Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

“Stop Grumbling” — They were trying to sort out what Jesus was saying among themselves.

They thought they could figure out the revelation of God apart from the Holy Spirit…apart from the Father giving them understanding of what they had heard.

They were upset that Jesus had said He was from Heaven…they knew he was born in Nazareth and had moved to Capernaum.

They knew Joseph, Mary and Jesus’ family so how could He say He was from heaven?

“Stop Grumbling” — They were trying to sort out what Jesus was saying among themselves.

They thought they could figure out the revelation of God apart from the Holy Spirit…apart from the Father giving them understanding of what they had heard.

Sometimes we need to hear this loud and clear…we are not going to figure it out!

We are not God!

No One Can Come to Me Unless — One of the great doctrines of Christianity is Divine initiative.

God takes the initiative to save us and the first step in that process is to awaken us to His revelation…the revelation concerning who we are (sinners), who He is (God), who Jesus is (our savior) and how we might have a relationship with Him (salvation by grace through faith).

Mankind can never learn, discern or conclude genuine truth about God apart from God’s decision to make it known to us.

This ‘telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication.

The device is inherently of no value to us.” – Western Union internal memo, 1876.

“So we went to Atari and said, ‘Hey, we’ve got this amazing thing, even built with some of your parts, and what do you think about funding us?

Or we’ll give it to you.

We just want to do it.

Pay our salary, we’ll come work for you.’

And they said, ‘No.’

So then we went to Hewlett-Packard, and they said, ‘Hey, we don’t need you.

You haven’t got through college yet.'”

– Apple Computer Inc. founder, Steve Jobs, on attempts to get Atari and H-P interested in his and Steve Wozniak’s personal computer.

“So we went to Atari and said, ‘Hey, we’ve got this amazing thing, even built with some of your parts, and what do you think about funding us?

Or we’ll give it to you.

We just want to do it.

Pay our salary, we’ll come work for you.’

And they said, ‘No.’

So then we went to Hewlett-Packard, and they said, ‘Hey, we don’t need you.

You haven’t got through college yet.'”

– Apple Computer Inc. founder, Steve Jobs, on attempts to get Atari and H-P interested in his and Steve Wozniak’s personal computer.

This ‘telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication.

The device is inherently of no value to us.” – Western Union internal memo, 1876.

But it isn’t just what we can’t figure out with the faculties and brains God gave us…scripture says that before God took the initiative to save us we were dead!

To put this another way…a dead man cannot respond and is oblivious to any outside stimuli.

He is inanimate and incapable of any type of self awareness.

This is where we are spiritually speaking before God intervenes on our behalf.

God, as an act of grace, awakens within us spiritual awareness and teaches us spiritual truth which results in our salvation.

As one theologian put it, “ it is by an insight, a teaching, an illumination implanted within the individual, in fulfillment of the Old Testament promise”

Jesus loosely quotes here when He says...

it is by an insight, a teaching, an illumination implanted within the individual, in fulfillment of the Old Testament promise

God teaches us…His Spirit illuminates the Word.

Carson, D. A. (1991).

The Gospel according to John (p.

293).

Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans.

We would never come to Christ on our own…never understand, figure out or even know about His salvation apart from Him drawing us to Himself.

I will raise Him Up — There is coming a day of resurrection…Can we talk about that for just a second?

All around us we see people living in despair.

Just this week I heard the suicide rate is up 25% in our country.

People are without hope…any expectation of something good in their future.

Jesus has given us His Spirit…relationship with Him…we have it pretty good right now!

But we have a future and that future is one of life without end.

Literally our body is going to rise from the grave and will never again be touched with pain, sickness or death!

Those who come to Jesus have the beauty of life in Him right now and hope of resurrection and life with Him forever to come!

No One Has Seen The Father Except — Jesus is the mediator of all revelation from God.

We interpret all revelation by and through the person of Jesus Christ…anything we think is from God MUST agree with the revelation of Jesus in the Scriptures or it is not true..

Jesus is the only one who has been to heaven and He is the one with the ultimate authority to tell us what is and is not from there!

More Paradox and Tension

He who believes has everlasting life — Again another reference to a perceived choice in the matter…We know God’s revelation of Himself happens at His initiative…the offering of an opportunity or choice in light of this revelation is also a product of His initiative and a matter of His sovereignty.

Any choice we may have in life is given to us from God…the only reason we have such is because He has chosen to give it.

We can take no credit for it and have no pride for the opportunity.

These folks had been looking for physical bread…anyone who eats physical bread or mana will get hungry again and again and again…and even if well fed will eventually die a physical death.

I am the Bread of Life — Jesus is the real bread…He is the bread from heaven which completely satisfies spiritual hunger...resulting in eternal life for all who would feast on Him.

If Anyone Eats of this bread — Jesus was going to give His flesh as a sacrifice for the sins of the world.

Not just for Jews but for the whole world.

Jews and Gentiles alike would be given this opportunity.

Jesus is the Savior of all who would believe

There had to be a sacrifice…an atoning sacrifice and His physical body would be that...

This bread is my flesh — Jesus was going to give His body…He would lay it down…and all who would consume His body…partake of it by faith…would be saved…their hunger satisfied

We believe on God’s terms.

We are not doing Him any favors should we believe!

He is sufficient in Himself…He does not need us in order to be complete.

He has simply chosen us as an expression of His love.

Belief is a gift, choice is a gift and any receipt of the gift of God is a matter of grace resulting in eternal life.

Once upon a time there was a grand chess master who was bereft of ego and pride.