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The men who saw Jesus perform the miracle of multiplying the loaves and fish said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John 6.14). They were to be commended for that statement, but the story does not end here. A crowd followed Him to Capernaum where they listened to Him for a while as He spoke of His relationship with the Father. We will note some of what He said as well as the reaction of the multitude.

“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. But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” (John 6.35-40).

Some had already professed Jesus to be “the Prophet who is to come into the world.” However, either they were fickle in their stance, or others in the crowd were not persuaded. Jesus treated them with respect, but He still had to say, “... you have seen Me and yet do not believe.” The evidences were unmistakable, yet some still clamored for other signs (see John 6.30-31). Even with this mix of sentiments about Him, Jesus boldly declared Himself to be “The bread of life.” It was this statement that seemed to turn the tide against Him. Consider the reaction of the multitude that followed Him.

“The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, ‘I am the bread which came down from heaven.’ And they said, ‘Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, “I have come down from heaven”’?” (John 6.41-42). This multitude was far from stupid; they readily recognized the implications of His claim to be the Bead of Life! They deduced that His claims were more than any prophet ever to have visited Israel. Yet, their words belied their true motives and sentiments. The hint was far from subtle! They knew His parents (or at least they thought they did) and so they reasoned that He could not measure up to the claims He was making. Knowing Joseph and Mary caused this group of Jews to stop investigating and to start condemning. It is interesting that there was but one Jesus, and one set of evidences that people had observed, but two entirely diametrically opposing conclusions. On the one hand, there was the potential for faithfulness, but on the other hand, fickle men of little or no character.

Jesus was the great Messiah who was to come, but a few vocal hotheads seemed to visit Him wherever He went. They seemed to have legitimate reasons to want to find Him, but closer examination proved just the opposite! They did not want Jesus; they wanted what Jesus could give. Faithfulness asks what can I give and then goes about doing it with all its might. Faith is not fickle!

Questions:

1. What caused some to conclude that Jesus was Messiah?

2. What caused some to turn against Him and to begin complaining about Him?

3. Why the two different reactions to the evidence presented? What does this show about humanity’s ability to be duped or misled?

4. What is the relationship of faith to fickleness? How does Jesus react to fickleness?

"Inspiration For You" from Randy Mitchell

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