I invite you to turn this morning to John chapter 6. If you have your Bibles, John chapter 6. We're continuing our study in this wonderful book. We picked it up again last week after some time and started verses 1 through 15 of John 6. This morning we will read verses 16 through 33. This is the word of the Lord, beginning at verse 16 of John chapter 6. When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed for about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. But he said to them, It is I. Do not be afraid. Then they were glad to take him into the boat. And immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going. On the next day, the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum seeking Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, Rabbi, when did you come here? Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me not because you saw the signs, but because you ate your lobe, fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has set his seal. Then they said to him, What must we do to be doing the works of God? Jesus answered them, This is the work of God that you believe in him whom he has sent. So they said to him, Then what sign do you do that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written. He gave them bread from heaven to eat. Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, It was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father 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. They said to him, Sir, give us this bread always. I want to read verse 35. Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger. Whoever believes in me shall never thirst. And there is the reading of God's word. John 6 is hands down one of the most important chapters in the Bible for addressing the issues of faith, the issue of faith, and our motivations for why we're involved with Jesus and Christianity and why we're here and what we do. It's one of those really important chapters in John, so much so that this gets 71 verses of treatment on a really knock-down, drag-out fight over the meaning of this feeding that Jesus did. So that tells you that we're running up against something that is really deeply difficult for human nature and the human heart to accept when you have this kind of emphasis in John. And these are the most important questions of life that are right in front of us. He has been pressing us on this issue with every narrative in John. You'll remember not only with Nicodemus, but especially the woman at the well who, when Jesus would talk to her about living water, she just didn't get it. and then it got a little bit ugly as she wouldn't accept this living water that Jesus offered offered and would only think in physical terms Jesus said go call your husband to me and things got ugly I don't have a husband yeah you're right you say you don't have a husband you've had five of them and the one you have now is not your husband somebody else's see Jesus didn't let people do what they wanted to do and play games. Jesus probed right into the heart and he called it out and he took them right where they needed to go. And it was difficult. It was difficult. See, then that's what you're seeing in John. It is a fight. You can be deeply religious. You can put on the clothes. You can be in church. But have we got to the matters of the heart? And that's what John's pressing us to. To life. Remember, that's what you need in the heart. That's what Nicodemus was all about. You need to be born again. You need life there. So all these figures are being used. All these signs are being used to teach us this. That's why the first section of John is the book of signs. It's a book of signs telling you that this was the struggle of the Jews. They didn't understand the meaning of the signs because they did not have faith. And that's the issue. That's the fight. Sin has blinded us to what is most important. And that's why Jesus is often used in these passages, and that's what's exposed here. But the beauty of this, the gospel in this, is that Jesus makes a plain statement today that it is his very work to overcome your unbelief. That's the powerful thing that is said here. That's his work. That's what he's going to do. Unbelief is not something that just kind of creeps in. Unbelief is the problem of the human heart. And that's what I want to look at with you today, as that is again emphasized here, with the sign that is given and a sign that typically is not as noticed. But if you'll study this closely, you'll see another sign is in the midst of this that they missed. The problem that Jesus exposes and then the solution that he gives. So it's a very simple outline, but it helps us to see this, what Jesus is doing. At this point, he has fed the 5,000, you remember, in that very well-known passage. And they began to, they immediately missed what the meaning of that was. And Jesus is exposing that. The big problem was they were pretty excited that he could fill their bellies, weren't they? They were pretty excited that this great prophet could take a few loaves and a few fish and just keep breaking and feed all these people. And they called him the prophet that has come. They were ready to put up the kingdom. Remember when they wanted in verse 15 to take him by force and to make him king? That's where we left off last time. Jesus turned right away from it. He wanted nothing to do with their agenda for him and how they wanted the kingdom to come and not what he really had to do. This was the fight from Peter all the way through. he had to suffer and die no one likes that nobody likes that message so here we are now we pick up in verse 16 and you'll notice here in verse 16 that it says when evening came his disciples went down to the sea got into a boat and started across the sea to Capernaum it was now dark and Jesus had not yet come to them I kind of wanted to skip this section because it just what is the point of this the bread stuff i want to get to that's where this happens but we have all this emphasis on this little crossing event and they're stuck and jesus coming out on the boat we know this passage of course it's not an unfamiliar passage to us this is the um the passage from matthew chapter 14 where peter of course sees jesus walking on the water and says i want to come to you and then he starts sinking and we love that passage beautiful passage to preach if you're ever as a pastor picking which one to preach you're picking Matthew 14 because John 6 doesn't seem to be all that exciting the question I have is what is it doing here why did John sandwich the this this very event between the feeding and then the explanation of it initially I struggle to see how it correlates, and commentators are all over the map. But what is this? Why is it important? I don't think it's difficult if you understand that Jesus is really working hard to confront unbelief, and he's using a context to do it, particularly the unbelief of Israel. Remember, John 1 said Jesus came to his own, his religious people, and his own did not receive him. But to those who did, he gave them the right to become children of God, to those who believe in him. So it's about belief, and he's exposing Israel's unbelief. So he's teaching the nations and having this to be a great teaching tool to understand unbelief and what it looks like and how it comes. They have missed the signs, of course. In other words, they have missed the meaning of the signs. It's not that the signs weren't evident. Wow, this guy could take a few fish and loaves and magnify them and multiply them to five thousand thousand bits and pieces to feed everyone. But they missed what the signs meant. But there were certain things that were clear here. There were certain things that were clear that Jesus was showing them. Here in our particular text Jesus is gone up on the mountain alone he departed from their kingdom project and we get the sense that his disciples have no idea where he has gone so it's nighttime notice the language they went down to the sea and they get in the boat and they go over to the sea of Capernaum it was already dark and Jesus had not yet come so what what imagery here they get in the boat, the sea is their obstacle. They've been rowing for a few miles, they're in the black of the night, and they can't cross this thing. Am I teasing you a little bit yet? You'll get it in a minute. They can't cross the sea. You ask a ship captain, what is their greatest fear on the ocean? and I'll always say the wind and the storms. And if you have a storm come up in the middle of the night that is intolerable, I mean, you know, you could think of Lake Michigan and these with that big boat that sunk years ago. When these massive swells and these gale-like winds come up, you're at the mercy of the sea, and you can just be stuck. They can't cross. Now, why does John put it here? Well, what has chapter 6 shown you? What themes has he converged here together? Verse 2, Passover, right? Then Jesus has shown himself already in John as the temple. He's claiming everything of Israel's history. As the temple, the Passover. Paul will even say that Christ is our Passover. Then Jesus feeds Israel in the wilderness, which is about to be explained as he is the true bread from heaven, As he is the manna, so he claims the manna. He claims to be what Moses did. He claims to be that bread. They all said, great prophet, do you know who's come to you? Now we have a crossing of the sea event. Now we have a crossing of the sea event. Here they are, nowhere to go. They are totally backed up into the sea. At night, you'll notice here, a great wind has come up. and it blew it is imagery here is that these waves went up the word's interesting because it was calm and then all of a sudden it raged and rose up against them the waters and they're in the midst of it at the mercies of the sea and this by by now should sound very familiar to us uh what is on john's mind chapter 12 of exodus passover chapter 13 of exodus you keep going actually it's 13 12 and 13 Passover instructions chapter 14 and 15 red sea event crossing chapter 16 feeding in the bread in the wilderness John's thinking exodus the new exodus he's applying the whole event and saying here it is here's the meaning this is what it's all about Passover they wanted a king feeding they want a prophet and now the single greatest sign in Israel's history has just happened. The event was so important to their deliverance. Every Israelite celebrated it. And you just go through the Psalms. You go through the Psalms. This event is celebrated everywhere in the Psalms. Remember what happened? Israel comes to the sea. They turn around. There comes Pharaoh. There comes all the army behind him. They panic. They complain. We're good at that, by the way. They complained. What have you done? You brought us out here to die. Moses says, don't be afraid. You'll see salvation today. Don't be afraid. Stand still. See the salvation. Then Moses stretches out his hand, remember, and the sea splits, and they're safely brought through the sea as the angel of the Lord comes to them and canopies them and carries them through to the other side. the one who was in the burning bush, who was already revealed in Exodus chapter 3. I am who I am. So Jesus here, think about what's exactly happened. Paul even found the crossing of the sea event so important. He said that's when they were baptized. That was the redemptive event. They went through death and were resurrected. That's what that message is all about. It was showing us Jesus' very work. After the feeding, they were really excited about something. That? No. A prophet has come. A prophet who can set us free from Rome. A prophet who can solve all our problems. A king. Remember, we talked about this last time, how many people love Jesus for certain reasons. We'll come back to that in a minute. They have missed the greater Moses. They have missed what the signs are saying. And now in the midst of all this, the disciples look up and they see Jesus. And he didn't need to split the seat. He's walking on it. Who has come? He's walking on it. He's treading on it. He's far greater than Moses. I'll tell you that. Moses who split it had to split it. Jesus is walking on it. And as Moses said, don't be afraid, Jesus uses the same words. Don't be afraid. I am. That's the translation here. I am the one who came to Moses. I am the one who brought Israel through, and here I've come in the flesh. And you see a miracle here. You see a sign here. Did you catch the little word that John rarely uses? Immediately, the boat was on the other side. That's a miracle. So this is quite a moment. That's quite a sign, by the way. And John wants you to know everyone knew it. That's why he keeps giving so much detail about it. Everyone knew, how did you get here? They knew what had happened. When did you get here? Notice all the questions and concern about that. How did you get here, Master? And Jesus knows that these people are following him for all the wrong reasons, and that's where he now goes after it. Israel's core problem was no faith. So look at verse 30. You'll notice in verse 30 of John 6 that they said to him, what sign will you do that we may see and believe you? What work will you perform? Do you perform? He stopped and he said, are you kidding? Everyone should stop and say, that is just a offensive question at this point because offense is going to be the biggest that's the most offensive question he has just feed the 5,000 fed him now he's walked on the sea they all know it and that's what they say and notice what they continue to say there our fathers ate manna in the wilderness as it's written he gave them bread from heaven to eat wow why should we believe you. Moses gave bread every day. You've done it once. They're probably hungry at this point again. And see how they're using Jesus here. See how they're using Jesus for their agenda. Did you notice, and I think this is an important question to raise, did you notice last week in our culture how the issue of images of white Jesus came to the forefront? big controversy over images of Jesus in our culture. Isn't that interesting? We have fought that one for a long time. People have wanted to make images, and ironically, they have been white, and they've been blonde hair and blue eyed. And the culture's saying, you know, that's really wrong. You've co-opted and taken Jesus for you. That fair? I think it's a fair concern because if we had honored the second commandment, we wouldn't have done it. I think it's a legitimate concern by African-Americans that we've co-opted and taken Jesus and made him in to be what we want him to be. And that's one of the reasons images were never to be made. And that's why the Reformation understood that. You will create Jesus to be what you want him to be for you. Great reason not to because there was no image ever given of God. See, this is the problem, if we're willing to see it. Everyone wants to use Jesus for their own cultural agenda. It's everywhere. Make a white Jesus. When he wasn't white, by the way, he was Jewish. Would an image of a Jewish Jesus make us a little more uncomfortable? Would that be in our books? You see, it's a legitimate concern. And Jesus has been used for decades for cultural agendas. No one group has that right. It would be just as wrong to start making black images of Jesus. If you claim to be the bread of life, if you expect us to believe in you and all the great claims you're making, give us something great. Give us something to see. Moses gave bread from heaven. Where's yours? And of course, as the crowd is hungry again, it's the next day. Jesus goes after it. I'm the bread. I'm going to talk about bread. I am the bread come down from heaven. You're missing everything. You've missed what this is about. You've missed what you need. You've missed what Christianity is. So that's verse 26. Most assuredly, I say to you, truly, truly, I say to you, you're seeking me for all the wrong reasons. You're seeking me not because you saw the signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Don't work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on him God the Father has set his seal. A sign and a seal. Listen, you seek me not because you saw the signs. In other words, you had no idea what these signs were telling you. You didn't see the meaning of them. When I fed you, you should have understood that that bread is me. You didn't understand what the signs signified. You see, they loved to have their bellies filled, but they would not believe in him. They would not come to him for life. This is the problem in John's gospel. They wouldn't come. So they're following Jesus for all the wrong reasons. And here is the beautiful truth of John 6, of what's been revealed so far. The I am from Moses, burning bush, has come down from heaven to a sin-sick, cursed world, Divided, ripped up, full of hatred, envy, you name it. He has come down from his throne and offered himself as the solution. I came to be, says Jesus, the life of the world. And you're missing everything. You're living for your own bellies. You know, we're at the end of all things. We're at the end. If the apostles said it in the first century, the end of all things is at hand, they would have never thought we would be in 2020 and God's really shaking things up right now. Who can't see that? Are we listening to Jesus? That's the question. And that's why I think when he says in verse 27, don't labor for the food which perishes, don't work for that, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, that's Jesus' way of giving the gospel. come to me. All you who labor and are heavy laden and burdened in this life, come to me. I am your Savior. I have what you need. I have satisfaction. I have everything that you're looking for everywhere else. Come to me. That's what he's saying. This is what the prophets all said when they celebrated the sea crossing event. Surely they're my people, children who will not lie. So he became their savior. In their affliction, he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and in his pity, he redeemed them and bore them and carried them all the days of old. They just want deliverance from hunger. They want their best life now created again. They want to create it so they can live in their little utopia, set off to themselves with their families. Jesus is saying, that's not what you need. None of these temporal blessings will save you. And that's what this is so important. You know what their response is after this? What do we do that we might work the works of God? It has been a fight since the beginning to get people to accept salvation by grace through faith alone. They will fight it with their teeth, hard as they can. You tell us what we need to do. They heard labor. They thought, we need to do it. And Jesus says something that I think is probably the most important verse in John. If I can say that, this is the work of God that you believe in the one whom he has sent. That's the stopping point today, isn't it? Unbelief is that hard in the heart. Unbelief is this difficult to overcome that we can't do it. And this is what everyone was missing, faith. Think of what Hebrews says, without faith it's impossible to please God. For he who comes to God must believe that he is, and he's a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. Faith is our great need to embrace our great Savior. And what Jesus just said, I have taken it upon myself in my life, death, and resurrection as one of my great works to overcome your unbelief. Isn't that wonderful? It is my work to save you. It's my work to redeem you, to give you the belief that is required for you to be reconciled with God, or else you'll just be a bitter person. That's Ephesians 2. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. Paul knew exactly where that came from. That's not of yourselves. That's Jesus saying, that's my work. That's not of yourselves, grace through faith, the whole enchilada. Not of yourselves, lest anyone should boast. It's all grace. It's all his work. And that's why none of this unbelief frustrates Jesus and John. I would get terribly frustrated if I didn't understand this. And Jesus says that, all that the Father gives me will come because it's my work. That's the call of this text, though. Hear. Hear who your Savior is. Come to Jesus. We need a Savior who saves us from our sins. We are so concerned right now about everything the Jews were concerned about in the first century. The economy, the nation, food, our oppression, hatred by the Romans. This is the sweetest news to your ears. I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall never hunger, And whoever believes in me shall never thirst. That's my text next week. What a great, great verse. I pray today that we are so hungry and thirsty for Jesus that in coming to him, we have experienced and received by his work the greatest satisfying work in our lives so that we truly live. What can the world do to us? You're full this way. You're satisfied this way. You have everything this way. And heaven's being prepared for you. The other way is misery. The other way is to find yourself outside the kingdom. That's not a game you want to play. For he has not despised nor bored the affliction of the afflicted, nor has he hid his face from him. But when he cried to him, he heard, My praise shall be of you in the great assembly. I will pay my vows before those who fear him. The poor shall eat and be satisfied. Those who seek him will praise the Lord. Let your hearts live. Isn't that beautiful? All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord. And all the families of the nations shall worship before you. I'm thankful that God gives us a passage like this to learn from the greatest error in Israel's history. that we might not be unbelieving, but believing and receive the nourishment for our souls that we need. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, thank you for this glorious passage that so helps us to understand what we need in this life and who ultimately satisfies us. May we have, by your great work, through the power of the Holy Spirit, faith. Faith that calms all fears and trusts in you for everything. Faith that believes in the person and the work of Jesus and receives the true bread from heaven that satisfies and nourishes our soul. As Augustine said so many years ago, our souls are restless until they find rest in you. How true it is. May we find that rest by embracing so great a Savior and so great a salvation. Hear our prayer, and thank you, Lord, for the gift of faith. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.