We are continuing this series entitled: “No Turning Back.” Jesus, on many occasions during His ministry invited people to become His followers….and whenever He gave an invitation to follow, He tells them that they must take up their cross and follow Him.
Today I want to talk about people who had set out to follow Jesus, but these people had the wrong motive in mind. In this scenario, we're going to look at some people who were more concerned with the “bread", that is, the natural bread and they only followed Jesus in hopes that He would supply them with bread so that they wouldn't have to labor for it. And because of their fleshly desire to have natural bread supplied to them, they turned back, they lost out on the “Bread of Life” … they could have been “Breadwinners” but they became “Breadlosers.”
Our story begins in John 6 with the feeding of the 5000. The Bible says 5,000 men were fed that day…. Jesus fed them all with a small boy's lunch of five loaves…so you can imagine the thoughts of those who saw this great miracle and thought: “Wow!” If I hang out with Jesus, I can get free bread every day and I wouldn't have to labor and scratch out a living from the ground.
So, these would-be disciples are fantasizing about the concept of having bread supplied everyday…but Jesus is talking about the spiritual bread, His body, that would be given for them that would feed them spiritually and eternally. So, we have this scenario playing out, these wannabe followers with their priority on the natural bread and Jesus offering the spiritual bread. Would they be Breadwinners or Breadlosers?
John 6:26 Jesus answered them and said, “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. 27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”
But they couldn't accept the fact that He was the “Bread of Life “and they were too preoccupied with the bread of this world. They were invited to be “Breadwinners”, but instead chose to be “Breadlosers.”
John 6:66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
Jesus says to His 12 disciples: “What about you, are you going to turn back too?”
John 6:68 But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
So, the choice belongs to us. We can be a “Breadwinner” by accepting the sacrifice of Christ and putting our priority on the spiritual bread of Jesus or we can be a “Breadloser” by focusing on the bread of this world.
Join us in person on Sunday at 10:00 a.m. or via livestream by going to https://www.firstbaptistsudbury.com and clicking on livestream for “Breadwinner or Breadloser? ”
Blessings,
Kevin
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