1After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias). 2A large crowd followed Him, because they saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick. 3Then Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat down with His disciples. 4Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near. 5Therefore Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?” 6This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. 7Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little.” 8One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9“There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?” 10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, He distributed to those who were seated; likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted. 12When they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost [apollumi].” 13So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. 14Therefore when the people saw the sign which He had performed, they said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
15So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone. 16Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. 19Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were frightened. 20But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21So they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.22The next day the crowd that stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other small boat there, except one, and that Jesus had not entered with His disciples into the boat, but that His disciples had gone away alone. 23There came other small boats from Tiberias near to the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they themselves got into the small boats, and came to Capernaum seeking Jesus. 25When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You get here?”
26Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27“Do not work for the food which perishes [apollumi], but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.” 28Therefore they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” 29Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” 30So they said to Him, “What then do You do for a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? 31“Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OF HEAVEN TO EAT.’” 32Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. 33“For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.” 34Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread. ” 35Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. 36“But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. 37“All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. 38“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39“This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose [apollumi] nothing, but raise it up on the last day. 40“For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”
Interesting Words
filled (v.12)
empiplemi – fill up, by implication to satisfy, satiate … Luke 1:53, 6:25;
filled (v.26)
chortazó – feed, fatten, fill, satisfy, (from chortos; to fodder), i.e. (generally) to gorge (supply food in abundance) … Matt 5:6; Phil 4:12, James 2:16;
food
brósis – eating, food, a meal, meat, rust … John 4:32; Rom 14:16-17;
perishes, lose
apollumi – destroy utterly, kill, destroy, lose, (the resultant death being viewed as certain) … Matt 5:29, 30, 10:39; Mark 4:38;
seal
sphragizó – seal, set a seal upon, affix) with a signet ring or other instrument to stamp, signifies ownership and the full security carried by the backing (full authority) of the owner … Eph 1:13;
Myself
anistémi egó – emphatic (word order and use of the first-person, personal pronoun), raise up I will, set up; I rise from among (the) dead; I arise, appear …
Cross References
▪︎ Matt 15:33
▪︎ John 6:55;
▪︎ Matt 6:19-20 19“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust [brosis] destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust [brosis] destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;
Discussion Questions
1. What can be gleaned from the event when Jesus fed the 5,000?
▪︎ Jesus structured the event so that it was self documenting as a sign of His Messiahship.
▪︎ The crowds originally had the correct motivation, wanting to confirm Jesus’ Messiahship based on signs. However they fell into the same old trap of skepticism and unbelief… Exod 7:3; Numb14:11; Dan 4:3; Isa 35:5-6
▪︎ He set it up as a training exercise for the disciples… how to discern and follow God’s leading.
▪︎ The scene was sovereignty set in a grassy field where it was easy to spread out and sit. It was also easy to count the whole crowd.
▪︎ They gathered the leftovers (probably to take home and not waste) but also to accurately document the extentq of the miracle.
2. How did the crowds interpret Jesus’ miracles, before and after Jesus fed them?
▪︎ Before, they were just marveling at Jesus ability to heal. They were curious, interested, wanting to be healed.
▪︎ Immediately following the event, they saw Jesus for who He really is the Messiah, the Christ, tha Son of God, God incarnate, the Son of Man, the Prophet (as foretold by Moses)… kind of … well, they thought about it.
▪︎ They wanted to make Him King (John 6:14, 15).
► This would force Jesus to become part of their agenda against Rome
► It could unfortunately, subvert man’s forgiveness, and Jesus’ mission as savior of the world.
► It could complicate issues and might also play into Satan’s hand for revolt.
▪︎ Afterwards, they were interested because of the food, and being satisfied to the full, John 6:12, 26… filled, satiated.
3. How did Jesus evaluate their motives in following Him?
▪︎ He knew exactly what they wanted and moved away to prevent it.
▪︎ He went off on His own to make sure He and His Father were on the same plan. (prayer). This must have been a common practice for Jesus as His disciples had not response, no questions. They made their own way back to Capernaum.
▪︎ He separated from the disciples to prevent the crowds or anyone from tracking His movements.
▪︎ He confronted the crowds about their motives once they were back in Capernaum saying they sought Him because they had their bellies filled, similar to the greed of the Pharisees.
▪︎ He said it was not because they sought signs that He was the Messiah. This should have reminded them of their personal responsibility to seek the Messiah.
4. What happened after this event that gives you insight into the way Jesus functioned personally and how He interacted with those who followed Him?
▪︎ He basically left everyone to themselves to sort out who He was and how to respond.
▪︎ He did not micro-manage his disciples like a father making sure they were all safe.
▪︎ He walked away without giving notice or stating where He was going, showing no concern about their care for His well being. This was similar to His staying at the temple during His childhood years, totally focused on God’s plan and ministry… Luke 2:49
▪︎ He was not over-protective, but fully confident in what God had started, He would complete it to the day of His second coming… Phil 1:6;
5. According to Jesus, what was the real problem that the crowd was experiencing? What was the chief cause of this?
▪︎ Sin was the real problem.
▪︎ Greed for food
▪︎ Lack of concern about the true things that really matter like a relationship with God and seeking His Kingdom… Matt 6:33-34;
▪︎ The crowd may have had the correct initial evaluation about Jesus (John 6:2), but they failed to follow thru with that thought… Acts 17:11;
6. Jesus promises life that endures to those who seek heavenly food, God’s bread. Who are the intended recipients of this?
▪︎ The crowds… in John 6:27, Jesus commanded (an imperative) them to seek food that endures to eternal life.
▪︎ The Pharisees… this same verse could be applied to them if they could get their head out of the sand and repent from their concentration on their own physical wellbeing.
▪︎ The world… John 6:33, Jesus specifically states that the purpose for this bread out of heaven was to give life to the world.
▪︎ The Lord Jesus is the key. God has set His seal on the Son. Anyone who seeks it or asks of Him the bread that lasts to eternal life, He will give it to him.
▪︎ Jesus is the true bread out of heaven, given by God. Everyone who believes in His can receive, seize this bread, this eternal life… John 6:35-36, 37; John 1:12;
7. How can He fulfill that promise?
▪︎ God set His seal on Jesus, stamp of approval, certificate of authenticity, approved method. We do this ourselves when we believe/receive Jesus as the Messiah, setting our seal on His truth. We execute the agreement from our side… John 3:33;
▪︎ God sealed Jesus as the bread from heaven and as such, the sole source of life… if we believe that, God will then seal us with the Holy Spirit which transforms our lives and protects us into eternity… John 14:6; Eph 1:13; 2Cor 5:17-18, 19;
8. How is this trade-off played out in our world today? How is it counterfeited in churches and other religions?
▪︎ Like Coca Cola and Pepsi saying they are the “real thing” and that they bring “life”, there are many counterfeits in our world. How do you tell?
► Effects are short-lived.
► They don’t really fulfill their promises.
► They trade on the concept of love but provide no real, lasting good for themselves or the recipients.
► They camp on man’s view (misconception) of what is good and beneficial to their fellow man.
▪︎ Churches think that the social gospel brings people in, but they are just replicating the feeding of the 5000 here in John 6, without the checks and balances that Jesus added.
▪︎ Those seeking perfection and liberation cannot address man’s inner bent toward sin.
▪︎ Political groups that take the path of “peace” and ignore justice and lasting reform cannot deliver true peace.
▪︎ Tithing mint and cummin but ignore weightier things
▪︎ Groups that making golden idols or images of so-called gods have no power outside of their human existence and will pass away as chaff.
▪︎ ONLY Jesus delivers the truth about the way.
▪︎ ONLY Jesus gives life eternal.