Please forgive this rough draft format, as these are my raw study notes on the Gospel of John, although they are a bit better formatted than former efforts. I felt a great sense of urgency to publish them rather than waiting until I had the time to pretty them up. Thank you and I pray that God blesses and encourages you through this material. I’m not sure of the condition of the world at the time of this publication. But at the time of its writing, fall 2009 through late spring 2010, things are looking increasingly bleak with the economy, health care and unemployment, there is a renewal and increase of racism, and godly principles of living being disregarded, there are floods in India, earthquake and tsunami in Samoa. Are these the first stages of birth pains? The last? God only knows. And He is very busy these days. Seek His wisdom. Encourage each other. Pray. Jesus is coming to deliver His people and judge the wicked…Stacey
Take a few minutes to pray and savor chapter 6 of the book of John. Then return here and ponder the thoughts, answer the questions, and be sure to leave comments about your own revelations…
6 – Portrait of peace.
6:1-15 – Fourth piece of evidence for Christ – Jesus feeds 5000. He is the Master of quantity.
6:1-14 – God often introduces spiritual needs through physical ones. (A Woman’s Heart: God’s Dwelling Place – Beth Moore)
6:1-13 – See Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:32-44; Luke 9:10-17. What similarities exist in these parallel accounts? What additional information do you glean from these passages? What does this tell you about the perspective of the writer, John? How does this knowledge enhance your understanding of the event?
6:2 – People followed Jesus because He healed the sick.
6:7 – Eight months’ wages wouldn’t feed the crowd one bite each – was Philip exaggerating?
6:8-9 – WOW! What did Andrew think Jesus could do with five loaves and two fish? What faith!
What a contrast between Philip’s and Andrew’s behavior! Which apostle reflects your own behavior? Does that please you? If not, what will you do to change that?
6:13 – There was one basket of leftovers for each apostle.
6:14-15 – The crowds wanted to make Jesus king by force. Soon, these same voices will cry out for His execution. Did this take place in Jerusalem?
6:14 – The Prophet? See Deuteronomy 18:15,18.
6:15 – The people saw Jesus go off by Himself.
6:16-24 – Fifth piece of evidence for Christ – Jesus walks on water. He is the Master of the laws of nature.
6:16-21 – See Matthew 14:22-33; Mark 6:47-51. What similarities exist in these parallel accounts? What additional information do you glean from these passages? What does this tell you about the perspective of the writer, John? How does this knowledge enhance your understanding of the event?
6:16-17 – The people also saw the disciples leave separately.
6:19 – the disciples were in the middle of the lake.
6:21 – The disciples had to be willing to bring Jesus into the midst of their difficulties for Him to rescue them. We must do the same. Have you invited Jesus into your boat?
Is Christ the first person you invite into your problems?
6:22 – The next day, the crowd realized that Jesus didn’t go with the disciples.
6:24 – The crowd jumped into boats that arrived on shore that morning to go looking for Jesus.
6:25 – Why did the people ask Jesus when He got there? See 15-17,22 for a hint.
6:26-27 – The people were hungry. They just didn’t recognize their hunger as spiritual in nature.
6:28 – The people seemed to think they could earn God’s favor through works.
6:29 – Jesus tells them they can’t earn God’s favor, they only need to believe.
Do you believe? Have you told God? If you’d like to commit your life to Christ and begin a relationship with Him, pray with me. There is a prayer at the top of this blog page. After you pray, contact me or a Christian friend or local Christian church and ask about how to develop your new relationship with God.
6:30 – They asked Jesus for signs. Do you?
6:31 – Is this crowd obsessed with food, or what? At least they’ve added a miraculous element to their questions, now.
Jesus was represented in the manna.
6:32-33 – Do you regularly dine on the true bread from heaven? How?
6:35 – see Leviticus 24:59 – Christ is the bread of the presence.
The first “I AM” Statement – Jesus is the bread of life – he is the living bread from heaven (6:51)
Have you feasted on His presence today?
6:36 – Jesus declares that the people still don’t understand. So they must still be trying to fill their stomachs.
6:37 – Gives assurance that, if you’ve come to Jesus, He will never drive you away. How does that make you feel?
You cannot lose your salvation.
6:38 – What Jesus gives is better than manna.
6:41-55 – This segment talks about Jesus’ identity – Son of Mary (and Joseph) vs. Bread of heaven (Son of God).
6:41-42 – The people grumbled about Jesus’ heavenly origin because they knew His parents. Some may have even known Him as a boy.
6:44-45 – No one comes to Jesus unless the Father draws him. But everyone who listened to the Father and learns from Him comes to Jesus.
6:44 – God draws men to Jesus. We won’t acknowledge Him otherwise.
6:45 – Everyone who listens to God and learns from Him will come to Jesus. All are taught by God.
6:48-51 – Christ is the bread of heaven who, when eaten, brings eternal life.
6:52 – This teaching was offensive to the Jews.
6:53-57 – Jesus’ flesh and blood are real food and bring eternal life. Can you explain this in reference to the Passover celebration? Communion?
6:62 – Jesus must ascend for the Spirit to be given to believers.
6:63 – When the Spirit comes, He will guide believers in all truth. See John 16:13.
6:66 – Have you found something offensive or challenging in the Bible and stopped following Jesus because of it? If so, stop right now and pray. Have a candid discussion with Jesus about this, asking Him to open your eyes to the truth, to speak to your heart, and draw you back to Him.
6:67 – Jesus asked the 12 if they wanted to leave, too. Why might He have done this?
6:68-69 – Peter asks where they would go since Jesus had the words of eternal life and is the Holy One of God. What an amazing spiritual insight!
What amazing spiritual insight has the Holy Spirit given you lately?
6:70-71 – Jesus chose the 12 including His betrayer, Judas Iscariot.
• The book of John is called the “Love Gospel”. How have you seen God’s love at work in this chapter of scripture and how will you apply it to your life this week?
• What attributes of God do you see in this book?
• What verse of scripture seemed to be God speaking directly to you? What is He teaching you in these verses? How does He want you to respond?
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