Message by Larry Thacker Jr. from February 26, “Doing the Work of God”
We continue our study with John 6:22-29. After feeding the 5,000, Jesus sens his disciples ahead. After dismissing the crowds he goes up on the mountain to pray. Seeing the disciples in distress as they struggle against the wind, He comes to them walking on the water.
The next day, the people come back to fund him missing. They saw the disciples leave in the only available boat, but Jesus is nowhere to be found, So, other boats having arrived, they get into them and head off in the same direction as the disciples went, looking for Jesus.
When they find him, they want to know when he got there. Doubtless they would also like to know how, but Jesus doesn’t oblige them. Instead, He continues the lesson that he started back when He fed all those people. I’m paraphrasing here, but He tells them, “You’re not following me. You’re following your stomachs. Don’t spend your effort on the temporal when I’m offering you the eternal.” When they ask Him what they need to do, he has a surprisingly simple answer, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” (v. 29)
This is a small part of the overall lesson, but it is leading to the same place. Are we looking to Jesus for what He has, or who He is? Are we focused on the temporal or on the eternal? Are we looking for a path to salvation through the works that we do? We should be doing works, but there is only one that saves.
