We are heading into the second half of 2021, and I think it’s a good time to check in with our expectations for this year and see if anything needs to be re-adjusted. Some of us have had a better year than we expected; some of us have had it worse. All of us have certain plans and expectations for how the rest of the year will go. Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the next five months?
Pastor Daniel D. Chambers learned an expression from a college professor: “Expectation is the mother of regret.” Think about that for a moment. Evidently that professor was a pessimist. Evidently some of the things he expected to go well didn’t turn out like he expected. How do you react when life doesn’t meet your expectations? (1)
Some of you will remember the story of a man who had a nephew, and throughout the man’s life the nephew had, on every occasion, said to the man, “I hope you will remember me in your will.”
So the man died, and the time came, and the family was gathered for the reading of his will. The lawyer came to a line which read like this, “And to my nephew Harvey, who has over and over again asked to be remembered in my will, I say ‘Helloooooo Harvey.’” (2) Expectation was the mother of regret for that poor nephew.
People had their expectations when they came to Jesus. The crowds had seen Jesus perform miracles. He healed the sick. Most recently, he had fed thousands of people with two loaves of bread and a few fish. So, in today’s lesson, what did people expect when they came to Jesus? Did they expect a magic show? Did they expect a twenty-four hour buffet? Here is what they did not expect. They did not expect Jesus to confront them about their real motives for coming to him. Listen as he says, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.” Remember, in John’s Gospel, miracles are reported as signs that Christ is who he says he is. That is the purpose of miracles. That was the real reason Jesus multiplied the fishes and loaves. But the crowd only saw the fact that they were bountifully fed. And Christ knew they would be back for more.
Don’t you hate it when someone makes you confront your true motives? Barbara Brown Taylor is a nationally known Episcopal priest and author. She tells the story of a retreat she led one time in the Carolina Mountains. One evening she asked the retreat members to answer this question, “Who in your life reminds you of Jesus?”
There were the usual answers: “My granddad . . . my mom . . . my best friend . . .” One woman did not jump in to respond. She was really giving this question some serious thought. Finally, she looked up and said, “I had to think hard about that one. I kept thinking, ‘Who is it that told me the truth about myself so clearly that I felt like I could kill him for it?’” (3) Think about that for a moment and apply it to our faith. “Who is it that told me the truth about myself so clearly that I felt like I could kill him for it?”
If we listen, Jesus will tell us the truth about ourselves. And it might not be pretty. In the words of that woman in the retreat, “We might even want to kill him for it.”
The religious leaders of his day did exactly that, of course. They killed the Messiah for telling them the truth about God, and about their own true motives.
When you look at the times that Jesus confronted people in the Bible, his motive was never to shame them or to prove his superiority over them. His motive was to bring them closer to God. Jesus uses truth-telling to make us aware of the gap between what we say we believe and what we actually believe.
We say, for example, that God is love—pure love, everlasting love, agape love—Who always has our best good at heart. But, in truth, most of us don’t really trust God with our future, our family, or our finances, do we? We lie in our beds at night worrying about what the next day will bring forgetting that he has taught us in Romans 8:28 that “all things work to the good for those who love Him.” We say that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, but we don’t believe it enough to actually tell our friends and family about him. We say we believe in God’s word, but we rarely open the Bible unless it’s in Sunday school or a small group meeting.
And the crowds following Jesus say, “We’ll believe you, Rabbi. Just give us a sign: feed us bread every day, like Moses fed the people of Israel with bread from heaven.” Jesus knew their true motives. And he knew that they would never be satisfied if they didn’t confront their own lack of truthfulness. Verse 35 in our Bible passage today reads like this, “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.’” Jesus is saying, “I didn’t come here to make your life more comfortable. If that’s all you’re looking for, then keep on walking. I came here to show you that I am the only one who can meet the deepest needs in your life because I am life itself.”
There seems to be a universal feeling in our society. “Is this all there is? Somehow, I expected more. Something seems to be missing.” Something’s missing, and in its place, we substitute all sorts of things.
In our society, we are fed a constant stream of “If only’s.” For example, “if only I had a little more money . . .” How many of us have thought that at some time in our lives? Steve Bing was 18 when he inherited $600 million from his grandfather, a successful real estate developer. With that bountiful inheritance, Bing dropped out of college and went to Hollywood. He became a movie producer. He invested money in a few successful films, such as “The Polar Express,” but he also invested in several films that were flops.
Along the way, Steve also became known for his wild parties, his gambling and drug use and time spent with prostitutes, and his many girlfriends. He was very generous with his friends but refused to help support the children he had fathered in his many dalliances. That is, until he lost paternity suits in court. Then he had to fork over funds that he should have felt responsible for all along.
In spite of spending millions to throw parties and impress people, Steve’s closest friends say that he had few people who really liked him. They just hung around because they wanted something from him. But here’s how this sad story ended.
On June 22, 2020, Steve Bing stepped off the window ledge of his 27th-floor luxury apartment building and plummeted to his death. The man who inherited $600 million dollars in his teens died at age 55 with about $300,000 left to his name. (4)
“If only I had more money,” we say, “my problems would be solved.” It may be that if you had more money, your troubles would just be beginning.
Why do we continue to believe the secret to life can be found in accumulating great wealth? Because money can give us a sense of control. Because we can use it to
keep score—to prove that we are somebody. That’s why we continue to hunger for wealth or fame or power. But many of those who have obtained great wealth or fame or power know them to be empty and unfulfilling.
Every wise person who has ever lived knows what is missing in life—and it is not material possessions or recognition or power. What is missing is a sense of meaning to life. Why are we here? Where are we headed? What does it all mean? For many people there is no meaning.
This is the message of our art and literature over the past few decades. All art has a message, and it speaks of the times in which it was created.
And the message that comes through today loud and clear is, “Something’s missing.” Don’t you sense that about our world today? What is missing is a sense of meaning, a sense of purpose, something that is true and lasting. Let me tell you about a man who is trying to do something about that.
There is an author and philosopher named Roman Krznaric (pron., KRIZ-NAR-IK) who encourages people to live more meaningful lives using a visualization exercise he calls, “The dinner party of the afterlife.”
He says to imagine yourself at a dinner party in the afterlife. Who else is at the party? All the “yous” who you could have been if you had made different choices in life. All the good and bad paths you could have gone down if you had just changed one or two decisions. If you had chosen different friends, a different career, different principles or priorities to define your life. All the paths you might have taken if you had been more proactive, or less fearful, or more generous with others.
Look around at these alternative “yous,” advises Krznaric. Which ones do you admire, even envy? Which ones do you want to avoid? After meeting all the possible “yous” that you can imagine, it’s time to make the decision: who do you aspire to become and why? (5)
I would like to ask you to take this visualization one step further. Visualize who you would be if you gave your life entirely to the purposes and priorities of God. If you found your identity in becoming the person God made you to be. Who would you be if you put your whole trust in God and committed yourself to knowing God and aligned your life with God’s will?
Anglican priest John Stott was a leader in the worldwide evangelical movement. In 2005, he was named by Time Magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. He talks about the moment when he finally realized that Jesus is the bread of life, the source of life. He wrote, “I was defeated. I knew the kind of person I was and the kind I longed to be. Between the reality and ideal there was a great gulf. And what brought me to Christ was the sense of defeat and the astonishing news that the historic Christ offered to meet the very needs of which I was most conscious.” (6)
Think about those words for a few moments. “Between the reality and the ideal there was a great gulf.” Can you relate to John Stott’s realization? When you sit in church and hear about the goodness of God and the joy of knowing Him, do you feel empty and disconnected? Do you feel left out? Are you living with a sense of eternal purpose, or are you just trying to keep up?
Here’s the good news for the day: It was to meet this need—to fill this emptiness—that Jesus Christ came into the world. “I am the bread of life . . .” says Jesus. You can search all over this earth to find that one thing that is missing in your life, but until you feed on him, you will never be satisfied.
I appreciate the way pastor and author Frederick Buechner expressed this idea. He writes, “Part of the inner world of everyone is this sense of emptiness, unease, incompleteness, and I believe that this in itself is a word from God, that this is the sound that God’s voice makes in a world that has explained him away. In such a world, I suspect that maybe God speaks to us most clearly through his silence, his absence, so that we know him best through our missing him.” (7)
Do you hear what he is saying? Maybe our sense of emptiness is God’s gift to us. Maybe it’s a sign that we are missing God, aching for God, needing God in our lives. And if that is the case, then God is more than happy to fill that sense of emptiness with the power and peace and joy of His presence. That’s what Jesus meant when he said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
That is what brings all of us to worship this day—to fill the emptiness within. The more we focus on our own needs, the less satisfied and secure we are. But when we turn our focus to God—searching for God, enjoying God, serving God—the more joy and hope and peace and purpose we experience. We were made to worship God. Worship is giving God the honor and glory that He deserves. But worship is also a gift to us because it is through worship that we experience the joy of knowing God.
A woman named Emma Major tells of visiting Zambia and meeting Christians who were fortunate to get even one meal each day. Physically, they were needy and hungry. And yet, they were filled with joy and love and hope.
She writes, “I met people who although hungry were filled with the truth of Jesus in their lives and the sure and certain knowledge that He will sustain them. This is exactly what Jesus meant when he said ‘I am the bread of life.’ Jesus feeds us. He feeds us on the inside with love and hope and grace and forgiveness.” (8)
Let me tell you about a young man who discovered that Christ is the bread in a dramatic way. Eddie Elguera is one of the most famous names in skateboarding. His nickname is El Gato, or The Cat, because he could perform amazing tricks on his skateboard and still land on his feet. He even created a special skateboard trick that is named after him. By age 18, Eddie was the two-time world skateboarding champion. But Eddie discovered that his achievements and awards and fame didn’t bring him any satisfaction. He dropped out of the sport and became dependent on drugs and alcohol.
As he says, “In the early ’80s, I was at the top. There was nowhere else to go. There was just some kind of emptiness. I thought maybe if I do drugs, I can fill that emptiness. But it didn’t work out. At one point, I found myself out on the street, not knowing why I was there.” (9)
Eddie found work at a fast-food restaurant. One day he was chatting with a customer, and she began telling him about the hope she had found in knowing Jesus Christ. She told Eddie, “You will never find fulfillment in skateboarding or drugs. You’ll only find it in Jesus Christ. He alone will give you a satisfying purpose in life.”
Eddie committed his life to Jesus that day. He began going to church and growing in the faith. Today he still participates in skateboarding exhibitions, but he also pastors The Rock Church in Palm Springs, California. The mission statement of his church is “Loving people to life.” (10)
We search for that one thing that will satisfy. Maybe some status symbol or title or achievement or relationship will make us feel complete. But none of them can supply what our soul is really hungry for. Bread from heaven—that is our greatest need. Christ is that bread. Jesus came into the world to love people to life. And you will only find your identity and purpose and your best life when you turn your life over to Jesus Christ.
1. “Let Every Heart Make Room for Promise,” Daniel D. Chambers, First Congregational Church of Berkeley, http://www.fccb.org/worship/sermons1996.php.
2. Where There’s A Will . . . (Dr. Walter Jones) Northminster Presbyterian Church http://www.northminster‑atl.org/sermpdf/05012005.pdf.
3. Ronnie Adams http://www.metrobaptistchurchnyc.org/reflections/where.pdf.
4. “How the late Steve Bing blew $600M on women, movies, gambling—and Bill Clinton” by Michael Kaplan, Page Six, October 31, 2020. https://pagesix.com/article/steve-bings-life-death-lost-fortunes/.
5. Roman Krznaric https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20201027-how-to-live-your-best-life?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email. This article is based on his new book, The Good Ancestor: How to Think Long Term in a Short-Term World.
6. Bryan Chapell, http://www.preachingtoday.com/sermons/sermons/2012/april/neweyes.html.
7. Frederick Buechner, Listening to Your Life, compiled by George Connor (New York: HarperCollins, 1992), p. 128.
8. Emma Major, http://llmcalling.blogspot.com/2012/08/bread-from-heaven-sermon-on-john-624-35.html.
9. “Ex-skateboarding champ Eddie Elguera talks tricks, drugs and God” by Elaine Yau, South China Morning Post, August 12, 2015, https://www.scmp.com/magazines/48 hours/article/1847566/ex-skateboarding-champ-eddie-elguera-talks-tricks-drugs-and-god.
10. “Pastors on the Boards: Eddie Elguera, Christian Hosoi Talk About How Faith Changed Their Lives,” Written by Brian Blueskye, CV Independent, https://www.cvindependent.com/index.php/en-US/news/features/item/1876-pastors-on-the-boards-eddie-elguera-christian-hosoi-talk-about-how-faith-changed-their-lives.