Week 13 - John 6:41-71 - A Hard Saying

It was common that during a worship service at the synagog that a Rabbi, such as Jesus, would be invited to teach after what is called the “Torah Service”.  According to v. 59, this teaching happened at Capernaum.

During the Torah Service on a triennial cycle a “parsha” would be read.  On this day they may have read Parashat Beshalach (Exodus 13:17-17:16), which includes the manna account of Exodus 16, for that parsha would have been scheduled between Passover and the later festivals.  So, so during the period in which this event fell.

(Additionally, it is curious the during the three-year Jesus ministry the Torah cycle would have been read in its entirety.)

He begins by explaining that by teaching them that He was fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 54:13.  That He was God the Teacher!

John 6:45

It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—

And that, for some, His teaching would draw them.  But what He taught was truly a "hard saying" (v. 60).

John 6:48-51

I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 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.”

That to live eternally would require them to eat Him spiritually.  This is one of the seven “I am” Statements in John.

Then by switching to “feeds” (trōgō) at v. 54,  this passage (John 6:41-71) describes it as the on-going dependence on Jesus Christ.  It is not simply an initial taste (Psalm 34:8), nor just the periodic sacrament, but he is our daily sustenance.

When you read the Lord’s prayer, something stands out.  All the rest of the prayer concerns spiritual matters, except for its central petition “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11).  

When a text like this rotates around a central phrase, the style is called chiasmus or a ring construction.  (The Psalmist also wrote in this style.  For example, “for you are with me” is central to Psalm 23).  

Many Early Church Fathers wrote of the chiastic centrality of this petition in not simply a physical sense but also spiritual (St. Cyprian of Carthage (c. 252 AD) in his Treatise on the Lord’s Prayer; Origen (c. 185–253 AD) in On Prayer (chapter 27); St. Augustine (354–430 AD) in his sermons on the Lord’s Prayer; and St. John Chrysostom).

Jesus Christ is the answer to this petition, or as Luke records Jesus when he taught the prayer a second time “Give us each day our daily bread” (Luke 11:3).

The word translated “daily” (epiousios) is unique to these two verses.  They are not simply the only two places in all of scripture where this is used, the word is not used anywhere else in all of ancient Greek literature.  This word is important.

Luke’s account already has “each day” (kata hēmōn), which is already regularly translated 18 other times as “daily”.  So, epiousios must mean something more than simply “daily”.  Without a point of comparison, it is difficult, but many scholars think it means the sustenance necessary for the coming day and echoes a bookend verse from the Sermon on the Mount:

Matthew 6:34

“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

There are multiple accounts from the Nazi concentration camps that key to survival was saving a portion of your ration for the next day (See for example the account of Eva (Gryka) Kohan and her sister at Auschwitz).  This petition then is for that portion.

But when manna, the original bread from heaven, was given, it was collected daily and used that day.  None could be saved for the next day or it would go bad (Exodus 16:19-20).

That is, except for the day before the Sabbath.

Exodus 16:22-25

On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers each. And when all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, he said to them, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning.’” So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field.

Jesus Christ is that double-portion, our epiousios.  And not simply for today, but for the eternal Sabbath that we await and for which we need not be anxious.

Week 12 - John 6:15-40 - Sign 5 - Walking on the Water

This chapter includes a masterful play on words.  

John purposefully relates the great efforts the crowd went through to find Jesus a second time.  And Jesus knows their goal is not spiritual instruction but rather more food!  So, He rebukes and redirects them:

John 6:27
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.”

Confused, they ask “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” (v. 28).  In other words, where should they put their efforts to obtain such eternal life-giving food?  This is law-fulfilling language that borders on sorcery, which is making God do what you want.

But Jesus responds that there is only one “work of God” (v. 29).  

John 6:29

Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

 

But in their mind, this would still have been something they would have to do, to believe.  So, Jesus had to explain further that, it was not about what did they need to do, it was about what God must do. 

John 6:37a
All that the Father gives me will come to me, . . . 

 In other words:

Ephesians 2:8-9

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Week 11 - John 6:1-14 - Sign 4 - Feeding of the Five Thousand

The distance between Jerusalem (John 5:1) to the “other side” (John 6:1) was about 70 or 80 miles, or about a 4 day journey.  Curiously, this was a desolate location near Bethsaida.  Yes, the same name of the fountain at which the previous events took place (See parallel account Luke 9:10-17).

The Sermon on the Mount is traditionally placed on the west side of the sea (Matthew 4:23-5:1), but the return of Jesus to “the mountain” following the resurrection (Matthew 28:16-20) indicates they may have had a favorite spot.

This is the second Passover of Jesus ministry.  During the first, He cleansed the temple (John 2:13-17) and, we shall see, at the third Passover (Matthew 21:12-17; Mark 11:15-19; Luke 19:45-48) He also cleanses the temple.

This Passover, however, He leads people away from the temple to the receive mercy at a place appropriately named bēthsaida (unlike the pool), a true place of mercy.

The synoptic Gospels add the detail that Jesus taught them and healed them until late in the day (Matthew 14:15-21; Mark 6:35-44; Luke 9:10-17).

Then, they were directed to sit in large groups (Mark 6:40) that were easy to count and delineated by gender. They stopped counting after the men.  

Estimates set the crowd at 10-20 thousand total.  Using historic costs of bread, this correlates well with Phillips estimate (John 6:7) that 200 denarii, which they did not have, would only cover only small portion for each (Say, 1/10^th of a loaf per person or 1,600–2,400 loaves).

Thanksgiving dinners at Christ Covenant Church have sat a maximum of 750 people.  The well-skilled and well-organized team of volunteers could serve the dinner to that stream of people in about 30 minutes.  Simple extrapolation (10-20 thousand/750*30/60) is 6 to 10 hours if the food was expertly served centrally to a queue of people.

Instead, this was probably done organically, where a portion of food was given to each group to share, and it multiplied in their own hands as they shared it.  This is an excellent example of how the grace of God is administered in the church.

The synoptic gospels omit any response from those who ate (Matthew 14:13–21; Mark 6:30–44; Luke 9:10–17).  But John is uniquely focused on proving that Jesus is the Christ and so includes this testimony.

John 6:14

When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”

Their response points to the promise of Deuteronomy 18:15,18, and their use of the definite article “the” indicates the replacement of Moses.

This is the fourth of the seven signs described by John.

Week 10 - John 5 - Healing at the Pool of Bethesda

In typical John-fashion, no irony is lost that this lame man was attempting to heal himself at a pool named Bethesda which means “House of Mercy” (bēthesda).  And that irony was amplified when upon Christ’s arrival, who is the source of mercy, offered only the awkward question “Do you want to be healed?”.  

The lesson that Jesus teaches from this experience strikes at the heart of the misinterpretation of the Law by the Pharisees.  

Jesus was once famously asked by a Pharisee, what is the greatest commandment (Matthew 22:36).  Jesus responds with a first and a second citing:

Deuteronomy 6:5

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

Leviticus 19:18

You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

Listen now closely to Jesus’ rebuke of the Pharisees at this pool:

John 5:39-40

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

Even the invalid knew enough to accept the offer of mercy.  But the Pharisees continued to attempt to heal themselves through the effort that they crafted from the Law.  But it was all to receive glory from one another:

John 5:44

How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

First, the Pharisees limited forgiveness.  They read the following:

Leviticus 16:30

For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the Lord from all your sins.

And they heard only that the sins “before the Lord” (those between them and God) were atoned.  Sins between one another were not atoned by the mercy of God’s scapegoat.  This they codified as:

Mishnah Yoma 8:9

Furthermore, for transgressions between a person and God, Yom Kippur atones; however, for transgressions between a person and another, Yom Kippur does not atone until he appeases the other person.

Then, while they practiced and encouraged forgiveness, they used the example of God Amos 1:3 to limit their forgiveness to proverbial three-strikes.  They took God’s place as judge.

To teach the true meaning of the second-greatest commandment, Jesus taught the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Matthew 18:21-35) and famously told Peter a ridiculous number Matthew 18:21–22 instead.

Jesus further condemned them saying:

John 5:42

But I know that you do not have the love of God within you.

For, they had a second misunderstanding, again, over God’s mercy.  Recall please the commandment for which they condemned Jesus:

John 5:9-10

And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

Now that day was the Sabbath. So the Jews[a] said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.”

The Sabbath was originally designed to be an act of mercy by God.  

It was first demonstrated when the Manna, itself a merciful provision, only had to be collected six days a week (Exodus 16).  The seventh day was declared a Sabbath, a day of rest.  This occurred a month or so prior to the events of Exodus 20 when it was then included in the Ten Commandments.  Later it was declared again to include those precious days of harvesting:

Exodus 34:21

 “Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.

And It was forcefully spoken a another time in Deuteronomy 5:12–15 to include one’s servants.  

God intentionally wanted those obedient to this law to feel His mercy one day a week.  He would provide when they obediently rested.  He would provide when they gave up the opportunity to earn yet one more day of income.

The Pharisees, however, listened differently.

Exodus 35:1-3

Moses assembled the whole Israelite community and said to them, “These are the things the Lord has commanded you to do: For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a day of sabbath rest to the Lord. Whoever does any work on it is to be put to death. Do not light a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day.”

The chapters that follow describe the building of the Tabernacle, which they understood as “work”, from those chapeters they codified 39 categories of prohibited labor (melachot) in Mishnah Shabbat 7:2, including carrying, of which the invalid was condemned.

Once again, God’s mercy was eclipsed by man’s effort.  But Jesus still stands by us asking “Do you want to be healed?”.

Week 9 - John 4:46-54 - Healing from a Distance

Normally, two witnesses are required to be legitimate (Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15)  While Jesus had the forerunner of John the Baptist, both are actually individual testimonies.  

Jesus acknowledges the issue and the Pharisees attack him for it, but Jesus points to the confirming works and therefore to God, the Father as the second witness.  

John 5:30-36

 “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.

The statement “greater than John” means he is not relying simply on the prophetic testimony.  Rather it is the Father whose testimony is confirming.

John 8:13-18

So the Pharisees said to him, “You are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true.” Jesus answered, “Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one. Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me. In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.”

John the Evangelist, in fact organizes this Gospel around seven confirming signs.  The second of which is in our passage (John 4:46-54) and confirms His omnipotence by healing a person from a distance.

Week 8 - John 4:1-42 - The Samaritan Woman

Unlike today, when all we need to do is open a tap, all the water that this woman used for daily life had to be carried from its source to her home.

Jacob’s Well was different than the nearby springs (ten-minute walk).  Jacob had purchased the plot of land (Genesis 33:18-19) near Shechem, but that would not have included one of those precious springs.  

The well was hand dug to be independent of those surface level springs and the people that used them to water their animals.  Because it was hand dug and deep, it was special.  It was very good water very suitable for drinking, but every bucket meant hauling it up 100-150ft.

The idea of having such water welling up (v. 14) more than caught her attention!

As a youth we hiked the 100-mile trail between Mt. Katahdin and the little town of Monson in Maine.  Along that trail, we reached the Potaywadjo spring in full flood.  Water gushed from the spring, and we filled every container we had with its delicious water.  It was large enough for two of us to relax in its waters after a hot day of hiking, and from it ran what would be called a river.

Our Lord Jesus Christ offered this woman (and us) such a spring welling up inside us.

John 4:13-14

Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

When  the town received the testimony of the woman and confirmed it themselves revival broke out (John 4:39-42).

Week 7 - John 3:22-36 - On Baptism

Jewish immersion was rooted in the cleansings found in the Law (Leviticus 6,11,13-17) and the Pool of Siloam (John 9) and Pool of Bethesda (John 5:2-9) near the Temple Mount were used for this purpose.  These were self-administered.

The baptisms of John and of Jesus were however not for purification but rather repentance (Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3; Matthew 3:11; Acts 13:24; Acts 19:4) and were not self-administered.  

A legal discussion (zētēsis) with an individual and John's disciples arose over the difference.  During this debate the baptisms that the disciples of Jesus were performing surfaced.  Jesus was one or two days away from Jerusalem and John the Baptist was 6 or 7 days away.  They were not on the way to the Temple, but rather pulled people away from the temple.  

Mark 1:4-5

John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

No other itinerant preacher of the time, nor any other prophet of the Old Testament performed such baptisms.  While Judaism later adopted baptism as an initiatory rite for proselytes, there is no pre-70 AD evidence of its use. 

It is also not part of the Nazarite vow (Numbers 6:1–21) to which Jesus was not submitting when He was baptized, for Jesus drank wine (Matthew 11:18–19), touched the dead (Mark 5:41), and He cut His hair (no account of him not doing so).  This assertion unfortunately is frequently heard.

So, these baptisms were innovative.  All Old Testament washings needed to be repeated.  The baptisms of John and Jesus were one time.  

Acts 19:1-7

And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John's baptism.” And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. There were about twelve men in all.

Note please the phrases “Into John’s Baptism” and “baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus”.  

Baptism is a transition from a before state to an after state.  The individual ever after becomes identified by that name.

John 3:31-33

He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all. He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony. Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true.

In taking their baptism, the individual declared the testimonies of John the Baptist or Jesus Christ were true.  

But more than that, in taking their baptism they are saying that God’s testimony heard by John and by Jesus is true.

1 John 5:9-12

If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

So, what statement did they hear God make?

Matthew 3:17

. . . and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Matthew 17:5

He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”

God is true.