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The backdrop to this is the feeding of the five thousand. It is a truly stunning miracle. Jesus was moved not to allow the crowd to go hungry. Jesus took care of their physical needs since they couldn’t afford to take them out for a meal. They were very impressed.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” ~Jesus | John 6:26-27

What am I working for? Jesus has to set me straight. While Jesus will take care of the my physical needs including feeding me, Jesus challenges me to not focus on working for money here. Everything I am working for here is going to perish. It is useless and futile. Jesus wants me to work for what is enduring. That is in the spiritual realm and His Kingdom, not the physical realm.

What is the seal of God? There are five verses in the Bible that refer to a “seal of God” or an object or person sealed by God (John 6:27; 2 Timothy 2:19; Revelation 6:9; 7:2; and 9:4). The word sealed in the New Testament comes from a Greek word (σφραγίζω sphragizō, sfrag-id´-zo) that means “to stamp with a private mark” in the interest of keeping something secret or protecting or preserving the sealed object. Seals were used for official business: a Roman centurion, for instance, might have sealed a document that was meant only for the eyes of his superior. If the seal were broken, the one receiving the document would know that the letter had been tampered with or read by someone other than the sealer.

Jesus the Messiah bore the seal of God: “On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval” (John 6:27). Those who trust in Jesus also possess the seal of God, which is the Holy Spirit: “You also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the good news of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession” (Ephesians 1:13–14). It is good to know that as a child of God, I am sealed, secure, and sustained amid the wickedness of this transitory world and have the Holy Spirit as the mark of God’s seal.

In the Jesus Manifesto, Jesus says several things very similar. “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.“ — Matthew 6:19-21 And again, “You cannot serve both God and Money.” —Matthew 6:24 | This is a drum Jesus keeps beating. It is not about being wealthy and making a ton of money, here in this world. I need to focus on Kingdom wealth in heaven.

To be completely transparent, Jesus continues to elaborate what he means (John 6:28-40. “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” … “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.” 

Now Jesus gets even more specific. “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

 

Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστέ, Υἱέ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐλέησόν με τὸν ἁμαρτωλόν

Translated: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”

Resources you may be interested in

  • Teachings on the word of God
  • Devotions
    • Jesus Sayings  – Extensive set of devotionals on the 4 gospels and what Jesus has to say
    • Jesus Manifesto  – Devotionals on the Matthew 5 – 7
    • Wise Sayings – Devotionals on Proverbs and Psalms
  • What others say