Doing the Work of God (Jn 6:29)

Sunday's reading was John 6-8.

1. The work of God is not something reserved for "professionals." Maybe it's easier to think of pastors doing God's work. You can do God's work!
2. To do God's work is to believe in Jesus. Believe Him for eternal life. Believe Him for a miracle. Believe Him for the ordinary. When you believe, you don't attribute things to natural processes, chance or coincidence. You don't view yourself as the solution or answer.
3. Believing in Jesus, though always profitable, may not always feel pleasurable. Sometimes belief is a discipline. Believing contrary to opinion or evidence is work. How easy it is to become lazy in believing!
4. There is a difference between believing in Jesus and believing in Jesus' work. Is your belief in a Person or in His benefits? John 3:16 makes it clear: Whoever believes in Him [Jesus] shall have eternal life.
5. What does it mean to "believe" in Jesus? It is more than religious identification, calling yourself a Christian. It is more than mental assent, agreeing with certain facts or memorizinig a creed. It is more than emotional attachment, feeling overwhelmed by Jesus' goodness. (There will be emotion, but emotion alone is not belief.) Believinig in Jesus will produce good works, but good works alone don't produce belief (Eph 2:8-10). The Greek verb "believe" appears in various forms 86 times in the Gospel of John (Concordance to the Greek Testament by Moulton & Geden). (When something is mentioned that often in such a short account -- John is only 21 chapters - you know it's important.) To "believe" means to be persuaded of, to have confidence in, to trust in, to rely or lean upon. To believe in Jesus, you cannot believe in anyone or anything else. Why? Belief is tied to eternal life. Only Jesus can grant that.