NLT Life Application Study Bible, Third Edition - Flipbook - Page 34
J ohn 6
•
page 1808
of God’s Son, 29and they will rise again. Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment.
30I can do nothing on my own. I judge as God tells me. Therefore, my judgment is just,
because I carry out the will of the one who sent me, not my own will.
Jesus Supports His Claim (44)
31“If I were to testify on my own behalf, my testimony would not be valid. 32But someone
else is also testifying about me, and I assure you that everything he says about me is true.
33In fact, you sent investigators to listen to John the Baptist, and his testimony about me
was true. 34Of course, I have no need of human witnesses, but I say these things so you
might be saved. 35John was like a burning and shining lamp, and you were excited for
a while about his message. 36But I have a greater witness than John—my teachings and
my miracles. The Father gave me these works to accomplish, and they prove that he sent
me. 37And the Father who sent me has testified about me himself. You have never heard
his voice or seen him face to face, 38and you do not have his message in your hearts,
because you do not believe me—the one he sent to you.
39 “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the
Scriptures point to me! 40Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.
41“Your approval means nothing to me, 42because I know you don’t have God’s love
within you. 43For I have come to you in my Father’s name, and you have rejected me.
Yet if others come in their own name, you gladly welcome them. 44No wonder you can’t
believe! For you gladly honor each other, but you don’t care about the honor that comes
from the one who alone is God.*
45 “Yet it isn’t I who will accuse you before the Father. Moses will accuse you! Yes,
Moses, in whom you put your hopes. 46If you really believed Moses, you would believe
me, because he wrote about me. 47But since you don’t believe what he wrote, how will
you believe what I say?”
Jesus Feeds Five Thousand (96/Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17)
After this, Jesus crossed over to the far side of the Sea of Galilee, also known as the
Sea of Tiberias. 2A huge crowd kept following him wherever he went, because they
saw his miraculous signs as he healed the sick. 3Then Jesus climbed a hill and sat down
with his disciples around him. 4(It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration.)
6
5:29
Dan 12:2
Matt 25:46
Acts 24:15
5:30
John 5:19; 6:38
5:31
John 8:13-14
5:32
John 8:18
5:36
John 10:25, 38;
14:11; 15:24
1 Jn 5:9
5:37
Deut 4:12
John 1:18; 8:18
1 Tim 1:17
5:38
1 Jn 2:14
5:39
Luke 24:27, 44
Acts 13:27
Rom 2:17-20
5:41
John 12:43
5:45
John 9:28
Rom 2:17
5:46
Gen 3:15
Deut 18:15, 18
Luke 24:27, 44
Acts 26:22-23
5:47
Luke 16:31
6:4
John 11:55
5:44 Some manuscripts read from the only One.
5:29 Those who have rebelled against Jesus Christ will be resurrected,
too, but they will hear God’s judgment against them and will be sentenced
to eternity apart from him. There are those who wish to live well on earth,
ignore God, and then see death as a final rest. But Jesus does not allow
unbelieving people the option of experiencing death as the restful end
Mediterranean
Sea
Capernaum Bethsaida
Gennesaret
Sea of
Galilee
GALILEE
SAMARIA
Jerusalem
JUDEA
IDUMEA
River
N
Jordan
JESUS WALKS
ON THE WATER
Jesus fed the 5,000
on a hill near the
Sea of Galilee at
Bethsaida. That
night, the disciples
set out across
the sea toward
Capernaum. But
they encountered
a storm—and Jesus
came walking to
them on the water!
Their boat landed
at Gennesaret (Mark
6:53), and from there
they went back to
Capernaum.
PE
RE
A
Dead
Sea
0
0
20 mi
20 km
of everything. We must give our devotion to him now, or else we will
stand before him on Judgment Day.
5:31-47 Jesus claimed to be equal with God (5:18), to give eternal
life (5:24), to be the source of life (5:26), and to judge sin (5:27). These
statements clearly show that Jesus was claiming to be divine—an almost
unbelievable claim, but one that was supported by another witness,
John the Baptist.
5:39-40 The religious leaders knew what the Bible said but failed to
apply its words to their lives. They knew the teachings of the Scriptures
but failed to see the Messiah to whom the Scriptures pointed. They knew
the rules but missed the Savior. Entrenched in their own religious system,
they refused to let the Son of God change their lives. Don’t become so
involved in practicing religion that you miss the purpose of your faith—
following Jesus Christ.
5:41 Whose praise do you seek? The religious leaders enjoyed great
prestige in Israel, but their stamp of approval meant nothing to Jesus.
He was concerned about God’s approval. This is an important principle.
If even the highest officials in the world approve of our actions but God
does not, we should be concerned. But if God approves, even if others
don’t, we should be content.
5:45-47 The Pharisees prided themselves on being the true followers
of their ancestor Moses. They were trying to follow every one of his laws
to the letter, and they even added some of their own in an effort to clarify
what they thought Moses meant. Jesus’ warning that Moses would accuse
them stung them to fury. Moses wrote about Jesus (Genesis 3:15; Numbers
21:9; 24:17; Deuteronomy 18:15), yet the religious leaders refused to
believe Jesus when he came. Even spiritual leaders can be spiritually blind.
