Tuesday: Acceptance and Rejection
Daily Lesson for Tuesday 5th of November 2024
Lesson 2 described the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6:1-71 but did not cover the final section of that story, which is studied here.
Read John 6:51-71. What did Jesus say that people had trouble accepting?
Having just been fed, miraculously, by Jesus, the people were ready to crown Him king (John 6:1-15). But in talking with them later at the Capernaum synagogue, He explains the spiritual meaning of the miracle, saying, “I am the bread of life,” (John 6:35). He expounds in more detail that this bread is His flesh, which He gives for the life of the world (John 6:51).
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This saying opened the eyes of the multitude to the fact that Jesus would not be their earthly king. He did not fit the mold produced by earthly thinking. They refused conversion, which would transform the way they thought so that they could recognize and accept Jesus as the Messiah. Many of His disciples left Him at this point (John 6:66).
From a human sense, this must have been hard for Jesus. The approbation of the crowd is pleasing. Who doesn’t want to be liked? But seeing many people draw back and question one’s principles is naturally discouraging, as well. Seeing the multitude depart, Jesus asks his inner circle, the Twelve, if they want to leave, too.
This is when Peter makes his amazing confession, another witness as to both what Jesus has and who He is. “ ‘You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God’ ” (John 6:68-69, ESV).
The disciples had been with Jesus for a couple of years, traveling with Him, seeing His miracles, hearing His sermons. They knew from experience that there was no one comparable to Him. The conviction settled upon them that, however unusual some situations might be, this man was the Messiah—regardless of how much they still didn’t understand about His purpose for coming. Only after His death and resurrection did they start to understand why Jesus came.
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What can we learn from this story about the fact that the majority is usually wrong? Why must we remember this, especially with the aspects of our faith that are unpopular with the majority—even the majority of Christians? |
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It does not take a lot of imagination to understand the dilemma of the Jews, particularly the ones from the area where he grew up. They knew his family history.
Having taught in the Seventh-day Adventist system all my life I have taught the children and even the grandchildren of students I have taught previously. You know their history. And sometimes I'm tempted to use that history in dealing with the students.
The Jews had the same problem, Jesus, the kid from the family that built their house was now claiming he was God and could forgive sins and was proposing a new kingdom based on service rather than conquering. I am sure that some of them thought he had a screw loose in his brain. The message was radical. Even the miracles were suspect. The ones they could not explain, were attributed to the Devil.
I am not surprised at their reaction. During my lifetime, several people have come to churches where I have held membership, claiming special visions or radical new ideas. My initial reaction is always scepticism. So, in that sense, I understand the reaction of the Jews.
On the other hand, the disciples had been with Jesus for some time and had the opportunity to interact with him. This is their reaction:
The difference was they had come to know Jesus. Which brings us to the point that in our interaction with others do they get to know Jesus too?