LifeLink Devotional

Monday, August 24, 2020

Pastor Josh did a marvelous job yesterday expounding John 6:25-59. Our hearts were stirred with the truth that Jesus is the Bread of Life, and that when we spiritually feed on Him, it fills us to capacity with eternal satisfaction so that we no longer need to settle for the temporary gratification of the world’s pursuits and pleasures.

This week I want to dig deeper into the remaining verses of John 6, starting with these:

John 6:60-66 ⁶⁰  When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” ⁶¹  But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? ⁶²  Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? ⁶³  It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.”

First, notice that everyone who choses to follow Jesus was called a disciple, not just the twelve He had specifically chosen to be in the inner circle. The word disciple simply means a learner, or pupil. If you have decided to seek to understand the teachings of Jesus, you are called a disciple in this context. Later, as the context of discipleship is developed, it comes to mean more fully that a disciple is one who intentionally chooses to follow the Master and apply the teachings to their life and live according to the Master’s will.

Second, seekers of understanding have not yet made a choice to be a true follower, so they can be dissuaded from following. Hard sayings discourage seekers. Seekers don’t like challenges or change. Seekers are shallow and superficial. Seekers refrain from radical thought. Seekers tend to want validation of their own understanding, not transformation into God’s illumination of understanding. Seekers want to understand so they can make a choice. True disciples make a choice by faith so they can gain further understanding.

K. Chesterton said it this way, “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult, and left untried.”

Here’s my point to ponder for today:

Which definition of disciple fits you? Are you a seeker only, holding out on making a commitment until you know more? Or are you by faith committed to Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and daily growing in your understanding and application of His truth?

If you are a seeker, let me help you make a decision. Please contact me today so we can talk and you can discover the incredible life that is available from the One who said, “I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE.”

Pastor John