DAY SEVEN (John 7)

The Crowds Thin.  As you have been continuing your journey through John, have you noticed that Jesus is getting increasingly controversial?  Why do you think that is?  Have you also noticed the crowds getting increasingly hostile?  The crowds are thinning and the true followers of Jesus are becoming fewer.

 

It’s interesting to see all the different reasons why Jesus captured people’s attention.  The vast majority of Jesus-followers loved Him for what He could do for them---feeding and healing them.  John tells us the crowds were captivated by the signs and wonders and clamored for more.  Like many today, they missed the point of what Jesus was all about.  Their fascination with the miraculous eventually led to disappointment.  As soon as Jesus began to call them to a deeper level of discipleship, John says that many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.  Jesus said that only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign.

Think About It.  What is it that you really want from Jesus?  Like the crowds in John, I have a tendency sometimes to think of God in terms of what he can do for me.  Even my prayers can reflect that---ending up in such shallow categories of “requests” and “praises”.  I pray when I need something from God and praise him when I get what I asked for.  I seem to be driven to me knees in crisis but pray less when things are going well.  Today, spend some time in prayer just talking to God like you would a friend.  In fact, in not too many chapters we will hear Jesus utter these words to his true followers:  I call you friends.   Think of it—a personal friendship with the creator of the universe!

DAY SIX (John 6)

John 6 records the feeding of the 5,000.  The theme of this story is one that is repeated again and again in the bible.  It is the theme of a big problem solved by a big God.  God seems to love the moments of dilemma—the places where we find ourselves between a rock and a hard place.   Why?  Because it's in those times that a problem or issue in life looms so large that its impossibility is easily recognized.  It’s God’s way of getting us to look up.  Are there any things in your life right now that apart from God, there really is no good solution?  If so, then you have an opportunity to watch God do what he does best. 

Whenever we face a seemingly impossible situation or problem we also face a great choice.  We can either choose to be consumed by the problem or hand it over to God and ask him to take the reigns.  God asks only two things.  One, that you contribute whatever it is you can as a step of faith and, two, that you trust God completely.  God loves to use whatever we offer, no matter how meager or small. It’s never the substance of our contribution that matters; it’s the faith that clings to God as we turn over whatever it is we have.  And remember, He never requires more then we can give but never blesses less.  God wants us “all in”. 

I love Andrew’s dilemma.  He says “I have something to give, but what good is it really?”   In Andrew’s hands---it counts for nothing.  In God’s hands, it becomes an unlimited resource.  Notice the turning point in the story?  It was Jesus taking the loaves and fish.  Do the things you have to offer sometimes feel like they’re worth so little—that in the face of a world of such great need or in light of a particular problem, it feels like anything you might do or offer is just a drop in the bucket?  Let Jesus take them and then step back and watch him multiply it.