We might think the course of our life is from our birth to our death. But Jesus opens our eyes to see that the direction of our existence is much larger than we can even imagine.
The other day at the gym, I saw a father help his son with the monkey bars. He grabbed him by the waist and hugged him to his chest. His son reached up and grabbed the bars. Slowly, the father walked him down the course as the son grabbed one bar and then another. When he came to the end of the course, the child shouted with a big smile, “I did it, Dad. I did it.”
To anyone who was watching, it was obvious the son did very little. There were times when both of his hands were off the bars and yet he did not fall because his dad was holding him. To the son, however, this was a major accomplishment. He made it all the way to the end.
That father’s grasp of his son and the son’s complete unawareness of that grasp is the tension which lies in the background of our text for this week. This is the fault line of God’s rule over our lives. It is the tension between us being independent or being children of God, completely dependent on the gracious will of our heavenly Father.
In America, we value our independence. We celebrate our ability to make our own decisions and to craft a life for ourselves. We like being on our own, making our own outcomes, choosing our life path, and forging ahead as best we can. “Self-made” is an adjective we use to crown those who came from meager beginnings but are now celebrities and people who have garnered great fortunes on their own are self-made millionaires. In fact, we have a whole arsenal of words to reinforce this illusion. We speak about being self-sufficient, self-sustaining, self-reliant, self-supporting and so it is hard not to bring that way of thinking into the Church. We can far too easily approach God as a tool we use in our projects of self-improvement.
In our text, Jesus confronts all illusions of self-sufficiency. Instead of an earthly vision, He offers a glimpse of Heaven. He is not “Jesus, the son of Joseph,” whose parents the people know, and life experience they can track. Rather, He has “come down from Heaven” (6:42). Their problem is they do not know His heavenly Father and they are not seeing the world through the eyes of the One who made it. They, like us, need to “be taught by God” (6:44). And what Jesus teaches will be an earthquake which opens up for all people an entirely new world.
And what Jesus teaches will be an earthquake which opens up for all people an entirely new world.
In His teaching, Jesus reveals the will of His heavenly Father. He opens our eyes to see and our ears to hear mysteries which existed before the creation of the world. Jesus reveals that His heavenly Father is in charge of our lives. God the Father has loved us from eternity, and He gives us to His Son Jesus (6:37). Jesus, then, does His work, receiving us as a gift from His Father and making sure we are preserved until eternity when He will raise us up on the last day (6:39-40).
Here, we feel the tremors of an earthquake as Jesus invites us into mysteries beyond our understanding. In our lives we imagine we are in neutral territory, making whatever choices we want. In reality, however, we are either alive or dead, either in the Kingdom of God or in the realm of Satan who has been defeated. We have no choice in the matter. Just as a child does not choose to be born, we do not choose to be part of the Kingdom of God (John 1:13). We were born in sin, captive to Satan, but God the Father has called us, graciously chosen us, brought us to life, and graciously given us to His Son. And Jesus promises us He will not lose any who the Father has given to Him (John 10:28). In fact, He goes to the cross in order that He might free us from the punishment of sin by bearing it Himself. Then, He rises from the dead so He might be the author of all life and raise us to be with Him in his eternal Kingdom on the last day.
Notice how Jesus expands our vision of life. What our world celebrates as self-made is small and illusory. What Jesus celebrates is grand and real, an earthquaking reality, that fundamentally changes our world. He shatters our misconceptions about life and reveals the true life which has come into this world.
We might think the course of our life is from our birth to our death. But Jesus opens our eyes to see that the direction of our existence is much larger than we can even imagine. We are chosen by the Father from eternity (Ephesians 1:4) and will be raised up by Jesus on the last day (6:40). Our accomplishments in this world, our efforts to climb the corporate ladder, our hard work to make life better for ourselves and for our children (and it is hard work) are all nothing in comparison to the work of God for us. Any words we might say about our efforts in this world are nothing more than a child’s giddy illusion that he made it through the course on his own, when all the while his father has held him securely in his arms.
So, rest this day in the security Jesus brings. Your heavenly Father has chosen you and given you to Jesus and Jesus will never let you be taken out of His hand.
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Additional Resources:
Craft of Preaching-Check out out 1517’s resources on John 6:35-51.
Concordia Theology-Various helps from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO to assist you in preaching John 6:35-51.
Text Week-A treasury of resources from various traditions to help you preach John 6:35-51.
Lectionary Kick-Start-Check out this fantastic podcast from Craft of Preaching authors Peter Nafzger and David Schmitt as they dig into the texts for this Sunday!
Lectionary Podcast-Dr. Charles Gieschen of Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN walks us through John 6:35-51.
