More bread?

Jesus answered them and said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled. Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life."

- John 6:26-27, NASB

I can't say that Alabama suddenly developed a huge baseball following in the student body. For years I've been going to games, and for years the number of students at the games was just a handful. But this year, for some reason, there was a huge crowd of students in the new stands beyond the right field wall. Wow! Students are baseball fans!

Well, not exactly. I soon figured out from my twitter feed that there was a new policy. Students are now allowed to bring a cooler to the game if they will sit in those outfield stands. So, you guessed it - it was an excuse to gather in a big group, sunbathe, and drink beer. It may have looked like they were there for one thing, but it was really another.

Sunday morning, our teaching pastor Patrick Quinn walked us through John 6, which began with Jesus feeding the 5,000 and ended with him on the other side of the lake teaching about bread. When he got to the other side of the lake, the huge crowds that had been fed the day before had followed him. Obviously wanting more bread. So that's when Jesus said, basically, "I know why you're really here. You want more food."

It may have looked like they were there for one thing, but it was really another.

And Jesus then began to teach them, I can offer you much more than bread. I am the bread of life, and I can give you something that really satisfies. Something that will keep you from being hungry again. Life.

So Patrick posed this question to us: What do you want from Jesus? More bread...or more life?

Like those residents of Galilee, those of us who come to Jesus are coming to receive something. I am afraid that for me, it is too often something other than fellowship with the living God. So what do you want from Jesus?

• Happiness?
•  Freedom from suffering in this life?
• An afterlife free from the fear of hell?
• To be blessed with material prosperity?
• The approval of your friends and family that expect you to be religious?
• To see your loved ones in heaven?

None of these are bad things. In fact, all of them are good. But so is bread. But bread was not the best reason for the throngs to follow Jesus to the other side of the lake. If we are coming to him for any selfish reason, he says we are missing the point. Don't come because I can feed 5,000. Or make you happy. Come because I made you, I am the source of life, and I will make you everything you were created to be.

So the question remains:

More bread (in whatever form)? Or more life?

What's next?

A little over two weeks ago, on a Sunday afternoon, I got the word that actor Philip Seymour Hoffman had died at age 46. He was a brilliant actor who enabled the telling of many stories. From all accounts, he was not only talented but also a devoted father - one who successfully fought off the demons of addiction for much of his life, but succumbed at the end. He will be missed.

But in this post I want to touch on a statement that was made at the end of People Magazine's article on his death. Not because it says anything about Mr. Hoffman, but because it says a heck of a lot about the way we look at death.

At the end of the article, his friend and former director Matthew Warchus made this statement: "All I can think is that he's sitting up there and giving one of his dark, big chuckles."

Sitting up there.
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All through human history, man has believed that there is something after death. For most, this belief involves some esoteric spiritual existence that is totally unrelated to our physical life on earth. And most believe that it is going to be a good thing. According to a book by Sam Storms, more than 80% of Americans believe in an afterlife, with another 9% saying they aren't sure. 76% believe heaven exists and almost that many, 71%, believe there is a hell. But here is the amazing part: Despite that, less than 1% believe that they are going to end up in hell. Almost all believe that they will somehow be "sitting up there."

This would lead you believe that most of our opinions about the afterlife are wishful thinking - as agnostics and atheists would affirm.

Former Mars Hill pastor Rob Bell seems to agree with this sentiment. It is affirmed in almost every discussion of someone who has passed on, just as with Mr. Hoffman. The 1974 Righteous Brothers hit Rock and Roll Heaven memorialized music greats Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Otis Redding, Jim Croce, and Bobby Darin with the lyrics…

If you believe in forever, then life is just a one night stand.

If there's a rock and roll heaven, well, you know they've got a h--- of a band.

(Yes, it is a clever twist of words on the two destinations.)

Yep, we fashion heaven to fit our own world view. Wishful thinking, right?
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So it is into this world of uncertainty and wishful thinking about an afterlife that Jesus of Nazareth bursts onto the scene. During his three-year ministry, he proclaimed that he would do something radical. He did not proclaim that when he died his spirit would mysteriously go to a better place. Not even close.

The message of Jesus was that after dying a sacrificial death he would physically rise from the dead and live forever. Furthermore, he would be the first fruits of his followers. The hope of the Christian faith is that because Jesus physically rose from the dead, we will do the same.  Heaven and earth will meet and God will dwell among his people forever.

And then he did it!

The hope of the Christian faith is not that our spirits will live on after we die. Most of the world, Christian or not, believes that. No! Our hope is that, while we will be in God's presence when we die, that is just the beginning. Because he lives, we will live too. We will participate in his resurrection.

How different this is from a vague belief in an afterlife. It is a specific faith in a specific future based on a specific historical event.

He is risen. And so we will rise as well if we place our trust in him.

It can't come too soon.


What do you believe about death? Is it comforting to have so many different opinions? Or does it cause you to question the concept? How is Jesus' message different from the common belief?

You were made for this

Came across this tweet today:

A gospel of "If you died right now would you go to heaven or hell?" makes Jesus simply a means to an end, rather than the sum of all love.
— Micah J. Murray (@micahjmurray) January 11, 2014

It reminded me of something important, something I also discussed in another post titled Eternity…why? It was simply this: Jesus wants us to follow him and be part of his kingdom for the sake of God's glory.

It's not so my life can be better.

It's not so I can have comfort in my troubles.

It's not so I have a sense of meaning.

And no, it's not so I can go to heaven.

All those are true.* But they are not the reason.

It's simply so my life can be lived for the glory of the One who created me. He made me, he redeemed me, and he has a specific purpose for me in his master plan for the universe. He has given me a choice, and the only choice that makes sense is to do what I was created for.

So I want to be part of calling you, my friends, and the world to something greater than themselves. I don't want to call you to make a decision out of fear or self interest. I invite you - if you haven't already - to get to know the Messiah and be part of his kingdom.

Because it is what you were made for.

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* - With the clarification that really God's ultimate plan is to bring heaven to earth and for us to reign with him here - but I digress.

3 am and thankful

I have never been more thankful for the mercy of God. I am unbelievably grateful that Jesus came to bear the penalty for my sin.

And why now? Well, it's simple. It's because I've never felt more keenly what the agony of hell must be like. As I lay here in my bed for the last three hours, my tooth has been throbbing with pain. I have taken as much pain medication as safety permits, and it still hurts. Bad. I really can't remember experiencing anything like this. And so of course I can't sleep.

I normally wouldn't burden you guys with this - and that's not my intent. Rather, I want to share what I have been thinking about while trying to sleep. So here it is: I started thinking about whether I could bear this until Monday, when my dentist can see me. And my next thought was, well, of course I can - 'cause what if it wasn't 'til Monday, but forever? What if there were no dentist, no remedy, nothing but pain, pain pain? Forever?

Of course, a throbbing tooth is only a fraction of what hell would be like. And 36 hours is only a fraction of eternity. But it's enough to get my attention. More than enough.

And so I am doing my best to turn this agony into a positive. Instead of dwelling on how long it is 'til Monday, I'm focusing on how soon Monday is compared to eternity. And I am thankful that because of Christ, I don't have to worry about that.

Thank you, Father!