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Proverbs 15:12-23
12 A scoffer does not love one who corrects him,
Nor will he go to the wise.
13 A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance,
But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
14 The heart of him who has understanding seeks
knowledge, But the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness.
15 All the days of the afflicted are evil, But he who is of a merry
heart has a continual feast.
16 Better is
a little with the fear of the LORD, Than great treasure with trouble.
17 Better is
a dinner of herbs where love is, Than a fatted calf with hatred.
18 A wrathful man stirs up strife, But he who is slow to anger allays
contention.
19 The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns, But the way of the upright is a highway.
20 A wise son makes a father glad, But a foolish
man despises his mother.
21 Folly is
joy to him who is destitute of
discernment, But a man of understanding walks uprightly.
22 Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the
multitude of counselors they are established.
23 A man has joy by the answer of his mouth, And
a word spoken in due season,
how good it is!
Father God, humble those that aren’t saved and reveal to
them their self righteousness that separates them from You. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
Gospel of John 6:16-29
NKJV
This lesson starts out with another
great miracle of Jesus walking on water and ends with the multitude finding Him
in Capernaum. We leave off with the people wanting to know what type of work
they can do to go to Heaven. Human nature leads people to thinking they can
perform things to go to Heaven, which is a false belief/teaching.
16 Now when
evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,
In
the Gospel of Matthew and Mark it states that Jesus made His disciples get into
a boat after the fragments of the food was gathered up. Matthew 14:22 Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into
the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes
away. With it being
stated this way it is very evident that His disciples didn’t want to leave Him.
Mark also record that Jesus Himself sent the multitudes away.
17 got into
the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and
Jesus had not come to them.
There are two things
happening here; one Jesus wanted to spend some time with His Father which John
does not record, but Matthew and Mark recorded such. Matthew 14:23 And when He had sent the multitudes away, He
went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone
there. How long Jesus
was in prayer John doesn’t tell us, but Matthew does. It was all night, not
until the fourth hour Jesus went to them. (Matthew 14:25) The Jews at this time divided the
night into four watches; the first was from six o'clock in the evening till
nine, the second from nine to twelve, the third from twelve till three, and the
fourth from three till six. It is very possible the morning twilight was
starting.
The second thing is that
Jesus was setting the stage for Himself to go to the Disciples in the boat via
walking on water, another miracle for the Disciples to witness to strengthen
their faith.
18 Then the
sea arose because a great wind was blowing.
Mark
has more of a description of what the disciples were up against. John says it
was a great wind and Mark states they were rowing into the wind. Mark 6:48 Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the
wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them,
walking on the sea, and would have passed them by. Did you notice Mark said that Jesus saw
them straining? Our ever present Lord sees all things and comes to our rescue
when our faith is in Him and Him only.
19 So when
they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and
drawing near the boat; and they were afraid.
So when they had rowed about three or
four miles; This sea is
about 10 mile wide so the disciple had labored all night and were only about
half way. They had to be exhausted!
They saw Jesus walking on the sea and
drawing near the boat; This
phrase states they saw Jesus drawing near the boat, so they must have been able
to see some distance. This also proclaims that the morning twilight was upon
them.
And they were afraid; In the midst of the turbulent waves
appeared the form of a man. They thought it was a spirit an apparition. It was
a common belief among the ancients that the spirits of people after death
frequently appeared to the living.
Being
human the disciples no doubt were afraid seeing a figure walking on water
coming toward them from a distance. You and I would also be fearful! You can
almost see the fear in their eyes and on their faces as they lean over the edge
of the boat gaping at this figure coming toward them. You can almost hear what
they are saying; look what is that; it can’t be human; it is coming right at
us; what are we going to do; it’s got to be a ghost; etc.
20 But He
said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid."
The literal translation is,
“I am; be not afraid.” He was telling them that He was the “I am” of the Old
Testament; “Jehovah!” Jesus is telling the disciples and us to believe, have
faith in Me and I will provide all that you need. We aren’t to worry Jesus will
take care of everything for us if we have our faith rooted in Him. Jesus tells
us not to worry; Matthew
6:25 "Therefore
I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will
drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food
and the body more than clothing?
21 Then they
willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land
where they were going.
Then they willingly received Him into
the boat; John does not
go into any detail as far as Peter getting out of the boat, because John’s
Gospel purpose is to show that Jesus is the Christ; the Messiah; the Great I
Am.
In Matthew’s version of this
those in the boat believed and knew at last who Jesus truly was. Even though
the feeding of 5,000 that had just taken place, this sealed beyond any doubt in
the disciple’s heart, who Jesus was. Matthew
14:33 Then those who were in the boat
came and worshiped Him, saying, "Truly You are the Son of God."
Mark stated that their hearts
were “harden” and still had doubts as to who Jesus truly was, but this changed
their harden hearts with Jesus walking on water and also that the sea became
calm as soon as He got in the boat. They just witnessed two great miracles. Mark 6:52 For they had not understood about the loaves,
because their heart was hardened.
While
all of us want Blessings from the Lord, the Truth is, that we learn very little
from Blessings. Most of what we learn is from hard times, difficult situations,
misfortune, fear, danger, etc., and sometimes, it is an expensive lesson. Here
the disciples learn through fear and seeing. When we include Jesus in all that
we do, nothing is impossible when He is on board.
And immediately the boat was at the land
where they were going; Here
we have another episode of Star Trek, “Beam me up Scotty”. One second they were
half way across the sea heading for Capernaum and the next second they are at
the dock.
22 On the
following day, when the people who were standing on the other side of the sea
saw that there was no other boat there, except that one which His disciples had
entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His
disciples had gone away alone—
This
verse is confusing as to what side of the sea they are on and what boats they
are looking at. It is the side of the sea where the 5,000 were fed. Evidently
the boats that were there or coming and going could be identified in some
fashion as to where they were from and that being Tiberius. People probably
identified the boats that were there the day before and only one was from
Capernaum, and knew Jesus didn’t enter the boat with His Disciples, so where
was He? The next few verses also tells us that the people assumed Jesus was
still on their side of the sea.
23 however,
other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the
Lord had given thanks—
This
verse tells us for sure that there were other boats docked. The people looking
for Jesus may have even went to these boats inquiring if anyone had seen or
taken Jesus to Capernaum.
24 when the
people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got
into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
After
the people searched in all places they concluded that Jesus was not there so
they also boarded boat and headed for Capernaum. They probably hired the boats
that were there to take them across the sea. They would naturally go to
Capernaum because it was known that Jesus had made it his ministerial
headquarters.
The
last two words, “seeking Jesus” raises a question as to why they were seeking
Jesus. Was it for deliverance from sin, victory over the flesh, drawing closer
to Jesus, seeing souls Saved and Baptized in the Holy Spirit, or was it for
healings, food to eat, watch miracles being performed, etc. Sad to say but most
probable, for the later that would satisfy their carnality and not their
spirituality.
25 And when
they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi,
when did You come here?"
This
verse tells us that the people found Jesus at Capernaum and they were perplexed
as to how He got there. They saw the Disciples get into the only boat from
Capernaum, but never saw Jesus get into a boat.
With
the upcoming verses we see that Jesus never answered their question. They
wouldn’t have believed even if He did tell them how He got there. Can you
imagine Him saying to them, “I walked on top of the water of the sea to the
boat my Disciples were in, which was about half way to Capernaum, then I blinked
and we were docked at Capernaum”? If He had said this, many probably would have
left, but instead He started teaching and trying to get them to be more
concerned with eternal life and not human life.
26 Jesus
answered them and said, "Most assuredly, I say to
you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the
loaves and were filled.
Here
Jesus criticized the people who followed Him only for the physical and temporal
benefits and not for the satisfying of their spiritual hunger. They did not really
understand the Miracles, who Jesus was, and why He was there, only that He
could furnished physical needs of healing and food, or material, political, and
intellectual things. In no way did they see themselves as sinners needing a
Redeemer, for after all, at least in their minds, they were God’s chosen
people! They saw only what He did, and how it could be used by them. All they
knew, is that they had eaten of miraculously-supplied Bread, and “were filled!”
In other words, they did not see beyond their stomachs.
Many
people use religion to gain prestige, comfort, or even political votes. But
those are self-centered motives. True believers follow Jesus simply because
they know He has the truth and His way is the only way to eternal live.
27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food
which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because
God the Father has set His seal on Him."
Do not labor for the food
which perishes; This
does not mean that we aren’t to make an effort for physical needs (2
Thessalonians 3:10),
but physical needs are secondary to spiritual needs. The food that fuels our
natural needs perishes and the strength we obtain from it is soon exhausted,
and has to be replenished. Spiritual food last for eternity.
But for the food which endures
to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you; Spiritual food that supports, and
nourishes our soul, endures forever. Faith in what Jesus did for us on the
Cross never has to be replenished as long as our faith remains in Jesus. Jesus
gives us this food when we come to the foot of the Cross in repentance of not
living for Him.
Because God the Father has set
His seal on Him; To
seal is to confirm or approve. This is done when we set our seal or signature to
a deed, or loan contract. So God the Father, by the miracles which had been
performed by Jesus, showed that He had sent him; that he approved His doctrine,
and approved His work.
28 Then they
said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"
These
people here don’t understand that they can’t do good deeds, do charity work,
give money, perform rituals, observe feasts, go to church on Sunday, etc. to
gain eternal life. A person can’t work their way to Heaven. To work the works
of God is the result of repenting of a sinful lifestyle, and then out of love
for Jesus saving you, the works of God are done.
29 Jesus answered
and said to them, "This is the work of God, that
you believe in Him whom He sent."
It
offends the self-righteous to tell them that, without Faith, it is impossible
to please God (Hebrews 11:6); the Great work that God requires is Faith in His
Beloved Son Whom He has sent; otherwise, works, however virtuous, are dead
works.
Do you think these people are getting
any clues as to what it takes to be Born Again?
Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created that
are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible and invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All
things were created through Him and for Him.
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless one is born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God."
The Lighthouse
Full Gospel Church
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you
believe it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord Jesus I know I am a
sinner. I confess my sins to you; I am
sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a sinful
lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness. I believe that only you can forgive sin. I commit my life to you and ask you to come
into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my Savior.” I believe this and have faith you will make a
new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my heart and lead
me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.”
(John
3:16,17; Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8;
10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10;
1 John 5:11-14; 1:6-10) (Sin: Rom. 1:22-32; Gal.
5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-7)
