Sermon Tone Analysis

Sometimes a meal is just so great that you can't wait to go back to that same restaurant or cafe.

It was such a great experience that you want to try it at least another time or two.

At least that's what seems to be happening after the 5,000 had some fish and chips at Cafe Jesus.

Our text for today actually begins in verse one of this sixth chapter.

In the first 15 verses of this chapter we have the miracle of Jesus feeding the 5000.

Sandwiched between the feeding of the 5000 and our text Jesus walked on water.

Please note that when Jesus walked on water, those who were partakers of the fish and chips were sleeping and slumbering and so they did not witness that miracle, only the disciples.

The next morning the 5,000 people started looking for Jesus.

They knew that the disciples had left after the meal to go back across the Sea of Galilee.

They also knew that Jesus had gone up to the mountain to spend some time in prayer.

But as they looked for him that morning no one could find him.

They knew that Jesus hadn't taken the one boat that was left behind and yet, he was nowhere to be seen.

Wondering what to do they decided to go back towards Capernaum.

Perhaps Jesus had found some other way to get back home.

While they were wondering about all of this some boats from Tiberias came by and welcomed to take them back across the Sea of Galilee.

Verse 25 tells us that when they got back home, sure enough there was Jesus.

They couldn't figure out how Jesus had gotten back so quickly when they knew that the disciples had left him on the mountain to pray and he had not used the boat that had been left.

What they didn't know at the time was that Jesus merely walked across the water and joined his disciples in their boat.

Brothers and sisters to be honest, I admire the effort the people in our text put forth to locate Jesus.

However, what minimizes their effort is there reason for seeking Jesus.

If you know the text, they were seeking Jesus for a temporary fix.

They were not seeking Him for the reason Jesus desired they seek Him, they were seeking Him for that which would not last.

With all the miracles He had done before their eyes, they missed it.

They got so caught up in getting full that they missed a major tenet or widely held belief among the Jews that the signs and miracles that Jesus did could only be done by one sent and approved of by God.

They were seeking Jesus and that’s alright, but their reason for seeking Jesus put them on the outs with Him.

Well beloved, if you don’t mind me asking, why are you seeking Jesus?

Well beloved,

What do you want from Him?

Why are you looking for Him?

And for you who claim to know Him, why did you seek Jesus?

what did you want from Him when you gave your life to Him?

Why do you seek Jesus?

As we look at our text, there are a couple of reasons that people seek Jesus and only one of them is valid.

First of all some people:

I. Seek Jesus for selfish reasons:

As I mention in the introduction our text actually begins at verse one of this sixth chapter.

The story of the feeding of the 5000 plays into the reason the people were seeking Jesus.

Although this is Jesus bread of life discourse, before He zeros in on that teaching, He deals with the reason the people were seeking Him.

Beloved the reason the people were seeking Him was for selfish reasons.

On the other side of Galilee when the people got hungry Jesus took five barley loaves and two fish and fed them.

According to the text that was the day before.

It’s a new day now and the fullness from the bread and fish has worn off and its time to eat again.

They were not seeking Jesus for the right reason, they were seeking Him because a miss meal pain had set in again.

Look at how the conversation plays out beginning at verse 25.

It says, “ When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You get here?”

Please note that the mere fact they addressed Jesus as Rabbi suggests they did not know who He really was.

Rabbi in the Hebrew was an honorific and respectful term of address for a teacher of the Mosaic Law.

But as you well know Jesus was not a teacher of the Mosaic Law, He’s the fulfillment of the Mosaic Law.

He’s the promised Messiah.

He’s the consolation of Israel.

He’s the Savior of the world.

But these folk in our text, didn’t understand that about Him.

For selfish reasons they were seeking Jesus, that’s why Jesus responded to them in the manner that He did by saying in verse 26, “I assure you: You are looking for Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled.”

Jesus’ reply did not answer their question of when He got there.

Instead, he went straight to the heart of the matter, exposing the real reason the crowd had followed him.

They followed Him simply because they had eaten their fill of the loaves he had multiplied and they were selfishly looking for some more.

Beloved there are folk who show up in the Lord’s Church every Sunday seeking Jesus for selfish reasons.

They experienced Jesus doing something great and they decided to show up selfishly seeking Him to do something for them instead of doing something within them.

Are you with me?

They seek Jesus for the temporary pleasures of this world.

Kruse, C. G. (2003).

John: an introduction and commentary (Vol.

4, p. 167).

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

They seek Jesus to fill their materialistic appetite.

Kruse, C. G. (2003).

John: an introduction and commentary (Vol.

4, p. 166).

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

When they pray, its all about them and what they want.

And although they try to act holy in their seeking.

Although they call upon Him using a name that honors Him, they are seeking Him for selfish reasons.

But you need to know today, that Jesus knows your motive for seeking Him.

He knows what is in your heart.

He knows why you are looking for Him, so you might as well come clean and stop being selfish in your seeking.

You see beloved folk want Jesus to do for them, but they don’t want to surrender to Him.

They want a sugar daddy Jesus.

They want Jesus to be their cabin boy.

They want Jesus to be His Lord instead of Him being their Lord, that’s why they only want to recognize Jesus as Savior and not savior and Lord.

Selfishly they seek Jesus for what He can do for them without ever desiring to serve Him.

Second, Some folk:

II.

Seek Jesus for a miracle:

Brothers and sisters the people in our text who were seeking Jesus had experienced a miracle by Jesus when He fed them with five barley loaves and two fish, and the kicker to the miracle was there were some leftovers that filled twelve baskets.

Isn’t the Lord alright?

But these folks witnessed this great miracle and for some they viewed Him to be just that.

A miracle worker So, when they woke up the next day many of them who witnessed the miracle, desired to see more miracles from Jesus.

And brothers and sisters the tragedy of them desiring to see more miracles from Jesus is they missed the purpose of the miracles.

Here it is, look at verse 26 again.

Jesus says, “I assure you: You are looking for Me, not because you saw[f] the signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled.”

Beloved Jesus was letting them know that they did not understand the significance of the miracle.

The miracles that He did were not done for the people to want more miracles.

They were not done to pacify the human need to see the abnormal or miraculous.

The miracles that Jesus did, were not done to get the folk all geeked up desiring another show.

No, the miracles that Jesus did were done as a sign that He was sent from God, and beloved the folk in our text were missing it.

They wanted to see more.

They were caught up in the hype instead of being enlightened by the signs.

It escapes my mind where I read this statement but it said, “humanity has a tendency to want to see the abnormal.”

You see there are many who claim to be Christian who feel nothing is going on in the Lord’s Church unless there’s a miracle taking place.

Some folk feel the Lord is off in a far country if miracles are not happening every day in their lives.