Ep. 233. John 6 | The Feeding of the Multitudes Take 2

EPISODE 233

THE FEEDING OF THE MULTITUDES TAKE 2: JOHN 6

John chapter 6 is an incredible chapter with so much to mine. It has long been one of my favorites. I love the details that John offers to the reader in the story of the feeding of the crowds. Of particular interest to me is that the people follow him because of the miracles he has been doing and are then so overwhelmed by the miraculous feeding that they seek to make him their King by compulsion. Little do they realize he is already the King, but they have not yet had their hearts softened, or eyes opened to the truth. Their ambitions were still set too lowly as they looked upon the empires of the earth and completely missed the Kingdom of Heaven.

On the following day, as Jesus teaches in the Synagogue, the people come to him now not because of the healings but rather for the provision of food. But Jesus knows their hearts and says, "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." Paul would say it this way to his reader, "Set your mind on the things above and not on the things of the earth."

These crowds were concerned only with physical healing and full bellies but were ignorant of the soul healing Jesus was about to provide through his death. They completely missed the truth that Jesus was the true bread and the true drink and, therefore, the source of true life. They cared little for the heavenly things that Abraham set his eyes on and worried only about the needs and cravings of this immediate moment. For all their chasing after Jesus, they missed the true treasure he had brought to them. They missed salvation and forgiveness. They missed eternal life.

I'd argue that the same is true today of many people who profess to follow Jesus. They are just here for the swag bag, just here for the party favors. They care little about the eternal nature of things and rest all their hope on well-fed, healthy bodies while their souls whither under the weight of their sins.

ADDITIONAL READING: John 2:13; John 11:55; 2 Kings 4:42-44; Malachi 4:5-6; Deuteronomy 18:15-18; John 12:12-15; Luke 19:38; 1 John 3:23; Romans 4:4-5; Psalm 78:24-25; Isaiah 55:1-3; John 4:13-16; John 7:37-38; Revelation 22:17; John 3:14-16; John 7:27-28; Mark 6:3; Luke 4:22; John 1:18; Isaiah 54:13; Jeremiah 31:33-34; John 3:36; John 3:13