Believe

John 6:29-30 – Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do?

1 John 3:23 – And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.

John 2:11 – What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

Application:

• ·         Believing in Jesus Christ is the indispensable “work” God calls for—the one that leads to eternal life.
• ·         God’s command has two parts: (1) Believe in Christ, and (2) love each other.
• ·         Signs revealed Jesus’ glory and likely also pointed to the fullness of the salvation He came to effect.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

What Must We Do...?

John 6:28 – Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”

Ephesians 2:8-9 – For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.

Titus 3:4-7 – But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

Application:

• ·         “What must we do…?” means they missed the point that eternal life is Christ’s gift and were thinking in terms of achieving it by pious works.
• ·         No human effort can contribute to our salvation; it is the gracious gift of God.
• ·         No one can take credit for his or her salvation.
• ·         Salvation is not achieved by human effort or merit but comes through God’s mercy alone.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Eternal Life

John 6:26-29 – Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

John 2:11 – What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

Ephesians 4:30 – And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

2 Timothy 2:19 – Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

Mark 8:31 – He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.

John 4:34 – “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.

Application:

• ·         John always refers to Jesus’ miracles as “signs”, a word emphasizing the significance of the action rather than the marvel.
• ·         “Eternal life” is not something to be achieved but to be received by faith in Christ.
• ·         The verb “grieve demonstrates that the Holy Spirit is a person, not just an influence, for only a person can be grieved.
• ·         The church is owned and securely protected by God.
• ·         “What must we do…?” means the people missed the point that eternal life is Christ’s gift and were thinking in terms of achieving it by pious works.
• ·         Believing in Jesus Christ is the indispensable “work” God calls for—the one that leads to eternal life.
• ·         The Son of Man is pictured as a heavenly figure who in the end times is entrusted by God with authority, glory and sovereign power.
• ·         John often mentions that Jesus depended on the Father and did the work the Father sent Him to do.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Make Him King By Force

John 6:15-25 – Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself. When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were frightened. But he said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading. The next day the crowd that had stayed on the opposite shore of the lake realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with his disciples, but that they had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

John 18:36 – Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

Application:

• ·         Jesus agrees that He has a kingdom but asserts that it is not the kind of kingdom that has soldiers to fight for it. It was not built, nor is it maintained, by military might.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Son...Prophet

John 6:10-14,27 – Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”… Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”

John 2:11 – What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

Deuteronomy 18:15 – The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.

Application:

• ·         Through Moses, God had provided food and water for the people in the wilderness, and they expected the Prophet to do more than this.
• ·         Signs revealed Jesus’ glory and likely also pointed to the fullness of the salvation He came to effect.
• ·         When Moses left, he said that another spokesman will take his place, and then another will be necessary for the next generation.
• ·         “Eternal life” is not something to be achieved but to be received by faith in Christ.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Signs

John 5:47-6:9,35 – But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?” Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. The Jewish Passover Festival was near. When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?”… Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

John 2:11 – What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

Application:

• ·         “The bread of life” may mean “the bread that is living” and/or “the bread that gives life”.
• ·         John always refers to Jesus’ miracles as “signs”, a word emphasizing the significance of the action rather than the marvel.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

He Wrote About Me

John 5:41-46 – “I do not accept glory from human beings, but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts. I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? “But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.

Romans 2:29 – No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

Romans 10:4 – Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

Genesis 3:15 – And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

Luke 24:44,46-47 – He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”… He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

Deuteronomy 18:15 – The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.

Application:

• ·         The true sign of belonging to God is not an outward mark on the physical body but the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit within—what Paul meant by “circumcision of the heart”.
• ·         I am are no longer “under the law”, since Christ has freed me from its condemnation, but the law still plays a role in my life.
• ·         Jesus the Messiah came to complete God’s saving program in history.
• ·         The offspring of the woman would eventually crush the serpent’s head, a promise fulfilled in Christ’s victory over Satan—a victory in which I will share.
• ·         God, through the Messiah, came to bring about the full and final redemption of His people and the full and final restoration of all things.
• ·         The Old Testament depicts the Messiah as one who would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day.
• ·         When Moses left the Israelites, he sais that another spokesman would take his place, and then another would be necessary for the next generation.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV