More Than Enough

sermon notes from July 26 2009

John 6:2

Jesus wants to do more than just heal us… but is that all we want of Jesus? Is all that we are looking for to be fed and made well? And if that happens (God provides food or ealing) what is our response… how does that change the way that we live in our relationship with Jesus? Does it change the way we live in relationship with Jesus?

6:4

Why does John mention that the Passover was near? What happened in the Passover? God provided for the whole nation of Israel in delivering them from captivity through protecting them from Death as it passed over them because of the blood of the lamb. Is it possible that John wants us to see a connection with God’s faithfulness in the past to provide and how his faithfulness continues in his self-revelation as Jesus the Son?

I also believe that this connection is important in what is to come with the feeding of the multitudes… Jesus in multiplying and distributing the bread is multiplying and distributing himself… it is pointing forward to his sacrifice on the cross through which all, who put there trust in him (as they did in Egypt by placing the blood on the door posts), will have life.

(see 6:11-13 below)

6:5-7

Where we see limitations God sees opportunities. God works through our limitations to achieve his purpose.

The scene from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back comes to mind… Luke’s ship is sinking in the swamp on Degoba and Yoda tells him to raise it up and set it on dry land by using the powerful and un-seeable force that resides within him… Luke tries and fails and proclaims it impossible to do at which time then Yoda who is a quarter of the physical size of Luke accomplishes the task after saying to Luke… “with you it is always impossible”

6:9

God is able to use what little we have to offer

6:11-13

What everyone else considered a liability or limitation Jesus gave thanks for it.

Jesus himself distributes the food… so the gift comes directly from Jesus and for me represents Jesus’ self-giving on the cross. In the Gospel of John life and salvation are gifts from abiding in Jesus (last week’s Paul’s being “in Christ”). The result of abiding in Jesus is bearing fruit—works of mercy, justice, compassion (whose purpose is to witness to the power of Jesus)

I see the twelve baskets (one for each of the disciples) as symbolizing the church’s task of continuing the ministry of Jesus… the twelve disciples represent the church (that’s us folks… each one of us)… so the fragments left over, for me, represent the church continuing to offer the person of Christ to the world… abiding in Jesus… to bear fruit. And each of us is called to share Christ on a personal basis… through our personal relationships with others.

6:14-15

Recognition of Jesus is not a sufficient expression of faith in John… a transformed life is… the people, in seeing his acts of power correctly proclaim him as the prophet who is to come into the world… a reference to another Moses (another tie in to the Exodus account) but wish to use him to their own purpose (forcibly make him King in opposition to Rome… a political messiah) not God’s purpose…

As one commentator shared... “To make Jesus king (note small “k” meaning a worldly king) is to take his grace and twist it to conform to the world’s notion of power and authority… when Jesus withdrew from the crowd, he showed that he would offer his gift of grace without claiming worldly power. In that moment his glory was revealed because true glory has nothing to do with worldly power.”

In my words:

Jesus’ kingdom… the kingdom of God isn’t brought about by institutions… government, public… sometimes even religious… Jesus’ kingdom is brought about by receiving him and living in relationship with him…

In our western church we can be tempted to fall into the trap that thinking that more is better… more people, more space, more ministry, more money… that if we only had more we would be better at achieving what ever it is we’re trying to achieve… What Jesus show us is that what we have right now is more than enough to achieve his purpose.

What is it that we have? What is before us here today? You; me; the Word of God and Jesus. We really don’t need anything else… that is more than enough. The Kingdom of God is built one relationship at a time (the preaching on and after Pentecost not withstanding… God is not constrained by the means he asks us to use).