Accepting And Rejecting Jesus
Sermon
THE WORD IS NEAR YOU
Sermons For The Church
One of the strangest aspects of faith is that people can go away from faith as well as come to it. I say this is strange because most of us seldom think about people rejecting their faith and going away. We usually think of people coming to Christ, accepting baptism or some other sign of confirmation, and then living in close harmony with the Lord the rest of their lives. That often does happen. Sometimes, though, people are like those in our text. They turn their backs on Christ and desert him.
Some modern Christians have a dreamy notion that life in New Testament times was categorically different from life today. One person said to me, "If I had just lived in Jesus' time, I might have met him in person. Surely I would have believed!" Perhaps that is true, but it might not be. Not everyone who met Jesus followed him. Not everyone who heard him teach decided to believe.
Verses 66 and 67 make clear the fact that Jesus' teaching about eating his flesh and drinking his blood were just too much for some. Verse 66 says, "As a result of this many of his disciples withdrew, and were not walking with him anymore." The word "disciples" here does not refer to the twelve disciples whom Jesus chose, but to people who had followed Jesus while he was giving away bread. Large crowds came to him, but when Jesus told them truths they were unwilling to hear, they turned away from him.
The entire sixth chapter of John is essential for understanding the conflict and rejection of these people. They wanted to make Jesus their king but it had to be on their terms. Jesus refused. They were willing to follow him if he would be the kind of Messiah they wanted. He turned the tables and demanded they accept him on his term, not their own. When that happened, many of them rejected him.
The situation is not greatly different today. People are still trying to squeeze Jesus into their own mental molds. They try to make him over into their image rather than allow him to make them in his image. Do some of your friends do this? Today's text is a good corrective to our temptation to make Jesus fit our wishes.
When the superficial disciples fled, Jesus asked the twelve, "You do not want to go away also, do you?" What a poignant question! Look at who is left. Someone pointed out that chapter six opens with 5,000 excited warriors (v. 15) and closes with twelve troubled disciples, one of whom was a traitor!
Why do people reject him? There are many reasons. Some people have never known the real Christ. They might have heard something about him from a friend or on a televised worship program. But these impressions might be misleading and may fail to bring a person to the living Christ. Another reason why people reject Jesus is because of the actions and attitudes of some of Christ's people. Others look at us and say, "If that is what a Christian is, I want no part of it."
Still others try to follow Christ for a while but soon tire out on the journey. They simply quit. They might be severely disappointed with what they got compared to what they were promised. Others lived vile and degraded lives and want nothing to do with the moral demands of the gospel.
Jesus' question to his disciples is poignant: "You do not want to leave, too, do you?" This question by Jesus expressed his disappointment with the shallow followers. He came into this world to save sinners. His offer of eternal life was rejected by many and Jesus was clearly disappointed. He still is. People who hear his message and turn him away hurt not only themselves, but also hurt Christ. In his own time, not everyone rejected him, however. Some rejected Jesus, but not everyone did. In verses 68 and 69, Simon Peter answered the question posed by Jesus in the previous verse. He wanted to know if they were going to leave him also. Simon's answer is a classic: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. And we have believed and have come to know that you are the Holy One of God." This statement was a recognition that the longing for eternal life, humankind's deepest hunger, is satisfied only in Christ.
What exactly does the New Testament mean by the term "eternal life"? It has been defined as "the never--ending experience of living with God." It begins with a person's conversion and continues for eternity. Thus, it has quantity. Eternal life also has quality. It is the inner life of a person who has said "Yes" to Christ. Such a person becomes more and more like the person God intends for him or her to become. Eternal life is a quality of life on earth which leads to quantity of life in heaven.
Jesus' disciples knew they had nowhere else to go. Really now, do we today? There are plenty of substitutes and false gods, but only one Lord. Jesus is the Bread of Life which satisfies our deepest hungers for significance and relationships.
Christ comes to us with an offer. The offer is for us to accept him as our Lord and savior. He forces no one to do so and asks only for commitment to him. What will you do with this offer?
Will you reject or accept Jesus Christ?
Some modern Christians have a dreamy notion that life in New Testament times was categorically different from life today. One person said to me, "If I had just lived in Jesus' time, I might have met him in person. Surely I would have believed!" Perhaps that is true, but it might not be. Not everyone who met Jesus followed him. Not everyone who heard him teach decided to believe.
Verses 66 and 67 make clear the fact that Jesus' teaching about eating his flesh and drinking his blood were just too much for some. Verse 66 says, "As a result of this many of his disciples withdrew, and were not walking with him anymore." The word "disciples" here does not refer to the twelve disciples whom Jesus chose, but to people who had followed Jesus while he was giving away bread. Large crowds came to him, but when Jesus told them truths they were unwilling to hear, they turned away from him.
The entire sixth chapter of John is essential for understanding the conflict and rejection of these people. They wanted to make Jesus their king but it had to be on their terms. Jesus refused. They were willing to follow him if he would be the kind of Messiah they wanted. He turned the tables and demanded they accept him on his term, not their own. When that happened, many of them rejected him.
The situation is not greatly different today. People are still trying to squeeze Jesus into their own mental molds. They try to make him over into their image rather than allow him to make them in his image. Do some of your friends do this? Today's text is a good corrective to our temptation to make Jesus fit our wishes.
When the superficial disciples fled, Jesus asked the twelve, "You do not want to go away also, do you?" What a poignant question! Look at who is left. Someone pointed out that chapter six opens with 5,000 excited warriors (v. 15) and closes with twelve troubled disciples, one of whom was a traitor!
Why do people reject him? There are many reasons. Some people have never known the real Christ. They might have heard something about him from a friend or on a televised worship program. But these impressions might be misleading and may fail to bring a person to the living Christ. Another reason why people reject Jesus is because of the actions and attitudes of some of Christ's people. Others look at us and say, "If that is what a Christian is, I want no part of it."
Still others try to follow Christ for a while but soon tire out on the journey. They simply quit. They might be severely disappointed with what they got compared to what they were promised. Others lived vile and degraded lives and want nothing to do with the moral demands of the gospel.
Jesus' question to his disciples is poignant: "You do not want to leave, too, do you?" This question by Jesus expressed his disappointment with the shallow followers. He came into this world to save sinners. His offer of eternal life was rejected by many and Jesus was clearly disappointed. He still is. People who hear his message and turn him away hurt not only themselves, but also hurt Christ. In his own time, not everyone rejected him, however. Some rejected Jesus, but not everyone did. In verses 68 and 69, Simon Peter answered the question posed by Jesus in the previous verse. He wanted to know if they were going to leave him also. Simon's answer is a classic: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. And we have believed and have come to know that you are the Holy One of God." This statement was a recognition that the longing for eternal life, humankind's deepest hunger, is satisfied only in Christ.
What exactly does the New Testament mean by the term "eternal life"? It has been defined as "the never--ending experience of living with God." It begins with a person's conversion and continues for eternity. Thus, it has quantity. Eternal life also has quality. It is the inner life of a person who has said "Yes" to Christ. Such a person becomes more and more like the person God intends for him or her to become. Eternal life is a quality of life on earth which leads to quantity of life in heaven.
Jesus' disciples knew they had nowhere else to go. Really now, do we today? There are plenty of substitutes and false gods, but only one Lord. Jesus is the Bread of Life which satisfies our deepest hungers for significance and relationships.
Christ comes to us with an offer. The offer is for us to accept him as our Lord and savior. He forces no one to do so and asks only for commitment to him. What will you do with this offer?
Will you reject or accept Jesus Christ?
