9th Sunday after Pentecost
August 6, 2006
Rev. Kenneth W. Wieting
Text: John 6:22-35
IN JESUS, GOD GIVES THE WORK HE REQUIRES!
“This is the work of God, that you believe in him who he has sent.” In the Name of Jesus, whom the Father sent to save us, dear friends in Christ;
Don’t you get tired of people mocking the New Testament witness; ridiculing Jesus’ feeding of five thousand men; making fun of Jesus walking on the water? Don’t you get fatigued with luminaries who want to call Jesus a nice man and yet judge as absurd the miracles Scripture records Him doing? Make no mistake; this is unbelief in the gift of God the Son as Savior of the world. If He is who Scripture says He is these miracles are not weird or absurd. They are beyond our sinful nature but wonderfully harmonious with His nature.
Concerning the two miracles that precede our text…come and let us reason together. “…God said, ‘Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas.” Dear Christians, is it not right to understand that He who made both earth and sea and named them could walk equally on either of them if He so chooses?
Come now and let us reason together. “… God said, ‘Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed…‘Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures…’” Beloved, is it not right to understand that He who created the grain to produce bread to feed billions and fish to fill oceans and seas, could feed five thousand men from a few loaves and fish if He so chooses? What silliness to deny it! What perilous unbelief to mock it! If Jesus is who Scripture says He is, God in flesh, these marvelous acts are not strange, but rather strangely wondrous.
Don’t you also get weary of your own tired out, predictable doubts concerning God’s love for you in Christ? Rather than constant, confident trust in Him, things can get pretty foggy can they not? Who knows if Christ is really who He claims to be? Perhaps you’re spiritually misguided and deluded. Perhaps this life is all there is. Rather than rejoice in God’s gifts of daily bread and the Bread of Life, we are tempted to doubt God’s love, to worry and grumble like the Israelites did in the wilderness. We murmur, inwardly if not outwardly, at not being in control. We want things to be more certain and predictable right now. In this wilderness, we find fault with being asked to simply receive daily from God’s hand. Or, like the people in our text we easily get all fired up about the wrong Jesus and skeptical of the real Jesus.
Make no mistake these folks were all fired up about Jesus. They pursued Him with a passion. His miracle of feeding the five thousand accounts for the focus on food in this text. His miracle of walking on the sea accounts for their question, “”Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 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.”
Jesus had avoided these people earlier. He had trekked a liquid path across the sea that they could not follow. He purposely evaded them because they wanted to make him king by force (v. 15). They pursued him out of desire for material things, earthly security, political power. Their thoughts were on bread for their stomachs and so Jesus presented the Gospel in those terms. “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me…because you ate your fill of the loaves. 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…”
Then came the question of questions! “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Their question demonstrates the prejudice of human hearts for salvation by works; that is when salvation is seen as needed. When the human heart is not denying the existence of God, or making up its own god, then by nature it is craving some work to do to make things different with God. This desire can be evident or hidden; it can be present constantly or periodically. It can lie dormant for years and then surface with a vengeance. It is frequently and forcefully felt when death is known to be drawing near. How will I ever stand before God’s holiness? What about all I have done wrong and failed to do right? What must I do to get my house in order and be ready to die? What must I do, to be doing the works of God?
What a thrilling answer Jesus gives! “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom he has sent.” What a comforting Divine surprise! “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” What a marvelous mind-boggling mystery! “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” Beloved, you can never understand this truth too well! You can never cherish this gift too much! You can never believe this treasure too steadfastly! You can never promote this pure gospel too generously with your wealth, or bear witness to it too winsomely with your voice! “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
You mean to say that you work in God’s behalf by letting God work in your behalf! Yes, that’s exactly what God says! You mean to say that you repay God for all His blessings to you by receiving another blessing, salvation in Christ. Yes, that’s exactly what God says! The one work God requires of you is that you receive the Bread of Life. “…the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”
What a wondrous revelation of the nature of God! God loves us so that He can love us more! God gives to us so that He can give us more! All of the blessings that God gives us now have this purpose; that we might be on the receiving end of His blessings for all eternity! Eternal pleasure at His right hand is not a religious invention of human beings, a comforting fairy tale. Eternal pleasures at His right hand are inherently linked with the nature of God. He loves to give gifts. He loves to give His gifts to you through the one whom He has sent.
But there is more! Equally miraculous with the one work God requires for eternal life is the fact that it is His work. It is His good and perfect gift to you. In other words, He doesn’t ask you to manufacture faith in Him from your own resources. He doesn’t come to mankind dead in sin and say, OK, decide to believe in me, open your heart and let me in, consider all the options and choose me. No, no, no! “This is the work of God…that is, this is work that God does…that you believe in him whom He has sent.” How can it possibly be better for you and for me? What more can God do for us? The work He requires is faith in His Son. The faith in His Son He requires is not our doing it is His work in us, His gift to us (Eph 2:8, 9). For faith comes by hearing and hearing through the speaking of Christ.
Ah, yes, you say, but sometimes I don’t feel like I believe, sometimes I feel dead to God, to myself, and perhaps even the world. Oh, good heavens, there you go making up a new work to earn eternal life: the work of feeling a certain way all the time. You see, this craving we sinners have to be in control, to maneuver ourselves into a good standing with God takes on all manner of appearances. It is a temptation that never evaporates and sometimes it takes on the appearance of equating certain feelings with the presence and the peace of God. Beloved, that will never do!
He who fed Israel manna and quail in the wilderness did not do so because they reached a high enough level on the feeling meter. They were, after all, grumbling when He fed them. He who gives you Himself as the true bread from heaven does not do so because you measure up emotionally or mentally. He gives you Himself as the true bread from heaven because he loves you and He knows you cannot live without His forgiveness.
That’s why on another day He walked a different path that no one could follow. On that day He didn’t walk on the water that He created. On that day He could hardly walk a few hundred yards on the earth that He made. Under the weight of a little wood he sank down in trembling weakness. Unable to bear the weight of the cross beam of an execution stake, the guards seized one Simon of Cyrene to carry it behind Jesus. On the day of our text Jesus evaded being labeled a bread king by a mob who liked Him. On the day of His crucifixion, He did not evade being labeled the king of the Jews by the Governor who executed Him.
“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” Yet from His place of shame and death, He cried out, “I thirst”. All for you! He was thirsting for you! All to give you the Bread from heaven and the water of life! “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom He has sent.”
The Father who set his seal on Him has also set His seal on you. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism. People can go through the motions of being baptized a second time or third or many times, have water put on them and all that, but there has never been anyone truly re-baptized. That’s because there is only one baptism from God. You have received yours and God was not fooling around in those holy waters. It was the risen Christ with all authority in heaven and earth who commanded that your sins be washed away in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. It is the risen Christ with all the authority in heaven and earth who comes to feed you the Bread from heaven today. Take eat, “this is My body”. “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom He has sent.”
Is this not the most encouraging wonder? The teenager or the twenty-something who receives Christ’s Word and Sacrament is at the center of God’s kingdom work on this earth. They may be uncertain about the future. They may have difficulty setting aside even 1% or 2% of God’s gifts to return to Him. But already they are at the heart of God’s kingdom work on earth.
Is this not the most strengthening wonder? The baby boomer, in mid-life or near retirement, who receives God’s Word and Sacrament is at the center of God’s kingdom work on earth. They may have been misled by free love and the false freedom promised by the 60’s. They may ache over past decisions and present possibilities. But, receiving Christ’s forgiveness they have true love and true freedom and they are at the heart of God’s kingdom work on earth.
Is it not the most comforting wonder? The aged saint who receives Christ’s Word and Sacrament is at the center of God’s kingdom work on earth. They may long for earlier days of physical strength and greater activity. They may be shut-in or bedfast and think they are of little use to anyone and a burden to everyone. But the truth is, they are still at the center of the beating heart of God’s kingdom work on earth.
“This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom he has sent.” “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” Lord, give us this bread always. AMEN.
Rev. Kenneth W. Wieting
Text: John 6:22-35
IN JESUS, GOD GIVES THE WORK HE REQUIRES!
“This is the work of God, that you believe in him who he has sent.” In the Name of Jesus, whom the Father sent to save us, dear friends in Christ;
Don’t you get tired of people mocking the New Testament witness; ridiculing Jesus’ feeding of five thousand men; making fun of Jesus walking on the water? Don’t you get fatigued with luminaries who want to call Jesus a nice man and yet judge as absurd the miracles Scripture records Him doing? Make no mistake; this is unbelief in the gift of God the Son as Savior of the world. If He is who Scripture says He is these miracles are not weird or absurd. They are beyond our sinful nature but wonderfully harmonious with His nature.
Concerning the two miracles that precede our text…come and let us reason together. “…God said, ‘Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas.” Dear Christians, is it not right to understand that He who made both earth and sea and named them could walk equally on either of them if He so chooses?
Come now and let us reason together. “… God said, ‘Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed…‘Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures…’” Beloved, is it not right to understand that He who created the grain to produce bread to feed billions and fish to fill oceans and seas, could feed five thousand men from a few loaves and fish if He so chooses? What silliness to deny it! What perilous unbelief to mock it! If Jesus is who Scripture says He is, God in flesh, these marvelous acts are not strange, but rather strangely wondrous.
Don’t you also get weary of your own tired out, predictable doubts concerning God’s love for you in Christ? Rather than constant, confident trust in Him, things can get pretty foggy can they not? Who knows if Christ is really who He claims to be? Perhaps you’re spiritually misguided and deluded. Perhaps this life is all there is. Rather than rejoice in God’s gifts of daily bread and the Bread of Life, we are tempted to doubt God’s love, to worry and grumble like the Israelites did in the wilderness. We murmur, inwardly if not outwardly, at not being in control. We want things to be more certain and predictable right now. In this wilderness, we find fault with being asked to simply receive daily from God’s hand. Or, like the people in our text we easily get all fired up about the wrong Jesus and skeptical of the real Jesus.
Make no mistake these folks were all fired up about Jesus. They pursued Him with a passion. His miracle of feeding the five thousand accounts for the focus on food in this text. His miracle of walking on the sea accounts for their question, “”Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 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.”
Jesus had avoided these people earlier. He had trekked a liquid path across the sea that they could not follow. He purposely evaded them because they wanted to make him king by force (v. 15). They pursued him out of desire for material things, earthly security, political power. Their thoughts were on bread for their stomachs and so Jesus presented the Gospel in those terms. “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me…because you ate your fill of the loaves. 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…”
Then came the question of questions! “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Their question demonstrates the prejudice of human hearts for salvation by works; that is when salvation is seen as needed. When the human heart is not denying the existence of God, or making up its own god, then by nature it is craving some work to do to make things different with God. This desire can be evident or hidden; it can be present constantly or periodically. It can lie dormant for years and then surface with a vengeance. It is frequently and forcefully felt when death is known to be drawing near. How will I ever stand before God’s holiness? What about all I have done wrong and failed to do right? What must I do to get my house in order and be ready to die? What must I do, to be doing the works of God?
What a thrilling answer Jesus gives! “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom he has sent.” What a comforting Divine surprise! “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” What a marvelous mind-boggling mystery! “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” Beloved, you can never understand this truth too well! You can never cherish this gift too much! You can never believe this treasure too steadfastly! You can never promote this pure gospel too generously with your wealth, or bear witness to it too winsomely with your voice! “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
You mean to say that you work in God’s behalf by letting God work in your behalf! Yes, that’s exactly what God says! You mean to say that you repay God for all His blessings to you by receiving another blessing, salvation in Christ. Yes, that’s exactly what God says! The one work God requires of you is that you receive the Bread of Life. “…the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”
What a wondrous revelation of the nature of God! God loves us so that He can love us more! God gives to us so that He can give us more! All of the blessings that God gives us now have this purpose; that we might be on the receiving end of His blessings for all eternity! Eternal pleasure at His right hand is not a religious invention of human beings, a comforting fairy tale. Eternal pleasures at His right hand are inherently linked with the nature of God. He loves to give gifts. He loves to give His gifts to you through the one whom He has sent.
But there is more! Equally miraculous with the one work God requires for eternal life is the fact that it is His work. It is His good and perfect gift to you. In other words, He doesn’t ask you to manufacture faith in Him from your own resources. He doesn’t come to mankind dead in sin and say, OK, decide to believe in me, open your heart and let me in, consider all the options and choose me. No, no, no! “This is the work of God…that is, this is work that God does…that you believe in him whom He has sent.” How can it possibly be better for you and for me? What more can God do for us? The work He requires is faith in His Son. The faith in His Son He requires is not our doing it is His work in us, His gift to us (Eph 2:8, 9). For faith comes by hearing and hearing through the speaking of Christ.
Ah, yes, you say, but sometimes I don’t feel like I believe, sometimes I feel dead to God, to myself, and perhaps even the world. Oh, good heavens, there you go making up a new work to earn eternal life: the work of feeling a certain way all the time. You see, this craving we sinners have to be in control, to maneuver ourselves into a good standing with God takes on all manner of appearances. It is a temptation that never evaporates and sometimes it takes on the appearance of equating certain feelings with the presence and the peace of God. Beloved, that will never do!
He who fed Israel manna and quail in the wilderness did not do so because they reached a high enough level on the feeling meter. They were, after all, grumbling when He fed them. He who gives you Himself as the true bread from heaven does not do so because you measure up emotionally or mentally. He gives you Himself as the true bread from heaven because he loves you and He knows you cannot live without His forgiveness.
That’s why on another day He walked a different path that no one could follow. On that day He didn’t walk on the water that He created. On that day He could hardly walk a few hundred yards on the earth that He made. Under the weight of a little wood he sank down in trembling weakness. Unable to bear the weight of the cross beam of an execution stake, the guards seized one Simon of Cyrene to carry it behind Jesus. On the day of our text Jesus evaded being labeled a bread king by a mob who liked Him. On the day of His crucifixion, He did not evade being labeled the king of the Jews by the Governor who executed Him.
“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” Yet from His place of shame and death, He cried out, “I thirst”. All for you! He was thirsting for you! All to give you the Bread from heaven and the water of life! “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom He has sent.”
The Father who set his seal on Him has also set His seal on you. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism. People can go through the motions of being baptized a second time or third or many times, have water put on them and all that, but there has never been anyone truly re-baptized. That’s because there is only one baptism from God. You have received yours and God was not fooling around in those holy waters. It was the risen Christ with all authority in heaven and earth who commanded that your sins be washed away in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. It is the risen Christ with all the authority in heaven and earth who comes to feed you the Bread from heaven today. Take eat, “this is My body”. “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom He has sent.”
Is this not the most encouraging wonder? The teenager or the twenty-something who receives Christ’s Word and Sacrament is at the center of God’s kingdom work on this earth. They may be uncertain about the future. They may have difficulty setting aside even 1% or 2% of God’s gifts to return to Him. But already they are at the heart of God’s kingdom work on earth.
Is this not the most strengthening wonder? The baby boomer, in mid-life or near retirement, who receives God’s Word and Sacrament is at the center of God’s kingdom work on earth. They may have been misled by free love and the false freedom promised by the 60’s. They may ache over past decisions and present possibilities. But, receiving Christ’s forgiveness they have true love and true freedom and they are at the heart of God’s kingdom work on earth.
Is it not the most comforting wonder? The aged saint who receives Christ’s Word and Sacrament is at the center of God’s kingdom work on earth. They may long for earlier days of physical strength and greater activity. They may be shut-in or bedfast and think they are of little use to anyone and a burden to everyone. But the truth is, they are still at the center of the beating heart of God’s kingdom work on earth.
“This is the work of God, that you believe in the one whom he has sent.” “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” Lord, give us this bread always. AMEN.
posted by Luther Memorial Chapel at
8/09/2006
