The Will of the Father (John 6:40)

Jesus has had an interaction with the crowd about him being the Bread of life, of his capacity to provide what people need for spiritual satisfaction. When someone makes an incredible assertion about himself, it is helpful to consider what else he might choose to say.

A will revealed

When we speak of God’s will, we know that there are two options to consider. There is his secret will in which he has included everything that comes to pass. No-one outside of God know the contents of God’s secret will apart from the details he has chosen to reveal. For example, his secret will includes the date of our birth and the date of our death. We know the date of our birth, but that is all. We don’t know the date of our death, or what will happen between them. But God knows all details, and at some stage others will discover those details. This is not the will of God that is described in our verse.

The will of the Father here is his revealed will. Yet his revealed will needs to be divided into different areas in order for us to appreciate the differences between them. For example, there was God’s revealed will to Adam in the Garden of Eden when he was given instructions about the fruit of which tree he could not eat. We know that Adam disobeyed God’s revealed will for him as the representative of the human race, with the outcome being that each person is a sinner, born that way, and predisposed to disobey God.

There is also God’s revealed will to Israel given in great detail at Mount Sinai, a will that includes the ten commandments and numerous other requirements. Israel had been chosen out of all the nations to be God’s special people. He revealed his power to them, asserted his authority over them, and gave them many promises of a coming Messiah. Yet most in Israel disobeyed his requirements and developed wrong notions about what the Messiah would do for them. They responded in this way to God despite the Lord sending numerous prophets and others who called the people back to himself.

Then there is God’s revealed will described by Jesus in our text. This will is concerned with sinners who need eternal life, which means that it is a gracious will for the undeserving. We can see from the way that Jesus phrases his statement that he is eager to inform people about it. He also points out that this will remains that of his Father, that nothing has yet occurred that brings that will to no longer be operative. This aspect of the Father’s will does not cease until the Day of Judgment comes. Until then, he will send preachers and others to inform sinners about the gracious details of this will. And we know that many sinners have availed themselves of it; indeed, at the end of the day, the recipients will be so large a number that no-one will be able to count them.

Faith described

There are many pictures and illustrations of faith in the Bible. Here Jesus indicates that there is a two-stage process to faith: first, the sinner looks on the Son and, second, the sinner believes in the Son. Therefore, we need to consider what those words would have meant when he said them and then what they mean for us.

Jesus said those words to a large number of Jews who had been involved in one of his miracles, that of the feeding of the five thousand men and others from some loaves and a few fish. As Jesus explained the significance of the miracle to them, they had to consider them, which is what is meant by looking at him, which they could do so in a literal sense.

Jesus pointed out to them that he was the bread of life in contrast to the manna that God had sent to their forefathers. That in itself was something to think about because God had provided them with manna for forty years as they travelled through the desert. If someone was greater than that provision, he must be very great. Indeed, Jesus says that he is able to meet the need of their souls for ever and not merely for forty years. The miracle pointed to this since he had the ability to feed a large number from a meagre source.

Jesus also pointed out to them that he, as the bread of life, was not limited to Israel as the manna had been. It was a great blessing to Israel to have this provision, yet what Jesus could give was sufficient for the entire world. We can imagine it in this way. It is calculated that about two million Israelites benefitted from the manna each day. According to Google, there were about three hundred million people on the earth when Jesus lived. While it is unlikely that many of his hearers would know that figure, they would know that there were a lot more people in the world than the two million who benefitted daily from the manna. So when Jesus said that he could provide for the world, he was making an exceptional claim. And the listeners were meant to consider that detail.

Jesus also informed them that while the manna did come from above, he came from much higher. It is true that the Father sent manna to them to meet their physical needs, but it is also true that the Father sent Jesus to meet their entire needs, spiritual and physical. He sent Jesus from heaven, his eternal Son, the One with whom he had shared all the reality of deity. Jesus reveals that decisions were made in heaven about his coming into the world – he came according to the will of the Father to do the will of the Father.

How was all this to happen? Was it enough for Jesus to be present among them performing great miracles such as the one with the loaves and the fish? He points to what was necessary when he says in verse 51 that ‘I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.’ That statement puzzled his listeners. They realised that in some sense Jesus would have to die in order for them to feed on his flesh and blood. But it all seemed so strange and many of them did not appreciate his words.

Nevertheless, they had sufficient details to consider about Jesus – his heavenly origins, his mission on behalf of the Father, and his ability to provide permanent food for ever for a very large number. We can consider them as well, and in addition we can ponder the significance of his death because we know it was a substitution in the place of sinners, a redemption by which sinners were liberated from their bondage to sin, and a sacrifice by which he offered himself to God in order for his anger against sinners to be appeased.

Looking at Jesus in this way must result in one of two actions. We either reject his claims or we accept his claims and believe in him. Of course, it is important to note that we are to believe ‘in’ him, not merely about him. Believing in him means that we trust in him personally, depending upon him alone for our personal salvation. Such faith is wholehearted and resolute, intent in identifying with Jesus as the Saviour of sinners. Usually, the person believing is conscious of his own sinfulness and unworthiness.

Outcome stated

The benefit promised is the possession of eternal life. What is eternal life? It is obviously a gift from God, but it is not like a gift that is placed on a mantelpiece to be admired. Instead, it is placed within those who believe. But what is it? It is more than endless existence because, sadly, those who will be in a lost eternity will have endless existence. 

Thankfully, we have a definition of what eternal life is, provided by Jesus when he said in John 17:3 ‘And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.’ Eternal life is a relationship in which saved sinners discover who the heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are. Or we could say that eternal life, which begins at conversion, is the experience of grace now and of glory in the future.

As far as grace is concerned, we know the heavenly Father and Jesus in many ways. The Heavenly Father forgives us our sins and adopts us into his family. He answers our prayers and fulfils his promises connected to spiritual life. Jesus is connected to us in his offices of prophet, priest and king, so we learn of him, are strengthened by him, and governed by him. Or we can think of him as the good shepherd, the compassionate healer, and the helpful guide. All those benefits are connected to eternal life, and they develop as we experience the work of the Spirit in our souls.

Future assured

Jesus then makes an astonishing statement when he comments on what he will do for his people on the last day. He will deal with them as individuals, he will know where each part of their souls and bodies will be, and their experience will be one of great elevation. We know that other details of this great event are mentioned elsewhere in the Bible. Meanwhile we can consider the certainty of this incredible event and the preciousness of it for our comfort. Like those who experienced miracles from him when he was here, we will experience his hands-on attention on that great day.

Robert Hawker, an English pastor, published a commentary that he put together for poor people. His method was to provide explanations and a suitable prayer for them to use. The prayers pointed to the emphases in the section of scripture that he was considering. This is his prayer for this passage:

‘Precious Lord Jesus! while I behold thee, my God and Saviour, as set forth in this Chapter, feeding the multitudes with the bread which perisheth with using, and becoming in the same moment to all thy people the living bread, imparting solid, substantial, soul-feeding, soul-nourishing food, for time, and for eternity; Lord, I praise thee for the distinguishing mercy, and beg of my God to excite in my heart such a craving appetite to be fed and nourished in the divine life, as none but Christ himself can satisfy! Lord! evermore give me this bread! Lift up the light of thy countenance upon my soul, and it shall put gladness in my heart, more than in the time when their corn and their wine are increased!’