I invite you to turn with me this morning to John chapter 6, John chapter 6, we'll read together verses 25 through 59, where Jesus preaches about himself as the bread of life, considering in a particular way with this context, verse 37 of John chapter 6. The beginning of this chapter is John's record of Jesus feeding the 5,000 and then Jesus walking on the water and the crowds then coming to find Him. And that's where we pick it up at verse 25 as we give our consideration now to the Word of God. When they found Him on the other side of the lake, they asked Him, Rabbi, when did you get here? Jesus answered, I tell you the truth, you are looking for me not because you saw miraculous signs, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval. Then they asked Him, what must we do to do the works God requires? Jesus answered, the work of God is this, to believe. And the one he has sent. So they asked him, what miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert as it is written. He gave them bread from heaven to eat. Jesus said to them, I tell you the truth, 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. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. Sir, they said. from now on give us this bread then Jesus declared I am the bread of life he who comes to me will never go hungry and he who believes in me will never be thirsty but as I told you you have seen me and still you do not believe all that the Father gives me will come to me and whoever comes to me I will never drive away for I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me and this is the will of him who sent me that I shall lose none of all that he has given me but raise them up at the last day. 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 him up at the last day. At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, I am the bread that came down from heaven. 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? Stop grumbling among yourselves, Jesus answered. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, they will all be taught by God. Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. No one has seen the Father except one who is from God. Only he has seen the Father. I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate the manna into the desert, and yet they die. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? Jesus said to them, I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him, 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. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever. He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. Verse 37 again, All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, you have probably heard the saying that there are only two things in life that are certain, death and taxes. Of course, when it comes to taxes, we know that the government takes what it believes to be its fair share, and we're told in recent days that it's certain to take more. And when it comes to death, death, we know, is no surprise. It's no secret. Unless Christ comes again first, it comes to all. at some time, in some way, shape, or form, again, as we have experienced as a congregation, and some of you as families in this week past. But there is also something else that is certain at death, either the glory of heaven or the torment of hell. And even then, beloved, there is no guesswork involved. There is a certainty about which one you and I will get. Of course, we know that there are many who are deceiving themselves when it comes to this. Maybe that's why so many, when they think about death, when the world thinks about death, they think about, they talk about if the one who died was an avid golfer, they talk about the great golf course in the sky, or the great fishing hole in the sky, or in some way to connect it with this world. But we know that many, sadly, are deceiving themselves, but for God's people, for those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, for those who trust in Him and His saving work alone, they have the confidence of belonging to Him, and therefore, they have been given salvation's certainty. And that's Christ's teaching in this little gem of a verse tucked in the context of His teaching that He is the bread of life. Really, to be fair, we should say that's Christ's teaching throughout all that we read and even throughout Scripture. That's what the Word of God is about for believers, isn't it? Salvation's certainty in Jesus Christ alone. But expressed so beautifully in this little gem of a verse. We know the crowds have been growing. We know that they've been witnessing our Lord's signs and wonders and following that miraculous feeding of the 5,000 with a few loaves and fish, they began to see in Jesus the Messiah, the kind of Messiah that they thought that He was going to be. One who was earthly. One who was going to provide for them physically, especially as they ate this food. And provide for them materially and provide for them the protection they needed from their enemies. In fact, in verse 15 it says, Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make Him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by Himself. Jesus understood their thoughts and intentions. He understood how they were looking at Him. What kind of a messiah that they thought He was going to be. And then Jesus challenges the people in verse 26, I tell you the truth, you are looking for Me, not because you saw miraculous signs, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. They saw this miraculous feeding as just another meal, but by breakfast time, boys and girls, they were hungry again. They missed the significant truth of the miracle. And Jesus then goes on, as we have read, to preach the Gospel message of Himself. That Gospel message which draws a line and divides mankind. And that's exactly what happens. He preached that He is the bread of life. He is the one who gives eternal life. He alone gives eternal satisfaction. In v. 35, then Jesus declared, I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me will never go hungry, and he who believes in Me will never be thirsty. Yet, we notice that many people did not understand. Some were getting annoyed and frustrated. How can this be? They challenged Him. Give us a sign like Moses did. And they looked to themselves in v. 28. Then they asked Him, what must we do to do the works that God requires? But that gives no confidence because, as Jesus says in verse 36, But as I told you, you have seen Me and still you do not believe. He answered their question by saying, believe. Feast upon the bread of life by faith. Believe. You see, all the good works in the world that you could possibly do mean absolutely nothing apart from faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. But those who believe by the grace of God have salvation's certainty. A certainty of salvation given, first of all, by the will of the Father. And secondly, by the work of the Son. In reality, we know that it's all the work and the will and the work of the triune God, isn't it? Jesus says in verse 38, For I have come down from heaven not to do my will, but to do the will of Him who sent me. And as Scripture teaches us, it is the Holy Spirit of God who makes application of that will and work of God to you and me. But Jesus in this verse points out, if you will, the partnership between the Father and Himself. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. Notice first, He speaks in a collective sense, all that the Father gives to me. And then He speaks in an individual sense, and whoever comes. pointing to salvation certainty first of all by the will of the Father. The Father, God the Father, who has chosen a people for Himself, who gives them to His Son and guarantees that they shall come to Him. The will of God the Father includes choosing a people for Himself. He has chosen a people for Himself from the beginning. Jesus is talking here about God's elect people whom God chose in Christ, as Paul says in Ephesians 1, before the creation of the world. And Paul goes on in Ephesians 1 to say, why? For salvation. To be, not because, but to be holy and blameless in His sight. And Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 2.13, God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification, by the Spirit and belief in the truth because of what God would do. Beloved, it is God's decision that His people are saved. And He didn't choose anyone because they decided to believe, because they decided that they would be saved. He didn't choose you and me based on any merit in us or good works or any worthiness in us. Not at all because all men are dead in trespasses and sins and the only thing that you and I deserve is that God should turn His back on us and never turn again to us. That He should cast each and every one of us away into eternal hell forever. That's what we deserve. But believers live because of God's grace alone. For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, Paul says in Ephesians 2. The will of the Father included choosing a people for Himself and giving them to His Son. On the one hand, those whom He had chosen, He gave them to His Son that He might redeem them. The angel said in Matthew 1, He will save His people from their sins. And we have been beautifully reminded in the season of the year again that Jesus died on the cross, He rose again, and He redeemed the entire church. Past, present, future. Those still to be brought in. yet that church is being given to Him throughout time. In another way, all that the Father gives me, gives is in the present tense, that means that this giving is going on even today. As God's elect people are brought to faith in Jesus Christ one by one. And this will go on until every last elect child of God has been gathered into the fold. as they will be given completely to Him. Not all are gathered in yet, but not one will be left out, not one will be left behind because as Jesus says, all that the Father gives me shall come to me. All will get to Him. That's the true key as well behind the church growth movement, isn't it? It's not our doing. We may be the means, the tools that God uses. Indeed, we are. through the preaching of the Holy Gospel, this text is not giving us liberty to sit down and do nothing. That's not what the Bible teaches. We are called to be busy and active in God's redemption plan. As He uses us, but it is all His doing. He gives His chosen to Christ, and they come. But they come not on their own. But they are drawn. Verse 44 says, No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. Indeed, to be saved, beloved, one must come to none other than Jesus Christ. There is no other foundation, no other salvation. Jesus Himself says, Come unto Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. But they come because they are drawn by God the Father. And that word draw there does not simply mean to plead with one, to beg them, to suggest, oh please, won't you consider it? Won't you come? It really is a good idea. That's not what this word means. It has the idea of irresistibility. An irresistible drawing, a powerful drawing, not a violent dragging against one's will like a prisoner being drug off to a prison cell or maybe a child being drugged. drug away from something that they really want to do. And we drag them away, kicking and screaming. That's not what this word means. But it's an irresistible, a powerful drawing, like drawing a net full of fish as we read about in John chapter 21, bringing it along, irresistibly, to a specific point. I know in years past I've used the illustration of water, drawing water up out of a well in a bucket. That water didn't jump into the bucket by itself. It doesn't come out of the well by itself. It doesn't come because we stand there and say, Oh, water, please, please come up. I need you. That water is drawn in that bucket by a rope. That's the idea here. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, who powerfully influences the mind and the will and the heart and the entire personality making it new by His regenerating power. And by which He overpowers one's sinful natural resistance and draws to the Savior so that in their conversion they turn from sin and turn to the Savior. Beloved believers, you and me have been drawn to Jesus by a change of heart. Not against our will. We're not puppets as some would say that this means if it's what we're saying it is. Not against our will, but according to a new will given by the Holy Spirit that desires Jesus Christ. Beloved, our salvation is certain because it is the work of God. He has chosen those for whom Christ died and He powerfully gives the precious gift of faith to believe and to receive all the benefits It's earned by Christ. It's not our doing. It's humbling to realize that without the grace of God, without His drawing influence, that not one of us here, not the strongest, most spiritual one among us would come to Jesus on their own. Not one of us would take advantage of Christ's saving work. Not one of us would look at it and think it's a good deal. Instead, we will continue to look at the world and say, that's for me. That's what I want. Yet what a comfort to know, beloved, that we could not resist God's will. If we could, we would. Some are offended if you tell them, it's not up to you. But by the grace of God, He comforts us with the truth that I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew He moved my soul to seek Him seeking me. After I believed by the grace of God, then I understood how God works. That He came after me. And He powerfully changed my heart that I might come after Him to seek Him. Again, beloved, God uses means. He uses the preaching of the Gospel apart from which no one will believe. And He uses the prayers of His people to that end. And sometimes we must confess that we become discouraged when we do not see immediate results. Maybe if you have prayed for a child or a grandchild or a husband or wife or a friend for years. We become discouraged when we do not see immediate results. We may never see those results. Yet we are called to rest in Him because as Paul says in 2 Timothy 2, the Lord knows those who are His. And all that the Father gives to me, Jesus says, will come to me. Salvation's certainty is because by the will of the Father, but also comes with an awesome guarantee, as it is in the second place, by the work of the Son. And whoever comes to me, I will never drive away. All the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes, I will never drive away. What beautiful words. Jesus Christ receives, He accepts those whoever comes to Him by faith, who feasts on Him as the one and only bread of life. You see, God has chosen a church, as we said a moment ago, but each one comes individually. What I mean is that one is not saved because of the faith of another. One is not saved because their parents were saved because grandma prayed for him or her for years or boys and girls and young people. You're not saved because you attended church or young peoples or a Christian school. All these things are wonderful and necessary. But those things do not save you. The only saving relationship is one with Jesus Christ. One is saved when that one personally believes by the grace of God. It's then that salvation certainty becomes real and true for them. As Paul says in Romans 10, for whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, shall be saved. And notice, Paul doesn't list any qualifications there. Whoever comes or calls shall be saved if. There's no if. There are no qualifications. For example, when it comes to a sense of degree of sin, Whoever calls shall be saved if you haven't committed more than this many sins or if you haven't committed certain sins. These are okay, but if you've committed these, you're out of luck. He doesn't say that. There are no qualifications. No one is too bad. No one is beyond hope. But we know that the unpardonable sin is to reject, to the very end, Jesus Christ. But no sin is too bad, is beyond hope. No sin is greater than the blood of Jesus' grace, God's grace, is greater than all of our sins. And if you are here this morning and think, well, you know what, it's too late for me. It's too late. I've been too bad. God could never love me. Boys and girls, you know that when you do something really bad, your parents may punish you, but they always end up loving you again. They never lose their love for you. No one is too bad in that way. It's not too late. If you are that way, by the very fact that you're here this morning and your breathing tells you it is not too late, And you are being sincerely and urgently and earnestly called to humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, to give your life to Him. And yours will be salvation's certainty because we come, we come as those having nothing and needing everything to Him who has everything and gives us all that we need. Jesus promises to receive whoever comes to Him by faith. Without rejection, I will never drive away. He not only receives, you see, but He promises to keep. Isn't that awesome? He promises to keep you and me. The original language gives us the idea of to never, ever drive away. To never throw out. Literally, what He is saying is that He would not drive away to the outside from the inside. Those who are inside. Outside are those who reject the call to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation 22 says, Blessed are those who wash their robes that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. Sadly, there are those whom God has not chosen to save. But inside are those who are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, those who believe on Him by grace through faith, those to whom has been given a place in the family of God, who have been brought inside. He says, I will never drive those who are on the inside to the outside. They will not be ejected. They will not be driven out as those who bought and sold in the temple on the Sabbath, those whom Jesus drove out of the temple. He promises to keep you and me. Because Jesus Christ prizes His gift from the Father. He prizes His bride, the church. He prizes her so much that as He said in John chapter 17, He will lose none of those given to Him by the Father, but instead give them eternal life. Because that's the will of the Father. Verses 39 and 40, And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of them that He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day. 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 Him up at the last day. Do you see the theme there? I will raise Him up at the last day. Keep Him to the end. And notice how he says it in John chapter 10. My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they shall never perish. No one can snatch them out of my hand. That's the believer's security. We call it the perseverance of the saints. The preservation of the saints by the hand of God. We will not be lost or stolen or destroyed. We will not ever be separated. from the love of God because by the grace of God, once saved, always saved, even though we continue to struggle with sin. And the Bible gives us a powerful example of that. His name is Peter. Jesus complimented him when he said, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. But then Peter turns around, we know, and he rejects Jesus three times. And a few weeks ago when we considered Judas, it really struck me how really the Bible puts it forth to us that Peter's three-fold rejection of Jesus seems much worse than Judas' betrayal. Yet Judas was lost. But Peter was graciously restored. Salvation certainty. Beloved, a glorious truth to live by. You see, those brought to faith in Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit are humbled as they learn and they believe that salvation is certain all because of the will and the work of the triune God. And therefore, as those who are given new life, they desire to live their life for God in response to His love poured out upon Him. They desire that their living be consecrated, set apart to the Lord. In the strength of the Holy Spirit, believers strive to glorify God and enjoy Him forever through loving obedience to His will. And they strive to live a distinctively Christian life that is holy to the Lord again with the comfort that even though we struggle with our sins day by day, we have the confidence that we belong, body and soul, in life and in death to our faithful Savior Jesus Christ who is satisfied for all of our sins. Indeed, salvation, certainty, a glorious truth to live by. but also a glorious truth to die by. That's our comfort. Praise God, those whom we lost in this past week. As families, you have been given the confidence and we with you that by God's grace, they owned salvation's certainty. It means no guilt in life, no fear in death as we sing in that beautiful hymn in Christ alone. A glorious truth to die by knowing that to die is gain. It is to be with the Lord. To know that my soul will be taken to Jesus in glory again whose desire, as He expressed in John 17, is that those given to Him be with Him where He is. And that's why also, beloved, salvation and certainty is a glorious truth to tell. again, this text in no way gives us license to sit on our duff and to do nothing. Those who have the joy of salvation certainty are called to tell it. It is to be our desire, beloved, that those whom we meet enjoy that salvation certainty. Again, we don't know those whom God has chosen. And that's not our business. God gathers His church throughout this age through the means of the truth preached, applied by the Holy Spirit. We know that not all have been chosen by God to be saved from His wrath to come. And that is disturbing. We can't figure it out. But we know that God glorifies Himself indeed by the salvation of His people, but also by not saving others. It's troubling to us, possibly, but our focus is not to be on why not all. But our focus is to be on why any? Why me? We are called to be used of God to tell the glorious truth of salvation, certainty through Jesus Christ, knowing, as we learn from Acts 13, 48, that all who are appointed for eternal life will believe. And beloved, may we be comforted whether your faith is strong by God's grace or especially if you struggle in your faith as we recognize that we are wretched and that we are totally undeserving. May each one of us be comforted that Jesus Christ has made our salvation certain according to the will of God. May we be comforted that the blood of Christ will never run dry. It will never wear out. It will never lose its effectiveness. but it will last for eternity. You see, it's not about who you are or what you did. Apart from Jesus Christ, it is. When the end of this life comes, because of who you are and what you did apart from Jesus Christ, there is one other thing certain, as we said in the beginning, the torment of hell. But salvation, certainty in Christ Jesus is not about who you are or what you did, but it is about what Jesus Christ has done for those who find refuge in Him. He will never desert you. He will never throw you out. Instead, as Peter says, they through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. Beloved, salvation is certainty both now and forever. And therefore, believer, rejoice in the certainty of Christ's salvation of you. Amen. Let's pray. Father, once again, You have powerfully reminded us of Your strength and power and majesty and glory and grace. of Your whole being for Your people. Indeed, Father, there are so many times when we like to think, well, you know, we're good enough or we're able to do enough. But You powerfully remind us and it is to be to our comfort that we can do nothing to save ourselves. Not even in the least. but then You comfort us with the truth that we don't have to. You have done it all in Christ Jesus, our Lord. And we are amazed to think, O Lord, that You knew us from before the creation of the world and that You chose a people for Yourself to save. And throughout Your history of redemption and revelation, You have brought forth that salvation by bringing forth Your Son to live that perfectly righteous life that we could never begin to even fathom and to die that death to pay for our sins that we could not begin to pay for. Father, we thank You for bringing us into Your fold by Your power and Spirit and help us there too by Your Spirit. Encourage us by Your Word to give testimony to Your grace in our lives that we might live a life that is pleasing to You, a life of gratitude and praise for such a great salvation. Father, we praise You for that comfort both now and forever. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.