John Bible Study - Lesson 18

John Bible Study - Lesson 18

Read the passage below using the 2 different Bible translations:

John 6:25-59 New International Version (NIV)

Jesus the Bread of Life

²⁵ When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

²⁶ Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. ²⁷ Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”

²⁸ Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”

²⁹ Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

³⁰ So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? ³¹ Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”

³² 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. ³³ For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

³⁴ “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”

³⁵ Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.³⁶ But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. ³⁷ All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 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. 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.”

⁴¹ At this the Jews there began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” ⁴² 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’?”

⁴³ “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. ⁴⁴ “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. ⁴⁵ It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. ⁴⁶ No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. ⁴⁷ Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. ⁴⁸ I am the bread of life. ⁴⁹ Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. ⁵⁰ But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

⁵² Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

⁵³ Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.⁵⁶ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. ⁵⁷ Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” ⁵⁹ He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

John 6:25-59 New Living Translation (NLT)

²⁵ They found him on the other side of the lake and asked, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

²⁶ Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs. ²⁷ But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval.”

²⁸ They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?”

²⁹ Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”

³⁰ They answered, “Show us a miraculous sign if you want us to believe in you. What can you do? ³¹ After all, our ancestors ate manna while they journeyed through the wilderness! The Scriptures say, ‘Moses gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”

³² Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven. ³³ The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

³⁴ “Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every day.”

³⁵ Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. ³⁶ But you haven’t believed in me even though you have seen me. ³⁷ However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them. ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will. ³⁹ And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me, but that I should raise them up at the last day. ⁴⁰ For it is my Father’s will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day.”

⁴¹ Then the people began to murmur in disagreement because he had said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” ⁴² They said, “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph? We know his father and mother. How can he say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”

⁴³ But Jesus replied, “Stop complaining about what I said. ⁴⁴ For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up. ⁴⁵ As it is written in the Scriptures, ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. ⁴⁶ (Not that anyone has ever seen the Father; only I, who was sent from God, have seen him.)

⁴⁷ “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life. ⁴⁸ Yes, I am the bread of life! ⁴⁹ Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all died. ⁵⁰ Anyone who eats the bread from heaven, however, will never die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh.”

⁵² Then the people began arguing with each other about what he meant. “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” they asked.

⁵³ So Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you. ⁵⁴ But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise that person at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. ⁵⁶ Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ I live because of the living Father who sent me; in the same way, anyone who feeds on me will live because of me. ⁵⁸ I am the true bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will not die as your ancestors did (even though they ate the manna) but will live forever.”

⁵⁹ He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

Note:

Here are the 3 questions for you to answer. I have given some basic answers below the questions to help you understand the passage. Answer the questions first yourself before you look at my answers. Take a moment before you begin and ask God to help you understand what you are reading.

3 questions to answer:

1.    Content: What is this passage about?

2.    Lesson: What do I learn from this passage?

3.    Application: How can I apply what I have learned to my life?

Answers to the questions above and some background:

Content: What is this passage about?

·        The people find Jesus when they get to the other side of the lake

·        The people ask Jesus about when He got there

·        Jesus tells the people the real reason why they came to see Him and then offers them some spiritual truth

·        The people ask Jesus about how they can do the things He was doing

·        Jesus tells them to believe in Him

·        Jesus goes on to explain more spiritual truth

·        Jesus said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum

Lesson: What do I learn from this passage?

·        They people referred to Jesus as Rabbi/teacher

·        Jesus sheds light on why the people came to see Him. They were looking for food to eat more so than spiritual truth.

·        The people did not understand Jesus’ miraculous signs

·        Jesus tells them to focus on gaining eternal life rather than perishable food

·        Jesus explains that God had given Him His seal of approval, with the authority and purpose to offer eternal life

Matthew 17:1-5 New International Version (NIV)

The Transfiguration

17 After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.² There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. ³ Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

⁴ Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

⁵ While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

·        It is God’s desire for His people to listen to Jesus and obey His commands.

·        When the people asked about how they can do works for God, Jesus explained the importance of first believing in Him

·        Jesus tells the people that Moses didn’t give them bread from heaven but His  Father did. Jesus was referring to God providing manna to the Israelites in the desert after they fled Egypt.

Exodus 16:3-5 New International Version (NIV)

³ The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”

⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. ⁵ On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”

·        Jesus refers to Himself as the Bread from Heaven who gives life to the world.

Jesus is the Bread of Life:

·        Jesus is essential for eternal life

·        Jesus is fully human and fully divine. In His sinless human nature He can be the perfect sacrifice for our sins. In His divine nature He can pay the price for our sin. Jesus is the one true Redeemer; He delivers us from the consequences of sin and spiritual death.

·        Jesus invites people to believe in Him

·        Believing and receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior  will satisfy our hunger and thirst as well as be made righteous in the sight of God

·        We can’t earn our way into heaven

·        Only Jesus can offer us eternal life

John 14:6 New International Version (NIV)

⁶ Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Truth: No one can snatch believers away from Jesus

John 10:28-30 New International Version (NIV)

²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. ³⁰ I and the Father are one.

Truth: Jesus will return. Jesus will raise all His followers up when He does.

What the Bible says about Jesus second coming:

No one knows when the Lord will return.
His return will be a surprise to all, even the faithful.
When Jesus does come, it will be universal! Even the doubters and unbelievers will know of it.

When Jesus returns, God will raise the dead in Christ.
Those still living shall join the dead in meeting Jesus.
Believers will be with the Lord forever

Those who reject The Lord will be separated from Him for all eternity

Read: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:22 (Jesus’ second coming/The Day of The Lord)

·        Anyone who believes in Jesus and receives Him as Lord and Savior will be given eternal life

·        The people had a hard time believing Jesus’ teaching and accepting His divine nature due to the fact that they could not get past His human nature.

·        People today still struggle with believing that Jesus was fully human and fully divine. They said, “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph? We know his father and mother. How can he say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”

Truth: no one can come to Jesus unless God the Father draws them to Him

When Jesus says that no man can come without God’s drawing him, He is making a statement about the total depravity of the sinner and the universality of that condition. So darkened is the unsaved person’s heart that he doesn’t even realize it:

Jeremiah 17:9 New International Version (NIV)

⁹ The heart is deceitful above all things
   and beyond cure.  Who can understand it? 

Therefore, it is only by the merciful and gracious drawing of God that we are saved. In the conversion of the sinner, God enlightens the mind:

Ephesians 1:18 New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁸ I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

God inclines the will toward Himself, and influences the soul, without which influence the soul remains darkened and rebellious against God. All of this is involved in the drawing process. Only those who have been drawn through special revelation—by the power of the Holy Spirit and the grace of God—will come to Christ. (excerpts from GotQuestions.org)

·        The people were confused by Jesus’ teaching about eating His flesh and drinking His blood. Unless the Holy Spirit supernaturally opens our eyes and heart to Jesus’ teaching we will not understand it. That is why we need to ask God regularly to teach us the meaning of the scripture we read.

·        The reference Jesus made to eating his flesh and drinking his blood is the metaphorical way of describing the person who draws on, claims, or lays hold of the reality of his atoning sacrifice by putting personal faith in him

The flesh and the blood are words which point to Jesus' death as a sacrifice

          (excerpt from J. I. Packer)

Application: How can I apply what I have learned to my life?

·        Pray for clear understanding of Jesus’ teaching

·        Seek to be spiritually fed

·        Embrace Jesus as Lord & Savior

·        Put Jesus first in your life

·        Submit yourself to being obedient and following His teaching

Don’t forget:

John’s main purpose in writing this Gospel:

·        To tell the world that Jesus is the Messiah for the Jews and Gentiles

·        The events were recorded so that we might believe and have eternal life

John 20:30-31 New International Version (NIV)

The Purpose of John’s Gospel

³⁰ Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. ³¹ But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Questions to ponder:

·        Are you seeking Jesus’ material provision more so than His spiritual?

·        Does the fact that Jesus was fully human cause you to doubt His divine nature?

·        Will you ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand the harder teachings of Jesus?

Have a great week…………….Dave