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The Source of Life
They replied, “What does God want
us to do?” (John 6:28)
Even when Jesus clearly explains grace, we
tend to argue with him. He tells us how to gain salvation, and we
shake our head in disbelief. He gives us the Good News, and we flip
through the paper looking for the bad. Surely there’s something he’s
left out, we think. It can’t be that easy.
“Spend your energy
seeking the eternal life that I, the Son of Man, can give you,”
Jesus told the crowd of curious onlookers. “For God the Father has
sent me for that very purpose” (John 6:27). His words were clear,
but their skepticism was deep.
“They replied, ‘What does God want
us to do?’” (John 6:28).
When faced with the free gift of
salvation, they wondered how they should go about earning it. “We
understand our need for eternal life,” they were saying. “But what
do we need to do to get it?”
Jesus understood their confusion,
and he answered by reiterating his earlier promise. “This is what
God wants you to do: Believe in the one he has sent” (John 6:29).
We are the ones who make it complicated. We are the ones who
want to earn God’s acceptance and approval. We are the ones who try
to attach conditions to God’s plan of redemption. But Jesus only
asks one thing. That we put our faith in him. That we trust him to
save us. That we believe in his promise of eternal life for all who
would call on his name. That we accept the gift with love and faith
and graciousness.
Try to pay for a gift, and you’ve done nothing
but insult the giver. Try to work off its worth, and you’re working
in vain. A gift is free for the taking, or it is no gift at all.
Things have changed very little since the days that Jesus walked
the earth. He continues to hold out the free gift of eternal life,
and people continue to try to pay him for it. We’re still wondering
what God wants us to do. And two thousand years later, his answer
hasn’t changed. “Believe in the one he has
sent.”
I love
you,
Pastor
Buck
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