Having declared Himself to be the bread (manna) from heaven, i.e., from God (John 6:32), and having offered this bread (Himself) to all people (John 6:33), Jesus exclaimed, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst" (John 6:35 NASB). This proclamation was the first of Jesus' "I am" revelations (cf. John 6:35: the Bread of life; John 8:12: the Light of the world; John 10:7: the Door of the sheep; John 10:11: the Good shepherd; John 11:25: the Resurrection and the Life; John 14:6: the Way and the Truth and the Life; John 15:1: the true Vine).
The "I am" claims of Jesus, according to Robert H. Mounce, corresponded to "God's response to Moses, who asked him what to tell those who inquire concerning the name of the one who sent him. God reveals his name as 'I Am Who I Am.' He chooses to be known and worshiped as 'I Am' (Ex. 3:14)."1 Just as Jesus is the manna from God (cf. John 6:31-33), so too is He the great I Am.
Jesus is "the bread of God" (John 6:33); He is also "the bread of life" (John 6:35) -- who "gives life to the world" (John 6:33) -- by which those who eat of it will have life within themselves. He stated further, "he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst" (John 6:35). Without doubt, coming to and believing in Christ are one and the same. Note also the present tense verbs: i.e., the one who comes and keeps on coming to Christ, as well as the one who believes and keeps on believing in Christ, will never hunger or thirst respectively. Thus salvation depends upon continual coming to and believing in Christ Jesus.
Jesus then declared, "But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe" (John 6:36; cf. John 5:36-38). What was the cause of this Jewish unbelief? Again, Mounce comments, "Miracles point beyond themselves only for those who see with the eyes of faith."2 The Jewish people had "seen Jesus," implying they had seen the miracles He had performed, and yet they, according to Mounce's reference to Temple, 1:88, found the miracle of the feeding "a convenience rather than a revelation."3 D. A. Carson concurs:
We learned from Jesus' parable of the sower the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah concerning the Jewish people: "You will keep on hearing, but will not understand; you will keep on seeing, but will not perceive; for the heart of this people has become dull, with their ears they scarcely hear, and they have closed their eyes, otherwise they would see with their eyes, hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and return" (Matt. 13:14-15). The blinding of the hearts of many Jewish people was an act of judgment for their sins -- a judgment which resulted in the Babylonian captivity (cf. Isa. 6:8-13).
We also know from Scripture that this sad account was not true of all the Israelites, for there were some Jewish people whose hearts still followed Israel's God, waiting for His Messiah to come (cf. Matt. 1:18-19; 13:16; Luke 1:5-6; 2:25-32, 36-38).
Frédéric Louis Godet comments that the Jewish people "had faith enough to ask Him for the miraculous bread, but not to recognize Himself as the heavenly bread. This proves that they are still strangers to the spiritual needs which might lead them to Him, and to the work which He came to accomplish here on earth."5 Their own unwillingness to recognize or even investigate the claims of Jesus was a brazen display of ignorance -- as opposed to wisdom -- as well as self-reliance. These attitudes, no doubt, were due to the overwhelming influence of indwelling sin and a refusal to master it (cf. Gen. 4:7).
The bread of heaven Himself offered the Jewish people eternal life, but they had not the wisdom (cf. Matt. 7:24-25) to seek Him for attaining that life. Craig S. Keener comments:
We know that Jesus was sent to the earth by the Father to "save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). Given such overwhelming unbelief among so many people, would Jesus' mission fail (cf. Matt. 7:13-14)? The answer is no. Albert Barnes comments, "Jesus then proceeds to state that, although they did not believe on him, yet his work would not be in vain, for others would come to him and be saved."8 Jesus continued His discourse to those Jewish people: "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out" (John 6:37). Jesus would in fact save sinners, and these sinners would be given to Him as a gift from the Father.
__________
1 Robert H. Mounce, "John," in The Expositor's Bible Commentary: Luke - Acts, Volume 10, revised edition, eds. Tremper Longman III and David E. Garland (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007), 444.
2 Ibid., 445.
3 Ibid.
4 D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John: The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1991), 289-90.
5 Frédéric Louis Godet, Commentary on the Gospel of John with an Historical and Critical Introduction (New York: Funk & Wagnalls Publishers, 1886), 24.
6 Craig S. Keener, The Gospel of John: A Commentary (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2003), 681.
7 Ibid., 684.
8 Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament: The Gospels, ed. Robert Frew (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1987), 246.
The "I am" claims of Jesus, according to Robert H. Mounce, corresponded to "God's response to Moses, who asked him what to tell those who inquire concerning the name of the one who sent him. God reveals his name as 'I Am Who I Am.' He chooses to be known and worshiped as 'I Am' (Ex. 3:14)."1 Just as Jesus is the manna from God (cf. John 6:31-33), so too is He the great I Am.
Jesus is "the bread of God" (John 6:33); He is also "the bread of life" (John 6:35) -- who "gives life to the world" (John 6:33) -- by which those who eat of it will have life within themselves. He stated further, "he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst" (John 6:35). Without doubt, coming to and believing in Christ are one and the same. Note also the present tense verbs: i.e., the one who comes and keeps on coming to Christ, as well as the one who believes and keeps on believing in Christ, will never hunger or thirst respectively. Thus salvation depends upon continual coming to and believing in Christ Jesus.
Jesus then declared, "But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe" (John 6:36; cf. John 5:36-38). What was the cause of this Jewish unbelief? Again, Mounce comments, "Miracles point beyond themselves only for those who see with the eyes of faith."2 The Jewish people had "seen Jesus," implying they had seen the miracles He had performed, and yet they, according to Mounce's reference to Temple, 1:88, found the miracle of the feeding "a convenience rather than a revelation."3 D. A. Carson concurs:
True, in one sense Jesus can acknowledge to them, you have seen me . . . but they have seen only a mightily endowed man, a potential king ([John 6:14, 15]), not the Son of God who perfectly expresses the Father's word and deed ([John 5:19ff.]); they have seen only bread and power, not what they signify. This crowd has witnessed the divine revealer at work, but only their curiosity, appetites and political ambitions have been aroused, not their faith.4This brings to mind Jesus' words to another Jewish crowd of would-be followers, "So take care how you listen; for whoever has, to him more shall be given; and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has shall be taken away from him" (Luke 8:18).
We learned from Jesus' parable of the sower the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah concerning the Jewish people: "You will keep on hearing, but will not understand; you will keep on seeing, but will not perceive; for the heart of this people has become dull, with their ears they scarcely hear, and they have closed their eyes, otherwise they would see with their eyes, hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and return" (Matt. 13:14-15). The blinding of the hearts of many Jewish people was an act of judgment for their sins -- a judgment which resulted in the Babylonian captivity (cf. Isa. 6:8-13).
We also know from Scripture that this sad account was not true of all the Israelites, for there were some Jewish people whose hearts still followed Israel's God, waiting for His Messiah to come (cf. Matt. 1:18-19; 13:16; Luke 1:5-6; 2:25-32, 36-38).
Frédéric Louis Godet comments that the Jewish people "had faith enough to ask Him for the miraculous bread, but not to recognize Himself as the heavenly bread. This proves that they are still strangers to the spiritual needs which might lead them to Him, and to the work which He came to accomplish here on earth."5 Their own unwillingness to recognize or even investigate the claims of Jesus was a brazen display of ignorance -- as opposed to wisdom -- as well as self-reliance. These attitudes, no doubt, were due to the overwhelming influence of indwelling sin and a refusal to master it (cf. Gen. 4:7).
The bread of heaven Himself offered the Jewish people eternal life, but they had not the wisdom (cf. Matt. 7:24-25) to seek Him for attaining that life. Craig S. Keener comments:
But this commentary [on the bread of heaven] focuses on cultural context, hence it is particularly important for us to emphasize that bread often related to wisdom: Wisdom will feed a person with the "bread" of understanding (Sir 15:3); in words on which John 6:35 almost surely depends . . . Wisdom declares that whoever eats and drinks from her will hunger and thirst for more (Sir 24:21).6Indeed, instead of asking Jesus for wisdom, or asking Him to explain further His teachings and parables (which were the teachings of the Father, cf. John 7:16), they misunderstood Him and seemed quite content in that confused state. "Thus," adds Keener, "whereas Jesus sought disciples among the Samaritans ([John 4:23]), these Galileans who sought Jesus for the wrong reason [i.e., for bread and kingly power] were not truly 'coming' to Him ([John 6:37])."7 Hence Jesus' devastating conclusion regarding the spiritual state of the Jewish followers: "But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe" (John 6:36).
We know that Jesus was sent to the earth by the Father to "save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). Given such overwhelming unbelief among so many people, would Jesus' mission fail (cf. Matt. 7:13-14)? The answer is no. Albert Barnes comments, "Jesus then proceeds to state that, although they did not believe on him, yet his work would not be in vain, for others would come to him and be saved."8 Jesus continued His discourse to those Jewish people: "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out" (John 6:37). Jesus would in fact save sinners, and these sinners would be given to Him as a gift from the Father.
__________
1 Robert H. Mounce, "John," in The Expositor's Bible Commentary: Luke - Acts, Volume 10, revised edition, eds. Tremper Longman III and David E. Garland (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007), 444.
2 Ibid., 445.
3 Ibid.
4 D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John: The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1991), 289-90.
5 Frédéric Louis Godet, Commentary on the Gospel of John with an Historical and Critical Introduction (New York: Funk & Wagnalls Publishers, 1886), 24.
6 Craig S. Keener, The Gospel of John: A Commentary (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2003), 681.
7 Ibid., 684.
8 Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament: The Gospels, ed. Robert Frew (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1987), 246.
Great artilce. The subject deals with Jesus' claims of divinity are scandalous.
ReplyDeletehttp://judahslion.blogspot.com/2008/04/eternal-scandalon-rom.html
Scandalous indeed!
ReplyDelete