OCSM’s Sunday’s Sermon by Brother Bob James

June 2, 2019
“JOHN 6:66”
Text: John 6:1-69.

OCSM Brothers and Sisters in Christ, family, friends and visitors, welcome.
Today’s sermon is taken from the Book of John and the sixth chapter.
The sixth chapter of the book of John is filled with golden truths. It begins with the Lord’s miraculous feeding of the five thousand, with only five loaves of bread and two small fish,and continues as many in the crowd that day, followed after Him in the next day in boats to Capernaum.
The stand out verse in this chapter is the Lord’s revelation of Himself as “the bread of life” in verse 35:
John 6:35 (KJV):
“35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.”
(this is the first of the seven great “I AM’s” found in the book of John: those verses wherein Jesus declared Himself to be one with the Father, by saying, “I AM”, which was considered blasphemous to the Jews because it directly referred to the Father, who identified Himself to Moses as “I AM” from the burning bush; I will do a teaching series on these in the coming weeks)

Now many in the crowd which had followed Jesus from Capernaum and heard Him say this, could not understand what He meant when He told them that unless they ate His flesh, and drank His blood, they could not have eternal life; for only those who would eat of His flesh and drink His blood, would He “…raise him up at the last day” (vs.54).
At that point, many who took His words literally, thought Jesus was talking about cannibalism! And their confusion led finally to many of them leaving Him there alone with His disciples:
John 6:66 (KJV):

“66 From that time many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with Him.
(capitalization added).

The many that “went back” were not among the twelve that were with Jesus throughout His three year Ministry, but rather those that had been following Him from town to town, watching Him heal the sick and performing miracles; all the while hearing Him preach the Gospel of Salvation through repentance and faith in Him as the Son of God, the love of God toward them, and the principles of His Kingdom. Still, it was no small crowd that departed that day and went…back.

Back. But to what? Where does one go ‘back’ to after having been with Jesus and heard the Truth?
if on a journey we turn ‘back’, the word describes a reversal, a retreat to where one was before the journey began. And so it is for us when we turn from the Lord. The only place we have to go is ‘back’; back to what we know; back to the life we were living before we heard the good news of the Gospel, and the way we lived before we came to the saving knowledge of Christ. Back to the ‘world’, and worldly living.

When the Apostle John speaks of the “world” in the second chapter his first Epistle (First John, or 1 John ), he uses the word to describe a system of man-made laws and the sins it embraces, and has since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden:
I John 2:15, 16 (KJV):
“15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loveth the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
None of which is of any eternal worth, and will not exist in eternity:
I John 2:17: (KJV):
“17 And the world passeth away, and the lusts thereof: but he that doth the will of God abideth forever.”

The soul of man is eternal, but the lusts of the world are not; such is the eternal torment of existence apart from the Holy Presence of our Creator, God, and Father.

The number 666 is used to describe the Anti Christ in the Book of Revelation; it is the number of the beast:
Revelation 13:18 (KJV):
“18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred three-score and six.”

Such as have wisdom will not take the number of the beast.
Only such as “turn back” and walk no more with Christ.
For such, having come to Christ and having received His Holy Spirt, there is no turning “back”:

Hebrews 6:4-6 (KJV):
“4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame.”
(capitalization added)

Beloved of the Lord, seek daily the Lord and His strength. Seek His Face, His Holy Presence, and the guidance of His Holy Spirit in thought word and deed. Search His Word daily and consistently, and pray for the souls of those who have yet to bend the knee to Him; be they family, friends, those we know, and those we don’t, and those who are in authority.

If, God forbid, He should ever ask of us, “Will ye also go away?”, let us each be able to answer truthfully from our hearts as did Peter:

John 6:68 & 69:
“68 Then Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.”

May this be the honest profession of our faith from this day forward and remain so until the Glorious day of His triumphant return.

May God love you and keep you and yours, always.
Love in Christ, Brother Bob. IHS.