FOLLOWING CHRIST

On the following day, when the people who were standing on the
other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except
that one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not
entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away
alonehowever, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where
they ate bread after the Lord had given thankswhen the people
therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got
into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. And when they
found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, Rabbi, when
did you come here? Jesus answered them and said, Most assuredly, I
say to you, you seek me, not because you saw the signs, but because
you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which
perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the
Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on
Him. Then they said to Him, What shall we do, that we may work the
works of God? Jesus answered and said to them, This is the work of
God, that you believe in Him whom He sent. Therefore they said to
Him, What sign will you perform then, that we may see it and believe
you? What work will you do? Our fathers ate the manna in the desert;
as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat. Then Jesus
said to them, Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the
bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from
heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and
gives life to the world. Then they said to Him, Lord, give us this bread
always. And Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. He who comes
to me shall never hunger, and he who believes in me shall never
thirst.
--John 6:22-35

The main focus of this passage, of course, centers on Jesus Christ

as the Bread of Life. But another theme parallels this one, almost
invisibly, a theme of following Christ. We find the theme revealed in
the questions and the actions of the crowds who come following after
Christ after He has performed this miracle. We can see in their
following, in their questions, and in the answers Jesus gives, some
basic thoughts to consider in seeking to follow Christ.
I. FOLLOWING JESUS DEMANDS CLEAR VISION AND MOTIVES
Look at the first question they ask Jesus as soon as they have
found Him: When did you come here? They dont come right out

and say it, but the implication of the question is, Weve been looking
ALL OVER for you! And have you ever noticed how Jesus tends not to
answer peoples questions? His hardest task was getting them to think
in spiritual terms rather than physical, in heavenly terms rather than
earthly. Notice how they had wanted to make Him king (earthly), yet
He was already King (heavenly). They had carefully watched His
movements to try to keep up with where He was. In a manner of
speaking, they thought they had found the goose that laid the golden
eggs, and they were trying to make sure they did not let Him out of
their sight. We have an old saying with some wise advice, Dont put
all your eggs in one basket. But the people in this crowd were
ignoring that advice in favor of the correction made to it by Mark
Twain: Put all your eggs in one basketbut WATCH that basket.
Jesus saw right through their actions and saw the motivations
that were behind them. And so He totally disregards the question He is
asked; He challenges instead the motives behind their actions,
accusing them instead of seeking Him only because they had their
bellies filled. Isnt it amazing how, nearly 2,000 years later, people
have not really changed that much? One of the most-used excuses I
have heard from that illustrious group of people known as churchhoppers is: I wasnt getting fed at the last church. What a sad lot
we would be if the only motive any of us ever had for coming to church
was, Whats in it for me? Being a true follower of Christ challenges
us to higher motives than that.
II. FOLLOWING JESUS DEMANDS FAITH
The second question the people have for Jesus is, What shall we
do, that we may work the works of God? The question may have
been prompted by Jesus remark, Labor not for food that perishes, but
for the food which endures to everlasting life. What answer did they
expect from Him? After all, Jesus had just performed a miraculous feat,
feeding 5,000 people with such a small portion. What would someone
who could do that ask of them?
It is certainly typical that they have the same expectation that
has been prevalent throughout human history: Surely we have to DO
something to work our way into Gods favor. If you examine other
religions, you will find that they are at the core and attempt to either
WORK or OBEY our way to God. And even within the Judaeo-Christian
heritage, it has been common: In Genesis, when building the tower of
Babel, the peoples idea was, Well BUILD our way to God; monastic
history of vows and seclusion were a statement of, Well HUMBLE our
way to God; from church history we see the example of extreme
ascetics and self-abusers who seemed to say, Well show how
SERIOUS we are, and surely God will listen.; John Wesley even wrote,

and Im not sure what the intended purpose of it was, about a man
wearing an iron girdle as part of his desire to draw closer to God.
But the unexpected answer these people received in answer to
their question was faith: This is the work of God, that you BELIEVE in
Him whom He sent (v. 29). It is the one truth we find repeated again
and again in the gospel witness, that salvation is by faith and not by
works. Heb. 11:6 says, Without faith it is IMPOSSIBLE to please Him;
for whoever comes to God must BELIEVE that He is, and that He is a
rewarder of those who DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM. In a sense, they were
on the right track, because they had faith in what they had seen, even
if their faith was only geared toward the physical. Following Jesus
demands faith, and our faith must put us on the path toward seeking
His righteousness.
III. FOLLOWING JESUS DEMANDS TRUST IN HIM ALONE AND NO OTHER
The third question they ask Him betrays their lack of
understanding of His answer to the previous question: What sign will
you perform, that we may see it and belive you? In fact, it betrays
their failure to understand anything at all about the miracle they have
just witnessed. What more should they need, after what they had just
witnessed Him do with the loaves and the fish? Notice the comment
they made after this question: Our fathers ate manna in the
desert. . . . He gave them bread from HEAVEN. What they seem to be
saying in challenge to Him is, Feeding 5,000 people was no big deal;
Moses did better than that, he gave the people bread from heaven, not
the earthly bread that you just used. Jesus explains to them quite
simply that Moses did not give them that bread, but the Father did.
The manna was the type for the true bread, He who comes down from
heaven and gives life to the world.
A change in tone is evident in their response from that moment.
For a brief moment the light seems to shine through and they seem to
understand, perhaps not so much His meaning as their own need.
Faith begins to assert itself and we see the beginnings of what it can
do as we notice the difference in them by their response in verse 34.
No longer do they address Him as rabbi, or teacher, but now they call
Him Lord. No longer do they question, but now they accept the truth
of His statement and say almost prayerfully, Lord, give us this bread
always.
Following Christ was never described to us as an easy road,
though we sometimes seem to believe that way. When the way
becomes unclear and we cant understand, it can be the hardest thing
in the world. Many of these same followers who have just asserted
their faith in Christ turned away immediately after this, when Jesus
made some statements they found difficult, perhaps even offensive. I
counseled with a friend recently who told me, I thought when I

became a Christian it would get easier, not harder. When I entered

the ministry six years ago, I can tell you truthfully that from my
viewpoint, it was as though all the pressures and stresses I had ever
had in my lifetime were suddenly thrust upon me all at once, and then
quadrupled. But I can also tell you that through it all, I have come to a
deeper experience of the grace of God, and it has created within me a
deeper trust. Only the sailor who has ridden out the strongest storm
truly understands what it is to trust the anchor.
Following Jesus truly does demand our trust in Him and Him
alone, and when we find that trust, we will find the Christ who is the
answer to all our questions. He has given us the promise, Whoever
comes to me shall never hunger, and whoever believes in me shall
never thirst. That would be an incredible promise even if He were
speaking of physical thingsbut imagine what a promise that is when
we consider the depth of truth it contains. What hunger and stirring
and longing we find within, when faced with the challenges of this life.
Yet what peace and assurance and joy within as we come once again to
the Christ.
As we come once again to His table today, as we seek to follow
Him more nearly, let us come in surrender of all the questions and
longings and the unrest they bring, and realize the blessings of
following Christ: Whoever comes to me shall never hunger, and
whoever believes in me shall never thirst.