Saturday 24 April 2010

Background

In this passage, we have reached the end of a sermon, or asection of teaching. John is maintaining that faith in Jesus Christis better than the Jewish faith and people should therefore beprepared to follow Jesus. This emphasis was new and it causedproblems for many who were following Jesus. It meant they had tomake a choice: either to stay with their traditional belief oradopt a new one.

Many chose not to follow Jesus. The choice was too difficult. Thisresponse was one which seemed to provoke Jesus, who challengedthose who were closest to him. Those closest decided to remainloyal.

In this passage we clearly see a view of the world common to Greekthought: human life is split into the physical and the spiritual,the spiritual being the most important and the physical, the flesh,being unimportant. Jesus had words of spiritual significance, andeternal life was for the spiritual, not the physical. John issaying that Jesus was spiritual, whereas traditional Judaism wasworldly; that faith in Jesus was truly of God, Judaism wasn't. Itis no surprise that many deserted Jesus.

Those who were closest to Jesus responded in faith. They werefollowing Jesus, searching for the truth, and as Jesus promisedeternal life they had nowhere else to go. There is always thechallenge of true belief and convenient belief. True belief canlead to difficult choices, alternative ways of living, evenunpopularity. Convenient belief can be changed or dropped wheneverit gets too difficult. Following Jesus, for the closest disciples,was true belief, not convenience, and they followed Jesus to adeath and the wonder and mystery of resurrection.

To Ponder

What are the things you are prepared to livefor?

What are the things you are prepared to die for?What makes them different?

How do you know the difference between aconvenient and a true faith?