The Work of God

I'm participating in NewSpring's 30 day Bible study. Today's reading is from John 6. The accompanying study was about Jesus being the Bread of life.

But the passage that really caught my attention was verse 29. Jesus has just fed the 5000 and the people are following him around. He is rebuking them for not caring so much about Him as about getting their bellies filled with food. So they want to know what to do to do the works of God. Jesus tells them to believe in Him.

That sounds so simple...believe in Jesus. But it was very difficult for the people around Jesus and it is still difficult today. Too many times we have a "Sunday" belief but don't want it to interfere with the way we do business or how we spend our money or our time. We don't want Jesus to interfere with our hobbies or our indulgences but we do want Him to get us out of a jam.

Or perhaps we believe when everything is all rosy and clean and nice but when the bottom falls out and our world turns upside down, we don't really believe in Him much anymore. We accuse him of abandoning us or not being who He said He is. Just like the Pharisees at the foot of the cross when they said if you are really the Son of God, save yourself, we yell if you are really God why are you letting this happen to me.

The work of God is to believe in Jesus. If I REALLY believe, I will follow Him no matter where it leads, no matter what He asks of me. I will be obedient to do what He says.