What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?

 

 "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."  Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."  

 

Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You?  What work will You do?  Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"  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.  For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."  

 

Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."  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.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.

 

"All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.  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.  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."

 

- John 6:27-40 

 

Yesterday we read that, when evening came (after the feeding of the five thousand), His disciples went down to the sea, got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum.  And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them.  Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing.  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 the land where they were going.  On the following day, when the people were standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except that one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away alone -- however, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks -- when the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.  And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?"  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.  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."

 

  "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."  Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent." Our reading continues from yesterday, repeating Christ's statement to this crowd who has been fed in the wilderness, chased after Him to make Him king by force (which Jesus evaded), and now followed Him to Capernaum.  He teaches them not to labor for perishable food, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which only He can give.  They follow with a logical question, part of the ways in which John's Gospel uses misunderstandings and overlapping earthly and spiritual meanings:  "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  And Jesus responds with a teaching about faith, that to believe, to do the work of faith in Christ, is work the works of God:  "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent." 

 

 Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You?  What work will You do?  Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"  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.  For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."  The people then move on to the next question; they want a sign so they can believe, so they can "work the works of God."  Jesus moves them to a new place, the true bread from heaven.  And what, or we should say, Who is that true bread from heaven?  It is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.  It is Christ Himself, the Son of Man.

 

 Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."  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.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.   Finally, answering their demand for this bread, Jesus explicitly claims, "I am the bread of life."  Nonetheless, they still do not believe.  

 

"All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me."   My study Bible comments here, regarding the will of Christ, that since Christ has two natures (human and divine), He has two wills -- the divine will and a human will.  At the Sixth Ecumenical council, held at Constantinople (AD 680-681), it was proclaimed that these two wills of Christ do not work contrary to one another, but rather "His human will follows, not resisting nor reluctant, but subject to His divinity and to His omnipotent will."  Jesus' statements here build upon and amplify what He has taught earlier when disputing with the religious authorities:  "I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me" (John 5:30).

 

"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.  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."  And here Jesus explains the will of the Father who sent Him, that of everything that belongs to Christ -- that the Father has given Him -- He should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.  How are we His?  How do we make that connection to what is eternal and everlasting?  Through faith, through belief in the Son who was sent.

We observe the teachings of Christ, as He moves from "earthly" subjects to divine ones.  He does this through His answers to the questions and demands of the crowd, whom He's fed in the wilderness with earthly food multiplied through divine power, and they now want more.  We keep in mind they wanted to make Him king by force, so much do they desire the life they imagine He can provide for them, through the sign of the feeding in the wilderness.  They do not truly know Him, do not understand Him, nor do they understand what He offers, but nonetheless He explains and He teaches them.  He is the One who was sent by the Father, the Son of Man, as He referred to Himself in yesterday's reading.  That is, the One upon whom, He said, the Father had set His seal.  Within that seal, within the Name of God, there is one "will" which Jesus does.  There is one power, which Jesus honors through doing the works the Father asks Him to reveal to the world.  But for we human beings, we might ask what is the key to belonging to that will ourselves, to that divine power working even through One who is sent to us as fellow human being?  The key is faith, belief -- that we believe in the One who was sent.  So let us think about faith in Christ, which Jesus says is how we "work the works of God."  It is faith that links us to Christ, and in turn we are then part of what the Father has "given" to Him, part of what will be raised up with Him, part of that "bread of heaven which is unto everlasting life.  It is faith that connects us.  But what does faith entail?  What does it mean?  How is it a work?  Does faith simply mean that we intellectually choose something, or swear to it, or participate in a code?  Or does faith really ask more of us?  Faith, in the Greek of the Scriptures, is a word whose root means "trust."   So to have faith in Christ is to trust in Him -- and that necessarily means all the works, choices, actions, decisions that follow when our trust is there.  To trust implies something more deep than to believe, because we tend so often to separate various intellectual choices into different categories, and apply them to different circumstances in our lives.  But to trust in something means we rest ourselves there, we place ourselves on that rock, and our security is there.  So to trust in Christ in this way implies an entirety of our being, and our subsequent way of life.  It means that we belong -- and there we return to Christ's words:  "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."  When we trust in Him, we belong to that which is given to Christ by the Father, for this is what forms connection and belonging.  We trust to Him, to the bread of heaven.  So, we may become children by adoption, part of a bigger family than we know, the family of the Father and the Son.  Let us ponder these mysteries, for we may participate in them, and "work the works of God."

 

 

 

 

 

 

As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world

 

 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to this pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."

 

- John 9:1-17 

 

In our recent readings, Jesus is attending the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem, and it is the final year of His earthly life.  He has been disputing with the Pharisees and others among the religious leaders.  In yesterday's reading, He told them, "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."  Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon!  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.'  Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?  And the prophets are dead.  Who do You make Yourself out to be?"  Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.  Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him.  And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."  Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

 

  Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."  Today's reading gives us the sixth sign of seven recorded in the Gospel of John.  Let us note first that this man was blind from birth.  Of all the miracle stories in the Bible, my study Bible says, this is the only one in which the person was blind from birth.  Here Jesus also rejects the assumption, which was common in the ancient world, that all troubles and maladies are necessarily the consequence of personal sin or even the sins of one's parents (see Exodus 20:5, Deuteronomy 5:9; contrast with Ezekiel 18:19-21).  Although suffering can be the direct result of personal sin, my study Bible reminds us, this is most certainly not always the case.  In this particular instance, the man's blindness provides the occasion for the works of God to be revealed, and was not related directly to the man's (nor his parents') personal sins.

"I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work."  My study Bible comments that the work that people do consists of faith (John 6:29), good deeds (John 5:29), and repentance (John 12:40).   It says that the night that comes refers both to the time after a person's death and also to the age to come, when there is no longer an opportunity to express faith.  On that day, according to St. John Chrysostom, there will not be faith, but all will submit, whether willingly or unwillingly.  

"As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  We should recall that, as Jesus is at the Feast of Tabernacles, this is the last, eighth day of that feast.  On this day the great lamps were illumined at night in an outer courtyard of the temple, a commemoration of the pillar of fire which guided the Israelites at night as they followed Moses.  These huge oil lamp menorahs burned so brightly and with so much fire that they illumined great sections of Jerusalem at night.  In this context, Jesus makes this claim, and will go on to bring "light" and sight in an unprecedented way to the eyes of one who was born blind as a manifestation of what is true for all of us. 

 

When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  My study Bible notes the commentary of St. Irenaeus, who sees in this mixture of clay and saliva a type of the creation of humanity from the earth (Genesis 2:7).  It says that Christ reveals His divinity by restoring part of creation using the same material with which He created humanity in the beginning.

 

 And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to this pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."  The pool of Siloam was on the outskirts of Jerusalem, so Jesus has directed this man to go a considerable distance from the temple.  Water was taken from this pool for the rites which were connected to the Feast of Tabernacles, to purify the altar and as remembrance of the water flowing from the rock struck by Moses (Exodus 17:1-7).  Siloam, translated Sent, is a symbol of Christ, the One sent by the Father (John 5:36, 20:21).  As the healing of this blind man confirms Christ's claim to be the light of the world (John 8:12), so also, my study Bible comments, His making use of the pool of Siloam confirms that He is the true purification of the temple and those who worship in it. 

 

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."  My study Bible notes that just as the Pharisees had ignored the healing of the paralytic and focused only the perceived violation of the Sabbath (in John 5:10-16), here many of them cannot see the glory of God through their own prejudices. 

Today's reading gives us the sixth sign of seven in John's Gospel, the restoration of sight to a man born blind.  My study Bible says that this man is symbolic of all of humanity:  all need illumination by Christ, who is the Light of the world.  It says that this sign is an illustration of baptism, which is also called "holy illumination."   We get other suggestions of baptism in the reading as well, as the man is told to go wash his eyes in the pool of Siloam (meaning "Sent"), the waters of which were also used in the temple ceremony at the Feast of Tabernacles for purification of the altar.  There are ties between baptism and this pool also in addition to its aspects of purification, in the context of restoration and rebirth.  The pool was used for ceremonies commemorating the water flowing from the rock struck by Moses.  But Christ has already taught that, "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38).  This living water is the Holy Spirit, which grants a rebirth in baptism, and ongoing regeneration.   Therefore in the granting of sight to the man blind from birth, we see a kind of baptism, of illumination as well as the Lord's gift of the Holy Spirit to the faithful.  Christ as Lord is also clear in the symbolism of the clay made from earth and His saliva.  We know that figures of clay were made into false idols, supposedly given life in pagan ceremonies, but dead and lifeless.  It is only the Lord who can give life, and it is He who through the clay gives life more abundantly to the blind man, illumination in the restoration of his sight.  The magnificent lamps of the temple courtyard illumine Jerusalem in commemoration of the pillar of fire that went before the Israelites as they followed Moses.  Here, the healed blind man grasps for an understanding of who Jesus is, and tells the people who question him that Jesus must be a prophet.  But He is more than a prophet, and this we know, and the blind man, in his ongoing illumination on a number of levels, will also come to know.  Christ is the Lord who sent the pillar of fire to illumine the way for Israel through the darkness, and He is the light who shines in the darkness for us (John 1:5).  In all of these ways, we can come to understand the symbolism present, which, particularly to ancient eyes, and throughout the understanding of the Church, is a means whereby we perceive the poetry of God, the meanings and substance that echoes and manifest through these images.  Let us consider their powerful message, and seek Christ's light for ourselves -- and to live out the promise of our baptism.  We should note how Christ leads the disciples with His light shed on the man's blindness from birth.  Moreover, as the Cross will be transfigured by His Passion, so this man's blindness becomes occasion for the works of God.  Let us seek that same light that transfigures our lives and our own circumstances, and gives us insight into things we are otherwise blind to.

 

 

As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world

Pantocrator, 14th century.  National History Museum, Sophia, Bulgaria.  Gospel Book is open to John 8:12, Christ's first declaration that He is the light of the world

 Now as Jesus passed by, he saw a man who was blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."

- John 9:1-17

In our recent readings, Jesus has been at the Feast of Tabernacles, and eight-day festival commemorating the time when Israel lived in tents, or tabernacles, as they followed Moses searching for the promised land.  (John 7:1-10:21 covers the period of events which take place while Jesus is at this Festival in Jerusalem.)  At this point, it is the eighth and final day of the Festival, and Jesus has been disputing with the leadership.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus said to them, "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."  Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon!  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.'  Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?  And the prophets are dead.  Who do You make Yourself out to be?"  Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.  Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him.  And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."  Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

 Now as Jesus passed by, he saw a man who was blind from birth.   John chapter 9 concerns the story of the healing of this man who was blind from birth.  It gives us the sixth of seven signs in the Gospel.  Why is this of significance?  My study bible tells us that of all the miracle stories in the Bible, this is the only one in which the person was blind from birth.  The blind man, it says, is symbolic of all humanity.  All need illumination by Christ, who is the Light of the world.  It adds that this sign is an illustration of baptism, which is also called "holy illumination."

And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."  My study bible comments here that Jesus rejects the assumption (which was common in the ancient world) that all troubles and even illness are the result of personal sin or possibly the sins of one's parents (see Exodus 20:5; Deuteronomy 5:9; contrast Ezekiel 18:19-21).  Although suffering can directly occur as the result of personal sin, it is clearly not always the case.  Here, the man's blindness is not only denied by Christ to be related to his (or his parents') personal sins.   Jesus takes it a glorious step further; this is an occasion for the works of God to be revealed.

"I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work."   My study bible tells us that the work that people do consists of faith (6:29), good deeds (5:29), and repentance (12:40).  The night that comes is a reference to both the time after a person's death and to the age to come, in which there no longer remains an opportunity to express faith.  My study bible cites the commentary of St. John Chrysostom, who says that on that day there will not be faith, but rather all will submit, whether willingly or unwillingly.

"As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."   The healing of the man born blind, unprecedented in Scripture, is seen to confirm Jesus' claim that He is the light of the world.

When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  My study bible comments that St. Irenaeus sees in this mixture of clay and saliva a type of the creation of humanity from the earth (Genesis 2:7).  It notes that Jesus reveals His divinity by restoring part of creation using the same material with which He created humanity in the beginning.

And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."   My study bible says that the pool of Siloam was on the outskirts of Jerusalem, and quite a distance from the temple.  Water was taken from this pool for the rites connected with the Feast of Tabernacles (which Jesus is attending in Jerusalem).  Siloam, translated, Sent, is symbolic of Christ, the One sent by the Father (6:36; 20:21), and who has taught that "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" (7:38).  My study bible says that just as the healing of the blind man is a confirmation of Christ's claim to be the light of the world (8:12), so also Christ using this pool of Siloam confirms that He is the true purification of the temple and of those who worship in it.  

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."  My study bible comments that, just as the Pharisees ignored the healing of the paralytic and focused only on the perceived violation of the Sabbath (in chapter 5:10-16), so here many of them cannot see the glory of God through their own prejudices.

Looked at from a particular viewpoint, this healing of the man born blind is a type of prefiguration of Christ's Passion, death, and Resurrection.  In the Crucifixion, the action of Christ takes a supremely evil thing and turns it to the good.  There is nothing "good" that we can say about crucifixion:  it was designed to give a slow and agonizing death.  But through the action of Christ, what was an unjust sentence of horrific punishment was transformed to a key to salvation for the whole of creation.  It is the power of God not only to renew, but to transform, even to produce good out of the effects of evil.  In today's reading, Jesus takes a man blind from birth, and in His viewpoint and perspective, something obviously hurting to human beings is transformed.  In the ancient viewpoint, as my study bible pointed out, and as the question of the disciples suggests to us, such an affliction was seen a the result of sin -- either of that person's sin or even of his or her parents.  But Christ completely transforms everything about this affliction.  Not only does He declare it has nothing to do with personal sin as a cause, but it is in fact an occasion for the glorification of God.   Regardless of the great achievements of people who have been afflicted with blindness in modern times, their tremendous capacities for fullness of life in all ways, we would not really presume that loss of sight was purely -- in and of itself alone -- a good thing for human beings.  But Jesus pronounces this an opportunity, an occasion for something tremendous to take place.  In that sense, the healing of this man and the restoration of his sight is not just an illumination for him, for one individual, but it is an illumination for all of us about the power of God, the character of God, and the renewing power that accompanies God's work in us.  We may not each experience the kind of miraculous healing that is on display in today's reading, the sixth of the seven signs given of Christ's divinity in the Gospel of John.  But nevertheless, the power of God rests within each of our own afflictions as possibilities for renewal and transcendence, even transformation of our lives and the conditions of our lives.  Jesus at once pronounces this man and his family innocent, freeing them of blame and condemnation of the popular understanding of the time -- and instead pronounces the blindness to be an occasion for the works of God to be manifest in the world.  What would our lives be like if every setback, every affliction, every problem became in our own sight an occasion for the glory of God as possibility to manifest?  What if every negative, hurtful, harmful diminution of capacity in our lives became for us an unprecedented opportunity to pray for renewal, and to find it in one way and another?  While we may not have our prayers answered in such a direct way as does the man in today's reading, we might find that hidden in every affliction, no matter what its nature, is some secret potential which can be tapped into through our faith.   A lost job becomes a possible opportunity to re-gear and reflect, offering more time for prayer and a greater development of spiritual resilience.    A friend's wrist injury rendered him unable to pursue his building project, but opened up an opportunity to write the story which had been persistently nagging at him to write down.  A setback in a vocal career became an opportunity to walk a deeper walk with God, an occasion for discovery of deeper waters and truer reality and acceptance of the self.  In so many ways, our walk with God gives us opportunities for the work of God through our own lives, our setbacks, and our struggles.  It is, in my opinion, not a mistake to cultivate such an attitude to anything that seems as if it limits us.  Jesus not only reveals the blamelessness of this man and his parents, but in so doing also conveys the very freedom of the truth of God which awaits our faith, where everything is an opportunity, even what looks like something hard, unjust, unwanted.  Let us consider the power of God who works in and through us.  That is what Christ came into the world to reveal, the light He gives to us so that we may truly see.

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

 "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."  Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."  Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You?  What work will You do?  Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'  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.  For the bread of God is He who comes down from the heaven and gives life to the world."  Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."

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.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.  All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.  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.  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."

- John 6:27-40

Yesterday we read that when evening came (after the feeding in the wilderness), His disciples went down to the sea, got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum.  And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them.  Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing.  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 the land where they were going.  On the following day, when the people who were standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except the one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away alone -- however, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks -- when the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.  And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?"  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.  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."

 "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."  Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."  Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You?  What work will You do?  Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'  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.  For the bread of God is He who comes down from the heaven and gives life to the world."  Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."  We see the point of view of the people:  they are impressed by signs and power, but moreover they especially look to Christ because of the bread with which He fed them when they were hungry.  But Christ tries to turn their minds to faith.  When they ask, What shall we do, that we may work the works of God? Jesus enforces purely a "work of faith," so to speak:  This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.   Yet again, they demand a tangible sign in order to do so.  They quote from Scripture, Exodus 16:4, Nehemiah 9:15, Psalm 78:24-25, regarding the bread from heaven.   Jesus points back to the Father, the true source of the bread from heaven, and Himself as that very bread of God.

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.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.  All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.  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.  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."   Once again, even in declaring Himself to be the bread of life, Christ emphasizes the unity between Himself and the Father.  It is those whom the Father gives Him that He seeks.   He is the bread of life come down from heaven, not to do His own will but the will of the Father.   My study bible notes here that since Christ has two natures, He has two wills -- the divine will and a human will.  At the Sixth Ecumenical Council, held at Constantinople in 680-681, it was proclaimed that these two wills of Christ do not work contrary to one another, but that "His human will follows, not resisting nor reluctant, but subject to His divinity and to His omnipotent will."   Jesus emphasizes the will of the Father, which directs all that He Himself does as Son of God and Son of Man:  the bread of life must lose nothing which the Father has given Him but rather raise it up; that is, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.

When Jesus speaks of everlasting life, one can't help but remember the stories of Jesus' Resurrection and the associated appearances to the disciples before His Ascension into heaven.  Jesus speaks of raising up all that the Father has given Him.   What does this mean?  We think of "all that the Father has given Him" as all those who are believers.  But reviewing the stories of the risen Christ who appeared to the disciples, we may expand our perspective on what this means.  In chapter 20, it is Mary Magdalene who first sees the risen Christ (20:14-18).  The quite odd and striking thing about this story is that she doesn't recognize Him, until He calls her name.  This gives us a clue that this isn't just the Jesus who's had a ministry in Israel, but rather Christ who is preparing to ascend into heaven, in a different kind of body that is more than His human body.  Next He appears to the disciples (20:19-29), and the text tells us specifically that He showed them His hands and His side (verse 20).  Then, in order to "hammer home" (so to speak) the point, the text tells us that Thomas had not been there when Christ made His appearance to His disciples, and Thomas specifically says, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe" (verse 25).  After eight days, John tells us, Jesus appeared again to them all, and tells Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing" (verse 27).  All of this is to explicitly emphasize that the experiences of the human Christ are also raised in His Ascension.  We can specifically conclude that "all that [the Father] has given Me" includes not simply our persons as believers, but also those experiences and actions in the world that go with us as we have sought to live our faith.  Let us consider all that the Father gives Him.  The Greek word for "all" in the text doesn't mean every person; it is a word that means everything. It is my view that the Gospel is teaching us that nothing is lost of life lived in faith.  Everything touched by faith in Christ has life in it, is given life, because it becomes a part of the substance of truth.  Therefore this bread of life becomes something that conveys life to the world in the broadest and deepest sense.  What it touches in faith becomes imbued with an essence in the way that the Eucharist is a "super-essential" bread for the new day of the Lord.  Christ, as the bread of heaven, has the power to imbue all things with life -- even as the Church testifies historically to the holiness not just of persons but even of objects which have been touched by those working in faith.  What is touched by Christ and used within the Body of Christ is endowed with a capacity for life that is more than a worldly understanding of life, and this of course is a picture of the Eucharist itself.  We can't really fathom these mysteries.  We don't know Christ's Ascended life, and we can't imagine even the worldly capacities of holy people and holy things, and what life is carried through faith and what it can do.  But we may have the testimonies of people whose lives have been touched by Christ who is the bread of life, who have experienced "more" than the life they knew, their own personal experiences of a resurrection in their own lives:  a second chance, a new identity given through faith, and maybe the most potent of all -- a changed experience of life itself, a transformed and transcendent gift they could not have imagined was a possibility.  Through faith we may find a strength we didn't think we had the capacity for, a new start and new hope in what seemed like a hopeless circumstance, a new day in what was a sea of darkness.  We just don't know what the life He holds for us can give -- our worldly perspective not capable of discerning all the possibilities of the life He offers.     The powerful life Christ has to give isn't only about the fact that we breathe and have consciousness; it is also what we do in faith, our experience of living with His love and acting in His name.  Even -- if we believe the story of His appearance to the disciples -- our suffering for our faith will be a part of what is raised with us.  Let us consider the power of His life that He offers to us, and all that it may mean for our worldly capacity to truly live the life of the Kingdom, even here and now.

I do not receive honor from men. But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you

 "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.  If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

- John 5:30-47

In yesterday's reading, Jesus responded to accusations from the leadership after healing a man on the Sabbath.  Specifically, they were outraged at His statements of equality with the Father.   Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.  For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.  For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.  For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father.  He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.  Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.  Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, then the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.  For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.  Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth -- those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."

"I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me."  Here my study bible points out that the divine will is common to the three Persons of the Trinity -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- for all fully share the same divine nature.  When the Son says that He obeys the Father, this refers to His human will, which the Son assumed at His Incarnation.  Christ freely aligned His human will in every aspect with the divine will of the Father -- and so sets an example for us that we are to do likewise.

If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of  God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"  In this section, Jesus offers to the authorities four witnesses to His identity as Son and Messiah.  (He anticipates the thoughts and arguments of these men in saying, "If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true."  See also Luke 4:23 for a similar anticipation.  Of course His witness is true.  But they do not believe Him, so He is offering other witnesses.)  In Jewish tradition, a valid testimony requires two witnesses (Deuteronomy 17:6).  Jesus offers four.  In order of reference in these verses they are John the Baptist, the works the Father has given Christ to do, the Father Himself, and the Old Testament Scriptures through which Moses and others gave testimony to Him.

Jesus offers four witness to His identity.  But He also anticipates that these men will not believe those witnesses either.  Why?  There's a powerful thread running through this passage that speaks to us about the nature of faith itself.  Jesus says, "I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of  God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?"  According to what Jesus is saying, the love of God creates a connection that gives us a kind of understanding, a perception of those who also have this love in them.   Jesus contrasts this with those who receive honor from men.   There is such an important emphasis here that it is essential that we try to understand what He's saying.  What does it mean when He says, "I do not receive honor from men"?  To receive honor from men is perhaps a statement about a purely worldly perspective.  Jesus says that if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  In other words, if it is a worldly glory alone one focuses on, then we'll miss the honor that comes from God.  He implies that there is a choice to be made here.  He doesn't diminish actions and achievements in the world, but rather He focuses in on the choice we make in terms of what gives us value.   In whose honor do we place our trust?  By whose word do we live?  The focus on personal glory is a self-centered perspective rather than a Godly perspective.  It is one that turns away the basic love of God in the heart for a different, limited, self-centered focus.  And in this Jesus divides those who can perceive Him and those who cannot.  It begins with that basic choice within ourselves, and so much depends, in our own capacity for perception, on this basic and fundamental choice in the heart.  We take our identities from it, we perceive our very reality by it.  And if we fail to connect that love of God within ourselves, then we will miss so much.  He offers them four witnesses, and yet even these men who "search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me" fail to find that life which He is offering them, because the love of God isn't in them.  These are the words Christ offers us -- and so there is a challenge here to we who also study the Scriptures.  Without this basic love of God, all our study does us no good.  We will fail to understand them, and fail to perceive Him.  We can conclude as well that in accordance with His words, without this love in our hearts, we'll also fail to see God's work in the present moment, in our lives, and in our world, and the choices we're being called upon to make.  That connection of love within becomes, with Jesus' teachings, the all-important core of everything about our faith and our understanding of His words.   Let us remember, and kindle that place of love, in all the ways that we can.

I am the bread of life

 "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."  Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."  Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You?  What work will You do?  Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"  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.  For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."  Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."

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.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.  All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.  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.  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."

- John 6:27-40

Yesterday, we read that, after feeding the multitude in the wilderness, when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum.  And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them.  Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing.  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 the land where they were going.  On the following day, when the people who were standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except that one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away alone -- however, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks -- when the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.  And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?"  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.  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."

  "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."  Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent." Jesus teaches them to "work" (labor) for the food which endures to everlasting life.  The people's response is to ask Him what this work is. What are the works of God?  The work of God is to have faith in the One who's been sent by God.

"What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You?  What work will You do?  Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"  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.  For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."  Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."  The first thing they do is ask for a sign!  They have followed Him because He gave them bread in the wilderness, but faith seems like a very difficult thing, indeed.  Christ goes back to the Father:  the true bread of God is the One who has come to the world to give it life. 

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.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.  All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.  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.  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."  Here is the thing of crucial importance:  that Jesus, who is the bread of life, has come into the world to save all the world; those who will believe He will not lose, for He does the will of the Father who sent Him.  On Jesus' will ("my own will"), my study bible notes, "Since Christ has two natures, He has two wills -- the divine will and a human will.  The Sixth Ecumenical Council, held at Constantinople (AD 680-681), proclaims these two wills of Christ do not work contrary to one another, but rather 'His human will follows, not resisting nor reluctant, but subject to His divinity and to His omnipotent will.'"

Jesus affirms Himself to be the bread of life.  Once again, John's Gospel takes us from an earthly sort of understanding to a deeper, higher spiritual one.  First these multitudes are fed miraculously from a few loaves.  They then wish to make Jesus king and seek to do so by force.  But instead He teaches them about the bread from heaven, which is even a greater gift than the bread Moses gave in the wilderness.  Those who come to Jesus will never hunger, and never thirst.  But the key is faith; it's faith that determines who comes to the Son, who is with Him and remains into eternal life.  It's an important promise that Jesus states here, that of all that the Father has given Him, He will lose nothing.  Everything that is His will be raised, born into an everlasting life that is something beyond what we now know as life.  This is the true gift He promises.  He is the gift, He is the bread, and as He will teach later on, He is the life -- and what He offers is life in abundance.  It's a great mystery being revealed.  How can He be bread; or rather, the bread from heaven -- the bread of life?  Belief or faith seems to be the whole key to the partaking of this bread, to the resurrection to eternal life.  Let us remember what it means to work the works of God, that faith is the key to being held with Him, so that He loses nothing the Father has given into His hand. It's the hand of life beyond what we understand, a life that is added to our lives, a life that raises us up into an abundant kind of life, one that is with us always.  Let us remember He is the food we need.  His promise is for here and now, and also for the life to come.