Crossway Bibles<\/a> (or other version)<\/p>\nAfter this\u00a0Jesus went away to the other side of\u00a0the Sea of Galilee, which is\u00a0the Sea of Tiberias.\u00a02\u00a0And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick.\u00a03\u00a0Jesus went up on\u00a0the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4\u00a0Now\u00a0the Passover, the\u00a0feast of the Jews, was at hand.\u00a05\u00a0Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to\u00a0Philip,\u00a0\u201cWhere are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?\u201d\u00a06\u00a0He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do.\u00a07\u00a0Philip answered him, \u201cTwo hundred denarii\u00a0worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.\u201d\u00a08\u00a0One of his disciples,\u00a0Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him,\u00a09\u00a0\u201cThere is a boy here who has five\u00a0barley loaves and two fish, but\u00a0what are they for so many?\u201d\u00a010\u00a0Jesus said,\u00a0\u201cHave the people sit down.\u201d\u00a0Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number.\u00a011\u00a0Jesus then took the loaves, and\u00a0when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted.\u00a012\u00a0And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples,\u00a0\u201cGather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.\u201d\u00a013\u00a0So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten.\u00a014\u00a0When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said,\u00a0\u201cThis is indeed\u00a0the Prophet\u00a0who is to come into the world!\u201d<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n15\u00a0Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus\u00a0withdrew again to\u00a0the mountain by himself.<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\nJesus Walks on Water<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n16\u00a0When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea,\u00a017\u00a0got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.\u00a018\u00a0The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing.\u00a019\u00a0When they had rowed about three or four miles,\u00a0they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened.\u00a020\u00a0But he said to them,\u00a0\u201cIt is I; do not be afraid.\u201d\u00a021\u00a0Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.<\/sup>\u00a0<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\nBELIEVE IN JESUS AND LIVE<\/strong><\/p>\nGrace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.<\/p>\n
Believe.<\/p>\n
From the beginning of his earthly ministry, Jesus extends the invitation to believe.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe time is fulfilled,\u00a0and\u00a0the kingdom of God has come near;\u00a0repent,\u00a0and\u00a0believe\u00a0in the good news.\u201dMark 1:15<\/em><\/p>\nFor God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him might not perish, but might have eternal life. John 3:16<\/em><\/p>\nThe one who\u00a0believes\u00a0and\u00a0is\u00a0baptized\u00a0will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:16<\/em><\/p>\nThe evangelist John concludes his Gospel with these words:<\/p>\n
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book.\u00a031\u00a0<\/sup><\/strong>But these are written so that you may come to believe\u00a0that Jesus is the Messiah,\u00a0the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. John 20:30-31<\/em><\/p>\nJust as the Lord God of Israel did great signs and wonders among the people so that they might believe in God, staking their very lives on God\u2019s Word, so Jesus demonstrated God\u2019s mighty power so that people would believe in him as God\u2019s promised anointed Savior.<\/p>\n
What would make you believe someone is God?<\/p>\n
Would you believe it if he made the Great Wall of China disappear like David Copperfield?<\/p>\n
Would you believe it if he pulled a rabbit out of a hat?<\/p>\n
Jesus did not do parlor tricks or great feats of illusion.<\/p>\n
Being a magician, or a psychic, or an illusionist is not being God.<\/p>\n
Jesus demonstrated power in ways unique to God.<\/p>\n
Jesus did as God has always done \u2013 bringing life from death. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n- Sick people were dying until Jesus healed them.<\/li>\n
- Sinners were perishing until Jesus forgave them.<\/li>\n
- The disciples in the boat were scared to death until Jesus spoke his divine name \u201cI AM\u201d and brought them safely and miraculously to shore.<\/li>\n
- The multitudes were starving until Jesus fed them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Bringing life from death is something only God can do.<\/p>\n
We can kill ourselves, but we cannot conceive or birth ourselves.<\/p>\n
Only God<\/em> gives life. There is no other source of life.<\/p>\nWhere life is present, God is present.<\/p>\n
And where God is present, life happens.<\/p>\n
Giving and sustaining life is uniquely God\u2019s work.<\/p>\n
Thus, to extend the invitation to believe in him, Jesus does what God has always done to create faith: bring life into being. <\/strong><\/p>\nIn a sense, what Jesus does is not new:<\/p>\n
Through the prophets, God has healed people before, forgiven people, and even raised the dead.<\/p>\n
We heard a story today about the prophet Elisha feeding a hundred people with a small amount of food with some left over because the Lord said, \u2018They shall eat and have some left.\u2019 2 Kings 4:43<\/em><\/p>\nIn this case, it was not Elisha who did the sign, but the Word of the Lord.<\/p>\n
Elisha was not God.<\/p>\n
Jesus invites people to believe in him as God<\/em>. <\/strong><\/p>\nHe is Immanuel, God with us.<\/strong><\/p>\nUnlike Elisha, Jesus demonstrates his Godness by doing<\/em> the very sign;<\/p>\n\n- effecting it in himself.<\/li>\n
- giving thanks and breaking the bread and distributing it.<\/li>\n
- And finally, multiplying the food to fill twelve complete baskets after all had eaten and were satisfied.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
This meal gave life and gave it abundantly to thousands of people.<\/p>\n
God is at work here.<\/p>\n
And those people began to believe: When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, \u201cThis is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\nI wonder what they did after they went home that night?<\/p>\n
I wish the Bible would tell us more details about how people\u2019s lives changed after such encounters with Jesus as God.<\/p>\n
One thing we do know is that people wanted more of what Jesus was offering \u2013 more healing, more food.<\/p>\n
But believing in Jesus is more than just clamoring for his riches.<\/p>\n
It is trusting him for life itself.<\/p>\n
To believe in Jesus as God is to be open to receiving the humanly impossible.<\/strong><\/p>\nRemember the story of Jairus whose daughter was gravely ill?<\/p>\n
Jesus said to him, \u201cDo not fear, only believe.\u201d<\/p>\n
At Jesus\u2019 command, the girl got up from her deathbed and lived.<\/p>\n
Jairus was open to receiving the humanly impossible.<\/p>\n
Before he raised Lazarus from the dead, Jesus told Mary and Martha, Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God? John 11:40<\/em><\/p>\nTo believe in Jesus as God is to be open to receiving the humanly impossible.<\/strong><\/p>\nLike many people, I struggle with this aspect of faith.<\/p>\n
There are times when I pray for something, but at some level, I don\u2019t think God can do it.<\/p>\n
\n- Sometimes, I don\u2019t think I am worthy of that blessing.<\/li>\n
- Sometimes, I am just downright skeptical.<\/li>\n
- Sometimes, I am afraid that God\u2019s will is not what I want.<\/li>\n
- Or I think I am asking too much \u2013<\/li>\n
- or that it is too petty a thing for God.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
I often find myself praying the prayer of the blind man\u2019s father: \u201cLord, I believe \u2013 help my unbelief!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\nRemember, it is Jesus who said, \u201cfor God, all things are possible.\u201d Mark 10:37<\/em><\/p>\nTo believe in Jesus as God is to be open to receiving the humanly impossible.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n- Long ago, Jesus fed a multitude of thousands along the Sea of Galilee.<\/li>\n
- Today, Jesus feeds 2.4 billion Christians with his Body and Blood.<\/li>\n
- Today, Jesus raises the dead with forgiveness and heals the sick with mercy.<\/li>\n
- Today, Jesus invites us and all people to believe in him,\n
\n- risen from the dead to multiply life\n
\n- in us,<\/li>\n
- among us,<\/li>\n
- and through us in our world.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Let us watch each day for evidence that Jesus is present with God\u2019s abundant life.<\/p>\n
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, 21<\/sup>\u2006to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21<\/em><\/p>\nIn the name of the Father, and of the +Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.<\/p>\n
—<\/p>\n
\u00a9 The Rev. Beth A. Schlegel, STS<\/p>\n
pastorschlegel@live.com<\/em><\/p>\nSt. Peter\u2019s Lutheran Church<\/p>\n
York, Pennsylvania, USA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Tenth Sunday after Pentecost | 28 July 2024 |\u00a0John 6:1-21 | Beth Schlegel | Text: English Standard Version Copyright \u00a9\u00a02001 by Crossway Bibles (or other version) After this\u00a0Jesus went away to the other side of\u00a0the Sea of Galilee, which is\u00a0the Sea of Tiberias.\u00a02\u00a0And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6920,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39,474,157,334,853,108,110,250,349,3,109],"tags":[],"beitragende":[],"predigtform":[],"predigtreihe":[],"bibelstelle":[],"class_list":["post-20120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-johannes","category-10-so-n-trinitatis","category-beitragende","category-beth-a-schlegel","category-bibel","category-current","category-engl","category-kapitel-06-chapter-06","category-kasus","category-nt","category-predigten"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20120"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20120\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20121,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20120\/revisions\/20121"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6920"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20120"},{"taxonomy":"beitragende","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/beitragende?post=20120"},{"taxonomy":"predigtform","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/predigtform?post=20120"},{"taxonomy":"predigtreihe","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/predigtreihe?post=20120"},{"taxonomy":"bibelstelle","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bibelstelle?post=20120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}