David Bahn – Reflections

John 6:27-29

Do not labor 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.” ²⁸Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?”²⁹Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

Great Thanksgiving meals are often followed by football, naps, and trips to the mall. But in this case the meal that Jesus had provided (feeding 5000 with two fish and five loaves of bread) was followed by a stroll across the Sea of Galilee. Jesus’ arrival was a blessing to frightened disciples and a mystery to the people who were looking for Jesus (“When did you come here?” v. 25). But the master of invitation/challenge was doing more than magic tricks or seductive entertainment.

Jesus was doing the work of God, and he urges them to labor for eternally-beneficial food which he provides. It seems that we will go to great lengths to attain treasures we believe will fill our hearts. From 5 a.m. trips to the mall to TV football marathons we go to great lengths to satisfy our cravings. But do we go to any lengths to attain the bread of life? Do we make the same efforts at spiritual feasting that we do with preparing a Thanksgiving meal? Do we invest in the Kingdom of God to the same degree that we do in our 401-k?

There is One who does have his priorities all in order and he calls us to seek food that endures to eternal life. What might that food be? It is the Word of God. “Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 8:3). The works of God endure through eternity. They sustain us when nothing else will. And to do them we simply believe in the One he has sent: Jesus Christ. This is God’s work on two levels: He works the faith in our hearts; we don’t conjure it up ourselves. And in faith our priorities are reoriented and our efforts advance God’s kingdom.

Believing in Jesus is far more than holding a correct view of who he is, and acknowledging that he is the Son of God. Believing in Jesus aligns our hearts and souls with his cause and sets on a journey seeking his kingdom. We’ll never do that perfectly, but we have a perfect Savior who invites us back to himself and continues his work in us through all eternity. That is the work of God for which we must truly give thanks.

John 6:16-34

¹⁶When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, ¹⁷got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. ¹⁹When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. ²⁰ But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” ²¹Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going. ²²On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. ²³Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. ²⁴So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

²⁵When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” ²⁶Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you sawsigns, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. ²⁷ Do not labor 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.” ²⁸Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?”²⁹Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” ³⁰So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? ³¹ Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” ³²Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” ³⁴They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”