Source: The Bread of Life | I AM | Brian Pacheco | Flatiron Church Channel: Flatiron Church Published: June 15, 2026 | Archived: June 16, 2026

Video: The Bread of Life | I AM | Brian Pacheco | Flatiron Church
Channel: Flatiron Church
Published: June 15, 2026
Duration: 52:12
Views: 42
Category: Nonprofits & Activism
Video ID: GOfTVNIANKo

Description

What do I need to keep going? And where should I look? What does Jesus even offer? Was He really the Son of God, or is that just something we made up?

Jesus is clear on who He was, and what He came to do. Throughout the Gospel of John Jesus declares who he is through 7 I Am statements. Join Flatiron Church and Pastor Brian Pacheco as we dive into these statements and what Jesus meant when he said “I am the bread of life.”

Jesus Offends the Proud But Gives Grace to the Humble

Scripture References: John 6:22-69

Sermon Timeline: 0:00 Introduction to the I Am Series 2:29 Reading from John 6 5:19 Prayer and Setup 7:47 Why Are You Seeking Jesus 10:05 Do Not Work for Food That Perishes 12:00 What Must We Do to Do the Works of God 14:00 Believe - The Most Offensive Answer 17:14 The Challenge About Moses and Manna 24:11 I Am the Bread of Life 32:09 Three Responses to Jesus

⛪️ A MESSAGE FROM FLATIRON CHURCH Hey! We’re Flatiron Church in Queen Creek, AZ. There are a number of reasons why you might have landed here. This might be the start of your relationship with Jesus, or maybe you are coming back to Him for the first time in years. Maybe you’ve committed to strengthening your relationship with Him. Whatever your reason, there are a few simple steps you can take to move forward. Be humble and open to whatever God’s Word has for you.

🎯 NEXT STEPS Read more about our story at https://flatiron.church/our-story Meet the team at https://flatiron.church/our-team Plan Your Next Visit at https://flatiron.church/plan-your-visit

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Transcript — YouTube panel (human-authored)

0:00 Let’s go. Lead pastor Brian. If we haven’t met, I’ll meet you today at our plant your flag because we’re doing that after second service. I’ll explain more of that as we get through. But today, we kick off our new series called I am. And we’re looking over the next six weeks at seven statements where Jesus emphatically, clearly, boldly declared, “He is the son of God. He is the King of Kings. He’s the Lord of Lords. He’s the name above all names. And he’s the only hope we have for eternity to come.” that those who are covered under his blood are given his righteousness. That is what allows us to walk to a holy God and be reconciled. And apart from Jesus, there’s no other name. No other name.

0:39 It’s emphatic. It’s popular today to say, “God, Jesus never said he was God. He never It’s like, okay, stick with coloring books. It’s too advanced for you.” He did multiple times, and we’re going to examine them over the next six weeks. the ways Jesus said profoundly to both his context and to ours. He’s the son of God. Now, as we dive into our first text today, we’re going to be looking at the bread of life. And Jesus is going to describe kind of what that means. That he is the bread of life. In the background, here’s what I want you to have in your mind is that Jesus offends what? The proud.

1:17 Jesus will cause an offense to a proud heart. Jesus will cause an offense. If you’re coming in with your works, if you’re coming in with your plan, if you’re coming in with your righteousness, if you’re coming in with your expectations, there is an offense that will come. And the reason it’s there is because Jesus does not make bones about it. He is either king and lord or you are.

1:43 He will not share that with you. And it’s not because he’s unkind or just. It’s because of his kindness that he’s clear. There is only one name and one hope. But here’s the beautiful thing. He gives grace to the humble. Today, my prayer for us as a church is we would humble ourselves before the Lord. That we would have eyes to see and ears to hear. That we would go to the throne and lay it before him. That’s my prayer this morning. And that’s my prayer for the person who’s been walking with Jesus for 30 years and for the person who meets him today that he opposes the proud but he will give grace to the humble. If you find yourself proud, if you find yourself opposed to him, if you find yourself stumbling, you can go to him today.

2:29 There need not be any delay. Okay, we’re going to be looking at John chap 6 verses 22 and I’m going to be reading quite a big section of this. I’m going to ask you to stand as we read in deference to God’s word and we’re going to get right to it. Verse 22. On the next day, the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there and that the Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone.

2:58 Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they’d eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum seeking Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” And Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.

3:26 Do not work for food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on him God the Father has set his seal.“ Then they said to him, “Well, what must we do to be doing the works of God?” And Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he sent.” So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the mana in the wilderness. As it is written, he gave them bread from heaven to eat. Jesus said to them, truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you bread from heaven, but my father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. Then they said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger. Whoever believes in me

4:24 shall never thirst. But I said to you that you’ve seen me and yet you do not believe. All that the father gives me will come to me. And whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me that I should not lose or I should lose nothing of all that he has given me but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my father. everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life and I will raise him up on the last day.

5:00 So the Jews grumbled about him because he said, “I am the bread of that came down from heaven and they said, “Is this not Jesus the son of Joseph whose father and mother we know? How does he now say I have come down from heaven?” Let’s pray. Lord, I thank you as John records this moment between you and a crowd who saw your miracles, who witnessed the amazing work of your hands, but did not receive you in their heart.

5:39 Lord, I pray that that would not be our response this morning. I pray that we would receive. I pray that we would not come with our pride, but we would come with faith. Lord, help us in our unbelief this morning. Teach us through your word. We ask this, Jesus, in your name. Amen. You may be seated. Jesus offends the proud but gives grace to the humble. Going to kick it off right away. There’s a lot of text to get through. It’s a big section.

6:17 On the next day, the crowd remained on the other side of the sea. They saw that there had been one boat and Jesus did enter that boat, but his disciples had gone away alone. We probably wondering, well, what happened prior? What happened prior is one of the greatest miracles ever recorded within Jesus’s earthly ministry. And that is as he was sitting on a hill, there were some 5,000 men plus women and children. So, when we say Jesus feeds the 5,000, we’re actually talking more like 15 to 20,000.

6:46 and he took a small meal from a boy. It was two little fish and five loaves. And he takes that, he breaks it, he blesses it, he multiplies it, and he feeds this crowd of 20,000 plus. And there’s 12 baskets left over. It is a miracle beyond miracles. You’re like, I I went to an amazing concert last night. It’s awesome. Cool. Did they break bread and multiply it? No. Fact check. No. If that happens, everyone’s coming to see.

7:20 And so it was in Jesus’s day. They couldn’t believe their eyes. This man fed us with two small fish and five little loaves. So the other boats start to pour in. They’re coming near the place that they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. And when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and they went to Capernaum seeking Jesus.

7:47 There’s a lot of reasons why people seek Jesus. There’s a lot of reasons you may end up in a church. There’s a lot of reasons why you may have come this morning. Some of you, you’re just wanting to commune with the Lord. I want to be among his people. Be in his presence. Hear the word wash over me. Some of us, we come because we’re desperate. It has been a hard week and a hard month and a hard year. We’re coming needy. We’re hoping for some kind of encounter.

8:17 Others, we come because we’re wanting the blessing. We’ve heard about this. He’s going to provide. He’s going to meet the need. And I want some of that. Why are you coming to Jesus this morning? So they’re going and then they find him and what happens when they find him? They say to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” It’s a great question. Hey, there was one boat. They got into it. You didn’t.

8:50 How did that happen? Jesus could have said a lot of things at this moment. He could have said, “I walked on water. You thought the fish and the loaves was cool. You should have seen it. Peter got on there, got a little scared, started to fall. So I helped him up. What does he say? Truly, truly I say to you, you’re seeking me not because you saw signs, but because you ate your f of the loaves.

9:19 It’s like that wasn’t the question, Jesus. I just want to know how you got here. He’s like, your heart’s not in a great spot. Have you ever had a conversation with Jesus and it feels like that? Hey, God, could you just provide for that? And all a sudden, you’re like, wait, what? Why do I feel conviction? Jesus isn’t always answering the questions you and I ask. He’s answering the questions that get to the heart.

9:46 He’s answering the questions that get to the heart. He’s going to do that this morning as well. Some of you are coming in, you got thoughts of what you think it’s going to need to be, and he’s going to redirect you. Not because he hates you, because he loves you. Not because he’s against you, because he actually wants what is best for you. And what is best for you is him in the soul seat of authority and kingship over you.

10:05 And so he says to the men and women, I say to you, you’re seeking me not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill with loaves. You’re seeking me not because you love me, but because your tummy is rumbling. These are fighting words. And you’re going to see how the crowd responds. They don’t take it as Jesus is being jovial. They’re like, “Why did you wake up so wrong inside of the bed here, Jesus? What happened? Thought you were cool, Jesus, feeding fish and loaves.” He says to him, “Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.”

10:45 He’s letting them know something of a profound theological truth. Jesus is making no bones about it. He says, “You’re looking for food. Food’s important. It’s necessary. You need to eat to live. But I offer you something greater. I offer you something that what endures to eternal life. For on God the father has said to seal. That is the son of man is given to you and he will give. Who is the son of man? This is a title that Jesus uses. He uses it repeatedly repeatedly and emphatically.

11:14 It is a title that comes out of the book of Daniel and it is describing this Messiah figure. It’s describing the promised son that was given to Abraham all the way down through the generations through the line of David. Jesus takes this moniker on and he uses it often. He’s making no bones about it. I am the son of God and I will give something that is eternal. So he’s pointing out an issue saying, “You’re here. You’re seeking me because you want food, but there’s something greater. There’s a greater source of food you have not received.” How do they respond? They said to him, “What must me do to be doing the works of God?” And think about this. Jesus has just rebuked them. You’re coming to seek me because you want food.

12:04 Don’t seek the things that are going to perish. Seek the things that are eternal. Seek the things that only I can give you. Only I can give you. And what’s their response? What do I need to do? What do I need to do? It’s very common for us. We come to a point in our life where we see that Jesus is an answer, maybe an answer to some of the questions and problems that we have within our life. But rather than going to him on his terms, we come to him with our terms. What do I need to do to cajol you? What do I need to do to earn or merit this favor? What do I need to do to make myself right?

12:47 What do I need to do to earn your favor? We do this in a lot of ways. I know of some people that won’t go to church because they’re like, “Until I have a perfect week, I don’t want to step in church.” I’m like, “Well, what defines perfect week? You haven’t done something. You’ve stayed away from the drugs. You’ve stayed away from the the the the people that are causing you to fornicate. your your what makes it good enough for you to come in? Do you not realize that it is in your brokenness and need that that’s where Jesus meets?

13:25 Jesus isn’t interested in our self-effort righteous program. He’s interested in us meeting him and then the obedience that comes out of that being filled by the spirit. But we don’t come to him having earned it from him. But they want to know what they can do. So look at what Jesus says to them. He says, “You want to know the work of God? You want to know the work? Here’s the work.

13:54 Believe.“ Do you know there’s nothing more offensive to a person who’s wanting to prove themselves? What do you mean believe? Anyone can do that. I need to earn it, God. I need to do something. I need to make sure I’m justified. I I need to make sure I’m righteous. I need I need to come in and everything’s clean and good. You don’t have even have to do anything. And that’s the problem because you’re still looking to you.

14:24 You’re still looking to you. See what’s happening right now is you have a crowd and they they are assuming they are assuming that hey we come from the lineage of Abraham. We are Jews from the 12 tribes. We have all the covenants and all the promises of God and we abide by the law. We make sure the sacrifices are happening. We go to temple. That’s what we do. That’s how we know we’re justified.

14:56 And Jesus is saying, “No, no, no. The way that you’re justified is you believe in me. You believe in me.” And this is what causes the greatest offense. Because in order for them to believe in Jesus, that means putting down their pride. That means putting down all the works that they thought they’ve done to merit God’s favor. That means placing it all at his feet and receiving him. I’m broken, needy, and I ask you to be my king and lord. I receive you to be my king and lord.

15:30 Happens in churches all the time, men and women, where if I ask you, hey, how do you know? What are you going to do when you die? Where are you going to go? If I hear any response other than 100% confidence, I know I’m in Jesus because of his work, and you’re missing the gospel. I think I’m about 75%. Like, what are you talking about? 75% of what? You, but I hear it all the time.

16:05 We don’t get the gospel. We don’t understand it because we still assume there’s 25% of us or 5% of us or 1% of us. Jesus will challenge our works. He’s going to challenge our works. He’s going to say, “Look, there is no level with which you can earn it, declare it, claim it by your own effort. It is impossible. There’s nothing you can do that merits the favor of God’s righteousness.

16:39 It is Jesus alone.“ And that is offensive. I know. I know that’s offensive. But you and I do not have the luxury of simply choosing to live in that offense and not be for Jesus. You don’t have the luxury of saying, “Well, you know what? I don’t need that part of him. I’m still going to add to the piece of the pie.” No, no. If he’s not king and lord all the way down, then he’s nothing.

17:03 And you still sit on your own throne. And the judgment that comes towards you will come upon you alone. Why is this so important? You’re about to see. That’s the first challenge. There’s two more two other areas that he’s going to push on them with. So they said to him, “What sign will you do that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform?” Now, I remember reading this initially thinking that they were just inquisitive people. Oh, they’re just inquisitive. That’s all. No, they’re not. They’re not inquisitive people. This is a challenge.

17:36 How do you know? Read verse 31. It says this, “Our fathers ate the mana in the wilderness. as it is written, he gave them bread from heaven to eat. Okay, a little background story. What’s happening here? 400 years of slavery. The Jews are then freed. Power of God working through a man named Moses. They walk into a desert. They’re given the covenants of God, the Ten Commandments, how to live rightly with him. He gets them to a land called Canaan. They’re about to cross in. They fear. They freak out. And then God judges them and says, “Because of your fear and lack of faith, even though I’ve done the miraculous in your life, everyone 20 years and older will die in this desert.” So for the next 40 years, they wander this desert.

18:16 And he feeds them every day because you know what? You don’t have a lot of in the desert food. You ever just tracked out somewhere, you know, just go north or south from here. You’re like, “I can eat cactus.” Okay, whatever. Don’t be That’s ridiculous. You’re not going to feed a population on cacti. It’s a desert. It’s dry and it’s not filled with many things and water’s hard to come by. So God provided and that’s what mana was. Mana would fall from the sky effectively. Every morning they would wake up and instead of dubing on the ground, this breadlike substance, mana was on the ground and they would collect it every day and it fed them every day. And if they got stingy and said, “Hey, I’m going to collect a couple days worth.” They had a problem because it would rot because God gave them enough just for the day. The only time he allowed to cover two days was on the Sabbath.

19:07 That was it. But here’s the theological argument they’re making. They’re saying, “Look, look, look. Moses, the first redeemer, he brought stuff out of the sky. Jesus, you’re starting with loaves on the ground. If you’re really that impressive, just make it fall down from earth.” So, that’s a challenge. Jews are challenging him because they had a fundamental belief that Moses was the first redeemer and that a second redeemer would come in his likeness and they’re like, “Hey, if you’re going to be if you’re going to make that kind of claims, then you at least need to match the level with which Moses did.

19:47 Moses didn’t have to start with anything and he brought us food. What are you gonna do?“ Now, again, think of how preposterous this is. He just fed 15,000 people. He they just saw with their own eyes two fish, five loaves of bread multiplied into 20,000 plus meals. And their first question is, “Yeah, but it’s not as good as Moses. What are you doing? What are you doing in life?” But we do this with God.

20:22 We do this with God. We want to come with the resume. And when that doesn’t work that we sometimes we come with the challenge. You know God if you’re really good really gracious you would have answered this prayer. There’s so many people that they let their disbelief stop them from ever moving forward with God because he didn’t jump when they said jump. And here’s the thing. I understand that there are some prayers you pray and you wonder how in the world would God not want to answer this?

20:55 Why would you let this person that I love die or walk through this sorrow or walk through this tragedy? And the only thing I can tell you as a man who’s both prayed those prayers and have not had them answered in all the ways I thought is I don’t see everything. I only see in part. And there’s things from my partial vantage view that don’t make sense to me. But I trust and believe that if I were to pull back and see the whole scope of things that he’s better.

21:28 And that, my friend, is not an easy answer. It doesn’t make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It’s a belief. It’s a belief. Will you believe? Or will you challenge? Here’s how he responds to the challenge. He says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses.” You’re like, “When did Moses get brought into this?” oop, I got got screwed up with the computer here. You’re like, “When did Moses get brought into this?”

21:56 In verse 31, it was the theological argument of the day. They thought Moses was the first redeemer. The second redeemer is going to come and he’s going to be like him. Jesus, on the other hand, says, “Not Moses. You’re making too much of him.” He was a prophet, but he was not the redeemer. He pointed to the coming of the redeemer. The way that God provided in the desert was pointing to what he was eventually going to provide with me that I would be bread that I would be thirsting question I would be life and if you have in me and abide in me you will never lack.

22:34 He says it’s my father that gives the true bread. There’s only been one source and it’s always been God and he provides as needed. And now what? He’s given you true bread from heaven. What is that bread? He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. I’m going to just underline that. Comes down from heaven. Who did that? Moses? No. Jesus? Yes. Anyone else? No. Like I think I came down from heaven. No. Lie. Some people think they are God.

23:06 I’ve talked to these people. They hang out on the beach. Their bums. Whatever it is. They’re just like I’m the reincarnation of Jesus. I’m like, “No, you’re not. You deceived yourself. What does he do? He gives life. Who can give life but the lifegiver himself. What does that mean? That means that you and I spiritually dead, disconnected from God. There’s no other name that brings those two together. There’s no other body. There’s no other blood. It’s just Jesus. Jesus is emphatically saying, “I’m God.” And then he says this, and this was the thing that probably frustrated them the most. He says it to the world. They’re like, “Wait a second. Wait a second. Whoa, whoa, hold on. You mean those pig pork eating people?” No, they don’t get the promises. It was Abraham. The blessing comes through his line. It’s for us. It’s for the Jews.

24:01 Jesus says, “No, no, no. It’s from heaven. It gives life. And it’s for what? To the world for those who believe.” Jesus is objecting to their understanding of the physical and the spiritual. See, they thought they were made right because they were physically Jewish. They were part of the lineage. They were part of the tribe. And he’s saying, “No, no, no. You need to be spiritually reborn.

24:35 You need to believe in me, not with your works of righteousness, not with your list of things that all you’ve done on your behalf for me. You need to come to me in your need. You need to believe me that I am the son of God come down from heaven, that I give life and it’s for the world for those who believe. He is challenging. And you have to understand this is this is so I mean to a first century Israelite, they’re like, “No, no, we’ve got Moses.

25:04 We’ve got the prophets. We’ve got the promises. We have the temple. We have the sacrifices.“ Like, “I’m saved because I’m Jewish. I’m saved because I I I’m from this clan. My father’s from this clan.” We could trace our lineage. And Jesus is saying, “No, you’re saved by one name. You’re saved by me alone. And it’s an act of grace received by faith. No other work can merit it. There’s one more challenge.

25:40 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always. If you’re going to be the bread provider, if you’re going to do all these wonderful things to get, and again, I used to read this thinking, sorry, just somebody was mad. I used to read this thinking, man, they just want they just want more of Jesus. No, they didn’t. They’re mocking him. Oh, you’re the bread of life. Then give just give us this bread always. It’s wild.

26:12 So Jesus responds, “I am the bread of life.” And you know what the bread of life is? I’m the one who meets not just the temporal need of hunger, but the eternal need of hunger. I’m not just the one that satisfies now. I’m the one that is satisfaction forever. I’m not just the one who who will give you a drink now. I quench it forever. There is no name greater than Jesus in this world.

26:52 There’s no provision like him. There’s no sustaining like him. There’s no place you go when you find yourself broken, lost, and alone greater than him. And you receive it with what? Belief. He didn’t work for it. He didn’t somehow been born in a I was born in this family, therefore I I know I’m okay. No, he’s challenging. He’s saying, you are looking at a temporal. I’m looking at eternal. You’re looking at hunger. I’m dealing with satisfaction. You’re looking to have your appetites fed.

27:36 And I’m looking to meet the greatest needs. How many times are we just so satisfied with little appetites? Jesus, I’ll follow you as long as you just give me the right spouse. Jesus, I’ll follow you as long as you just allow me to have enough money or influence. Jesus, I’ll follow you as long as you’ve given me health and prosperity. Jesus, I’ll follow you as long as my kids love you. Jesus, I’ll follow you as long as I’m able to have kids.

28:02 And these are the things that we look at Jesus and we say, “If you were really good, you performed for us.” So, we’re the crowd. We’re the crowd. That’s our heart. We’re the crowd. But look what Jesus says. He says this. He says, “This is the will of him who sent me.” You want to know the will of God? You don’t want to know what God’s thinking because you’re like, I have no idea what in the world God is thinking sometimes. What does it say? I should lose nothing of all that he’s given me.

28:40 But raise it up on the last day. That’s God’s will. He wants to raise up a generation of young men, young women, old men, old women who have not come with their wonderful things chart. Have not come with all of the This is where I grew up chart. have come in their brokenness, in need, covered by the blood of Jesus. He wants to spend eternity with you. He wants to spend eternity with you.

29:08 Where you’re in a constant love relationship with the one who made you, he wants to spend eternity with you forever. He wants to have you hang around his presence forever. That’s what the heart of God wants. You’re like, I think you’re reading into the text. I don’t think I’m reading into anything. It literally says, “I don’t want you to lose any of them, and I want you to raise them up on the last day.” That means when final judgment comes, they’re not getting cast away from me. They’re with me.

29:40 They’re with me. Our God is a loving God. He’s a holy God. And that’s why he cannot stand sin. If he were to withstand sin and not judge it, he would no longer be holy. There has to be a payment for the sin that you and I commit. There has to be a payment. And until Jesus’s blood is the one covering that. It is you on you. It’s on your head. It’s you. And there’s no amount of righteousness or works that you can do that satisfy it. God will not look at your list and say, “Oh, you actually achieved it. I can’t believe it. Finally happened. 2026. This person plateaued.

30:16 They’ve met it.“ He says, “For this is the will of my father that everyone who looks on the Son and believes, believes, believes should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” Is Jesus King and Lord? Is he is he the bread of life for you? Or are you still wanting him to perform so that you’ll believe? wanting him to come through so that you’ll follow. Wanting him on your terms so that you’ll obey.

30:56 Here’s the thing. You and I have to respond. You’re like, “Can I take an objection?” No, you can’t. You can’t abstain from this. It is the question that is before you is the question of life. And you will answer it and you will give an answer to him. When you die, you do not go to the dust. You don’t just float into an ethereal world. You will stand before the King of Kings and you either have his blood and his righteousness over you or you have your work.

31:27 You’re like, I don’t know if I like the pastor talking like this. I don’t care. Jesus talked like this. And he talked like this because he cared for you. Because he went to a dying world to be its only hope. So here’s the responses. Take a look with me. Ah, the big idea did it again. First service I nailed it. Second service I got too passionate. Actually, it’s a good one though. He offends the proud. If you’re offended, this is what honestly when I first became a Christian, I knew the truth of God. I knew the teaching of God, but I didn’t know the depth of my sin. It was the depth of my sin that brought me to him. How could I deal with it?

32:07 Jesus. Verse one. This is 41. This is there’s three responses. And these three responses, broadly speaking, you know, are the three responses or three types of responses that you and I will give to to King Jesus. It says this, “So the Jews grumbled,” which is interesting because if you know anything about the time in the wilderness when they were walking around for 40 years, there was a lot of grumbling.

32:30 A lot of grumbling. Hey dad, are we there yet? No. When are we going to be there? I don’t know. Next century. Wait, I got a pee break. Figure it out. Don’t get on the floor. Right? There’s just a bunch of grumbling going on here. And he says, this is why they’re grumbling, by the way. I’m bread that came down from heaven. They know what that means. He’s making a challenge that he is the son of God. He’s saying, not am I just not like Moses, I’m greater than Moses.

33:01 And so what do they do? They go to car character assassination. Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph? We father and mother we know. How does he now say I’ve come down from heaven? Again, if one of your friends that you’ve known from birth all of a sudden takes two loaves or five loaves and two fish and multiplies it for 15,000 people. I don’t know. I’d want to ask more questions, right? Like Jesus did the thing all of us in ministry do at some point. Like I think about college ministry. How did I get somebody to the door? free pizza, right? And then they came and I’m like, “Settle down. It’s it’s Domino’s. I know it’s not, you know, it’s mid tier, but I could have gone lower. I could have gone Little Caesars, right? I’m at least offering you mid.” Why? Because I want them to encounter Jesus. Let’s have the conversation. They encounter the food and then once it gets to Jesus, they’re like, “Wait a second.

34:01 No, we know who you are. You’re the carpenter boy. and they close their heart off to him. We do this with Jesus when we come to his word and we receive his word, but then we look at him and we come up with all the reasons why not to believe. Yeah, but as Christians, look at how terrible they are. I’m not going to believe Jesus. I’m like, well, he died for them and he died for you and can save, redeem, and restore you.

34:29 Or, well, I don’t know. It just, you know, again, if if he’s really good, why is there so much the problem of evil? Why is there so much evil in this world? Like, yeah, simple simple solution. Uh, he made it perfect. We sinned and then cast all of eternity or all of humanity and the earth into effectively rejection of God. That’s why. And he’s on a mission, a rescue mission to redeem and restore and win back what was lost.

34:59 But here’s the thing. If you’re in here and and this is where you’re at, the only thing I can say I I can’t convince you. I can’t convince you. The only thing I can tell you is what is true. That you stand in your own work on that day before the Lord. And you have no other name to cling to but your own. And he has something far greater for you. He offers himself to you. He offers to walk with you. He offers that you will never be hungry and thirsty. And he doesn’t just mean physically. He means spiritually and forever.

35:34 you will never want with me. So even when you find yourself lost and alone, scared, confused and completely strung out and you have no hope, Jesus is there. He’s there. And some of you, he’s brought you to that point right now. And that’s where you’re at. And it’s because he actually loves you enough to bring you to the bottom to say, “Do you see me now? I’m here and I’ve never walked away.” That’s the first group. Second group, and this is the scary one. These are the men and women who sit in the seats and they’ll sometimes give money and they’ll serve on teams. They’re disciples from the outside. Every exterior looks like they know Jesus, but inside they don’t.

36:16 It’s the seed that falls on the soil with rocks. It’s the seed that falls on the soil with thorns. It sprouts up at first, but it doesn’t take root. Many of the disciples heard it and they said, “This is a hard saying. Who could listen to it?” But Jesus knowing in himself that the disciples were grumbling, disbelief was in the heart of the disciples. Now, real quick, when you hear this, you’re thinking, “Wait, is he talking about the 12?” No, he’s not talking about the 12 because he’s going to specify the 12 in verse 67. He’s talking about this cohort of men and women who had been following him and growing ever since he started doing miracles. So, the crowd showed up and got fed for 15,000, 20,000 people. This group of disciples have been piling for a little bit of time. They’re like, “Okay, I think we’re Jesus followers.

37:01 And all a sudden, Jesus says, “I’m the bread of life. I’m the son of God. There’s no other name that’s going to save you.” And now they’re starting to be like, “Whoa, whoa, wait, whoa, wait. I don’t know if I signed up for all this cool miracles, that’s fine, but I don’t know if I signed up for all this.” And he’s saying to him, he says, “I know there’s your grumbling.” He says, “Do you take offense at this?” And here’s what I’ve seen. And I don’t want to scare anybody with this, but I just got to be honest about it. I’ve seen men and women who have stayed in church for a while. Sometimes it’s a short amount. Sometimes it’s a long amount, but they’ve been there for a bit. And then something happens that makes them question this.

37:44 And they’re like, I I don’t know if God, man, if God was really loving, he Why can’t love be loved? Why Why can’t it? You know what? I I I think I’m just Let me look online. Can I find somebody that says they’re smart and actually isn’t and comes up with a different idea? Yeah, you can find a lot of those people actually filled with Satan, not filled with the spirit. And they’re going to come, they’re going to look at his word and dissect it and take pieces out and be like, “Oh yeah, you can do whatever you want.” And Jesus loves all of it.

38:17 And then all a sudden, you get to a moment you’re like, “Well, you know what? I could either follow Jesus or the Jesus of my own making. I kind of like him better.” And really what that shows is you actually never love Jesus. Here’s where I see it, guys. I see it with parents and children where you love your child so much and then they walk apart and in an effort to try to win them back or love them back, you’re like, you know what? I’ll make the things that are keeping them from God, I’m just going to make excuses for. And I always tell parents, you could not love your child more than God loves them. Right?

38:49 So stand firm in it and wait upon it. When did we get to this moment where we couldn’t disagree in love with somebody? It’s called a relationship with anything, right? Do you always agree? No. I disagree with myself most of the time. I wake up like, “Dang, that’s just dumb, Brian. Why? Why are you being foolish? My dreams sometimes annoy me. I annoy me.” You you you wake up and all a sudden here’s reality. You will be in relationship with people in the side of love is honestly are you honest with them? Are you honest?

39:27 See parents desert this. I see I see here’s what else I’ll see throw other punches here. You’re in a relationship with somebody that doesn’t love Jesus and you’re like, “Yeah, but I saw my mom do it.” I’m like, “I’m glad it worked out for her, but Jesus is pretty emphatically clear. You should not be unequally yolked. You know what that means? Christian, Christian, you both have the same king.

39:51 You both have the same king. And sometimes what ends up happening is like, “Yeah, I don’t know, but that’s really I’m really struggling with this one God because if I lose him or if I lose her, how do I know I’ll ever find love?” And I get that. Trust me, I get that. I remember being in a relationship long before Belinda and I thought the same thing to myself. I’m like, “Man, if I let this one go, how do I know I’ll ever find somebody better?” Well, I’ll tell you what.

40:16 If I could go and show Brian life today, I mean, I would have just left that immediately. But I didn’t have the strength. So, you know what I did? He brought me into a house with a bunch of believing Christians who I thought were weirder than weird. I was like, “You guys are weird, but the rent is cheap. So, I’ll deal with your weirdness and I’ll deal with the mice. I’ll figure it out.” And God used them to just man bring me to his my senses and show me the word of God is true and I can walk in his path and I trust he’ll provide.

40:50 Baby’s agreeing right now. That’s what’s happening. Here’s the reality, guys. If you come to this moment and the offense is happening, it doesn’t mean something’s wrong. It means, are you with me? I want to grow you. I want to develop you. I want to strengthen you. I want to teach you to rely on me and not your senses. I want to use you for my glory and my kingdom, not your own. And it’s a good thing.

41:16 Don’t pull the E bra on that. Lastly, Jesus says now to the 12, do you want to go as well? He’s now focused on the 12. I love this response because I’ll tell you what, as a Christian, you’ll have it. You’ll have it at times. Simon Peter answers him. He says, “Lord, to whom shall we go? My chips are in. Where else am I going to go?” I’ve told many people. I said, “If Jesus isn’t real, if he didn’t rise from the dead, I am a mess cuz all of my chips are in.” But here’s the reality.

42:00 There’s actually a freedom when you get there. There’s a freedom. There’s a freedom in knowing you have the words of eternal life. There’s a freedom in knowing I believe you are the holy one of God. And I’m not going to walk by sight. I’m not going to walk by perception. I’m not going to walk by what feels good. I’m not going to walk by what I think is right. I’m going to walk by you.

42:32 And I can’t tell you, I can’t convince you. Please do so. Because the Lord, he doesn’t just save you for you to hang out for the rest of your life. He saves you because he’s got a mission for you. He’s got a path and a plan for you. He has something he wants you to do on this earth with the time he’s given you to accomplish the mission that forwards his kingdom. And it’s real. And it requires us getting in the game of what Lord, what have you gifted me for? Where have you called me for? What do you want to do with me? Okay, you want me to sell this? Okay, you want me to go here and move? You want me to pursue this job? You don’t want me to pursue this relationship? And he’s moving you all the way through. Even in the hardship, even in those seasons where you’re like, there’s no way you could ever use this for your good and your glory. Yes, 10 years from now, you’ll look back at that very moment and say, “I wish it wasn’t

43:20 as hard as it was, but praise God.“ He was using it to ford his glory and he was teaching me. You and I will have a Simon Pe motor sim Simon Peter I couldn’t speak for a second. the Simon Peter moment and we will either lay it down before him or will be one of the first two responses. Jesus, prove it to me and I’ll follow or I think I just like that Jesus of my mind. So, here’s what we’re gonna do. We’re going to respond now.

44:03 Three challenges that I have for us today. The first is this. Would you lay down your pride? And would you repent? I use this language a lot and sometimes I get questions like, “Brian, what does that mean to lay it down?” Okay, here’s exactly what this means. It means in prayer as you’re going to God, you’re just laying it. You’re saying, “Lord, I want to take the things in my heart that are not believing. I want to take the areas of my life that are not yielded. I want to take the disobedience in my life that is wrecking me, and I want to put at your feet. Lord, I am confessing it’s wrong. I’m confessing it’s sin. and I’m confessing you’re good.

44:40 Repentance is then saying, “Okay, and Lord, I was walking in these things thinking they were going to give me life. I’m now coming back to you and I’m I’m I know they can’t give me life, so I’m going to walk towards you. Would you strengthen me to walk in you? I don’t have enough strength to do it. So, would you actually fill me with enough strength to do the very thing you’ve called me to?” And you cry out to him and you ask him. And you say, “Lord, just do this because I can’t do this and I can’t do this in my strength. and I know with you and I know in your spirit I know according to your goodness that I can do all the things you’ve asked me to and I’m going to lay it before you and I trust in you and I believe in you. And here’s the thing. I just want you to think for a second like a father. If my son comes to me and says, “Dad, I screwed up. I’ve really messed up and I just want to know I I I I want to do what is right, but I’m struggling so much.” Is my response to him going to

45:25 be, I can’t believe you. Go figure it out. Don’t show your face around here until you figured it out. It would be the biggest embrace. I love you, son. I love you. I love you. I love you. And anything I can give that will help you accomplish what God’s called, I will do it in a heartbeat. If me as an imperfect father has that heart toward my son, what is God’s heart toward you? What is it?

45:57 We have a misunderstanding of God because we don’t believe Jesus. We don’t believe him. He says, “I’ve come so that I don’t lose a single one of you and I will raise you up.” What does that mean? He’ll do it. He’ll do it. You run to him. You bring your need and you bring it before him and you lay it before him. He’s so good. He’s so good. And I just want that for you. Trust him. And then take the next step. What has he called you to do?

46:34 I’m telling you right now, he constipated Christian is not a good thing, right? Constipated Christian. Here’s what that is. Sorry for the language, but it’s kind of true. We just sit and take in all this information, then don’t do anything. You’re called to save. What? Go and give the message of salvation to people who are lost. That means as Christians, we have people in our lives who don’t know Jesus and we’re actively pursuing them, praying for them, trying to tell them about who Jesus is. Some of us do that with a bullhorn and a in a Walmart parking lot.

47:05 Some of us don’t do that. We have neighbors over. Here’s what I find. Both sides tend to argue with each other. Stop. Just stay in your lane. God will use both. Okay? And then the second thing is you’re going to be praying, “Lord, what do you want me to do with it? What do you want me to do with my time? How do you want me to invest it in people and and things that you have for me? You want to save my funds, my money. What do you want me to do with it? Like, why do we talk about money? Because money has so many people’s hearts. And Jesus wants your heart more than anything. He’s going to ask you to yield that money and say, “Give it away in accordance with my plan for you.” He’s going to ask you to what? Repent of sin. Sin the cause is death. We talked about this a few weeks ago when we walked through our dethrone series. You cannot play with sin. But the beautiful thing is you don’t have to hide it. You don’t have to pretend like I’ve got this thing all worked out. No, no, no. You

47:55 could run to them. You can confess to them. You can lay it down and then you bring a person involved. Literally this week I was texting with my my accountability partner, Bill Bush, pastor of Rockpoint. We just go back and forth. We’re brutally honest with each other. Pray for me on this. I’m asking for this. I’m seeking on this. Why? Because we know how leadership works. If it’s fuzzy up here, it gets real fuzzy down here.

48:19 You’ve got to lead out with it. Parents, if you’re like, “I want my kids to be honest. I want them to know Jesus.” Guess what? It starts with you. Starts with you. You can’t be expecting them to love the Lord and God and serve God on their own valition. Unless you want one, introduce them to them. But two, they’re going to look to you. What do you do with your time? Lastly, when it comes to obedience, here’s the beautiful thing about this. Obedience begets obedience. The more you put those muscles into practice, the more you’re going to find there’s an ease and a delight and a joy.

48:56 When you’re starting off on things, it’s hard, but it’s worth it. Fight the fight. All right, plant your flag. People are like, “What does that even mean?” Well, literally planting a flag is just taking a flag and putting it in the ground. That’s what that means. Why do I like that language? Because we live in wishy-washy world. Oh, I’m a Christian. I go to X and Y in church. But we treat it like a gym. Like it’s a membership. Like we go once a month and it’s arc church. Like that’s nonsense.

49:26 Be the people. Plant the flag saying we’re going to storm the gates of hell. Not on our strength, but in his name. And we’re going to push back darkness. Again, not in our strength, but by proclaiming the light of who Jesus is. Because we want to see those who are lost found. Then we want to disciple those with whom he’s brought. My prayer today, if you’re in Christ, run to him today. And if you don’t know Jesus, you meet him today.

49:56 Let’s pray. Lord Jesus, you are the bread of life. You’re the bread of life. You are the one who sustains. You’re the one who fills. You are the foundation of life. Truly, without food and water, we do not exist. And without the bread of life, we will not exist. Not eternally. Not with you. And so, Jesus, I pray for those in this room who know you and love you. I pray that they would confess sin today, that they go to you, that they know that there’s the heart of God that loves them, that can take that sin, that can nail it to the cross, and can give righteousness. Lord, I pray that they would follow you whatever steps you’re calling them to to invest their time, their talent, their treasure, whatever it may be, to stay in the marriage, to get out of the bad relationship, Lord, that they would follow in obedience.

50:54 And Lord, I pray for that man or woman in here who doesn’t yet know you. They know of you. They don’t yet know you. Lord Jesus, right now, would they see themselves as a sinner in need of a savior? Second, would they understand that your salvation is able to crack through all the darkness of their heart? It cannot darkness cannot overcome the light of Jesus. And Lord, by faith would they believe that you are the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, that you came down on this earth, died the death they deserved, rose again in victory over the curse, and am now seated at the right hand of God, and you renew relationship with that heavenly father that we might walk in the newness of you.

51:30 And if that’s you, I just ask that you would cry out in a way that makes sense to you. Lord God, I’m a sinner. I need a savior. Would you save me, Lord Jesus? I want to walk with you. I don’t want to walk on my own strength anymore, Lord Jesus. I don’t know what I’m doing, but would you provide people who will help me on this path? And Lord Jesus, place your spirit within me. Seal me for your righteousness and good work.

51:50 Lord, let me walk in obedience to what you’ve called. And if you ask that by faith in Jesus name, he answers yes 100% of the time. and he will take you. He will hold you and he will lift you up on the last day. And Lord Jesus, we ask all this in your name. Amen.