Wednesday after the First Sunday after the Epiphany of our Lord
Posted on January 10, 2024 by under
Scripture: St. John 6:28-40 (NKJV)
6:28 Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”
29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”
30 Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”
35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. 40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
Devotion
It is interesting to see the questions of the crowd in our reading today. The crowd asks our Lord what sign would He provide so they may believe Him. Remember, this is the same crowd of five thousand that were miraculously fed by Jesus earlier in the chapter. Was that sign not enough? This is why Jesus says in verse 22, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.”
The crowd was not interested in believing the Gospel; they wanted to be satisfied. Jesus tells them that He is the Bread of Life, yet they complain. When someone asks why God won’t reveal Himself so that everyone will believe, point to this passage of Scripture. How many times does our Lord Jesus Christ have to show these signs of who He is before it is enough for those who refuse to believe?
The truth is that all of us have been stubborn and slow to believe the Lord’s Word. This is why the Holy Ghost must change our hearts and minds so that we can come to Christ and have faith. Faith is a gift. As the Lord says, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.”
Collect: O Lord, we beseech Thee mercifully to receive the prayers of Thy people who call upon Thee; and grant that they may both perceive and know what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfill the same; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
