Monday 10 July 2017

Psalm: Psalm 34:1-10

Background

Time and again when we read John's Gospel it is so easy for usto be distracted this is because there is so much going on. In thischapter we have already read about feeding5,000 people and 12 baskets of leftovers. Now we have the crossingof the Sea of Galilee in the dark, a storm at sea, a ghostlyappearance of Jesus walking on water and what sounds like timetravel as Jesus gets into the boat and immediately the boat reachesthe land! There is so much we could explore; so many potentialmetaphors we could unpack. The key, as Jesus reminds us, is toidentify what is important - not only in a particular passage ofScripture, but also in our lives.

Why did the people cross the lake? What were they seeing inJesus? For some, no doubt they saw a celebrity - Was Jesus thefirst celebrity chef? It seems others were focused on having theirfill: "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not becauseyou saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves".

Whatever was attracting the people to Jesus - he knew that inreality they were being distracted from what he had come to bring.For the crowds, it was more about their immediate situation and howJesus might improve them. For Jesus the focus was on what he wasultimately offering them -  a living relationship with God whowould be as well known to them as a loving parent.

So when the people ask Jesus "what must we do to perform theworks of God" (v. 28) we can imagine that they are still focused onhow huge crowds are fed from nothing. But Jesus is quick to reply:"This is the work of God, that you believe in whom he has sent" (v.29). Our faith is our work.

To Ponder

• If the work of God is to believe in the one who he sent, wheredoes that lead you now?

• What attracts you to following Jesus? To what extent are theseattractions distractions from the purposes of God?

• What do you do to work for food that endures for eternity?