Let us commence this meeting with God by declaring openly to
one another and to God:
Our help is in the Name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Beloved, grace and peace be to you from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, through the
mighty working of God the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Psalm of praise: 2:4, 6
Prayer
Psalm 18:14
Scripture reading: John
6:22-71
Scripture
text: John 6:69;
Catechism Lord’s Day13
We believe them, and we know you are the Holy One of
God. (John 6:69 NLT)
Through all ages anybody who wanted to be a king had to comply with certain requirements:
- First he had to be of noble descent.
-
- He had to be member of a family known for having performed gloriously.
- Then the people would find it easy to honour the king.
- Another requirement was that he had to be competent. His performance had to earn the
trust of the people.
In John 5 and 6 such a King speaks.
- The Son of God who came to earth is busy teaching his people.
- In chapter 5 Jesus teaches them that He is the Bread of Life who descended from heaven.
- Then the people ask the Lord Jesus to give them of the Bread of Life to eat.
- In verse 53 Jesus then says:
So Jesus said again, “I assure you, unless you eat the flesh
of the Son Of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you.” (John
6:53 NLT)
He also says that those who eat his flesh will live in Him.
The people did not understand the style of the King’s teaching, because in a way they had
lagged behind in their faith.
- They didn’t understand that their King was speaking to them.
- They also did not understand that Jesus was talking about a spiritual meal, because they
didn’t understand of which kingdom He was the King.
Of course, the words imply the Lord’s Supper that was to be instituted some time later, to
symbolise our sanctification in Christ.
The people didn’t want to listen to these words.
- To them it simply seemed impossible, and therefore they decided not to follow Him any
longer!
- Such a Ruler they did not wish to have – they would be interested in eternal life, but
not in eating his flesh!
Jesus knew exactly what their muttering was all about. Then the King of God’s kingdom asks
the people: “Does it offend you?”
- The Greek word is skandalon. This is actually a snare/trap used to catch birds.
- He knew that these people had been trapped by his kingship:
-
- They wanted a king who is honoured as a king of this world.
- A king who could speak powerful words leading the Jewish
people to rebel against and defeat the Romans.
And now this King talks about the Bread of Life, and that no one could enter his kingdom
unless he would eat his flesh and drink his blood.
Where did this misconception originate?
- The Author of the letter to the Hebrews summarises it well in the very first verse:
long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our
ancestors through the prophets. But now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his
Son. (Hebrews 1:1-2a NLT).
They did not understand the way in which He spoke about God. They interpreted the whole matter
in a way they wanted to understand it and consequently lost the true meaning completely.
- They resented the fact that Christ had said that whoever saw the Father also saw Him.
- They would not accept Him as God although it is said in the Bible:
You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.
(Hebrews 1:5)
The Nicene Creed reads that Christ is Light of Light. He is the eternal, wonderful and true
God.
- This is what the Jews did not understand properly!
- It just stands to reason that people, who do not know Christ the King of the world, will
also not accept his words.
In Hebrews 1:2 we read that in the final days He spoke to us through Christ, the Son, whom
He had appointed to rule over everything as his heir.
- John writes that Christ also said that if they were offended by the fact that they would
live through Him, what would they think if they saw Him return to heaven again? (John
6:56-62)
Now Jesus continued and said to his disciples that the flesh was of no use – it is the
Spirit that gives life. Worldly expectations are futile.
- His work as Saviour is to give life to the dead. This is also why the Holy Spirit
succeeded Him.
- He didn’t mean the people should literally eat his flesh. He meant that that they should
be fed spiritually through his work
- They did not recognise Jesus when He stood before them, because they neither read their
Bible nor listened to what the prophets told them. Hence their total misconception!
We must clearly understand exactly what they did not want to understand.
- They did not want to understand that the man who stood before them really was the natural
Son of God. They wanted Him to be different.
- Those who had false expectations about Him did not believe in Him, because they went
away.
- This still applies. If you still cannot accept the man Jesus as the natural Son of God,
you are lost, and then you are to be blamed.
- It is not the Lord’s fault if we do not believe.
These things are the other side of predestination.
- Even though we are not chosen, God does not do us an injustice, because He reveals Him to
us and we reject Christ.
- Hence He can rightly pass judgement on us.
- This is also written here:
But some of you don’t believe me. For Jesus knew from the
beginning who didn’t believe, . . . (John 6:64 NLT)
Christ’s Divinity and his Kingship are clearly revealed in what Jesus says in verse 65:
Then he said, “That is what I meant when I said that people
can’t come to me unless the Father brings them to me.” (John 6:65 NLT)
God’s work is the foundation of our repentance and salvation.
- The people who left Jesus on this day were not interested.
-
- They wanted to change the world with violence.
- They wanted to see immediate results.
- They did not understand the least bit of things of a spiritual nature and the kingdom
of God and of Jesus who was to establish this kingdom.
Jesus clearly states that man has never been able and will never be able to save
himself!
- God saves.
- He keeps us through Jesus Christ. This is why I said
these things to you, Jesus said.
This passage emphasises Jesus Christ’s divine omnipotence because He is God.
- He is God who rules over death and all people.
- He has the power to give life to those who spiritually partake of Him.
All the people now turned away from Him.
- They did not want to accept that they had to become children of God through Jesus Christ.
- They did not want to accept that He was God who would destroy the power that the devil
had over them.
When everyone had turned away and only Jesus and his twelve disciples remained behind,
Jesus asked them whether they were also going to leave. They were free to go – nothing forced
them to stay.
Listen carefully to Peter’s reply.
- He told Christ that they knew of no better place to go.
- Nowhere else is a god to be found from whom they would receive such grace. Lord, to whom would we go? You alone have the words that give eternal
life. (John 6:68).
Jesus can only speak about eternal life in such a way if it belongs to Him.
- He can also hand it out because He is God and He is almighty.
- Hence Christ is the supreme prophet of God, because his words give eternal life.
The Peter touches on the crux of the matter – our Scripture text:
- We believed and recognised you as the Christ, the Son of the living God.
- Christ is the Holy God.
- God ordained Jesus, and therefore He is fully competent to do his work.
- He is in the service of God when He does his work as Saviour.
Now where should they go to, because any other address will end up in hell – eternal
death?
Contrary to the rest of the people the disciples were able to understand that Christ was the
Messiah and that this was the way in which He had to come to earth.
- It could therefore not have been so difficult to know and understand the truth about
Jesus, because among them was a man by the name of Judas.
- The Bible says he agreed that Jesus was God and the Messiah. And Jesus calls Judas a
devil.
In practice these glorious facts, which we believe with regard to Jesus, lead us to get to
know ourselves.
- If we accept these, and we believe, we discover that we also share in eternal life.
- Then we do not have to wonder at times about whether we are chosen or not, because we
then know we are.
- Fact is that you are a child of God through Christ, and God never rejects his children.
Then we do not have to fear difficult times in our lives, because we will have the
strength to cope.
Even when we suffer much grief we are comforted, because we know that in the kingdom of God
there will be no grief or suffering.
That kingdom is our final address.
Catechism Lord’s Day 13 teaches us all these things.
33. Q. Why is He called God’s only begotten Son, since we also
are children of God?
A. Because Christ alone is the eternal, natural Son of
God.[1] We, however, are children of God by adoption, through grace, for Christ's
sake.[2]
[1] John 1:1-3, 14, 18; 3:16; Rom. 8:32; Heb. 1; I John 4:9.
[2] John 1:12; Rom. 8:14-17; Gal. 4:6;
Eph. 1:5, 6.
34. Q. Why do you call Him our Lord?
A. Because He has ransomed us, body and soul,[1] from
all our sins, not with silver or gold but with His precious blood,[2] and has freed us from all
the power of the devil to make us His own possession.[3]
[1] I Cor. 6:20; I Tim. 2:5, 6. [2] I Peter 1:18, 19. [3]
Col. 1:13, 14; Heb. 2:14, 15.
Amen.
Closing prayer
Closing hymn: Scripture hymn 1-1:1, 7 (24:1, 7)
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit
be with you all.
Amen.
Dr MJ du Plessis
Reformed Church Bellville
Date: 28 August 2005 (evening)