Introduction to Systematic Theology: Sunday School Lesson for Dec. 28, 2014

What Is Theology?

Ryrie breaks down theology according to its etymology to show that, “The word ‘theology,’ from θεός (theos), meaning God and λογός (logos) meaning rational expression, means the rational interpretation of religious faith.”1 Therefore, theology, in a broad sense, is anything dealing with a system of religious belief. This definition would include everyone’s belief systems, even that of an atheist. However for our purposes, theology has a much more narrow definition. Theology is anything that is said about God and His work from Scripture. Reasons for this will be explained as we study the Bibliology section.

The Woman Caught in Adultery

This Sermon was preached from John 7:53-8:11

Many probably noticed that I skipped this passage this morning. This is because this section of Scripture requires some special attention with a longer than usual preface. Therefore, I thought it would be best to reserve this discussion for the evening service. 

John 7:53-8:11 is not part of the original text. John the apostle did not write this little narrative. In order to explain this, I have to introduce you to what is known as textual criticism. Textual criticism is not looking at the Bible to decide if we like it or not but it is a science that examines handwritten copies of the Bible to determine the words the author originally wrote. Remember, the original words that were written were inspired (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:20-21). No where in Scripture does it say that God re-inspires the copies nor does He move the scribes. He providentially preserves His Word (Ps. 12:6-7). We do this because we do not have the original manuscript, or autograph, that the author wrote. We do not have the original letter that was sent to the Philippians and was penned by Paul. We instead have copies of that letter. Textual criticism finds the original words by comparing and contrasting copies of manuscripts. Some manuscripts carry more weight than others because they are thought to be closer to the original. Some factors that would allow a manuscript to be more authoritative would be percentage of agreement with other manuscripts, the date it was written, the location from which it came, the extent of text, and the weight of authority of the manuscript that it was copied from. I say all of this to help you understand why I say that the story of the woman caught in adultery is not a part of the Bible. This narrative is not found in the oldest and most trusted manuscripts. The text in most manuscripts jumps from 7:52 to 8:12. Hart explains the textual evidence as follows.

The external manuscript evidence is strongly in favor of the omission of the episode. Virtually all Alexandrian manuscripts, considered by the majority of scholars to be the oldest and least corrupt manuscripts, omit it, and virtually all Byzantine manuscripts, viewed by the majority of scholars as much later and generally more corrupt, include it. But even when they include it, the episode “floats around” in various locations in the various manuscripts. This indicates great doubt about its inclusion even among the manuscripts that include it. 1

D. A. Carson and Moo give more details.

These verses are present in most of the medieval Greek minuscule manuscripts, but they are absent from virtually all early Greek manuscripts that have come down to us, representing great diversity of textual traditions. The most notable exception is the Western uncial D, known for its independence in numerous other places. They are also missing from the earliest forms of the Syriac and Coptic Gospels, and from many Old Latin, Old Georgian, and Armenian manuscripts. All the early church fathers omit this narrative; in commenting on John they pass from 7:52 to 8:12. No Eastern Father cites the passage before the tenth century. Moreover, a number of (later) manuscripts that include the narrative mark it off with asterisks or obeli (†), indicating hesitation as to its authenticity, while those that do include it display a rather high frequency of textual variants. Although most of the manuscripts that include the story place it at 7:53-8:11, some place it instead after Luke 21:38, and others variously after John 7:44, or 7:36, or 21:25. The diversity of placement confirms (though it cannot establish) the inauthenticity of the verses. Finally, even if someone should decide that the substance of the narrative is authentic––a position plausible enough––it would be very difficult to justify the view that the material is authentically Johannine: it includes numerous expressions and constructions that are found nowhere in John but are characteristic of the Synoptic Gospels, Luke in particular. 2

All of the commentaries that I own in print are in agreement with the quotations above. Two of the commentaries even move the exposition to an appendix. A good Bible will have notations about this discussion in the margin. 

Another evidence that confirms that the narrative was not part of the original include the immediate context. The Gospel of John flows very smoothly in continuing the thought of the author if the reader were to skip these verses. Some may object by saying that Jesus casting no stone was a way of leading into the discussion about how Jesus did not come to judge (John 8:15) and that verse 7:53 indicates that the feast was over because they left their makeshift homes. It was tradition during the feast to dwell in booths. The continuing theme in this section of John has been Jesus defending His identity as the Son of God and Messiah. This episode is similar to the test scenes found in the Synoptic Gospels (cf. Mat. 19:3). 

Unfortunately there is no definite answer for how these verses made it into the Bible. “Throughout the history of the church it has been held that, whoever wrote it, this little story it authentic.” 3 Perhaps the story was kept alive due to oral tradition and was inserted into the Bible at its present location because it was a good fit. There is nothing conclusive on the matter. 

Commentary

Although the story is most likely not original to the text, there is something that can be learned. Hence, it is worthwhile to examine the story.

7:53. As mentioned previously, it was tradition to stay in booths for the weak of the Feast of Tabernacles, hence the reason for the name. This was to help Israel remember the 40 years Israel spent in the wilderness. The indication from the verse would be that they left the booths and went home. 

8:1-2. It was customary for Jesus to spend the night outside the city. Luke 21:37 talks about Him going the mount of the Olives to stay the night. Also as was His custom, He returns to the temple to teach. 

3-5. The Pharisees brought a woman and set her before a crowd. The reason for doing this was because the woman was an adulterous. However, she was not being accused of being an adulterous, but she was caught in the very act of adultery. Something should set off warning bells though. It takes two to tango and there is only a woman being charged with adultery. Where is the man? Like the Pharisees said, according to the Old Testament Law, an adulteress is supposed to be sentenced to death. But it is supposed to be both the male and the female that are supposed to be sentenced to death (Lev. 20:10). Also, if the Pharisees caught the woman in the act of adultery, there would be no need to bring the woman before Jesus. They would already have sufficient evidence to pronounce judgement upon the man and the woman. The implications of the scenario is that the woman is most definitely guilty of adultery.

It is also unusual that the Pharisees are even bothering with such a transgression. Adultery was common enough that carrying out the death penalty for each case would have been difficult. It was more of a common practice for the husband to divorce the erring wife. 4

6. Now their intentions are made clear. They did these in order to trap Jesus. The Pharisees presented a question to Jesus where there was supposed to be no right answer. He could not say no, or set her free, because the Old Testament Law was very clear on the matter. Yet if Jesus were to say that the woman should be stoned then He would have circumvented the authority of the Roman government. Only the Roman government was allowed to pass the death penalty for crime but events of stoning were something out the Roman government’s control; they were seen as riots. 

No one knows what it was that Jesus wrote in the dirt. There are many theories. “Some suggested that He wrote the sins of the accusers. Others propose that He wrote the words of Exodus 23:1, ‘Do not be a false witness.’” 5 Another theory is that Jesus first wrote down what He was going to say. This was customary of a Roman judge. He would write down the sentence first and read aloud the official record. 6

7. The Pharisees pressed the issue further. They were sure that they had Jesus in a no-win situation. Jesus’ answer is very direct as well. The answer given so to avoid the wrong answer. He decided to instead address the fact that none of these men were without sin. Of course, though, this places Jesus as the only person qualified to cast a stone upon this woman. 

Something that seems strange to me is that if the Pharisees were witnesses of the woman committing adultery, then they would have been the first ones to cast a stone (Deut. 17:6-7). Perhaps this is because the punishment for adultery is death but Leviticus 20:10 does not make clear the method. The whole point though is to try to get Jesus to say the wrong answer. 

8. Jesus then after giving His answer continues to write something in the dirt.

9-10. The men left while Jesus was writing on the ground. The men realized that this situation was not going to work out well for anyone. Even if Jesus did say that she should be stoned, the men would have to put an end to a woman’s life. The men started to be convicted about starting the whole scene. The eldest men probably left first because they were the wisest and realized how grotesque the scene really was. Soon all the men left and only Jesus and the woman was left. Them being left alone carried the connotation of them being abandoned. The men realized it was better to abandon the case. 

Perhaps the woman’s answer to Jesus’ question confirms that the whole scene was a set up. No one really condemned her. 

11. Jesus does not condone her sin by that He does not condemn her. This is cleared up by the fact that Jesus tells her to go and sin no more. One would certainly hope that this woman would understand the amount of grace that she just received if truly was caught as an adulteress.

Endnotes

1. John F. Hart, “John,” in The Moody Bible Commentary: A One-Volume Commentary on the Whole Bible by the Faculty of Moody Bible Institute, ed. Michael Rydelnik and Michael Vanlaningham (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2014), 1630.

2. D. A. Carson and Douglas J. Moo, eds., An Introduction to the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005), 273-4.

3. Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1971), 883.

4. Ibid, 887n19. 

5. Edwin A. Blum, “John,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures by Dallas Seminary Faculty, vol. 2, New Testament, ed. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 1983), 347.

6. Morris, The Gospel According to John, 888n22.

I Am the Light of the World

This sermon was preached from John 8:12-30.



John 8:12 comes on the heels of 7:52. The setting is same as it was for the previous chapter. Therefore, Jesus is still speaking to the Pharisees during the last day of the feast of tabernacles. He is still confronting the same people as He was in the previous chapter.

A lot of the themes that will be seen in this section should feel familiar to us. Back in John 5:18-47 there repetitions of the words judge, judgment, and witness. The Jews were seeking to kill Jesus. The scene played out very much like a court room. The Pharisees and Sadducees were trying to determine if they should have Jesus executed for committing claims of blasphemy. This chapter will play out in much the same way.

Let us not forget either why this gospel was written, “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:31). This discourse is recorded to help reinforce this idea.

12. Jesus’ claim of equivalency to light is a claim to deity. This is another one of the famous “I am” statements in the Gospel of John. The first was seen in John 4:26 (in the Greek) and the second one was seen in John 6:35 (“I am the bread of life”). There multiple times in this sermon and the of the chapter that we will see the “I am” reference again, though, sometimes only in the Greek. This claim of being the light should also be familiar to the reader because it was also mentioned in the prologue (John 1:9). Light is typically used to metaphorically illustrate God’s holiness and righteousness (cf. John 3:19-21).

Jesus could also be using one of the daily ritual practices used during the feast of tabernacles. He did this before in 7:37 when the priest would have been pouring out the water into the basin.

A major feature of the Feast of Tabernacles was the lighting of giant lamps in the women’s court in the temple. The wicks were made from the priests’ worn-out garments. The light illuminated the temple area and the people gather to sing praises and dance. The light reminded the Jewish people of how God was with them in their wanderings in the wilderness in a pillar of cloud which turned to fire at night (Num. 9:15-23). 1 

Thus when the people were in the one of the most crowded courts of the temple and the lamp stand was there, Jesus used the lamps to illustrate who He is.

Jesus makes the promise that all that follow Him will not walk/live in darkness. They will no longer stumble. They will be able to see the correct place to set their feet. This is a metaphor to explain that those who believe in Jesus will understand the ways of righteousness and will make the effort to avoid sin. No one like to be in the darkness. You can not see where you are going in the dark. You’re afraid that you will stumble, fall into a pit or be attacked by a robber. Jesus equates unbelief to walking in darkness. You will eventually hurt yourself because you cannot see even though you don’t want to get hurt. No one enjoys stubbing their toe. Sin is no different. We may think that we are ok but really we only stubbing our toe or falling into a pit.

13. This is where we start to see a court room scene again. The Pharisees decide to challenge Jesus’ claim that He is the light of the world. Jesus stands alone in His claim, at least that is what the Pharisees think. In a court of law if only one individual claims that something happened but everyone else denies the event and the evidence correlates with the majority, then everyone accuse the lone person’s testimony to be false. This would make the lone witness a liar.

14. Jesus clarifies His claim. Just because He is the only one that is making these claims does not make His testimony false. There is no valid witness that contradicts what Jesus is saying. Not only this, Jesus makes it very clear that His testimony is true – that what He is saying is the truth. There is an emphasis going on in the Greek between that of Jesus’ “myself” and “ye.” Jesus is trying to point out that do not know Him. They can not point out that what Jesus is saying is false because they have no grounds to do so. Just like so many teens say when they are deflecting criticism, “You don’t know me.”

15-16. These two verses seem a little confusing. Jesus was pointing out that these men were only judging Him according to what they see, not according to what Jesus is saying.

The second half of this verse seems to contradict what Jesus said back in John 5:22 and 30. Jesus is talking about the reason as to why He is was on the earth during the first advent. When Jesus does judge, it will be at the last day. Jesus even points out that the judgement will be according to the ways of God, as opposed to the ways of man. God’s judgement is far more superior because of His omniscience and His holiness. This means that all deeds, whether hidden or open, will be brought into judgement. This is something that should scare everyone.

17-18. Jesus points to the law to remind the Pharisees that there needs to be two witnesses before any can come to a verdict to decide a matter (Deut. 17:6; 19:15). One witness could be stating a case that a person is guilty and should receive the death penalty. However, if one witness was good enough to convict, then there would be numerous false witnesses that accuse someone of a false crime in order to be rid of their enemy. Two or three witnesses were necessary in order to find out the truth of a matter.

I feel that it might be possible that Jesus was also pointing out a Rabbinic law. I say this because Jesus says, “your law,” instead of “the law.” 2 Perhaps He was talking about their oral tradition of interpretation concerning the law. This would be interesting if this is the case because Jesus is appealing to Rabbinic tradition rather than the law. Perhaps this could be seen as a parallel to the same kind of appeal that He made concerning circumcision on the sabbath (John 7:22-23).
Jesus points to two witnesses – Himself and His Father. Again, like He has done so many times before, Jesus states that the Father sent Him. We see an “I am,” in the Greek. It is the same construction that we have seen in the previous “I am” statements. The Greek literally reads, “I am the witnesses for/concerning Myself.” 3

19. Because Jesus appealed to His Father, the Pharisees think that they should be able to hear the testimony that His Father would give. The Pharisees were probably thinking that Jesus would start to talk about a normal person. Instead they received a very unexpected statement from Jesus. Jesus tells them that do not know Him or His Father. Which is why these Pharisees were really not able to speak as a judge in the matter. This of course would have upset the Pharisees a lot if they understood Jesus correctly. Jesus points out that they would have known the Father if they had known Him. This is true because of the unity within the Godhead. If they had believed Jesus’ message they would have known the Father that sent Him.

20. The author gives a location as to where this whole discussion was taking place, “in the treasury.”

It is most unlikely that Jesus taught in the actual treasure chamber, so the expression will mean that part of the Temple precincts into which people came to cast their offerings into the chests (cf. Mark 12:41, 43; Luke 21:1). This was part of the of the court of women. There were thirteen trumpets-shaped collection boxes there, each with its inscription showing the use to which its contents would be put (the inscriptions are quoted in the Mishnah, Shek. 6:5). 4 

This allows us very easily to imagine Jesus standing in the temple court and pointing to the candle lights and saying, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). Both the light stands and the treasury boxes would be located in the court of women.

As mentioned before, no one was able to seize Jesus because His time was not yet come (cf. John 7:8, 30, 32, 44). Remember, they were looking to take hold of Jesus because they were looking to kill Him (John 7:1, 25).

21. From this point forward, you will see Jesus try to emphasize the difference between Himself and the Pharisees. He very much trying to point out just how deep the divide is between them. Jesus will talk about the contrasts between Himself and the Pharisees.

This verse is very reminiscent of John 7:33-36. This time, though, He points out that they will die in their sins. They will want a messiah at the worst of times to deliver them from Roman rule but they will instead die in their sins because they missed the Messiah that saved them from their sins.

22. This time, the Pharisees understood that Jesus was talking about death. But they were thinking that He would kill Himself; which is something to be looked down upon with extreme hostility. 5 The assumed answer to the question was “no.”

23. The difference between Jesus and the Pharisees could not have been made any more clear. Their origins are from completely different locations. The pharisees are from the earth and are temporal. Jesus is not from the world but from heaven and is eternal. Jesus could be using the word “world” in two senses. He could mean a physical world or earth, or He could mean from the human race. The point is simple. Jesus is not like the Pharisees.

24. Jesus explains why He said previously, “Ye shall seek me, and die in your sins.” The reason why this would happen is because they do not believe that, “I am.” This is the same construction in the Greek that we saw previously in verses 12 and 18, “ἐγώ εἰμι” (“he” is not there in the Greek). However, this claim is a little different. Hart explains this further.

The phrase ἐγώ εἰμι is probably not a reference to Exodus 3:14 because the LXX translates the phrase “I am has sent me” with the Greek ὁ ὤν rather than using ἐγώ εἰμι. More likely it is taken from the LXX’s consistent usage of ἐγώ εἰμι as the translation of ani hu (“I am He”), a phrase used for God’s self disclosure in Isaiah (cf. Isa. 41:4; 43:10, 13, 25; 46:4; 48:12). For example in Isaiah 43:10, the Lord says, “So that you may known and believe Me, and understand that I am He (ani hu).” Jesus applied the words of the God’s self identification in the Old Testament to Himself. 6

Jesus is clearly identifying Himself as God and that failing to believe in Him as such will result in one dying in his sins.

25. Unfortunately, the Pharisees do not understand the claims that Jesus is making concerning His identity. They still only think Him to be a normal person.

The verse is rather difficult to translate. Overall, Jesus is saying that He has been telling them the same message all along. It’s not clear whether He is referring to the beginning of this conversation or from the beginning of His ministry. The latter is more likely considering this was discussed in John 5:24.

26-27. Jesus continues with His message. There could have been a lot more that He could have said and judged about the Pharisees. However, Jesus at this time was more concerned with with the will of the Father. He had a specific message that He needed to give to the world and that message came from the Father.

The ironic thing about this is that the Pharisees think that they are acting as a judge but they do not realize that they are standing before the Ultimate Judge. Jesus will judge these men at the last day.

28-29. Jesus did not come down on His first advent so that He could become popular. Yes, He did accept worship as God from those who believed on Him but overall, Jesus’ goal was to have the Father be glorified. Every action and word of Jesus was to glorify God. All of it was ordained by God. Even the most agonizing hours that Jesus would experience was ordained by God.

“Lifted up,” is a reference to His crucifixion (cf. John 3:14). It will be when He is “lifted up” that He will glorify God the most. This will be something something that will please God the Father, not because He takes joy in seeing His Son suffer, but because it allow to redeem His elect. By the Son’s sacrifice, God will be glorified. It will display His righteousness (Rom. 3:25-26).

30. This is the choice for every person. You must believe so that you will not die.

Endnotes

1. Edwin A. Blum, “John,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures by Dallas Seminary Faculty, vol. 2, New Testament, ed. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 1983), 303.

2. Blum, “John,” 304.

3. ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ μαρτυρῶν περὶ ἐμαυτοῦ; cf. Ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ἄρτος τῆς ζωῆς (John 6:35).

4. Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1971), 444.

5. Morris, The Gospel According to John, 446n34. “Thus Josephus says, ‘But as for those who have laid mad hands upon themselves, the darker regions of the nether world receive their souls’ (Bell. iii, 375).”

6. John F. Hart, “John,” in The Moody Bible Commentary: A One-Volume Commentary on the Whole Bible by the Faculty of Moody Bible Institute, ed. Michael Rydelnik and Michael Vanlaningham (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2014), 1632.

If Any Man Thirst

This sermon was preached from John 7:31-52 on October 5, 2014 for the evening service.

My Hour Is Not Yet Come

This sermon was preached from John 7:1-30 on October 5, 2014 for the morning service.

Does This Offend You?

This sermon was preached from John 6:60-71 for evening service on September 28, 2014.

Remember, Jesus just finished a long discourse where He made one of the famous “I am,” statements. This one being, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35, 48). He taught the crowd that followed Him from the day before that they needed to believe in Him as the Messiah that would give unto them eternal life. This would happen through His death, burial and resurrection as means for salvation. 

The Disciples’ Reaction (6:60-66)

60. The author includes a reaction to the discourse this time. Yet, the reaction comes from the disciples as opposed to those who were following Jesus. Jesus’ teaching that they must consume His this bread, that is, His flesh which He will offer up for the life of the world, then they will receive eternal life, is hard for the disciples to accept. They were not expecting a Messiah that would about such things. Jesus is teaching about Him needing to suffer a death and then be resurrected. Even Peter had a hard time understanding that the Messiah must suffer death on the cross (Matt. 16:16, 21-22; cf. 1 Cor. 1:23). They all expected Him to take on a kingly role. 

61. Jesus knew in Himself that these men were grumbling. We have seen Jesus practice this insight that goes beyond human ability before (John 2:24-25; 4:18-19; 6:15).

These disciples now do what others were doing before. They are murmuring/complaining/grumbling amongst themselves about what Jesus is teaching them. 

Jesus then asks an odd question. The word offend is the Greek word σκανδαλίζω which often means, “to cause to be brought to a downfall, cause to sin,” or in this case, “to shock through word or action, give offense to, anger, shock.”¹ The noun form of this word, σκάνδαλον, is a trigger used to set off a trap.² 

62. This question that Jesus asks causes commentators to differ in opinion as to what Jesus is referencing. Some commentators state that Jesus is talking about being lifted up upon the cross and it therefore talking about His crucifixion. I, however, would disagree. Jesus states that the Son of Man was there previously. Jesus was not on the cross previously. Jesus kept making mention of how He was sent by God the Father and from heaven (John 6:33, 38, 39, 40, 44, 46, 51, 57 and 58). Therefore, Jesus is talking about Him ascending into heaven.

The whole point of the question is to see if these disciples would be offended even more at this thought. Jesus is merely carrying the truth to its logical conclusion. If He came from heaven then He should be able to go back to heaven. This question pushes the issue even further for these men. 

63. It is almost best to work on this verse backwards. Jesus’ words, if you believe them, bring life. Jesus’ words are spirit. Therefore, when Jesus says, “It is the spirit that quickeneth,” He is saying that one must believe in His message in order to have life. A person has to practice faith. The will of the flesh will never lead to salvation. A person is dead in their trespasses (Eph. 2:1). They will never want to come to the Father (John 1:13). All of your striving is not seeking what you need, which is salvation, but only what you want, which is your own pleasure. 

64. Jesus makes a very straightforward statement, “there are some who do not believe.” This means that they will not receive life. They were following Jesus around and listening to His messages and seeing His works but there were not believing what He said. 

What is interesting to note is that is states that, “Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not.” This means that were multiple disciples that lacked faith and that they also were there from the beginning. This causes me to think that these disciples saw Jesus turn the water to wine, heal the noble man’s son from a distance, heal a lame man, feed the five thousand and then walk on the water and listen to all of His discussions concerning Himself and they did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah or that He came to die. Unfortunately, this can be characteristic of too many people that sit in church pews today. They come to church because they hear an encouraging message. They come to see friends. They come to enjoy good music. But they never start believing in the Person that founded the Church. They are only moral zombies. That’s why the church needs to hear the gospel just as the unchurched. 

The verse also mentions that Jesus knew who would betray Him. This is able to happen from one of the disciples because the betrayer never believed in the words of Jesus.

65. Jesus repeats what was mentioned earlier (John 6:37, 39, 44). This is the doctrine of that an individual is called by God and is regenerated so that he can believe in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Faith practiced by us is wrought by God (John 6:29).

The implication is that if you lack faith, then the Father never you to come unto Himself. This may seem like a hard thing to accept but the Father would have been just in allowing none to come to salvation. The fact that He called some is grace. We all were dead in trespasses. All of us, without faith, are without life (John 6:53, 63). 

66. Many of the disciples that were with Jesus from the beginning found what Jesus said to not be what they wanted to hear. They wanted to see a sign (John 6:30). They wanted to make Him king (John 6:15). Instead they hear this odd message about how they need to eat His flesh in and drink His blood. They did not want to hear that Jesus was going to offer Himself up as a sacrifice. Therefore, these disciples no longer journeyed with Jesus (cf. 1 John 2:19). 

True vs. False Disciples (6:67-71)

67. Jesus then turns asks the twelve what their decision is. The unbelieving disciples departed from Jesus and went home. The twelve must be a reference that was inherently known to the reader. We are introduced to some of the disciples in John 1, but we are never given the names of twelve of the disciples like the synoptics.

68-69. Interestingly, Peter gives an answer with not where but who, “To whom shall we go?” He asks this question because Peter understands and believes that Jesus is the Messiah. Peter believes in the words of Jesus. Peter believes that Jesus is the bread of life. Peter believes that Jesus is the Son of God. This is very much a parallel to the key verse all of the same clauses are present, “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:31). 

Many commentators think that this is a parallel account to Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Christ (Matt. 16:16ff). There are numerous similarities. However, there are also too many differences to say that they are both accounts are of the same event. John’s account was in Capernaum. Matthew’s account was in Caesarea Philippi. John’s account asked if He would leave. Matthew’s account asked what people were saying about Jesus. 

70-71. There is a contrast that is being made here. Peter is one of the twelve and he believes in the words of Jesus. Judas Iscariot is one of the twelve as well but he is called a devil. The word devil should really be translated slanderer.³ Both Peter and Judas witnessed the same miracles and heard the same messages taught by Jesus. Yet, Judas’ life ended very differently than Peter’s life. Judas would eventually betray Jesus. Peter would eventually deny any association with Jesus but repented and went on to be one of the biggest pieces of the foundation for the Church. The difference was that Peter was called by God and practiced faith and believed in the message of Jesus. He did not understand at this point that Jesus needed to die, but he believed that Jesus was truly the Messiah, that Jesus was the Son of God and by believing He could have life in His name. Judas had no faith. Judas did not believe. 

Are there any here that do not believe? 

---

1 Frederick William Danker, ed., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature (BDAG), 3rd ed. (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), 926. To see σκανδαλίζω being used in the second sense as in John 6:61 (shock), see also Matt. 15:12; 17:27; and 2 Cor. 11:29. ^↩

2 Ibid. This may or may not have any bearing on the conversation at hand. ^↩

3 Ibid, 226-7. ^↩

I am the Bread of Life

This sermon is preached from John 6:22-59 for the morning service of September 28, 2014.




In order to understand this passage one must remember the events that happened just the previous day. Jesus tried to get some rest and relaxation with His disciples in a deserted area outside of Bethsaida on the sea of Galilee. However, the Galileans spotted Jesus and a crowd that had 5,000 men grew. Later in the day, Jesus performed a miracle by feeding the entire crowd so that they were full by only using five barley loaves and two small fishes. When the crowd saw that Jesus was able to provide food they wanted to make Jesus king. This in turn caused Jesus to send away the disciples into a boat and then He went away privately for a while.

The disciples have a sleepless night trying to get the sea of Galilee due to a wind blowing the opposite direction. Jesus walks on the water and meets them in the middle of the sea.

Search for Jesus (6:22-25)

A portion of the crowd must have stayed in the area. This was the next day and these people are still probably wanting to make Jesus become their king. They eventually figure out that Jesus is not in the area even though they did not see Him get into a boat. The group decides to enter into boats that have come recently and to go look for Jesus elsewhere. They then find Jesus in Capernaum. They must have heard Jesus tell His disciples to go there. When they find Jesus again, they only ask when He got to Capernaum rather than asking how He got there.

Works and Signs (6:26-31)

26. There is no record that Jesus answered or discussed how or when He got to Capernaum. Instead Jesus begins the poor reason as to why they decided to seek Him out. They decided to look for Jesus not because they believed in what He was teaching or even because He was able to perform a miracle, but because Jesus provided them with full bellies. John has always been critical of how the Galileans were following Jesus because of His signs. Now they have sunk even lower than that. They are following Jesus so they can get a meal. What a bunch of bums!

27. Jesus see how much they are making an effort to get a meal so He tells them to use their energy to find real meat. Find meat that does not perish. This meat will instead give you eternal life. However, this meat can only come from the Son of Man because God the Father has set His seal of approval on Him (This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased).

28-29. Because Jesus tells them to labor for meat that gives eternal life, they in turn ask what that would look like. What is it they must do to receive this meat?

Jesus’ answer is that them believing on Jesus, Him who was sent, is a work of God. We are never able to believe in the message of salvation on our own accord. We cannot create our own faith. God creates faith for us. God makes it so we can believe on Him. God is doing the action not man. They thought they needed to do something in order to earn this.

Believing on Jesus is repeated numerous times in this passage (vv. 36, 40, 47).

30-31. These men then turn the tables back upon Jesus. They ask Jesus to perform a sign (1 Cor. 1:22). This request is ridiculous. These men participated in a sign yesterday when He gave them food. Not only that He healed multiple people before they had the meal (Luke 9:11). These men should have been satisfied with what they had already saw. Jesus already pointed out that they do not even seek Him because of the signs He was doing.

These men point out to Jesus that Moses gave manna every day in the wilderness. This is probably a quotation from Psalm 78:24. From this point forward there is a contrast that is being shown between the manna and the bread of life. They are saying that what Jesus did yesterday was nothing in comparison to what Moses did. He made manna, bread from heaven, fall from the sky six days a week for 40 years and it was enough to feed the entire nation of Israel which would have numbered around 2.5 million people.

God Sent Better Bread (6:32-36)

32-33. Jesus give two objections. The first is that it was not Moses that gave Israel mann for forty years. God gave them the manna. The second objection is that God is now giving a better bread from heaven than what Israel had. For the bread of God is He which comes from heaven. Jesus has tried multiple times explain that He has come from heaven and that God the Father has sent Him. That is why John started with eternality of God. Jesus is this bread that is better. Jesus will give eternal life.

34. These men are just as oblivious as the Samaritan woman at the well. She wanted the water of eternal life so she would never have to drink again to stay alive. These men want food that will give eternal life so they will not have to worry about death. They are oblivious to the fact that Jesus is talking about Himself.

35. Jesus tries to make it Himself more clear with these men. He simply states “I am the bread of life.” This is one of the famous “I am,” statements of John. The statement carries overtones of deity because it recalls God speaking to Moses when He said, “I am that I am” (Exod. 3:14). The name emphasizes eternality and sole independence. Jesus is eternal. Jesus was sent from heaven like the manna but Jesus will give eternal life. If you believe on Jesus then you never have to fear death.

36. These men have seen Jesus perform man signs already but they are not considering the implications of these signs. Therefore, they fail to understand what Jesus means when He says, “I am the bread of life.” The theological reason as to why they believe will be explained in the following verses.

The Will of the Father (6:37-40)

37. Jesus took the time to explain the relationship that He had with the Father when He was making claims to deity before the Jews in Jerusalem. Now He is explaining the coordination that happens between Himself and the Father in salvation. The act of the Father giving people to the Son is most likely a reference to God electing individuals before the creation of the earth. The point is that all are elect will come to the Son and believe. The Son will receive them. The Son will forgive them. The Son will redeem them.

38. Jesus states that the whole reason why He came down to earth from heaven was to do the will of the Father. Jesus wants to see God glorified in everything He does. There is no vanity in Jesus. He glorifies God because there is none greater than God (cf. John 5:30).

39-40. Jesus then goes on to explain what is the will of the Father. He states it and then repeats it so we do not miss it. The will of the Father is that everyone who believes on the Son will have eternal life. None who believe will be lost. All who believe will be raised by Jesus Christ on the last day. These are absolute statements. There is no room for a margin of error in these verses. All the elect will believe on the Son. All who believe will be raised the last day. That is the reason why it is an everlasting life that Jesus offers. Jesus offers life that extends beyond the grave.

Murmuring (6:41-42)

The people that are there listening to Jesus begin to murmur/grumble/complain. There is a bit of an ironic parallel going on between the old nation of Israel that was in the wilderness and these men before Jesus. It never took long before the people of Israel were murmuring about something that had caused them to be dissatisfied. These men are not being satisfied with the fact that Jesus is calling Himself the bread of life.

Their chief complaint is that they are comfortable with the fact that Jesus claims to have come from heaven. Individuals in the crowd must have known Mary and Joseph. They remember that Jesus was raised their household. They must have been ignorant of Jesus’ virgin birth. However, Jesus makes this very clear with the numerous repetitions (John 6:32, 33, 38, 39, 40, 44, 51, 57, 58).

Repetition (6:43-51)

Jesus makes a repetition of what He just said from verses 32-40 with a few small modification and in reverse order.

44. In order to come to the Son a person must be drawn by God. Yet, in John 14:6 Jesus said, “No man can come to the Father, but by Me.” These seem to contradict one another. However, they compliment each other. The Father elects and draws individuals unto the Son. Then the Son redeems and sanctifies the individual unto the Father. It will be the Son that will raise the believer unto eternal life at the last day.

45. Jesus may not be referencing a single passage here. He may be pointing out the main thrust of the prophets message from the Old Testament. There a couple of passages that make this statement, “And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; And great shall be the peace of thy children” (Isa. 54:13) and the promise from the New Covenant.

But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, And write it in their hearts; And will be their God, And they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: For they shall all know me, From the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: For I will forgive their iniquity, And I will remember their sin no more (Jer. 31:33-34).

Jesus then goes on to explain that every man that is taught the things of God will come to Him. The understanding of what Jesus is implying here is that these men before Jesus do not fit that description. They were never taught the things of God. They were never drawn by the Father. Therefore, they are not going to come to the Son.

46. The only person that has seen the Father is Jesus Christ (cf. John 1:18).

47. This is a repetition as to why Jesus is having this discussion in the first place. He wants them to believe on Him. The only way to have eternal life is to have faith in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for salvation. This is simple. Believe and live forever.

48. This is a repetition from verse 35.

49-51. Jesus then goes on to explain again that the Father has sent better bread from heaven now than what was given to Israel in the wilderness. Israel ate manna and they died. Yet if you consume the bread that is here before you, you will never die.

Jesus explains that the bread is His flesh. This is a reference to His sacrificial death that He will soon suffer. His death will bring life for those who believe because Jesus bore our death upon Himself. Jesus was our vicar. He died so we would not die. This will not just be for the Jews but for all the races and nations. Anyone who believes will have life.

Flesh to Eat? (6:52-59)

52. The Jews are mystified by that last statement of Jesus. It seems downright weird that someone would offer His own body as food for another person. They are still not understanding that Jesus is using earthly analogies to talk spiritual truths just like He did with Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman.

53-54. Jesus makes the third “Verily, verily” statement. He wants them to understand to pay attention to this very important point. If you never eat the flesh offered by the Son of Man you will never have life. But if you do eat the flesh of Jesus Christ, then you will have eternal life. You will not need to fear death because God will raise you up the last day unto life.

55-58. Jesus explains that a union occurs when a person places his faith upon Him. Later on we will see Jesus send the Holy Spirit to dwell in every person that believes on the death burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for salvation.

This union causes life to come to the believer because both the Father and the Son are eternal Persons. They will always live.

Again, for the last time, Jesus states that He is better bread than what the nation of Israel ate. They may have eaten bread that fell from the sky but they still died. If you eat the flesh of the Son of Man you will have eternal life.

59. This whole seen must have taken place in a synagogue in Capernaum. It is not uncommon for Jesus to be found teaching in such a place.