08.06.09
Brain Freeze!!!
Well life in Hong Kong is getting into full swing. Our furniture has arrived and the kids and I are living in a place that now looks and feels like home. Praise God!
Today, Thursday, Aug 6, I led a workshop for Elementary teachers that covered different aspects of religious education. It was a good morning. Tomorrow I will lead a similar workshop for Middle and High school teachers.
I came back to my office after the workshop ready to jump into outlining my sermon for Aug 23. I have been working for three hours and have only experienced brain freeze. I take two steps forward and end up three steps backwards. So I guess it is time to write a bit.
The text for the sermon which has my brain frozen is from John.
John 6:41-51 (New International Version)
41At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42They 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’?”
43″Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. 44″No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. 45It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’[a] Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. 46No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. 47I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. 50But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. 51I 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.”
This is a difficult text, but rich in ideas. I am just not sure what to unpack from this text.
You can help.
Post a comment telling me what this verse means to you and how it encourages your walk with Jesus.
Thanks in advance. Blessings.
Elizabeth said,
August 6, 2009 at 2:53 pm
The best way out is always through.-Robert Frost
I just read that, I thought it applied here…
OK, here’s all I’ve got so far:
We get tripped up (out?) in our faith when we get into literal nitpicking. (v42)
We always lose focus when we grumble & complain amongst ourselves. (gongismas? in the greek or is it hebrew? spelling is wrong I’m sure) When in doubt tie in a language lesson;) right? (v43)
Jesus ties the concrete (cause he’s a teacher ;) & familiar (manna) to what is abstract & unknown(bread of life) making a connection but also pointing out how one sustains life on Earth temporarily (& you die anyway) & one leads to Eternal Life (v 49-50)
The piece that they (& we) miss is the faith component : stop being so literal, try to see with your heart, know the Father through me (I’m right here in front of you!), accept that you can not by your own understanding or reasoning, come to the Father…Come to Jesus & LIVE!
Man, I tried to do it without a song reference & almost made it! :P
That’s all that I’ve got…my brain is fried from family drama in Philly…
Hammett said,
August 8, 2009 at 12:09 am
My friend
There is alot of things Christ is telling us in these words……..Be picky in what you choose. FAITH comes to mind. Like that of a child. It is easy once you have the FAITH and give yourself COMPLETELY to Christ.
The grumbling among yourselves……….PLEASE dont get me started. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I will pray for you. Originally when I saw your title I thought WOW they have slurpees there in HONG KONG??????? HAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I miss you. Please continue to pray for us at St. John. The people who fight I am scared for in their spirtual life. When you continue to do the wrong thing…………..I SAID CONTINUE to do the wrong thing……………..Some day there will be a day where they will be held accountable. I pray for them.
PLEASE HUG the kids for me. WE MISS KERRICK DEARLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We talk of him often.
Has everything made it in one peice or several???
GOD BLESS YOU MY FRIEND!!!!!!!!
HAMMETT
lisa said,
August 12, 2009 at 12:36 am
Hey You ~
I’m sure you’re done by now and onto some other great endeavor..but what this passage relays to me is how ignorant we really are – we think we know, but we really have no clue – even when spelled out and told directly to us by Jesus Himself!! I can’t wait to hear what you come up with as I am always in awe at what message you convey so easily (well, at least you make it sound like it was easy!) Ever write a message @ 4am?!?!! …just wondering what you do @ that time now that you’re not here…
miss you & the gauntlet
Diane Krueger said,
August 13, 2009 at 8:23 pm
Hello!
I may be late and the sermon may be written – but I wanted to share my thoughts on the John passages since a variety of people have drawn my attention to John 6 over the past month.
The first was at a Catholic church where John 6:1-14 was the Gospel lesson and focus of the homily. In the intro the priest gave an overview of John 6 – with the emphasis on the “feeding” – the multitudes, the Isrealites, the Lords Supper. Tom and I had to read the entire chapter the next day.
Throughout John Jesus concentrates on revealing himself to his disciples and dispelling missconceptions.
In John 6 he feeds the 5000 who promptly want to make him a bread king. He escapes to the hills, then terrifies his disciples by walking on the water to meet their boat. But the crowds follow – and he has to make them understand that he is not Moses – offering temporary fixes. (”they still died!”.
“I am the bread from heaven” “I give life to the world” he says over and over again while the crowd grumbles. “I am the living bread … the bread is my flesh.” Manna was manna – it spoiled if not gathered, and spoiled if horded. The bread Jesus describes is eternal.- nourishing our souls, bringing us Peace and eternal life.
That was a tough sell then – as it is now. Through the work of the Holy Spirit we have been blessed to know the end of the story. We know the grisly facts about Jesus death. We know his body was sacrificed and his blood was spilled. But we still need the faith Elizabeth wrote about – the faith that says that there is so much more here than the simple wafer and sip of wine.
Peter makes his confession of faith after all of this – but I almost think his answer is more “I truly don’t get this – but you say that it is so – and I trust you.”
I can’t imagine grasping any of John 6 – or any of John for that matter – before Jesus’ death and resurrection. The disciples believed that they would understand it all when the time was right.
Hum – as I reach the end of this I realize that I need to remember what kind of faith it took to walk with Jesus – trusting only in his words and deeds. No wonder the disciples so willingly became martyrs for the Way.
Diane (LifeLight)