Simple Fare
But as for me, I will sing about your power.
….Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love.
For you have been my refuge,
….a place of safety when I am in distress. Psalm 59:16 NLT
John 6:1-14 (<<click here to see read the passage)
My one church, Beulah, for as long as I have been their pastor (I’ll have been there 15 years this coming August!) has been a bit untraditional when it comes to serving communion. But I would have it no other way! One Sunday a month we observe the Lord’s Supper (at least until the pandemic began), we have a chalice of grape juice (traditional) and a full loaf of bread.
Traditionally unleavened bread is used for many reasons, but an entire loaf of bread – yeast and all! – is what we use. My communion steward is kind enough to slice the loaf down the middle leaving just the very bottom uncut. When I go to “break” the bread for our service I heartily agree that it is a beautiful visual for those taking part. What better symbol than that for Christ, the Bread of Life?
Bread is used in many stories throughout the Bible. In today’s passage from John 6, Jesus has a multitude on His hands and all He has at His disposal is five barley loaves and two fish, the meager lunch of a small boy in the crowd.
One source I discovered had this to say about the loaves and fish.
The five loaves did not resemble large loaves of bread such as one might purchase at a bakery today. Rather the unleavened wafers of barley bread resembled small, flat pitas, each one, perhaps sufficient as one or two servings. The course barley bread, less expensive than wheat flour, made a staple for the poor. The two fish were probably dried sardines such as the fisheries from Magdala produced.
What Jesus had at his disposal was not extravagant…it was simple fare. It was something that, in all likelihood, every man, woman, and child had consumed on numerous occasions in their lives.
Jesus’ miraculous sign is astounding in its magnitude! 5,000 was the number of men gathered to listen to Jesus, which could easily be doubled when adding in women and children who were there as well! It is simple math but well over 10,000 people ate as much as they wanted and there were still 12 baskets full of leftover bread collected!
Yes, that is amazing, but the point I want to bring to the forefront is that Jesus used the simple things of everyday life to bring about astonishing results! Am I another John Wesley? Nope. Have I taken on the mantel of Billy Graham? Not even close. There are many Christians if we were to stand side by side that I would make a poor comparison…and I’m not casting myself in the light of false humility. I am a very small fish in a massively large ocean of humanity. But I know that God has used my small offerings – my writing, my speaking, my life even – to impact those in my immediate life as well as those from many parts across the globe, at least when it comes to this blog.
Yes, it is very humbling…but God doesn’t need flashy and exciting. He just needs “loaves and fish” kind of people to willingly give themselves over to Him. All we have to do is sit back and watch the Master at work!
May 27th, 2021, Thurs, 8:02 pm
Know the Author, Not Just the Words
I will thank you, Lord, among all the people.
…..I will sing your praises among the nations.
For your unfailing love is as high as the heavens.
…..Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. Psalm 57:9-10 NLT
John 5:45-47 (<<click here to read the passage)
Moses is a pretty big dealTo the people of Israel, he is of the utmost importance. By God’s directive, he led the Hebrews out of their bondage from Egypt. He was the go-between that brought them God’s Law. He was their buffer between a holy God and a sinful people, standing in the gap and pleading with God to spare them when on many occasions they deserved death for their disobedience and stiff-neckedness.
The religious leaders of Jesus’ day knew most certainly that God was God but instead of seeking Him out, their time and efforts were dedicated to understanding and dissecting all that Moses had done and given them.
In the past, I’ve spoken of what I believe was their motivation…at least at the beginning. The nation of Israel had messed up so many times, and they weren’t just little mistakes. Their flagrant disobedience had resulted in exile and domination by world powers. They had lost everything, their cities, God’s holy temple, the land on which they lived and found sustenance…everything!
In a relatively short period of time (70 years) they had been allowed to return to their land and even rebuild their temple, but disobedience continued to plague them eventually resulting in the Roman invasion that continued into Jesus’ time.
Personally, I think they were so determined to not royally mess it up that they dove into the Law with great determination so as not to bring judgment on themselves once more. They erred in that, yes, they knew the Law through and through, every dot and tittle, as they say, was studied and expounded upon, but their loss came because they left the Author of the Law out of the equation! They seem to have become worshippers of Moses and forgot who Moses served – God Almighty!
So, when Jesus made these statements beginning in verse 45, as my study Bible* states, Jesus’ warning that Moses would accuse them stung them to fury.
Here is what Jesus said,
Do not think that I [am the One who] will accuse you before the Father. There [already] is one who accuses you: Moses, [the very one] in whom you have placed your hope [for salvation]. For if you believed and relied on [the Scriptures written by] Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me [personally]. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” John 5:45-47 AMP
Once more, human effort got them nowhere! It doesn’t get us anywhere either. We think we have everything figured out but far too often we can grasp the Law, but we lose connection with the Author.
With all their study the Pharisees missed what Jesus had pointed out, if they really believed and relied on what Moses wrote they would have seen that he wrote of Jesus as well.
As I wrap things up, here is one example of that very fact. First of all, many scholars credit Moses, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, with the writing of the historical books of the Bible, Genesis included.
Genesis 3:15 reads,
“And I will put enmity (open hostility)
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed (offspring) and her Seed;
He shall [fatally] bruise your head,
And you shall [only] bruise His heel.” AMP
Here’s a very big word that I’ve heard but needed to look up to make sure I understood it – protevangelium. The study notes from the Amplified Bible explain that it is the first announcement of the gospel. This is the first prophecy about the Messiah (Christ), who through His death on the cross and resurrection would ultimately defeat Satan, the power behind the serpent, with a death blow.
Lord Jesus, may we use Your word only as a means to draw closer to You and to understand Your will for us in doing so. Knowing the Author in a very personal way is far more important than immersing ourselves in His word alone. Amen.
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
May 26th, 2021, Wed, 7:39 pm
Whose Side Are You on Anyway?
Father, what a blessing it is to have Your presence throughout the day. It reminds me of my need for You and if I step off the straight and narrow You are quick to readjust my steps. I give You praise because You continue to use me regardless.
John 5:41-47 (<<click here to read the passage)
On a regular basis, I have students come to me lamenting that so-and-so has done this or said that. Some of them are just outright tattling, while others are trying to sway me – someone who is totally disconnected from the conflict – to take their side in the whole thing, as if that might in some way justify their own actions or viewpoint.
Well, I’ve been around long enough to know that there are pretty much always two sides to any given situation. But it can be difficult to get to the truth.
For example, last week I have three different girls on my elementary route who came up to me (which they are not supposed to do!) while at a stop to tell me of a boy (the same boy mind you) who was not being very nice in what he said to them. I got on him over the intercom and confronted him as he was getting off the bus. He adamantly professed his innocence in the whole incident. At the time as was more inclined to side with the majority but one of the last students to get off was a boy – one who I have found to be very trustworthy – who testified to the fact that it was the girls who were at fault, not the boy who they had accused.
It’s hard not to address situations as they occur because inevitably if I do not, things often get blown out of proportion to a parent and I end up having to go on the defense to see things are set right!
Another situation involved a parent reaching out to me, verbally outside my bus door at her child’s stop. Thankfully, the Lord had me tactfully interject a tidbit about the fact that maybe her child was not totally innocent in that particular altercation. (That ended up being the case and the parent was able to set the child in a better direction than they had been heading.)
We are often tempted to “take sides” thinking someone is right and that someone is wrong. But on this side of eternity, is that of the greatest importance?
At the end of John 5, Jesus is making it very clear that being found on the side of the religious leaders is of very little importance to Him. In fact, He says at the beginning of verse 41, “Your approval means nothing to me…”
To Jesus, the only side worth being on was the Father’s and to Him, it was obvious that they didn’t have God’s love within them.
So, in the course of your daily life, whose side are you on? Are you constantly tempted to pick the side that will get you the most bang for your buck? Do you always stick with the underdog? Or, honestly, do you strive to have God’s love within you so that regardless of the outcome here on earth, you have firmly stood by what you know to be God’s point of view?
Here is an excellent quote from my Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation: If even the highest officials in the world approve of our actions and God does not, we should be concerned. But if God approves, even though others don’t, we should be content.
And therein lies truth.
May 25th, 2021, Tues, 9:15 pm
Our Filthy Rag Collection
Though situations around us were beyond our control, Father, our lives are still in Your hands. I pray that things will come to a satisfactory conclusion with less pain and no more loss. Amen.
John 5:31-40 (<<click here to read the passage)
Something that I have said many times from the pulpits which I stand behind is that you can read the Bible every day, you can come to church every time the doors are open, you can sound off a prayer before every meal and at the beginning and end of every day, you can know it all and do it all but if you don’t know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, all of those acts and “accomplishments” are as filthy rags.
Isaiah 64:6 reads,
We are all infected and impure with sin.
When we display our righteous deeds,
they are nothing but filthy rags. NLT
(Reading Isaiah 64:4-9 really gets you thinking.)
When I read Jesus’ words as recorded in the Gospels, they seem to speak to me in different temperaments. Sometimes Jesus speaks and His tones seem full of compassion. Other times His words are justifiably filled with anger. To me at least, in this passage from John’s Gospel, Jesus seems to just be stating facts. Yes, they are uncomfortable, but He is just saying it like it is.
…the Father who sent Me has Himself testified about Me. You have never heard His voice nor seen His form [His majesty and greatness—what He is like]. You do not have His word (Scripture) abiding in you [actually living in your hearts and minds], because you do not believe in Him whom He has sent. vs37-38 AMP
Here Jesus is pointedly speaking of God’s word – Scripture. He plainly states that we don’t have His word living in [our] hearts and minds. If we did, we would believe them. And His next assertion really stings.
You search and keep on searching and examining the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and yet it is those [very Scriptures] that testify about Me; and still you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. vs39-40 AMP
We can know it all and do it all but if you don’t take those words to heart, if we are unwilling to come to Jesus, we cannot have life.
I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows]. John 10:10b AMP
Lord Jesus, help us to not just work on our filthy rag collection, but may we seriously be determined to use what You have given us to draw us closer to You…becoming more like You. Amen.
May 24th, 2021, Mon, 6:50 pm
Death…It’s Not the End
Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy!
…..I look to you for protection.
I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings
…..until the danger passes by.
I cry out to God Most High,
…..to God who will fulfill his purpose for me. Psalm 57:1-2 NLT
John 5:24-30 (<<click here to read the passage)
Some interesting famous last words…
- The last words of Union General John Sedgwick, “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this distance.” Said to his men who were ducking from the fire of a Confederate sniper.
- Arthur Conan Doyle, who wrote the Sherlock Holmes stories, died at age 71 in his garden. He turned to his wife and said, “You are wonderful,” then clutched his chest and died.
- Johnny Ace, an R&B singer, died in 1954 while playing with a pistol during a break in his concert set. His last words were, “I’ll show you that it won’t”
- Murderer James W. Rodgers was put in front of a firing squad in Utah and asked if he had a last request. He replied, “Bring me a bullet-proof vest.”
- Charlie Chaplin said this after a priest reading him his last rites said “May the Lord have mercy on your soul” “Why not? After all, it belongs to Him.”
Most of us have no idea when we will die, or how, or why, or where, but from the beginning of time, all have died. [Yes, Enoch was an exception, “he disappeared, because God took him.” (Hebrews 11:5-6 NLT), as was Elijah – being carried by a whirlwind into heaven. (2 Kings 2:11 NLT)] Jesus, of course, died, but was gloriously resurrected! As we will be as well some time in the not too distant future.
Regardless of our opinions, today’s passage from John 5 is the actuality of what will happen after death. Jesus proclaims in verse 29,
Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment. NLT
We all may not be vocal about how we feel regarding eternity but somewhere deep within, we have an opinion of what will happen to us when we die. The note on verse 29 from my Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation reads,
Those who have rebelled against Christ will be resurrected, too, but they will hear God’s judgment against them and will be sentenced to eternity apart from him. There are those who wish to live well on earth, ignore God, and then see death as final rest. Jesus does not allow unbelieving people to see death as the end of it all. There is a judgment to face.
It makes no difference who we are or what we believe, we all – every single being who has ever breathed life on this earth – will stand before God for a final judgment. Death, though many hold it to be so, is not the end. It is but a threshold that we each must cross. While we live and breathe, decisions can be made. We can choose, or not choose, to serve God and until that last breath is taken, even if we have lived in rebellion against Christ, we can turn and repent and follow Him. He is eager for each of us to choose life. But if that final breath comes and we remain in our rebellion, we will be held responsible for decisions made.
Even as you read this, it is not too late. This prayer from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association is simple. If you have never spoken with God about your eternal destination, won’t you take the time to do so?
“Dear God,
I know I’m a sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness.
I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe that He died
for my sin and that you raised Him to life.
I want to trust Him as my Savior and follow Him as Lord,
from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to do your will.
I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.”
May 23rd, 2021,