(July 16, 2024) Richard Winter challenges…

I believe we all can say that we are living in fascinating times — some may say interesting times, others deceptive times.

Recognition
The apostle Paul was concerned about times… dangerous, perilous times in the church before the return of Christ. He observed examples in his day — non-Christian characteristics — and wrote a warning to young Timothy about such.

‘There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God — having a form of godliness but denying its power’ (2Timothy 3:3-5a).

Paul saw such unChristian-like, self-seeking characteristics back then as a sign of living in the last days and advised ‘Have nothing to do with such people’ (v5b).

We may be looking at the same biblical scenario today! It appears such times and the same kind of  church people are even more obvious in our day!

• But… can we see that? Do you know anybody fitting what Paul described?
• For that matter, could we be lovers of pleasure, rather than of God?
• Of all these bad characteristics, I write about that last one!
• Could we, church goers, have a form of godliness and be denying its power?
• If so, what do we do about it?

Reality
Let’s jump back to the time when Jesus was so popular with people who had become His followers, and were even called disciples.

For example, there was the Samaritan woman who was so convinced that she became a missionary to her own people and told them about Jesus. She was so changed that many went out to find Jesus and they believed too, asking Him to stay with them so they could learn more (John 4:4-42).

People always like a miracle and Jesus was a miracle worker— He was particularly popular when He healed many sick people, or worked miracles such as restoring a poor man crippled for 38 years, or feeding over 5000 people from a little boy’s lunch (John 5:2-9, 6:5-14).

But— later when in Capernaum’s synagogue (John 6:59) Jesus pointed out some hard realistic facts that challenged His followers to think deeply and make some crucial decisions…

Before I write further, remember that Jesus had just miraculously fed some five thousand people from merely five barley loaves. This gives us the background to what He was to say to that synagogue of crowded Jewish followers known as disciples (now think ‘church crowd’) — including  His closest disciples — ‘the twelve.’ 

What Jesus was to teach in that synagogue — that gathering, that ‘church’ — is regarded as yet another of ‘The Hard Sayings of Jesus!’

Do read John 6:26-51, especially verses 47-51 — ‘Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.’

Wow! Did that start a debate! ‘Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”’(v52). 

Jesus went on to say, ‘… unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever’ (v53-58).

When Jesus spoke about the provision of His body being greater than the manna God had provided, He was stating that  His words are Spirit and life and are spiritual nourishment leading to eternity (v63).

Reaction
But — the initial reaction from many of Jesus’ followers here, those generally classed as ‘disciples,’ had been ‘This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?’ (v60).

The statement of real bread and real drink being spoken of as His flesh and blood had upset some of the crowd… no doubt they were thinking —

• ‘This doesn’t sound at all spiritual!’
• ‘Could it be an allegory?’
• ‘Hey, what do you mean, Jesus?

Whatever they were now thinking, it resulted in… ‘We don’t like it and we’re leaving!’

And, aware of their grumbling, Jesus asked, ‘Does this offend you? … The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you — they are full of the Spirit and life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe’ (v61-64a).

John 6:66 is possibly the saddest verse in the Bible — ‘From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him.’

The Message version is very graphic here— ‘After this a lot of His disciples left. They no longer wanted to be associated with Him.’

Response
But note the opposite response of His closest disciples, His friends, when Jesus challenged them face to face: “Do you also want to leave?”’ (v67).

What a positive reply was that of Peter! ‘Master, to whom would we go? You have the words of real life, eternal life. We’ve already committed ourselves, confident that you are the Holy One of God’(v68-69).

Do you see it?

Here’s the key difference between true and false disciples of Jesus.

• Disciple here is equated with being a believer!
• One not only believing in Jesus as Saviour, but His words that tell us how to live holy.
• And also knows that it all leads to eternal life with Jesus.
• Converts having received forgiveness from sin are committed to following Jesus.
• That whatever happens in this life we are confident in our holy miracle-worker who is with us!

There had been a crowd of so-called disciples… thousands that had followed Jesus up to this point. Now in a synagogue — think church!— many, including those who had witnessed the miracles Jesus had performed, were unhappy with what He had just taught! It was a challenge to be a genuine believer, to willingly, freely follow Jesus.

Matthew Henry wrote: ‘Note, Christ will detain none with Him against their wills; His soldiers are volunteers, not pressed men. The twelve had now had time enough to try how they liked Christ and His doctrine, and that none of them might afterwards say that they were trepanned [ensnared, entrapped] into discipleship.’

It was ‘The Twelve Disciples’ who accepted Jesus’ hard saying, believed in Him and His words, were committed to Him, and were confident of who He was.

And they became ‘The Twelve Apostles!’ (Yes, Judas failed, but was soon replaced).

Resolve
Sadly today there are some who go to their ‘synagogue’ (their church!) saying they are disciples… but they’re not! Remember what Paul told Timothy —  ‘having a form of godliness but denying its power.’

We must not be such people in our churches! Rather we must resolve to know and believe what the Bible says, know essential doctrine, and share the good news with lost souls.

It was obvious that free food is always good if you are hungry; it’s fantastic that if you’re sick and a needed healing or miracle happens and you’re so blessed. But, really, although such events are wonderful, they are all about what Jesus can do for you.

Now Jesus will supply our needs — but when God the Father draws you to His Son you will love Him, follow Him, and willingly serve Him however He wishes, it’s not just all about what you can get from Him! False disciples see Jesus as a genie in a bottle — there to perform and obey; just say a little prayer and presto you have anything you want. (Purveyors of the prosperity gospel teach this sort of Jesus!).

Those false disciples highlighted in John’s gospel saw Jesus in the flesh, and heard what He said and departed, grumbling and complaining. They were offended at the hard saying of Jesus and simply quit, no longer wanting to walk with Him.

Being a disciple is more than saying the right words, or being a part of ‘the present group.’ In a later writing the apostle John tells: ‘They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us (1John 2:19).

Being a disciple is a resolve of making a commitment to follow Jesus all the days of your life!

Redirection
A false disciple of Jesus rejects full commitment just in case he or she hears requests such as…

• You want me to be public with my belief?
• You want me to serve when I don’t want to?
• You want me to give when I don’t want to?
• (Resulting in) I don’t like your hard sayings, Jesus!

We can all go on with ‘exception clauses’ indicating what we like and will accept. But genuine Christians today — our times — will respond to being like Peter and his declaration above… clear-eyed and resolute in will, saying: ‘Where else can we go for you have the words of eternal life!’

True disciples come to Jesus for their sins to be forgiven, gain eternal life and then follow Him sharing their confession of Him as they go. As disciples we are called to put our belief in Jesus first, and…

• Our behaviour will then be controlled by what we believe.
• Others will see what we believe and judge us accordingly.
• Our relationship with Christ is like the marriage vow — ‘In sickness and in health, in poverty or in wealth, till death do us part.’

Belief in Jesus must be accompanied by obedient following… some folk will appear to follow Jesus but eventually reveal themselves as false disciples when they turn from following Jesus. Those who are not committed to being committed to Jesus will leave church… and, sadly, kingdom service.

Revelation
It is impossible to be a short-term disciple. Ipso facto NB… even demons believe in Jesus (James 2:19) — but like their master Satan, they definitely don’t follow Him!

So what is a recognisable true disciple of Jesus? John declared that a true disciple is someone who is believes in Jesus… and continues to follow Him. True disciples make a commitment to follow Jesus. If you don’t continue following Jesus then you are obviously not His disciple! And, sadly, you will be a disciple of someone or something else. As was the case of Judas.

Today in our times our world, our nations, even some churches are experiencing a tough time… people need to hear the good news of Jesus and His full salvation message. So we need to be responding to the full revelation of the great commission Jesus gave His disciples: ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’ (Matthew 28:18-20).

Notice that Jesus didn’t say ‘Make folks Christians’ — He said, ‘Make disciples.’ Remember the Samaritan lady above — she who was definitely not a Jew, but an active believer? She ‘dropped everything’ to go tell her friends, neighbours and countryfolk.

John 4:28a-30,39Mge paints such a clear picture as the slide above shows: ‘… she left her water pot. Back in the village she told the people, “Come see a man who knew all about the things I did, who knows me inside and out. Do you think this could be the Messiah?” And they went out to see for themselves …  Many of the Samaritans from that village committed themselves to him because of the woman’s witness.’

In these ‘fascinating days’ — these troubled dark days — may we never be among that extensive 2Timothy 3:3-5a classification of Paul’s above! Particularly ‘having a form of godliness but denying its power’ — especially when we have Jesus’ gift of the Holy Spirit and His power in us! (Read Acts 1:8, Jesus’ last and so important words).

May that saddest of scripture verses John 6:66 never be gripping us! Rather let us freely embrace the revelation Peter expressed and his positive response!
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Dr Richard Winter pastors The Connection Church, Huntington Beach, California. Link: OnlinerConnect@gmail.com  
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