyper-focused on physical food, they miss the wonderful announcement and promises that Jesus is sharing in this text. And what they do is something that I've done so often, like, right, just keep digging yourself deeper and deeper and deeper. And maybe one of your friends will say, "Hey, buddy, stop digging." And you're like, "No, I can fix this by just making one more big mistake." Right? That's essentially what's going to happen in this text. So we're going to begin this morning with just sort of giving you this scene. It says this on the next day, verse 22, "The crowd that remained on the other side of the sea," these are the people that have been fed,

"Saw that there had only been 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. And so when the crowd saw Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got on the boats and went to Capernaum seeking Jesus." And in verse 25, they're going to find him, they're going to find him in the synagogue, and they're going to ask three questions. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, why did you come here?" And Jesus answered them, "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 you, for on him God the Father has set his seal." And then they said to him, "What must we do to do the works of God?" And Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God that you believe in him whom he has sent." And so they said to him, "Then what sign do you do that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness. As it is written, he gave them bread from heaven to eat." And Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses that gave you 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." And they said to him, "Give us this bread always." And so you have these sort of three questions and one sort of statement or request or demand in the text. And the first question is simply this, "When did you come here?" Now, is the crowd truly concerned about the arrival time of Jesus? Are they asking him, "How did you get here? What time did you get here? What route did you get here?" I don't think that's what they're truly asking. That may be what their words are saying, but the question that is underneath those words points to bread. And we know this because of what Jesus says in verse 26. "You are seeking me, you're looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves."

In other words, Jesus is saying to them, "Your question about when I got here is not a question about the logistics of my journey." But you're here because you want to find bread. Your real question is, you woke up this morning and said, "Where did the bread go?" We had bread yesterday. I woke up this morning. There's no bread. Where did it go? Why did we wake up to not having any bread? And at the heart of this, you begin to get a glimpse of what is at the center of the crowd's desire. It's not to know Jesus. It's not to follow Jesus. It's not to worship Jesus. What's at the center of their desire? They simply want bread. And so their first question, although sort of worded in a way about the logistics of Jesus' travel,

is simply just, "Where did the bread go?" Their second question, in verse 28, sounds maybe a little bit more spiritual. They ask Jesus, "What must we do to do the works of God?" It sounds like they're obedient to God. Their question at first sort of gives that impression. What is it that we need to do out of the things that God has called us to do? Now the works of God is sort of a general term depicting the law of Moses or the Torah, those first five books of the Bible, 613 commands given by God through Moses to the people. And so when they're asking about the works of God, they're saying, "What of Moses' commands are you calling us specifically to do?" And the reality of their question is that they're not really asking about being obedient, right?

This is once again a question about bread, right? The verse 27, immediately preceding this, Jesus will say, "Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal..." The crowd hears what Jesus says, where he says, "Don't work for the temporary bread, but work for the eternal bread." And they go, "All right, tell us how to get this bread. What do we need to do?" This is not about obedience to God. It's looking for a way to figure out how to get some more free bread. Essentially what they're saying is, "Give us the biblical combination to the bread safe, so that we can get all of the bread that we want." And so when they're asking Jesus this question about, "What should we do?" Their motive is not to follow God, it's how can we manipulate God into giving us more bread.

Essentially they're doing what we so often do as well, which is treat God essentially like a vending machine, right? You walk up to the vending machine, you want a drink, and you put your dollar in, or your quarters in, and you press a button, and your drink comes out. And many of us approach the worship of God in the same way. We come with what we want, and we say, "Well, I'll put some worship in here, I'll put some service in there, I'll put some Bible reading in here, now press the button and give me what I want." It's an extremely manipulative, it's an extremely self-centered way of dealing with God. That's what they're asking. Tell us what to put in so we can get out the bread that we desire. It's not about obedience, it's about trying to get what they want.

And then in verse 30 and 31 they ask another question. They'll say, "What sign do you do?" Once again, this seems like a spiritual question. Jesus has talked about eternal bread. He's been talked about in the very beginning of his words to them about being sent and sealed. That's confirmed from God. And now they're asking what seems like a reasonable question. How do we know that you are really sent from God? How do we know that you are who you say that you are? How can we be sure about these claims? And it seems on the surface, they're seeking truth. But do you know what they're really seeking? I bet you can't guess, right? It's bread, right? That's what they want. And we know this because their immediate thing is, "Well, how can we be sure who you are?"

We were sure of Moses, you know why? Because he can't. Right? Can you do what Moses did and give us bread? You see, there's sort of like a broken record. When did you get here is not about the travels of Jesus, it's about where is the bread? What can we do is not about obedience to God. It's about how can we get some more bread? Prove that you are who you say you are isn't about validating the claims of Jesus. It's about saying, "How can I get some more bread?" And so Jesus will respond for their request to a sign, a sign of bread. And he'll say this, "For the bread of God is he, not a thing but a person, who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Now, it's pretty clear to most of us that Jesus is talking not about a loaf of bread

but about a physical person who satisfies the longings and the struggles and the hurts of our heart. And what's their response? Give us bread. Give us this bread. And give it to us all the time. And you have to wonder, after hearing their questions all focused on bread, their demand or request all focused on bread, if this is just really a crowd of people or is it like three ducks in a trench coat coming back into the back of the church going, "Hey, talk to us about that bread. Give us today our daily bread." They're so focused on the physical filling of their stomachs that they're missing the Son of God. And I think there's two reasons for this, right? First of all, they don't see their true need. And this is something that you and I relate to all the time, right?

When faced with two choices where there's something we want and something that we need, and that thing we need may take some work or be difficult, and the thing that we want is easy, most of us tend toward the thing that we want, right? Eat something healthy or eat something that's wonderfully delicious and terrible. Get up and work hard or sleep in a little longer, right? I was thinking about this last night. I was like, "Man, I'm really tired and I need to go to bed." You know what? I really want another cup of coffee. We tend to choose, all of us, in different ways the things that are worse for us. And this crowd, as they're focused on themselves, right, they're choosing what they want rather than what they need, and probably not consciously.

And the reason for that is because they are incredibly or hyper-focused on themselves, right? Every question they ask, every statement that they make is focused on trying to get what they want, right? It's not about trying to understand or to see Jesus or to hear Jesus. It's all about how do I get what I want, right? Not to keep going back to the birds, but if you've seen Finding Nemo and the pelicans sitting there going, "Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine, mine," through the whole movement, right? That's what they're doing. They are so hyper-focused on themselves. The Son of God, who satisfies the longing of their hearts, is standing right in front of them, and all they can see is a loaf of bread. They're just trying to get what they want. And one of the ways this becomes so evident in this chapter is that when they get ready to lead,

when Jesus talks about how difficult this will be, at the end of the chapter he'll say, "Many turned back and no longer walked with him." In fact, except for the twelve that have followed him, everybody leaves Jesus at the end of this chapter. Because it's difficult, and because it's hard, and because we tend to seek what is easy and comfortable rather than what is good for us. Right? And these two things, they're rooted in keeping ourselves at the center. My desire is my focus, and they are the problem. And what sin does, it blinds us to the reality of this world. And the reality that not just this is better than that, it keeps us from seeing our deepest need. And so I want to look for a moment just at the response of Jesus.

And I want to consider his response. Before we do, I want you to consider what your response would be if you've just spent an entire day healing, helping, serving, and feeding people, and they just show up at your front door in the middle of church and go, "Bread. I want bread. Where's the bread? Give me the bread. How do I get the bread?" I don't know about you, but I think I would be pretty frustrated. I would be a little grumpy, and I would probably be a little short-tempered. Jesus isn't like that when we come to him, oftentimes, with our wrong ideas. And so what we're going to see in the response of Jesus, first of all, is that he's going to patiently explain, right? You know, "Where is the bread?" And he explains, "Where is the bread?"

And he explains three times throughout this text. Jesus is dealing with people incredibly frustrating, greatly distracted. And in some cases, I think they're intentionally missing words of Jesus. And instead of anger, he just keeps explaining. You see, we see the heart of Jesus in this text for hungry people. Not hungry in a physical sense, but for people who have spent their whole life chasing. And everything they find doesn't satisfy. And they're constantly seeking the next thing that will fill them up. And when they get it, they end up disappointed. And Jesus here, as he patiently explains, is saying, "Come to me. Hear me. I know you're hungry. And it's not just your hunger for bread. It's the hunger of your soul. Come to me. And I will give you something that satisfies you deeply." The second thing that Jesus does, first of all, he patiently explains. Secondly, he gently corrects.

So his first two words in the beginning, as he corrects them, are just this: "Truly, truly." Or if you're a King James person, he'll say, "Verily, verily, I say unto you." Now this word translated "truly" or "verily," it's where we get our English word "amen." Which is just simply a transliteration, taking Greek letters, turning them into English letters, and so we get the word "amen." And it just simply means "truly," or "most assuredly," or "let it be so." And one of the reasons why we say "amen" at the end of our prayers, is we see that in Scripture. We get to the end of the things that we have praised God, and we will say, things we've asked God for, we'll say, "Let it be so." This is something that I desire, this is my approval, this is my "yes," this is truly what I desired.

Now Jesus, here, is going to say it at the beginning. And it's referred to at some as the double A, 25 times in Scripture, all of them in the Gospel of John. And when you see these words, "truly, truly," I say to you, Jesus, first of all, it's a signal that something important is coming. Secondly, it's emphasizing the truth of what is being said. And the third is it's demonstrating authority. The heart of these words is a personal knowledge and authority about this, right? Not just that I heard this from someone, or I think this from someone, or this is my opinion. When Jesus says, "truly, truly," he says, "this is first of all important," secondly, "this is true," and third, "this is something that I deeply know and understand." And when Jesus uses these words in the Gospel of John, it's almost exclusively to correct.

But not necessarily correct in an angry way, but correct in a way that leads people more deeply into a relationship with him. So the first place we see these is in the Gospel of John, chapter one, at the end, Nathanael comes and says, "You're the Son of God," and Jesus will say, "Truly, truly, I say to you," and then he'll lead Nathanael deeper into what that means. When Nicodemus comes to Jesus in the middle of the night, you'll see it several places in John, the third chapter. And he'll come and he'll say something to Jesus, and Jesus will say, "Truly, truly, I say to you," and then he's going to correct his thinking and lead him deeper into a relationship with Jesus. And so when you see these words in this text, it's a picture of what Jesus is doing.

He's correcting, but not in a way to reprove or reproach upon the people, but to lead them deeper into what God has for them. In this case, he's using this picture of bread, but not the bread with flour and water and bacon and oven that nourishes your body, but he's pointing them to the thing that nourishes their soul. And so Jesus corrects them and he draws them deeper. Verse 27, you're looking for the temporary. Let me show you the eternal. Verse 29, "God has sent me." And then in this statement at the end, between verses 30 and 40, you have manna, Moses, and Jesus sort of correcting their misconception. They'll say, "We want manna like Moses." Jesus said, "It didn't come from Moses. It came from God." And through patient and gentle correction, Jesus is going to point them to the fact that he is the manna.

In Jesus' response to these people, first of all, we see practically for us a call to humility. There has to be this moment in our life when we realize that maybe we don't know everything, and that we can't do everything, and that we don't understand everything. And it's only when we see that we are small and that God is big that we will begin to understand the wonder of what is found in Jesus' words. And so Jesus, as He is patient, and as He corrects, and He seeks to lead them more deeply, and He's challenging their pride, and He's calling them to humility, that we are not at the center. But there is also in this text this challenge to our obedience. Think about the lengths these people will go to get the bread that they had the day before, right?

They go searching for Jesus. They hitch a ride in some boats. Some people walk around the lake all to get this physical bread. And what lengths should we be willing to go to hold on to the bread of life and to hear the bread of life, but not just that, but to share this bread of life with others. The thing that satisfies our hurts, and our brokenness, and our sorrow, and it gives us strength in our weakness, and it saves our souls. Jesus is saying it's so much more important than the physical bread. So Jesus calls us to humility. He calls us to obedience. And then, this is what I love, in these last few verses, Jesus calls us home. And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger. 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 what He has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks up to the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life. And I will raise Him up on the last day. You see, Jesus here is calling us home. You see, there's something wonderful in Jesus' words for us, right? In life, we find ourselves sometimes doubting. We find ourselves discouraged. We find ourselves dissatisfied.

We've tried so many things, and everything we've tried has ended up empty. We've become discouraged. Nothing will work. And we come doubting, going, I don't think, not only has nothing worked, but I don't think anything else will work. And we come to this, in our experience, I don't know about yours, but in mine, there are great promises in this world, and they almost universally disappoint us. And not only do they disappoint us, but they leave us broken and hurting, right? We've been deceived so many times. It would be like looking at a caramel apple and biting into it, only to realize that it's a caramel onion. We've been burned. We've been hurt. We've been betrayed. We've been broken. We are dissatisfied. We're discouraged, and we're doubting. And here Jesus calls us home. And maybe you're trying to fix it. Maybe you're at the point where you say it's not fixed.

It's not fixable. It's what we have been seeking since the garden. When God says to Adam and Eve that no longer will you eat the fruit of the garden, but you're going to have to toil for this bread. And it's not just for our physical bread. We've been toiling to satisfy the hunger of our souls. We must find a place where our needs are met, our souls are cared for, and to be able to be known without having to hide. And we can't do that. That's what Jesus is saying when He offers the bread of life. He's saying, "That thing that you have tried all of your life, and you have failed all of your life, and you become broken and hurting and discouraged, I have what you need." In these verses, Jesus is extending an invitation. And it's not a complex unlock some kind of padlock or unlock a safe to get some bread like the crowds wanted to.

It's simple. Jesus simply says this, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me shall not hunger. Whoever believes in Me shall not thirst." It's repeated in verse 37, and a little differently in verse 40. Jesus' invitation is to come. And in this text, and in this welcome, I love this picture because if you would picture this text as a door. Right? There's two parts, and put them together, it's a wonderful picture. You have this door, and you are outside of this door, and you are broken, and hurting, and discouraged, and dissatisfied, and everything seems to be going wrong, right? And we come to this door, and we look above this door, and written on it says, "Come, you who are hungry. Come in. Come see Jesus." Right? We don't make this door. We don't have to unlock the door. In fact, we don't even have to open the door,

because Jesus is standing there going, "You're hungry. Come in." That's the first part of this welcome, is the open door with Jesus saying, "Come. You're hungry. You're thirsty. Come to me." And so as we go through this door, maybe we look backward over our shoulder. And outside of the door, where we just came from, there is this welcome, and this call for the hungry and thirsty traveler. And as we come through this door, and we step and we look back at what's written over the inside of the door, we find this. "All the Father gives us will come to me, and whoever comes I will never cast out. I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of the one who sent me. And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should lose nothing of what he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.

This is the will of my Father. Everyone who looks on the Son, believes in him, should have eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day." On the outside of this door, we see welcome, and on the inside, we see God's will, his plan, his purpose, and his power. And this assurance that he will never let us go. And it's powerful. And it fills our soul. Because in the heart of those truths about God's will, and God's plan, and God's power, is this picture that despite all of our brokenness, God loves us, he wants us, and he has come to save us. You have this wonderful earthly picture throughout this text, that brings us to a wonderfully heavenly picture. And we have this picture where Jesus invites us in, and as we come in, we see that this has been the purpose,

and the plan, and the will of God for his people. And so as we consider the bread, as we consider what God has called hungry and weary people to, we hear him call us to humility. We hear him call us to obedience, and we hear him call us home. Let's pray. Father in heaven, we thank you for Jesus, and for grace, and for hope, for the peace that comes in finding our salvation in you. I just ask that you would help us to set aside our self-centeredness, that you would help us to depend on your strength, that you would help us to follow you, and that you would help us to share this message with the world. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. We are going to stand and sing, all who are thirsty, and then Greg's going to come with some announcements for us.

Can you turn it up? Just go. Oh, who are thirsty? Oh, who are weak? Come to you, the fountain. Dip your heart in the stream of life. Let the pain and the sorrow be washed away in the waves of His mercy as deep cries out too deep. Come, Lord Jesus, come. Come, Lord Jesus, come. Come, Lord Jesus, come. Come, Lord Jesus, come. As deep cries out too deep. As deep cries out too deep. As deep cries out too deep. Holy Spirit, come. Holy Spirit, come. Holy Spirit, come. Holy Spirit, come.

It took me a while to get up here. I was holding a baby, so you can't jostle them too much. Wednesday night announcements. Wednesday nights we're going through James, and you think you might know a lot about some of the books of the Bible, but lo and behold, I learned a lot. And from discussion with Neil and Dave, just listening, you learn a lot. So all of that is very well. It's seven o'clock every Wednesday, and we're still going through some of the book of James. As also an announcement, as we know, Debbie is going in to have her knee surgery. She takes care of the building. So we're looking for anybody who is willing to volunteer to help clean up the building while she is recovering. If you're willing to have to do a little something, doesn't matter what it might be. Everything's helpful.

Please see Rachel and/or Brandon. And a little bit of problem that we had a couple of weeks ago. We had the dinner. I never got there. I woke up with a 101 fever. I said, "I'm not taking that in there." So I knew there were plans to do another one. Let's do it quickly so I can be involved. That's a little selfish, but that's just the way that is, you know. That's what I wanted. All right. We are, if you've ever looked into the fellowship room, the video room, whatever you want to call it downstairs, the problem we had with water is quite unique, and those boards are coming up, and we're going to be ripping them out of there and replacing them. So volunteers for that. If you're Mr. or Mrs. Destructo, come on and get some destruction going on

because we're going to need some help. If you can't, for one reason or the other, a donation, because it's not inexpensive to buy the necessary product to put it on the floor and down the hall. We're going to change everything down there. So that's coming up. And on the site, if you wish to, there's some giving information out there. You can go to the site, know the category for it. Any other announcements that I have not mentioned here this morning?

All right. If not, then let's start to dismiss by going to God in prayer. Heavenly Father, we come before you this morning. We are so thankful that you've given us life and health, that we can be here to go through a portion of your word. Your word is so precious, and sometimes we have in our heads that I've heard that so many times before. But you can always open our minds, open our hearts, and we will learn more than what we thought we ever knew. And Father, that is the wonderful thing about your word. The more we read it, the more we get from it. And Father, we thank you for writing everything down for us to use in our daily lives. And Father, as we dismiss this morning, and we leave this place, we leave wherever we might be,

we know we're going into a world that, for the most part, despises you in many cases. And Father, that also puts them looking at us with a little bit of spite. Maybe a lot. But Father, give us the strength that we need to go into the world and continue to preach your word, tell the good news of the gospel, and that, Father, that no matter what the outcome might be, we have done what you've asked us to do, which is to spread your word, strengthen us, give us fearlessness, that we can go into the world and do just that. As we leave this place, we would ask a blessing on each and every one, that, Father, we would have safe passage to wherever our next destination might be. Guide us in all that we think, do, and say. These things we do ask,

and we give thanks in Jesus' holy and precious name. Amen. I want to read just a verse of 2 Corinthians chapter 13. It says, "Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration. Comfort one another. Agree with one another. Live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you." Yes, sir. After we've seen the Doctology, we're going to get some folks to gather around Debbie so we can pray for her. We'll work at surgery tomorrow. We'd like to do that. All right. So we will gather around Debbie and pray for her surgery to go well and healing to be quick because I don't want to clean the building. I'm sorry. That's just how it is. All right. So as we sing the Doctology.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures he loath. Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

All right. Let's just gather around real quick, and we're going to pray for Debbie. So, I'll go ahead and pray. Anybody else who would like to pray, you're welcome to do that. Let's do a couple minutes and then close it out or however long. So, let's go ahead and pray. Father in heaven, I just ask that you take care of Debbie. I know this has been something she has been wanting for a long time, and so we just ask that things would go smoothly, that you would give her peace, that you would give her a reason. We thank you for how you provided for her. We thank you for how you cared for her, and so we just ask for healing. We ask for peace. We ask for strength. We thank you for your people and for your church who are praying.

We thank you for your life, and thank you for your work, our colleagues, and students. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm happy that we're working on a lot of the coming evening. I hope that's very similar. We thank you for the opportunities we have to get to meet, and we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world, and we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world, and we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world,

and we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. And we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. Thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. We thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world, and we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. And we thank you for the opportunity to be able to be able to take care of the world. We thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world, and we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. We thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world.

And we thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. We thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. We thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world. We thank you for the opportunity to be able to take care of the world.

I would like to thank you for talking about modern medicine and the spiritual healing of this natural medicine. I would like to thank you for being with you tomorrow. I love you, Lord. I would like to thank you for talking to you.

I think it's happy. Did they give you a lot of fire? . Are you ready? . . . Oh, yeah, we have a team, but they forgot it at home. So they'll bring it in. You're not going to bring it in tomorrow. Yeah, I knew we had some, and we needed it. What are you buying a turkey? I'm going to bring it in. I'm going to bring it in. I'm going to bring it in.