John 6: Jesus Preaches the Gospel to an antagonistic
crowd.
What form of
apologetics did he employ?
John 6 is a potent passage of
John. In verses 22 through 59 it records
a conversation between Jesus and a group of people who had eaten the miracle
food he provided beside the sea. The
problem is, they were seeking him just because they liked what he did for
them. They really wanted more short-term
miracles. They were interested in the
creation and not the creator himself.
What is uncomfortable is that
through perhaps five cycles of this recorded conversation they never understand
what Jesus is saying. They listen to
him, misunderstand him, cynically respond to him and then he answers them
again. This cycle happens five
times. In each cycle the people get
increasingly irritated at Jesus and Jesus gets increasingly more dogmatic. It is wonderful and remarkable that Jesus
keeps preaching the same gospel to them even when they just don’t get it. Jesus’ method of presentation is to repeat
his point over and over, each time making it more emphatic. In the
third cycle (v.34 – v. 40) and also in the fourth cycle (v.41 – v. 51) Jesus
explains to the growingly hostile group that they don’t believe what he is
saying because they are not a part of the group of people that are given from
the Father to the Son. In other words
they are not of the chosen elect, so naturally they do not get what he is
saying. In v. 44 Jesus boldly explains
that no one can even come to him unless the Father draws the person to
Jesus.
Now the group to whom Jesus is
speaking are not getting this at all.
They started out seeking him for the wrong reasons, now they are
grumbling about his bold claims and they seem to be getting more upset with
Jesus every time he opens his mouth.
Yet Jesus does not soften his message at all, nor does he quit talking
with them. He actually repeats himself
more dramatically and vividly, without any true word of explanation.
See in verse 41 they were grumbling
about him because he said he was the bread that had come down from heaven. They knew his parents, how can he say he came
down from heaven? After telling them empathically that the
ultimate cause of anyone believing in him is the direct personal work of God in
them, Jesus then goes on to boldly repeat the glorious gospel. “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes
has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the
wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so
that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from
heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that
I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (John 6:47–51 ESV)
Regardless of whether or not they
are accepting the message, or even CAN accept the message, he proclaims the
truth as he has opportunity. Why does
he do this? It is an example to all of
us. God uses our preaching to save
some! “For since, in the wisdom of God,
the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of
what we preach to save those who believe.”
(1 Corinthians 1:21 ESV)
As we have opportunity, let us
proclaim the good news. We may be
tempted to change the message when it is rejected, but let us follow the example
of Jesus. When rejected, proclaim it
again. When mocked proclaim it more
precisely. When the audience is
rejecting the gospel we know that it is because of the sovereign choice of God,
and we ought to proclaim it again!
