Pentecost 11 - Proper 14B

 

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8 August 2021
John 6:35-51
Jesus speaks for Himself

People of Jesus’ day created a situation in which Jesus had an opportunity to explain for Himself who He was. Many ideas, opinions, and reports about Him circulated around the land. Today is no different. All kinds of things are said about Jesus – in books, lectures, sermons, and conversations. So what do you think about Jesus? Why not go directly to Jesus and let Him tell us who He is? Today we see what Jesus says concerning Himself. What does Jesus tell us about Himself?

1.       I am the bread of life –v.48 I am the bread of life. Jesus is the bread of life and whoever believes in Him has eternal life.

Like the Israelites in the wilderness, the people murmur against Jesus’ claim that He is the bread from heaven, implying that He is God’s Son. So who is this Jesus? In the Rock Opera “Jesus Christ Superstar” Mary claims “he’s just a man…he’s just a man” 50 years later opinions concerning Jesus Christ will vary.  Is He “just a man”? Or is He more?  

2.      I am from heaven – v.41 "Then the Jews began grumbling about him because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven." Repeatedly Jesus said that He was the Bread of Life that came down from heaven. Here is a claim for divinity. It deals with the doctrine of the Incarnation.  

In his introduction John put it this way, “And the Word became flesh.” This was hard for Jesus’ contemporaries to accept. They saw Jesus only as a man and they knew His parents and family. It is still hard for contemporary persons to accept. Can one be God? Can the Infinite become finite; can the Spiritual become material? The Incarnation of Jesus Christ can only be accepted by faith. Thus, Jesus places much emphasis on “he who believes…” (v. 47) 

3.      I alone see God – v.46 I'm saying that no one has seen the Father. Only the one who is from    God has seen the Father.  No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is           in the bosom of            the Father, He has explained Him. (John 1:18)  There is an oneness between Jesus and the Father. No one can come to Jesus without being drawn by the Father. He who knows God also knows Jesus as the Son of God.

4.      I give eternal life – v.50 "This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that a person may eat it and not die.  He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." (John 6:36)   "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” (John 5:24)  A person who believes in Jesus as the bread of life from heaven “has” eternal life. We do not get eternal life when we die. It begins before death – “today.”

Now is the time to receive and enjoy life in Christ which is everlasting. If we are not in heaven while on earth, we never will get to heaven when we leave this earth.  

In the Gospel of John Jesus comes to visit a grieving family. He speaks to Mary and Martha who were mourning the loss of their brother. Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the live he who believe in me even though they die will live forever. And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Then He asked them this question, “Do you believe this?" (John 11:26)  This is the ultimate question of which you must ponder. “Is Jesus the resurrection and life?”  The testimony of scripture is overwhelming. The 1^st Century disciples would simply say, “We are witnesses of these things!” Do you believe, “everyone who lives and believes in Him will never die”? How you answer that question determines your destiny.

Words-705
Passive Sentences – 5%
Readability – 76%
Reading Level –5.6

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[1] Luther’s Seal copyright © Ed Riojas Higher Things

Time in the Word - Pentecost 11 - Proper 14

Time in the Word

August 3-8 2015

Pentecost 11 -Proper 14

Collect for Pentecost 11—Gracious Father, Your blessed Son came down from heaven to be the true bread that gives life to the world. Grant that Christ, the bread of life, may live in us and we in Him, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Collect for Proper 14 – Gracious Father, You blessed Son came down from heaven to be the true bread that gives life to the world. Grant that Christ, the bread of life, may live in us and we in Him, who loves and reigns with You and the holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Before the study of God’s Word – Almighty God, our heavenly Father, without Your help our labor is useless, and without Your light our search is in vain. Invigorate our study of Your holy Word that, by due diligence and right discernment, we may establish ourselves and others in Your holy faith; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

For reconciliation – God of love, through Your Son You have commanded us to love one another. By the guidance of Your Word and Spirit, deliver us from impenitence and teach us the truth that we might confess our sins, receive Your forgiveness, and be reconciled to one another; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. 

For guidance in our calling – Lord God, You have called Your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that Your hand is leading us and Your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

For proper use of leisure – O God, give us times of refreshment and peace in the course of this busy life. Grant that we may so use our leisure to rebuild our bodies and renew our minds that we may be opened to the goodness of Your creation; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

 For a right knowledge of Christ – Almighty God, whom to know is everlasting life, grant us perfectly to know Your Son, Jesus Christ, to be the way, the truth, and the life, that following His steps we may steadfastly walk in the way that leads to eternal life; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord.

For steadfast faith – Almighty God, our heavenly Father, because of Your tender love toward us sinners You have given us Your Son that, believing in Him, we might have everlasting life. Continue to grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may remain steadfast in this faith to the end and finally come to life everlasting; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

The theme for the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost is “Eat and Live”. His own people, the Jews, grumbled when Jesus told them that He is the Bread of Life that came down from heaven. They saw Him only as a man, not the Savior who had been promised from the very beginning in the Garden of Eden after the Fall (Genesis 3:15). Their own expectations of God’s promised Deliverer blinded them to the fact that He was standing before them.

Christ Jesus offers His gift of eternal salvation to all who will receive it. He calls them, and the Father draws them to Him. But some, because of the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their sin, reject the good gift that God has for them. May we ever nourish our faith through our regular church attendance, hearing the word of God preached and proclaimed, and receiving the body and blood of Christ.

Monday, 3 August 2015—Psalm 34:8–10; Antiphon, Psalm 145:16—The antiphon should be familiar to us, as it is part of the prayer before a meal which Luther included in the Catechism. The psalmist David then says to taste and see that the Lord is good. How are we to do this? St Peter tell us that we should be like newborn infants, longing for the pure spiritual milk. We have tasted that the Lord is good, for we have heard His Word of forgiveness and salvation, we have eaten of His Holy Supper, and we long for more.

Tuesday, 4 August 2015—Psalm 34:1–8—The psalm appointed for next week is one taken from a bizarre incident in the life of David, when he pretended to be insane before Achish, a Palestinian king in the line of Abimelech. The entire story is recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10-15. David exhorts us to extol the Lord at all times, for as the Lord delivered David in answer to his prayer, so He also has delivered us from sin, death, and the devil.

Wednesday, 5 August 2015—1 Kings 19:1–8—Despite the fact that the Lord had shown that He alone is the true God in Elijah’s showdown with the prophets of Baal, wicked Queen Jezebel clung to her false gods and sought to kill Elijah. To escape, Elijah fled to the wilderness near Beersheba. There, the Lord fed him with bread. The Lord feeds us also; not through the ministrations of an angel, but by farmers, truckers, stock-boys, and grocery-store clerks. “God gives daily bread to everyone…we pray that He would lead us to realize this and to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving.”

Thursday, 6 August 2015—Ephesians 4:17—5:2—In this section of our reading from the book of Ephesians, St Paul tells us that, since we have been set free from bondage to sin and death, we should live outwardly in way that reflects our new life in Christ. We are to live as children of light, no longer living in the darkness of sin. Those in the world ought to see a difference in how Christians live versus how the rest of the world lives. As children of God, we imitate God, not the ways of the world.

  

Friday, 7 August 2015—John 6:35–51—“I am the Bread of Life,” declares Jesus. The bread that He gives is better than earthly bread, for that can only sustain the body while we sojourn in this earthly vale of tears. The bread that Jesus gives—the bread that Jesus is—sustains our souls for all eternity. Jesus gives Himself for the life of the world.

Saturday, 8 August 2015—Again this week, the hymn of the day is O Living Bread from Heaven (LSB 642). This second stanza proclaims that we have been led by the Lord to His house to receive His good gifts of forgiveness. We could not, and do not, do this on our own, but He leads us, and then feeds us with Word and Sacrament. The ‘food’ we receive in the Divine Service is better than the food we eat daily at our meals, for it is food that gives eternal life.

My Lord, You have led me

To this most holy place.

And with Yourself have fed me

The treasures of Your grace;

For You have freely given

What earth could never buy,

The bread of life from heaven,

That now I shall not die.

-Lutheran Service Book 642:2

Prayers from Lutheran Service Book © 2006 and Lutheran Worship © 1980 Concordia Publishing House and from Lutheran Worship © 1980 Concordia Publishing House.

Schnorr von Carolsfeld woodcut used with permission from WELS

Lectionary Preaching Workbook Series B – John Brokhoff © 1981 CSS Publishing, Lima, OH

Pentecost 11 - Proper 14

Gracious Father, Your blessed Son came down from heaven to be the true bread that gives life to the world. Grant that Christ, the bread of life, may live in us and us in Him.

Who is this Jesus? Where did He come from? Who is He? His reference to His coming from heaven caused folks to cuss, fuss, and discuss. It made them murmur, complain, and disagree.

The conversation continues to this very day. We are no different. All kinds of things are said about Jesus in books, lectures, sermons, and conversations. Who is this Jesus? When He says He comes down from heaven many continue to have difficulty in accepting Jesus as the divine Son of God. The times in which we live are incredible. While 40% of the American population remains unchurched, yet everyone has their own opinion concerning the person of Jesus Christ.     ^[i]

Let’s go to the directly to Jesus and let Him tell us who He is. What does Jesus have to say concerning Himself?

1. I am from heaven. V. 41 - “They were grumbling about Him, because He said, “I am the bread that came down out of heaven.” John reminds us in the introduction to his gospel, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,” As Jesus entered time and space He came to be your substitute. He does not merely claim to represent God. He demands that He be known to be God.

Only God can rain down bread from heaven in the form of manna. Only God can send ravens to feed a starving prophet who was holed up in a cave.

To make Himself equal with God caused many to grumble at Jesus. This is what caused many to walk away from Him. Are we to grumble too? He has promised to sustain and lead us. Do we trust Him? It takes faith to submit to His will and trust Him come what may. 

Jesus claims to have come from heaven. What’s more, He claims to have direct access to God.

2. I alone see God. V. 46 - “Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father.” Jesus is the only one who has seen the Father. No one has seen the Father except the one who is from god. Jesus will not lay claim to anything else but to be the only begotten Son of the Father. Not one who know God. Not one who understands God. Jesus makes an exclusive claim. He is the only one who has seen the Father.

Only Jesus has seen the Father. To have seen God meant sure and certain death. Moses had to shield his face. Jesus will make the sole statement – I alone see God.

Jesus claims to come from heaven. He claims to have seen the Father. He alone is the bread of life.

3. I am the bread of life. V.48 - “I am the bread of life.” Not to eat is to starve and die. Not to eat enough leads to weakness and disease. To eat the wrong things injures health. To eat too much results in obesity. Yet when we feat on Jesus, the bread of life we are satisfied. To feast on Jesus the bread of life a new life, which never ends begins. 

He is the one who creates life. With ten simple phrases, the entire created order was made. There is nothing that exists, whether on earth, or in heaven, which did not come by the created mouth of Jesus.

He sustains life. He spoke the universe into existence. He his promises to sustain and keep it. “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, will never cease.” (Genesis 8:22) Times and seasons, crested by the Savior Himself will never end until the end of time. This is His promise to you.

Jesus comes from heaven. He alone sees God. He creates and sustains the earth. He alone gives eternal life.

4. I give eternal life. V. 50 – “This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die.” As soon as the Bread of Life is eaten by faith, a new life, which never ends begins. Heaven is a present possession, for heaven is essentially life in Christ. In Christ, we get life now.

Do you trust these claims by the Savior? Do you believe He is God in the flesh? Do you believe He gives his life for this world? Do you believe His death on the bloody cross and an open tomb can give and sustain life?

In the midst of life, we are in death. Jesus claims if you feast on Him you will not die. Is this life possible? Jesus guarantees eternal life for you. By faith, you believe and live.

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven,” Jesus said. “If anyone eats of this bread, He will live forever.” By faith, you trust Him. By faith, you receive Him. In faith, He will sustain you.

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[i] http://www.christianpost.com/news/majority-of-unchurched-are-christians-survey-finds-44715/ George Barna survey indicates 28 percent of the U.S. adult population is unchurched, or nearly 65 million people. When the number of children living with unchurched adults is also included, the number rises to 100 million people. Barna’s latest national survey on the unchurched, conducted August 2009 through February 2010, was based upon random samples of 4,020 adults. Of those adults, 1,144 where unchurched and 703 were self-identified Christians.