Three Minute Bible

John 6: 41-42

‘ At this, the Jews there began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”’

How can Jesus say he “came down from heaven” when he was born right here on earth? Well… how else would you come down from heaven? I suppose that Jesus could have come as he was before he was born. But how would mere man have been able to stand in the face of such power and majesty?  Continue reading “Coming Down”

John 6:40

” For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

By inference, Jesus refers to what he taught Nicodemus in chapter 3 where he says, “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” Everyone who “looks to the Son” and believes in him shall have eternal life. Continue reading “Uncomplicated”

John 6:39

” And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.”

What would happen if Jesus were to lose one of the people God had given him? How would that work? Could Jesus still claim to be God or would he simply be some lucky fella picked to represent God on earth, or would he still be God’s son, only sort of a screw-up?  Continue reading “Beyond”

John 6: 38

” For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.”

The nuances of Jesus’ speech patterns fascinate me. The Gospels refer to Jesus having been born, but Jesus does not refer to himself that way. It is always in the context of coming from someplace else to be here for a little while. Being “born” was a doorway into this world for him. He had to go through that process to become human so that he could die for us.  Continue reading “Nuance”

John 6: 37

” All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.” 

I am often amazed at how much information is included in the Bible texts. My tendency is to read the Bible like a story, which it is, but it is also a highly accurate account of God’s Word. What I am discovering is that each sentence has value and meaning.

Today’s verse is one such verse. Continue reading “Confidence”

John 6:36

” But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe.”

The reason they call a magic trick a “trick” is that the magic is not magic at all. Something happens to “trick” the eye into thinking you see one thing while something altogether different is actually happening. A movie is a good example of this kind of trick. Regardless of whether a movie is recorded on film or electronically, it consists of 24 to 48 pictures, or “frames”, per second. What is shown to us on the screen is a series of still images. What we “see” is a moving picture.

The miracles Jesus did were not “magic” nor were they a “trick.” Continue reading “Sight”

John 6: 35

‘Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life.”’

As we have noted throughout this study so far, Jesus sees the spiritual realm very clearly. He constantly has his eyes on his Father in heaven. He knows where he came from and where he is going spiritually. He sees us as God sees us; not as physical beings that live and then die, but spiritual beings which He created to be eternal, like himself.  Continue reading “Game Changer”

John 6: 33-34

‘“For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”  “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”’

If you wanted to teach a lesson to five thousand plus people, how would you do it? Let’s say you had modern big screen projectors, the best sound system in the world, and a laser light show and fireworks to get their attention. How would you get five thousand people to focus on what you wanted them to focus on?  Continue reading “Bread”

John 6: 31-32

”  Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.’”

Reading the stories of the Israelite’s exodus from Egypt, one might understandably get the idea that the people Moses led out in the desert associated the miracles with him rather than with God. Yet the book of Exodus makes it clear that Moses, with one exception, only did what God wanted him to do. He sought God’s guidance for everything.  Continue reading “True Bread”

John 6: 30

” So they asked him, ‘What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do?’” 

The crowds had seen Jesus heal the sick and feed thousands of people with little more than nothing. I, personally, would think that those “signs” qualify the person doing them as someone special. Clearly, those speaking for the crowd thought something more was in order.  Continue reading “Signs”