Do We Want Jesus’ Gifts Or Jesus Himself

Tired of white-knuckling your way through the week? We open John 6 and watch Jesus move from a quiet hillside retreat to an unexpected feast and then into a midnight storm, revealing a pattern of grace that meets us when our strength runs out. With Pastor Carl guiding the journey, we connect the dots between Passover’s bread, a child’s meager lunch, and the true bread from heaven who satisfies more than appetite—he satisfies the soul.

We set the scene for a community shaped by Rome and scattered memories, where John names the Sea of Tiberias and writes to people who didn’t grow up fluent in temple life. That context sharpens the point: God breaks into ordinary places and anxious moments. Philip’s calculations and Andrew’s small spark show two honest ways we face impossible needs; Jesus answers with a quiet, abundant miracle that fills everyone and leaves twelve baskets for servants. Then comes a hard check on our impulses: the crowd tries to crown him, but Jesus refuses because he isn’t made king by our urgency—he already is. We explore how zeal can become control and why surrender leads to real change.

Night falls, the wind howls, and the boat strains. Jesus walks the waves, speaks peace, and the shore arrives the moment he’s welcomed in. We talk about fear, faith, and the grace that grabs us when we’re sinking—because sometimes the greatest miracle isn’t walking on water, it’s learning to call for help. Along the way, we highlight John’s eyewitness voice, the reason he wrote, and how his story invites us to notice and share our own intersections with God’s care.

If you need rest that lasts, hope that steadies, and a way to place your small offering into bigger hands, this message is for you. Listen, share it with someone who’s overwhelmed, and if it encouraged you, subscribe, leave a review, and tell us: where do you most need Jesus’ peace today?

Come On Up is the radio ministry of The Mountain Cross in Waynesville North Carolina. To learn more about us please visit: TheMountainCross.com. 

Transcript

Welcome And Theme Of Renewal

SPEAKER_01 0:05

Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, and we shall walk in his paths.

SPEAKER_00 0:13

Welcome to Come On Up, the radio ministry of the Mountain Cross in Waynesville, North Carolina.

SPEAKER_02 0:20

How often do you get a good vacation where you could just get away and slow down? Not to be lazy, but to regroup and to focus in on the Lord and what he wants to do, because we get so, I don't know about you, but I get so caught up in life and the things that are going on in the world, I just get overwhelmed. I could get depressed at times. But when you stand back and you look from the Lord's perspective at what's going on and what he wants to do in the midst of it all, he brings us encouragement and he builds us up so that we can keep on going.

Setting John 6 In History

SPEAKER_00 0:51

Everyone deserves a little time away from the daily grind and all those responsibilities. A peaceful, laid-back getaway, far from the hustle and bustle of work, is just what you need to avoid that burnout feeling. A vacation gives you the chance to recharge and dive back into your work with renewed energy. Even as a believer, there are moments when you might feel a bit worn out. Did you know that God has the power to recharge your spirit? Today, Pastor Carl shares how God's peace helps energize you. And now, here's Pastor Carl.

Sea Of Tiberias And Audience Context

Crowds, Compassion, And True Motives

Passover Frame And Bread From Heaven

Testing Philip And Earthly Solutions

The Lad’s Lunch And Faith Sparks

The Quiet Miracle Of Provision

Twelve Baskets And Servant Lessons

Prophet Expectation And Misplaced Kingship

SPEAKER_02 1:34

Well, let's get into a study of God's Word. We are in the book of John, and today we will be in John chapter 6. So if you have your Bibles, turn to John chapter 6, and we'll get right into our study. It says something like this After these things, Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. Interesting. So first, what what things? And how is this plays out? It's been about six months since Jesus and his disciples were down in Jerusalem for a feast. John didn't tell us which feast they were part of. There's something like five feasts every year, and you're required, and three of them are you required to go to. Yeah, that's where I was going. And that was one of them. Seven feasts. Perfect number. Seven feasts, and you got to go to at least three of them. And they were down for one of those. And uh during that time he had a little monologue with some of the Jewish leaders there, just describing who he is and why he was there. And if they knew God the Father, they would know him. If they knew Moses, which they they venerated, they worshiped. Moses, you know, Moses brought the law, and this is important. We are children of Moses. If you knew Moses, you would know me. And uh he didn't make a lot of friends. So he came back up to Capernaum, and so he was down in Jerusalem, which is south, and they came back up to Capernaum, which is their home base for ministry, probably out of Peter's house. And uh in other Gospels, we see, and we're talking gospels in the Word of God, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, we're not talking about the hidden secret gospels that are found. We're talking about gospels in the Bible. They report that people found him in Capernaum, and Jesus wanted to get away. And so he goes across the lake to this area here on the other side, the western side of the lake, which was a barren wilderness area where nobody is at, so that he could get away with his disciples and talk and pray about things, right? And then we see a bunch of people following him there. So that's the scene that is set. Now, when we started this book, I don't think I explained when it was written. I think I explained where it was written. John had relocated up to Ephesus and he lived there for quite a few decades. And as an elder in the church, he was one of the last at that time, and eventually was the last living disciple that that walked with Jesus, apostle that walked with Jesus, and he had stories to share. And I believe the Gospel of John was a compilation of all these stories that he went and shared with people about who Jesus was. But he wrote this somewhere between 90 and 110 A.D. 90 and 110. When are these events taking place? Around 30, 33 A.D., right? So you're talking at least, if you're going from 30 to 90, is that right? About 60 years have passed at the minimum, maybe even 70, and he's getting up to 100. You know, so in 90 A.D., do you remember an event that was rather large that happened in 70 AD? 70 A.D., Rome came in and destroyed Jerusalem. And so the believers and the Jews all scattered to other areas of the world. And many of them settled in the area too, and like John settled into Ephesus there, but a very secular area, very many religions at the same time being worshipped at the same time, and not a lot of you know Bible stuff. John was talking about this being the Sea of Tiberias. And the reason is because he's writing in 90 to 100 AD. He's writing to a group of people who don't have a whole lot of religious background and Judaism, although they might be Jews. They're influenced by the culture. You've got people that are young adults that are growing up that uh were not part of what happened there. They barely even remember the destruction of Jerusalem. And when Jerusalem was destroyed, Rome made the capital of that area Tiberius, which was a town that was conquered and reset up by Herod Antipas, I think it was like 17 A.D., and named after the Caesar at that time, Tiberias. And so after Jerusalem was destroyed and the influence of the Jews was kind of taken down, then they they kind of renamed the area, and that name of the sea changed from the Sea of Galilee to the Sea of Tiberias. So he's addressing this group of people that are uh alive at this time in Ephesus and other areas around that don't necessarily have a strong religious background in Judaism or Christianity, but there's some bloodline there, and he wants to just declare who Jesus is, because that's the most important thing, isn't it? Do you realize who Jesus is? He's our Savior of the Jews first, and then the Gentiles as well. And uh the next the next one here is then a great multitude followed him because they saw his signs which he performed on those who were diseased. And Jesus went up to the mountain and he sat there with his disciples, and as the other gospels say with the with the other people as well, and the people they came in the wilderness. They found him and they came in multitudes, and and he had compassion on them. He was trying to get away from them because he needed time to back up and he needed time with his disciples to regroup. We all need that time to back up and to refresh and to refocus. That's why the Sabbath is so important. That's why it's to physically take a day off and to focus on the things of the Lord. That's why a vacation is good every now and then, right? Once a year, once every five years? How many, how often do you get a good vacation where you could just get away and slow down, not to be lazy, but to regroup and to focus in on the Lord and what he wants to do, because we get so, I don't know about you, but I get so caught up in life and the things that are going on in the world, I just get overwhelmed. I could get depressed at times, but when you stand back and you look from the Lord's perspective at what's going on and what he wants to do in the midst of it all, he brings us encouragement and he builds us up so that we can keep on going. So they're coming to him, and it seems that this is like the peak of his popularity. There were crowds coming and crowds coming, and and you would almost think that he was like, Yeah, this is great. They're coming, and I'm ready to receive all the praise and the glory, but that's not his reaction, is it? His reaction is, you are coming to me, and we'll see this, but you're not coming to me for me. You're coming to me for the things that I bring. You're coming to me for the healing, you're coming to me for these things. And it's not wrong to come to Jesus to ask for a request, but how often do we come to Jesus asking him for stuff for ourselves, as opposed to, I want to know you more, I want to be changed by you more. Reveal my sin to me. How often do you ask that of the Lord? Search my heart, O God, and point out anything that's wicked within me, and then take it away, cleanse it by the power of your blood that was shed for me on the cross. So these people are coming. Jesus has compassion. He spends a lot of time healing folks and you know, meeting their needs. And then John picks up the narrative here in verse 4. Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. The feast of the Jews. This reminds me of going back to the Lake of Tiberias. Why didn't he just say our feast or the feast of the Lord? He says the feast of the Jews. So he's he's throwing in this little fact that the Passover meal was was happening pretty close from now. And um the context of the Passover, of course, is you remember, Moses took the people out of Egypt and set them free into uh the wilderness. Take them out of the slavery of Egypt into wilderness. And to get them out, this was the last curse that that God placed on Egypt. And in that curse, he would kill the firstborn. But part of what you would do is you would sacrifice a lamb and you put the blood over the doorpost of your house, and the angel of death would pass over your house. And then, of course, they would have the Passover meal every year after that to remember how God had set them free. And in the Passover meal, you had bread and you had wine, right? And which points to the Last Supper. But in this instance, he's focusing in on the bread, which was celebrated because of what happened in the wilderness, that God supernaturally provided some bread every morning for the people, and they called it manna, right? Which I believe the the interpretation of that in the e in the Hebrew means, what is it? You know, in a way, that's the way we can we can define it. What is it? They weren't sure what it was, but it was from heaven and it was it was good, and this is what they provided. And you'll see here as Jesus takes that, what they celebrate during the Passover and applies it to himself, because he is that bread that comes from heaven. All right, so in verse 5, when Jesus lifted up his eyes and he sees a great multitude coming toward him, he says to Philip, Where shall we buy bread that these may eat? And some believe he asked Philip because Philip uh originally came from that area that they were in. Do you know where we can get some food for these folks? And uh verse 6 says, But he said this to test them because he knew what he would do. He knew Jesus knew what Jesus was about to do, but he wanted to set some of his disciples up to see what he was going to do and test them. You know where are they? And and not much for his testing, but for the testing of Philip. When the Lord takes us through tests, it's not so the Lord can see how we're doing, it's so we can see how we're doing and how far from the righteousness of God we are, and how we need to depend on him more and more every day. Well, Philip answered him and he said, 200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little. You know, this kind of logical earthly thinking, which is not a bad thing to do, but but it shows the impossibility of this situation. He's saying, we don't, if we had this much money, we wouldn't we wouldn't even scratch the surface, let alone where am I gonna go to buy all this stuff right now and feed them right now? Basically, Phillips going, uh I don't know. It's impossible. But how often do we go toward money to fix problems? How often in Washington is the answer we just need to spend more money and that'll solve the problem. And how many of our problems are solved with the money that we spend? Very few. Jesus wants to show us that there's a deeper, more heavenly, more big picture approach to solving problems than just throwing money at the situation. And then in verse 8, one of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, Well, there's a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many? And I try to put myself in that situation to try to understand, you know, Andrew's approach. Was it like, whoa, he has a spark of inspiration? Here's a kid who has some food. But it's like, wait a minute. It's kind of like when Peter, well, we'll talk about a little bit here, goes out on the water and he's walking on the water until he realizes he's walking on the water and this doesn't compute, and then he sinks, right? It's kind of like the woman at the well, you know, uh, she says, Yeah, give me what you got, and uh, but you know, she didn't have you know a true belief in it. She had a little glimmer of hope, but it's like, no, this this doesn't work, it it doesn't make any sense. But it was something that God could use. Sometimes we have crazy ideas that God can use because he's placed them there for us to stumble upon sometimes. So when Andrew said this, it wasn't a bad thing that he said, but he just didn't see the big picture either, and and he gave up. Don't let your faith give up. If the Lord is light uh guiding you in a direction, keep going in that direction and say, Lord, I don't understand, but this is what I got and this is what I need. It doesn't add up, you've got to work. And that's really where it comes down to, doesn't it? When we realize that the Lord has to do the work. Our work doesn't do any good. His work is is eternal, his work is on our behalf, his work is holy, it's perfect, and and it and it meets the need. Well, and in verse 10, Jesus said, Make the people sit down. Now there was much grass in the place, so the men sat down and numbered about five thousand. So it looked like it was a comfortable spot, like a meadow on the coast there on the shore, and uh room for five thousand men, not to mention women and children. And Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to his disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down, and likewise the fish, as much as they wanted. Uh it was an amazing sight. And I would say this is another miracle that was kind of undershown. It wasn't a big deal. He didn't stand before them with a great sound system and says, I am now going to pray and do a miracle for you. I think the prayer was very simply, Father, I thank you for this food, and I ask that you would bless it and touch these lives. That he and his disciples heard him praying, but nobody else. And then he just started passing it out, and people started getting it. And people are going, Where'd this come from? Well, we're we're happy to get it. Wow, this these guys are pretty cool. They're providing all this food for us at this time. It was an unmiraculous miracle. It was very miraculous, but very few people actually saw the miracle. Many benefited from the miracle and knew something had happened, but they didn't see what was going on. But even so, they knew that Jesus did something. So uh they passed out all this in the crowds. God, as much as they wanted, they were filled, they were full. It was like a Thanksgiving dinner. Do you have Thanksgiving dinners where you're just like, wow, I just I can't eat any more, and there's so much still on the table? So when they were filled, he said to his disciples, gather up the fragments that remain so that nothing is lost. The Lord doesn't waste anything. The Lord is perfect in his provision. Therefore they gathered them up, and he filled twelve baskets of the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. Now there's another um feeding of a multitude of people, and there's another word for basket that is used there. This word for basket signifies a basket that's like a lunchbox-size basket. Actually, there's an implication that this basket is used for the servants, for the slaves, that they would get their portion because you want the slaves to have sustenance and you need to give them their portion, but it's in their time and in their way. And and there were twelve baskets that were filled for twelve disciples that were coming alongside, that were serving with the Lord, that were servants of the Lord. Paul calls himself a bond servant of Jesus Christ. Are you a servant of God? Are you are you a slave of God? Your will be done and not mine. And in this situation, they realized again what was going on, at least that Jesus was different. Then these men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus said, uh did, said, This is truly the prophet who is to come into the world. And that could apply to the disciples, and I'm sure it did apply. Yeah, this he really is the one. He really is the prophet. And again, we looked at this last a little bit. This refers to a prophecy that Moses had that said, There will be one that comes after me that's like me. It's a man that speaks on behalf of God, with the implication that this is the Messiah that we will be looking for. And now they're starting to apply it to Jesus, his disciples, and I believe it was the whole crowd. At some point they were going, This is the prophet, this is the one we've been waiting for. And because this is the one that we've been waiting for, let's make him the king. Wouldn't that be the right thing to do? If this is the king of kings and lord of lords, it'll be on the throne forever and ever. Let's put him on the throne, right? Well, what happens? Therefore, when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he departed again to the mountain by himself alone. So he kind of snuck his way out of the crowd. Because it's like, no, I don't want you to make me king. And why is that a problem? Because we don't make Jesus the king. He is the king. And if you remember when the the wise men came to visit the newborn king, Jesus, he's saying, Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? Jesus is already king. The position isn't fully in it realized, but he's already king, uh directed by God the Father. This is his will. We are to acknowledge, but not to twist around and make things happen. And oftentimes we tend to do that, don't we? In our prayers and our actions, we want God's will to be done. I think that's the problem that Judas had, where he had an idea who Jesus was going to be, and in betraying him, he would help Jesus force him to do what he needs to do to be elevated into that king into that position. A lot of commentators believe that's some of his motivation. But that didn't work, did it? Because it wasn't according to God's will, it wasn't according to the Father's will, but it was my will, Judas's will, your will, in trying to manipulate the situation to have Jesus do what you want him to do or think that he should do. Instead of saying, Lord, we realize who you are, and we we humbly serve you, and we ask you to empower us to do what we need to do next. Because it's we need you to do it in and through us. Well, in verse 16, evening came, and the disciples went down to the sea, got into the boat, and went over the sea towards Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come yet to them. And then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing, and so when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat, and they were afraid. But he said to them, It is I, do not be afraid. Then they willingly received him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at land where they were going. Amazing. Now John encapsulates this story a little bit that other gospel writers kind of expand a little more on it. Other gospel writers we see that Jesus watches them the whole way. As he's praying on the mountain, he could see where they're going. He told them to go ahead of him while he went to the mountain to pray. And then when uh these the storms came up and it was time for him to join them again, he was walking on the water. And some thought that he was a ghost, another version says. Another version even says uh basically he was going to walk past them and and meet them on the other side was the implication, but they called out to him to come. And then the big story, of course, is Peter, who sees him and says, If you are who you are, tell me to come out. And uh I was listening to a commentator, to a pastor that was teaching on this, and we joke about Peter having foot and mouth disease, but this guy even says, Peter is like the ready, shoot, aim. That's that's his modus apparendi, right? You aim afterwards. But you know, God uses that. He said, Come on, come on out, the water's fine. It's the middle of a storm, the ship is going up and down, and the waves are coming. Peter jumps out and he's walking on the water, and then he realizes what was going on and and he sinks. And the real miracle in that is that Peter calls out to the Lord. Peter realizes that he cannot do anything in his own strength to save his life at this point. So he cries out to the Lord Jesus, Jesus, you're my only hope. Would you save me? And Jesus pulls him out. And we can take confidence in that. When we call out to the Lord, when we're sinking, and we know he is our only hope, he is so glad to pull us out because he knows that is our plight. Because we can do nothing without him. We could do nothing that's eternal, nothing that that is righteous. We could do plenty of things that continue this idea of sin and the fall in the world. But when we realize we're hopeless and we need Jesus, that's the place he wants us to get to. So he can lift us up and give us a new life and give us new hope.

Walking On Water And Fear To Faith

SPEAKER_00 24:07

That's Pastor Carl on Come On Up. You know, the Gospel of John was written by one of Jesus' original disciples. He's referred to as the disciple whom Jesus loved. What a sweet and intimate way to refer to the closeness and friendship that was had between John and Jesus. After all, so many of the events mentioned were witnessed firsthand by John. He was there for the transfiguration, and he was the only disciple of the twelve mentioned to be at the cross as Jesus died. He was also one of the first people to see that the grave was empty. John had an opportunity and a privilege to write about all the things that he saw and witnessed with his own eyes. He saw miracles. He was the recipient of Jesus' love and care, and he was eager for others to see and experience knowing Jesus too. That's why he wrote it all down in this wonderful book of John. Like the author, we hope that you'll take note of the ways that God has intersected your life and brought about amazing stories to tell. Write them down, share them with others, and don't be afraid to tell people about the greatest love of all, so that they can also claim that they are disciples whom Jesus loves. An easy way to share Jesus with people is by letting them know about this radio program. The Mountain Cross is a group of believers in Jesus who seek to grow in faith by simply teaching through the Bible. We meet on Sundays beginning at 10 a.m. To learn more, go to themountaincross.com. That's all for today. Come on Up is sponsored by The Mountain Cross, a Calvary Chapel fellowship.