Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Introduction

Jesus asks a very important question to the two disciples who first follow him:

John 1:38 ESV

³⁸ Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?”

Your following Jesus – why? What are you looking to get? what do you want to see? Why are you chasing after him?

This is the question of John 6.

Jesus has just fed 5,000 people who were following him.

John 6:2 ESV

² And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick.

Following Jesus obviously comes with its perks. I don’t follow Jesus just out obligation. I genuinely enjoy all the blessings that come with following him.

But is it possible that I’m only following Jesus out of self-interest, and that I’ve turned the creator into a vending machine? I’m I seeking Jesus, or just the things I think Jesus will give me?

I came across the term “Cat and Dog Theology.” A dog says, “You pet me, feed me, shelter me, and love me;
you must be God,” but a cat says, “You pet me, feed me, shelter me, and love
me; I must be God.”

Are you the Dog or the Cat?

Prophet or More?

Immediately after the feeding of the 5,000 the crowd decides they really like following Jesus.

John 6:14–15 ESV

¹⁴ When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” ¹⁵ Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

When they call Jesus the prophet, they are connecting him to something Moses said in Deuteronomy 18. That God would eventually raise up another prophet like Moses. So, the people are primed to see Jesus as a savior:

They were just fed in the wilderness like God had fed Israel in the wilderness
They’re celebrating Passover when God saved them from foreign oppressors
Knowing that God tends to work in the same patterns, maybe this Jesus is the new prophet who will deliver us not from Egypt, but from Rome!

And that’s when they decide that Jesus needs to be king – even if they have to force the issue.

This is one of those stories in John that, on the surface, looks really good – but Jesus doesn’t see it the same way.

That’s because they try to force Jesus. And it’s revealed later on that the only reason they want him as king is because he’s fed them. Rather than looking to Jesus as the authority to which we all bow, they try to take control of him so that he’ll serve their desires for food and freedom from Rome.

If they were ever able to force Jesus to be king, it would be in name alone. Jesus would be the servant to their true king – their passions, their lusts, their desires. Far from being king, Jesus is just the servant who brings them their desires.

God Or Vending Machine?

And that’s something we can attempt as well. Instead of seeing Jesus as God we see him as the stepping stool into the good life.

When we obey God, we’re not doing it for God … we’re doing
it for ourselves because God takes pleasure when we’re happy.… When you come to
church, when you worship Him, you’re not doing it for God really, you’re doing
it for yourself.

He’s my prayer vending machine
He’s my buddy when I’m feeling down
He’s the guy that gives me advice

Through this mindset obedience is not an act of submission to God, but a power used to compel him to respond.

We just have to sow some charity
Or just show up to services on Sunday
Or appease God with a sacrifice every now and then

And God will have to bless me, right?

Our entire concept of worship can be guided by selfishness in the guise of worship.

I’m not following him for his ends and the kingdom of God – I’m only following for what I can get out of him. And as soon as I see that following Jesus is actually hard and not at all about my happiness in life, then just like the crowds and some disciples at the end of chapter 6, I’m going to leave.

So Jesus is going to start correcting our vision so we stop looking at just the immediate needs and desires we have, and start looking at the bigger things.

Seeing Jesus Correctly

When we get to verses 16-21 we have the fifth sign of Jesus that shows us that he is so much more than Santa Claus.

John 6:16–21 ESV

¹⁶ When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, ¹⁷ got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸ The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. ¹⁹ 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.

If we’re drawing connections from this chapter back to the Exodus, this is similar to the crossing of the Red Sea. Plenty of God’s servants parted water at some point but only God is the one with authority over them.

Job 9:8 ESV

⁸ who alone stretched out the heavens and trampled the waves of the sea;

Psalm 89:9 ESV

⁹ You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, you still them.

Psalm 29:3–4 ESV

³ The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord, over many waters. ⁴ The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.

Through this sign Jesus is presenting himself as God. So when he says in verse 20:

John 6:20 ESV

²⁰ But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.”

Those three English words translate two Greek words: ego eimi. Which in other parts of John’s gospel is translated as “I am.”

The bread of life
From above
The good shepherd

And when we look at John 8:58

John 8:58 ESV

⁵⁸ Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

Given all of the Exodus connections, Jesus isn’t just saying “It’s me! Not a ghost!”. He’s using it as the name of God like here in John 8:58. Jesus is claiming that he himself is God, the same God who delivered Israel in the Exodus is now in the boat with his disciples.

The Contrast

So John is putting up to contrasting visions of Jesus.

The magic man who you can force or manipulate into giving you what you want and solving all of your problems

-OR-

The God who could give you so much more if you got your priorities in order

Again, keeping the Exodus in mind since John is making so many connections for us – when God led Israel out of Egypt, it wasn’t just so they could hang around Mt. Sinai eating manna and then onto the Promised Land where life would really take off.

God was offering himself to be their God. He was offering to remake them in his image. He was offering them a way of life characterized by justice, love, and faithfulness. And he was offering all of these things to Israel as one of the early steps of his overall plan of saving all of mankind.

So do you want a God who’s going to do all of that an more than we can imagine, or a bag of chips?

The mold that the crowds have Jesus in is an impressive one. They’ll call him king and expect him to do great things like overthrow Rome, judge the wicked, and maybe make more food!

As impressive as those things are, Jesus came to do more important things.

Transformed Desires

The crowds realize that Jesus has taken off, so they hunt him down on the other side of the sea where he tells them:

John 6:26–27 ESV

²⁶ 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. ²⁷ 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.”

These people follow, they seek – but not after Jesus. Their only interest is in another lunch. Jesus wants to set their sights quite a bit higher.

So first, he explains the shortcomings of our desires – It perishes.

You eat and then you get hungry again
You’re so happy to find a house and then you want a bigger one
Your hobbies start giving you diminishing returns
It’s stolen from you
And even if you get some that last a long time – you don’t! We all die.

It’s really the message of Ecclesiastes. You will lose everything, and I mean everything.

Your parents die
Your friends start to die
Your spouse dies
The body breaks down and you can’t live on your own
So you’re left in your nursing home sitting in your own urine because you can’t use the bathroom by yourself.

Everything you value, from today’s lunch, to the people you love, to your own health will perish and there’s nothing you can do to stop it from perishing.

We’re reading through Ecclesiastes on Wednesday in my class and we all agreed at the end of the first class that the Preacher is right – everything is vanity, pointless, absurd, and without meaning. Because everything perishes everything is ultimately meaningless and it’s pointless to try and find meaning.

That’s what the crowds were working for. It might be what we work for.

So Jesus has come down so he could give us something better – the food that endures into eternal life.

Changing Desires

Jesus didn’t come to fulfill all of your desires, because our desires are doomed to perish. Instead, he’s come to change those desires. He’s showing us an alternative and telling us “This is what you ought to be following! This is what you should be seeking!”

And only Jesus will be the one to give it to you.

So naturally, just like the woman at the well in Samaria, the crowd’s interested. How do we work for this food that endures to eternal life?

John 6:28–29 ESV

²⁸ Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” ²⁹ Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

You need to believe in Jesus.

And I feel so lame for saying that, because of how that phrase is so often understood. People hear that they need to believe in Jesus and so they agree that Jesus must be real, and he really died, and really got up, and really loves me now that I believe these things.

And people will believe like this in Jesus without working for the food that endures to eternal life, and not even realize it.

I spend every waking moment worrying about my business, and I believe in Jesus
I was too busy falling asleep to the TV to pray, and I believe in Jesus
I spend thousands of dollars on things that will perish, and I believe in Jesus
I’ve read all the self-help books that will get my life on track, and I believe in Jesus

Believing in Jesus is so much more though. That’s why Jesus doesn’t correct the crowd here in John 6. He doesn’t say “No, no, no! You don’t work at all! You just believe!” He says believing is the work.

Believing that I have more important things to worry about then how I’m making my money and feeding my family today.
Believing that prayer is one of the most important parts of my day
Believing that I don’t need all the flashy things in life
Believing that Jesus is the only way through life that carries any meaning.

Changing Loyalties

It’s only after we start the work of believing in Jesus that we can truly name him king. Because once he become the focus of our desire, we are freed from the masters of a godless life.

I’m not controlled by fearing failure. I embrace a king who turns them into his victory.
I’m not controlled by any person who can manipulate my desires.
I’m not commanded by my empty stomach to chase someone across the sea of Galilee.

And until you have Jesus as your king your desires will have you running all over the place.

Us guys know what that’s like.

– One guy bought a truck just to help his crush move a sofa

– Another flew all the way to Spain

– I read the entirety of War and Peace to impress a girl (at least it was a good book)

And then there are the sad stories. When the city of Samaria was besieged and the people cut off from food…

2 Kings 6:28–29 ESV

²⁸ And the king asked her, “What is your trouble?” She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.’ ²⁹ So we boiled my son and ate him. And on the next day I said to her, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him.’ But she has hidden her son.”

See what a hungry stomach can make you do? She’s not sad that she murdered her son. She’s mad because she can’t eat this other child. Our desires make us slaves to them, and they will demand everything.

People selling their children for drug money
Murdering for the inheritance
Slandering and gossiping for the sake of our pride

I’ll take the king who gave everything for my sake – to save me from my corrupt desires, and rescues me from such an empty existence.

Conclusion

Augustine wrote in his confessions “Our Heart is restless until it finds rest in you.” Like a boat at sea, left to the mercy of the wind and the waves.

We live this life either at the mercy of our masters, or at the mercy of Jesus. He is the only one who can calm our restless pursuits and provide true satisfaction.

So do you want a life free from fear, guided by a king who gives eternal life – or would rather have five loaves of bread and a couple of fish, only to get hungry all over the next day – chasing after one desire after the other?

Believe in Jesus. Let him transform your heart into one that desires him above all, and be at rest.