John 6:48-59 "About Communion, Christmas, And The Gift From God"

John 6:48-59

48“I am the bread of life! 49Fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50This is the bread, the one which comes down out of heaven, so that anyone shall eat from it and shall not die. 51Am the living bread, the One having come down from heaven. If anyone eats from this bread he will live into the age forever, and indeed the bread which I will give is My flesh, which I will give on behalf of the Life of the world.” 

52Therefore, the Jews began arguing angrily with one another, saying, “How is this One able to give to us His flesh to eat?” 53So Jesus said to them, “Most positively, I say, unless eat the flesh of the Son of Humanity and drink His blood, do not have Life in yourselves. 54The one eating My flesh and drinking My blood has Eternal Life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55For My flesh truly is food, and My blood truly is drink. 56The one eating My flesh and drinking My blood remains in Me, and I in him. 57Just as the Living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, also the one feeding on Me, that one will also Live because of Me. 58This is the bread having come down out of heaven, not as fathers ate the manna and died. The one eating this bread will Live into the forever!” 59These things He said in a synagogue, teaching in Capernaum.

 Good Day Child of God! "Father? Your Will Be Done!" First off I would like to apologize for taking so long to continue the Studies. This body has a way of breaking down now and again, and I have to get it oiled, greased, and rotate the tires. Just like anything else on earth, that is earthly in nature.

I believe I missed you more than anything else these last couple of weeks, and I can tell because it feels so warm and fuzzy to be back at the wonder of the Study of our Father's Love and Kindness. I underlined the message above, so that if you wish you can make this short and sweet.

Today's easy lesson: As you can read Jesus is in a Synagogue, preaching to well informed Jews. That being said, He is not preaching to the choir, because they don't understand the Father, never have, and they certainly don't understand what Jesus is saying. There is an incredible Truth underlined above, verse 53. Obviously we cannot eat of Jesus' flesh, but what He is referring to seems to be the act of "Communion". Every Christian sect I am aware of uses Communion as a rite and as a basis for their Belief. Reading what Jesus says above it is a reasonable rite to include, for three other verses underlined state that His words to this group of Jews are for everyone. Does it mean that without Communion we are lost? No, because everything Jesus discusses is Spiritual, not meant for flesh, although in this case the reminder of His being the Sacrificial Lamb is important, there is nothing beyond your Trust in Jesus' Sacrifice, Burial, and Resurrection, all of which are the way to Eternal Life.

What is the message? The message can be summed up by simply reading the underlined words above, which conclude that your Trust in Christ Jesus who Lives because the Father Lives, and can give you Life because that is what your reward is for your Trust. Not just forgiveness of sins, or a Life of order and Love, Joy, and Peace, but beyond this place, a veritable paradise of wonder and goodness that will fill you with all you ever wished or thought of, all the time, and never a tear shall be shed, nor a hurting heart be felt. What we cannot do, the Father through Jesus has provided. It really boils down to the wonder of Christmas that we try to celebrate with good thoughts, good deeds, love, forgiveness, and caring one for another. Whether or not we have another Study before the end of the year I don't know, but I ask you to do one thing during this Christmas Season. Somehow, someway, whether in a Church setting, or with your family, or even if you are alone, take some bread and wine, or grape juice, water if need be, and remember why Jesus is born, what He has gone through, and that you have the gift from God that no one else can give; Life, in abundance, that is, forever. Have a Grace Day!

Brother Glenn

John 6:41-47 "One Life, One God, One Savior, No Religion"

John 6:41-47

41Therefore, the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, “Am the bread having come down out of heaven.” 42And they said, “Is this not Jesus, the Son of Joseph, whose father and mother know? How then says this One, “I have come down out of heaven?” 43So Jesus answered and said to them, “Stop grumbling with one another. 44No one is able to come to Me unless the Father having sent Me drags them, and I will raise them up on the last day. 45It has been written in the prophets, ‘And they will all be taught of God.’  (Isaiah 54:13) Therefore, every hearing from the Father and having learned comes to Me. 46Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One being from God, He has seen the Father. 47Most positively, I say, the one Believing in Me has Eternal Life.

Good Day Child of God! "Father? Your Will Be Done!" The verses above are more difficult than they read if you are not already familiar with Jesus and the message of Salvation. In fact, even if you have heard the preaching of the traditional Evangelist and decided you are a sinner and need to "Come down and confess your sins and give your heart to God", you still would be very confused.

The reason I underlined the few words above is bring a focus on the Truth, not the Tradition. On the one hand you heard a sermon that told you that in God's eyes you are damned and going to hell, or that your life could be so much richer if Jesus was your Lord and Savior. Either messge makes the decision relatively easy. Then you are given a Bible, a pat on the back, and told to go to church, and Study your Bible. How has that worked out for the Church in general? It must be successful, that's why there are 35,000 main sects of Christianity.

Today's easy lesson: 35,000 different ideas of what Jesus is talking about in the Bible, adding the Father's Will is near impossible to comprehend. Can you imagine the Father seeking someone, a volunteer, and teach the one religion on earth that knows one thing, Who God is. Even though they don't understand God, His Character, His Thinking, nor His Will, we can be fairly certain God didn't intend His Children to divide into so many separate families. On top of that, living apart from one another, and fighting over who knows their Father best. I can hear it now, "OK Jesus you volunteered, so here is My main idea, divide our family, this way We conquer the world's sins and unbelief." Sound right?

What is the message then? Jesus was speaking not to the Israelites specifically, the Chosen, He was speaking to the upper crust Jews. Anyone could become a Jew, an Israelite had to born into it. Big difference isn't it. If you are Italian for example, you certainly can't tell everyone you've converted to Irish. You are what your heritage is. On the other hand, if you are a Roman Catholic, you can decide to become Southern Baptist, no one will question you. There is one main problem with the whole thought process, it is all worldly, it has to do with mankind's ego, wants, likes, dislikes, and comfort zones. God? He is the second reason and of course He is important, He is the One who will Bless your good intentions. You know all the stuff that comes with success, like nice cars, homes, clothes, country club memberships, or whatever your taste, and of course helping those little ones that need something extra around the Holidays. So we end up with 35,000 of mankind's best ideas of God's best thinking, you know, as far as we are concerned. Jesus didn't come to 35,000 different sects or Religious ideals. No, in fact, the one He was sent to, the Jews, He was trying to break up, stop their foolishness, their influence of the Father's teaching in the hearts of mankind that started in earnest with the Abraham. God didn't want Israel to have a king, let alone a Religion, which by the way has how many sects of Judaism? The truth is it is hard to know, but 70 or so is a good number. The Jews like to think of themselves of monolithic, yet free thinking, so sects and such is not something they freely like to talk about. You see the problem don't you. God is One, not 70, not 35,000, let alone an additional ten of thousands. He wants you to build a relationship with Him one on one. Why? So that He can teach you, so that your Faith is increased daily and the fear of death is not a fear at all. Jesus came so that the Father could, drag you toward Him, and that so Jesus could give you anything you think you want, right? NO! He came to give you Life. One Life, One God, One Savior, No Religion, just One Relationship with the Creator of all things. How awesome is that? The song writer was right, "You have a Friend in Jesus~!" Have a Grace Day!

Brother Glenn
Complete New Testament Grace Studies link: http://gracehouseministry.blogspot.com/

John 6:34-40 "What Is God's Will For You?"

John 6:34-40

34Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give to us this bread.” 35But Jesus said to them, “Am the bread of life! The one coming to Me shall by no means hunger, and the one Believing (Trusting) in Me will by no means thirst at any time! 36But I said, that have both seen Me, and do not believe. 37All that the Father gives to Me will come to Me, and the one coming to Me I shall by no means cast out. 38Because I have come down out of heaven, not so that I shall be doing My will, but the will of the One having sent Me. 39And this is the will of the Father having sent Me, that out of all which He has given to Me I will not lose it, but I will raise it up on the last day. 40And this is the will of the One having sent me, that every looking on the Son and Believing (Trusting) in Him shall be having Eternal Life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

Good Day Child of God! "Father? Your Will Be Done!" This seems like De'ja' Vu all over again. An old Yogi Berra joke, and appropriate for the verses above. It seems as though we just read them a day or two ago. No so, but one thing is for certain, Jesus is making it plain as can be, what was given to Him as a prime directive for visiting earth.

Realizing that the readers of this blog and the Archive "Grace Words" blog, have been used to reading soft messages of God's Love and His Provisions, it must be difficult to read the previous couple of Study messages that are harsh to a certain point. The Truth is the Father has put lots of planning and making way for His Will, and to ignore it is both dangerous, and possibly insulting to Him. Worry not about the how of the message presentation, worry that the message is sinking in.

Today's easy lesson: In reading the verses above in most Bible Translations, there is a bit of a confusion in the sentence structure in verse 36. It tends to read that there are two reasons Jesus is speaking, but only one comes out. The fact is that Jesus is saying that both (one) He has come to witness to them and (two) they don't Believe in Him. More importantly there is the message, which is repeated in this one paragraph twice. Why? Let's see what the Spirit has to say.

What is the message? For a change there are actually three messages. The primary message is that Jesus came to do the Will of the Father, so that as many as mankind that will Believe in Jesus' works will be given Life. Whatever it may look like to us at the time a body gives up the soul, those with the Spirit of God attached to it, live on. In this one short paragraph, Jesus says it twice, so we can be assured this is the reason for Jesus coming to earth as a man, to do what the Father Will's.  Then of course there is the Gospel itself, which is "Trust in Christ Jesus and all He has done on your behalf, and you will be given the gift of Life, never having to fear of losing it, because, as Jesus says, those that are His can never be taken away. Lastly, all the arguments concerning the Rapture, pre-middle-post Tribulation, all rather new teaching, if it were pre or middle, how is it that Jesus says He will raise all those that Trusted in Him at the very end? Seems pretty straight forward to me, but then again, the whole Rapture teaching, that so many hang onto as though it is the Gospel, is just about 200 years old now, and it has nothing to do with what your Father really wants from you, a relationship. The most important issue is that you to are talking to your Abba, Daddy, Father, all day long, all week long. That habit does not lead to the road to perdition, but to the road of peace. Have a Grace Day!

Brother Glenn
This blog link: http://askgodsword.blogspot.com/

Complete New Testament Grace Studies link: http://gracehouseministry.blogspot.com/

John 6:30-33 "About You And The Promised Land"

John 6:30-33

30So they said to Him, “What sign then do You do so that we shall see and believe You? What are You working? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it has been written, ‘He gave to them bread out of heaven to eat.’” [Exod 16: 4; Neh 9: 15; Psalm 78: 24] 32So Jesus said to them, “Most positively, I say, Moses has not given the bread out of heaven, but My Father gives the true bread out of heaven. 33For the bread of God is the One coming down out of heaven and giving life to the world.”

Good Day Child of God! "Father? Your Will Be Done!" Never before has the thought that typing the Studies was so important as it is right now. As I look around the world, I see what may be a time that people need to take God seriously, and have all the tools to do so, yet I see very few doing just that.

Could there be a better time in history than right now to look at God, look at those that call Him Lord, and take an interest in what is Truth? ISIS alone and all its completed goals gets your attention, and for good reason, they are effective fighters for their cause, but I don't see Christians looking into their Scriptures and coming to a conclusion about God. All I hear and see are all kinds of talking heads on so-called Christian TV shows discussing the end times, which does nothing for your relationship with the Father, or for the terrible suffering that Jesus did to save you from darkness.

Today's easy lesson: "Signs, signs, everywhere a sign, do this, don't do that, can't you see the sign?" Perhaps you remember these song lyrics from about 50 years ago. You can say all you want about the terrible 1960's but one thing that happened was wonderful. The teenagers of that day found that the church sects they were brought up in were too stifling, so they started to read their Bibles and found the Freedom in Christianity. Unfortunately, they mixed it with sex, drugs, and rock and roll, and it became what we have today. A mixed up, troubled, twisted Faith that took the Freedom in Christ Jesus and bound it in a whole new set of rites, rules and adventures such a tongues, baptisms in the Holy Spirit and all that can mean, and on and on. The outsiders and unbelievers look at it all as though Christians are plainly without a brain in their collective heads. To that end, they feel it is just fine to make fun of Christians, God, Jesus, and make waste of something that is the most serious issue in everyone's life.

What is the message? The Jewish leadership above wanted Jesus to prove by a sign what He claimed to be. They pointed to Moses and manna as proof that God was real, but they believed more in Moses' leadership than looking to God. God had to allow that generation to die off before the Promised Land was breached and the ramifications were many. By the time the hardened hearts were gone, the Tribes entered the land but at great cost, the land that needed them forty years prior was still there but the takers were not the same, and it seemed as if God's power over them had become rote, expected, without reality. Today? Christians don't think it through. Their church likes to stay comfortable in false teachings, and won't allow the Freedom of Love, Peace, Joy, Calm, Gentleness, Kindness, Patience, and Self-Control to take them to places here on earth that cannot otherwise be found. This is serious Students, like the Israelites, there is a resistance to Truth, and just as Jesus is not happy with the "pastors" challenging His authority, nor does He shy away from telling them so. Jesus speaks Truth for the sake of Truth, and there is nothing in His immediate future that will show any gain for Him at all, just punishment, abandonment, a Cross, and a Grave. Please, I implore you again; Pray, read, think, repeat. Just a paragraph a day, and speak to your Abba, Daddy, Father so that you will be ready for any and everything. Have a Grace Day!

Brother Glenn

Complete New Testament Grace Studies link: http://gracehouseministry.blogspot.com/
This blog link: http://askgodsword.blogspot.com/

John 6:22-29 "About God's Expectation Of His People"

John 6:22-29

22The next day, the crowd which was standing on the other side of the sea, having seen that was no other small boat there except that one which His disciples stepped into, and that Jesus did not enter with His disciples into the small boat, but His disciples went away alone 23( but other small boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate the bread, the Lord having given thanks), 24so when the crowd saw that Jesus is not there, nor His disciples, they themselves stepped into the boats and came to Capernaum seeking Jesus. 25And having found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when have You come here?” 

26Jesus answered them and said, “Most positively, I say, seek Me, not because saw signs, but because ate of the loaves of bread and were satisfied. 27Stop working the food, the one which perishes by itself, but be working for the food, the one remaining which remains to Eternal Life, which the Son of Humanity will give, for God the Father has set seal, Him.” 28Therefore, they said to Him, “What shall we be doing so that we shall be working the works of God?” 29Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that be Trusting in Him whom that One sent.”

Good Day Child of God! "Father? Your Will Be Done!" Now we begin the True teaching from Jesus about Christianity and what it is all about, and equally important, what it is not about.

In the verses above, something interesting is happening and I thought you might enjoy knowing what it is. The language is quite common. Almost as though John the Apostle took a break and told someone else to tell this account. It is easy to see if you read these verses or the writings of various authors of the Bible many times, to catch a difference in the wording. There is no impact on the lesson, just the way it is told.

Today's easy lesson: Christians make many mistakes. If Jesus were to come back today to fix a few things, He would see a Church that is corrupt considering the intent of His Father's Plan.  I don't believe he would know where to start.  Look at what we have done, as opposed to what Jesus is saying above. It is so simple, yet all the Christian Sects have made it about as complex as it can be. There are several reasons for this, but the three most egregious are these: Taking Scripture out of context, that brings about any style of a false Belief System you would want. Secondly, ego driven, money grubbing person or persons who will take advantage of uneducated people and lead them down any convenient road. These same uneducated would follow the correct road understanding their role as a Child of God if given a chance. Third, and unfortunately, the uneducated people are lazy. They won't take the time to talk to their Father, spend time reading their Bibles, or use their time to contemplate what they just read. These three actions, or non-actions have brought Christianity to a place that is stagnant, false and useless to both the people practicing it and to those that look upon the peculiarity of it all. This insults the Father and Jesus for all their planning and very serious work.

What is the message? Jesus once said of the leadership of the Jews, that they were the "Blind leading the blind, who make worse the believing than they were before." (Paraphrased, see Matthew 15:14 and others) All the things on earth rot. We say, "I own this home" or "I bought that car". In truth, for most people the bank owns them, and just try not paying taxes or keeping them up, you will see how long that which you own is still yours. When you die, they stay. On the other hand, you own your status as a Child of God, it will never need a license, nor will it be taxed, and the work needed to earn it? It was all planned by your Father, done by Jesus, and in the end, it goes with you. Why then do we pervert this wonderful gift of Life and Love and make it something we can't handle in our daily living? We want God to approve our life, not following His Plan. We want it easy, spending no time building a relationship with the Father, but we prefer listening to people that tickle the ear with cute little stories and sayings, but in reality, lead only to a moment of happiness. Wake up Christian! You don't want to hear those terrible words, "I never knew you," yet all the while because you tithed and confessed or whatever you believe makes you think you are secure in God's eyes, but are lost. God is NOT about religion, your works, or your ways, He is about a relationship. Please start talking to your Abba, Daddy, Father right now. Not for me, for you. AND remember, God doesn't Bless your agenda, your Life is Blessed by following His Will. Have a Grace Day!

Brother Glenn
This blog link: http://askgodsword.blogspot.com/
Complete New Testament Grace Studies link: http://gracehouseministry.blogspot.com/

  

John 6:16-21 "Walking On Water Is Not What You Think"

John 6:16-21

16But when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea. 17And having stepped into the boat, they began going over the sea to Capernaum. And it had already become dark, and Jesus had not come to them. 18And the sea was being stirred up by a strong blowing. 19Then having rowed about three or four miles, they watched Jesus walking about on the sea and coming near the boat. And they were afraid. 20But He says to them, “I Am! Stop being afraid!” 21So they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately the boat came to be on the land to which they were going.

Good Day Child of God! "Father? Your Will Be Done!" This group of verses is so familiar that it would be a safe bet to say that nearly everyone in the western world has heard the story of the man that walked on water.

This remarkable scene is repeated by Believers and unbelievers alike to point out that someone thinks they are maybe just a little bit more important than they really are. Yet, as many sermons and comments as you have heard about walking on water, the reason these verses are here are different than you may be aware. Let's see what the Spirit has in mind.

Today's easy lesson: This is one of very few cases where reading just the paragraph is an exception to the rule. What is the most important rule when reading your Bible? NEVER take it out of context. Sure; pray, read, think, repeat is a staple as well, but not as important as context. We have Jesus purposely leaving His Apostles, sending them ahead of Him in a boat. Later that evening, in the dark, most likely after a discussion with the Father, Jesus shows up not far from the boat, and the Apostles are so upset at what they think they see, Jesus says something to calm them down. He invoked the name of His Father. The name given to the Israelites by God was Elohim, which translated can mean either "I AM" or simply "AM". There is no way anything dark or devilish is going to utter God's Name, so they calmed down.

What is the message? You would think that it's simple, and it is, but not about the fact that Jesus could walk on water. To understand what is actually going on, you have to know this about Jesus; that He spent a good deal of time talking to His Father. That, so He only did and said what He was told. Why? Because Jesus could not see what was coming, but the Father could, and the Father also has a plan in mind, of which Jesus has to complete. What they most likely discussed is what is coming, and what is coming are several confrontations concerning Jesus' standing as it pertains to God. Reading the verses above proves how uneasy everyone is at this point, not knowing Who or what to expect next, or what the overall plan is. They want a King, He walks away. He shouldn't break the Law or the rules, yet He says these things are for our good, not for God. Jesus needs to get everyone on the right track, and this is the beginning of solidifying what the plan is, and the direction it must go. This is the start, but continues for the next several paragraphs, and at the end, you will be more in tune with Jesus, the Father, and your role as a Christian. In the mean while don't stop talking to your Father, don't stop reading at least one paragraph a day, (you won't be able to easily stop there I promise you), and keep in mind that your Father Loves you more than any other ever could. Have a Grace Day!

Brother Glenn
This blog link: http://askgodsword.blogspot.com/
Complete New Testament Grace Studies link: http://gracehouseministry.blogspot.com/
 

John 6:8-15 "My God, My Vending Machine"

John 6:8-15

8One of His disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, says to Him, 9“There is one little boy here who has five barley loaves of bread and two fish, but these-what are they to so many?” 

10But Jesus said, “Make the people to recline.” Now there was much grass in the place. So they reclined (the men in number about five thousand). 11Then Jesus took the loaves of bread, and having given thanks, He distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to the ones reclining, likewise also of the fish, as much as they wanted! 12And when they were satisfied, He says to His disciples, “Gather together the broken pieces of bread having been leftover, so that nothing shall be lost.” 13So they gathered together and filled twelve hand-baskets with broken pieces of bread from the five barley loaves which were left over by the ones having eaten. 

14Therefore, the people having seen the sign Jesus did, said, “This is truly The Prophet, the One, coming into the world!” 15Then Jesus having known that they are about to come and to take Him by force so that they should make Him king, withdrew into the mountain, Himself, alone.

Good Day Child of God! "Father? Your Will Be Done!" When you think about the situation as you are reading the verses above, it doesn't occur to most that evening was almost there, and in terms of time, thousands, maybe tens of thousands of people, are being fed by the Twelve.

Consider this. They are called Disciples, not Apostles. There were many that followed Jesus as closely as they could. One would call them Disciples, and with that in mind, hundreds of men could feed thousands in a reasonable amount of time. Again, don't read and run. Pray, read, think. Repeat. Above all, keep it in context, and find the message.

Today's easy lesson: Every time we get a group of verses that are not obvious in what they may have to say, my mind goes to what Jesus said, "A time is coming, and now is, that the Father will be worshiped in spirit and in truth." The reason is this; We are so filled with our self loving human outlook that we tend to miss the easiest lessons and therefore are poorly informed about God's Will, the Bible's intent, which does not leave us enough information to Live as a Child of God.

What is the message? We are continuing with the verses we started from last Study where we discussed not rushing through the Bible, but taking a small section at a time, a paragraph if you could stop there. Before starting, always put this thought in place; pray, read, think, repeat. Keep it in context, and find the message. The lesson above was taken as a miracle by the people, but the message is that they showed their true colors by allowing Jesus to see how far along they had failed to come in understanding His Father's Will. They wanted to make Him their King on earth. That was not the program then, and it is not the program now. Christians across the spectrum of the 33,000 denominations have made a bad choice. They are all doing the same thing, following a form of the Mother Church, the Roman Catholic Church, misusing God's Word to control people who Believe if they do certain things they can get God to give them their wants here on earth. Does that sound like Spirit and Truth? Of course no Christian thinks of it like that, it's just the way life is. I do for you. You do for me. Simple. God has made it simple too, but His being is not flesh and blood, He is Spirit. We must wake up to that fact quickly, or there will be a price to pay for many; "I never knew you." Wake up! Your Father is ready, willing, more than able to help, but He is your Abba, Daddy, Father, not God Vending Machine. Have a Grace Day!

Brother Glenn 
This blog link: http://askgodsword.blogspot.com/
Complete New Testament Grace Studies link: http://gracehouseministry.blogspot.com/