One of the most popular music groups over the past 25 years has been a band called U2. The lead singer of U2 is a man named Bono. It seems like every couple of years it gets reported that Bono is a professing Christian. I don’t know whether he is or not. I do know that several years ago, he wrote a song that is still one of their most popular songs. It’s called “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” Throughout the song, he tells of all the experiences he’s had in life, but still hasn’t found what he’s looking for. He’s climbed the highest mountains. He’s scaled city walls. He’s had physical relationships. He says that he’s even spoken with the tongue of angels. But he still hasn’t found what he’s looking for. Then he says something even more interesting. He says that he believes in the Kingdom Come. And then he says, “You broke the bonds and you loosed my chains. Carried the cross of my shame. You know I believe it.” But what does he follow that with? “But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.” Isn’t that sad? To have a head knowledge that Jesus died on the cross to break bonds and loose chains and bear shame… to have that head knowledge and still say, “I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.” That’s sad, but how many people do we know who are like that? People who have an understanding of Jesus. They know the Bible stories. They know the basics of the Gospel. But that’s not really what they’re looking for. They’re looking for something else. Just like Bono, they still haven’t found what they’re looking for. We’ve come to a place in our text this morning where we see a group of people who are like that. This great crowd of people had chased Jesus to the Eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee for one reason. Verse 2 says that they followed Jesus there because of the signs that He performed. He had done lots of miracles and they wanted to see more. And when they got there, Jesus had compassion on them and performed another miracle. He fed them. He took five small barley cakes and two small fish and re-created them into enough food to feed 15-20 thousand people. Now the people had their bellies filled. Now they had their needs met. And they liked the feeling. That’s what takes us to our passage this morning. Once the people had their bellies stuffed, they liked that feeling so much that they tried to take Jesus by force and make Him their king. That’s a good thing, isn’t it? We talk all the time about making Jesus our King. So why did Jesus react the way that He did in verse 15? Verse 15 says that when Jesus saw that they were going to make Him their king, “He departed again into a mountain Himself alone.” The word that’s translated “departed” can carry the idea of “fleeing”. In other words, Jesus got outta there in a hurry. They wanted to make Jesus king, but He wasn’t going to have anything to do with the idea. Now, why was that? Because the people wanted to make Jesus the wrong kind of king. They thought they had found what they were looking for. But they were wrong. Because they were looking for the wrong thing. They were looking for a king. But they were looking for the wrong kind of king. So what kind of king were the people in the crowd looking for?
First, they were looking for a king who would fill their stomach. I heard one person describing the crowd as looking for the ultimate welfare program. It was almost as if these people thought that they had won the lottery. I remember when I was little. My friends and I would fantasize about what it would be like to find a genie’s lamp. You know how it goes. If you find a genie’s lamp and rub it, the genie comes out and has to grant you three wishes. We would always talk about what three wishes we would ask for. Well, I have to admit that I ruined the game. I ruined it because I wasn’t satisfied with only three wishes. So I would pick my first two wishes, and then for my third wish, I would ask for three more wishes. I thought it was a good enough plan. When you think about it, that’s what this crowd was doing. They weren’t satisfied with the food they had just eaten. And they just knew there was more where that came from. All they had to do was get the guy that had made it and make him their king. If Jesus was their king, they wouldn’t have to worry about food ever again. It would be just like manna from heaven. They’d have bread all the time. As a matter of fact, that’s why they called Jesus “that prophet” in verse 14. They were referring back to some of Moses’ final words in Deuteronomy 18:15 where he said, “The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken.” They were thinking that Jesus was the coming prophet that Moses talked about. And do you know what? They were right. He was that coming prophet. But even though they got the person right, they got His purpose all wrong. They saw Jesus bring food. They remembered the stories about manna from heaven during Moses’ time. I’m sure they also remembered that when Israel was wandering in the wilderness that their clothes never wore out. And their shoes didn’t wear out. And they had water when they needed it. I’m sure that they remembered how God provided all of Israel’s needs while they were in the wilderness. So when they saw Jesus, they were looking for the same thing. “Jesus, be our king so you can meet all of our needs.” “But not only so you can meet all of our needs, but so we won’t have to make food any more. So we won’t have to make or buy clothes any more. Jesus, come and be our king so our pockets can be as full as our bellies are.” Some things haven’t changed much in 2000+ years, have they? People are still wanting Jesus for what He can do for them. You see it all over the TV and all over our community. It’s called the prosperity gospel. Jesus is here to make you prosperous. If you send in your “faith-seed” of $100, Jesus will give you back ten-fold. Sounds a lot like that genie I was talking about, doesn’t it? If you just rub Jesus the right way, He’ll give you anything that you want. Do you know how Jesus responds to that? The same way He responded to the crowd. He goes away. He will not be your King if that’s the kind of king you’re looking for. If all you want Jesus for is to pay your bills or give you a better job or put nice cars in your garage, He will depart from you alone. The crowd was looking for a king who would fill their stomach. Many people today are looking for a king who will give them their physical desires. Is that the kind of king you’re looking for? But that wasn’t the only kind of king the crowd was looking for.
They were also looking for a king who would heal their bodies. It’s one thing to be hungry. But it’s a whole other thing to be sick. Do you remember why these people had followed Jesus to the Sea of Galilee in the first place? Back in verse 2, it says that they followed Jesus “because they saw His miracles which He did on them that were diseased.” They wanted universal healthcare. That might sound funny, but it’s not. Because they were looking to have all of their medical needs taken care of. Disease and sickness have been a part of life ever since the fall. And ever since the fall, disease and sickness have made people feel helpless and hopeless. It is a terrible thing to watch a loved one have to suffer with sickness or disease. When that happens, we rush them around to different doctors and try to find any way we can to get them relief. Can you imagine someone walking around with the ability to really heal? No wonder they flocked to Jesus. Look at how many people show up at these so-called healing crusades on TV. When a so-called faith healer comes to town, they can fill up 20-30 thousand seat arenas with no problem. Why? Because even though most of them have been completely discredited, people hold out hope for physical healing at almost any cost. No wonder these people wanted Jesus to be their king. Can you imagine what was going through their heads? “If we make this man our king, we will have no more sickness. My back won’t hurt anymore. I will be in perfect health and won’t have to worry about sickness or disease. I will be well.” That’s the same kind of Jesus people are looking for today, isn’t it? And I’m not just talking about the ones who go to Benny Hinn crusades. I’m talking about many of us. Jesus is here to make me well. Jesus is here to make me feel better. Jesus is here to heal my cousin’s disease. Can Jesus heal? He’s God—he made these bodies, He can certainly heal them. Does Jesus heal? Of course He does. If Jesus hadn’t been healing people, the crowds wouldn’t have followed Him in the first place. And that’s the point, isn’t it? Even though Jesus can heal. And even though Jesus does heal. He is not our personal healing charm. He will not be taken as King, just so He can fix up our bodies. We have all seen it before. A person has nothing to do with Jesus until they get sick. And then as soon as they get sick, they want people to pray for their healing. Do we pray for them? Of course we do. Is it possible that Jesus will heal them? Out of His boundless love and grace and mercy, of course it is possible. But nonetheless, if you are looking to make Jesus your king just so He will fix up your body, He will respond to you the same way He responded to the crowd. He will depart from you. He will not be your King if the only kind of king you’re looking for is one who will heal your body. That’s what the crowd was looking for and Jesus departed from them alone. Is that the kind of king you’re looking for? That day by the Sea of Galilee, the crowd was looking for another kind of king as well. They were looking for a king who would fill their stomach. They were looking for a king who would heal their body.
They were also looking for a king who would deliver them. What they said in verse 14 was no small thing. When they referred to Jesus as “that prophet that should come into the world,” it was a big deal. As we said, this was a reference back to Moses prophesying that in the future, God would bring a prophet out of Israel who would do many of the same things that he did. We already said that the crowd was thinking of the manna in the wilderness when they said that. But they were also thinking of what Moses was best-known for. He was best-known for being Israel’s deliverer. Through Moses, God delivered Israel from the bondage of Egypt. You remember what kind of a terrible bondage that they were in. Israel had grown into a large nation and Pharaoh was beginning to feel threatened by them. So in order to prevent the Israelites from rising up against him, he repressed them. He took away their freedoms and enslaved them. Pharaoh’s rule was so harsh that the Israelites began to cry out to God for deliverance. And God raised up Moses to be their deliverer. Moses led the children of Israel out of the bondage they were in. None of us in here knows what it’s like to be a slave. But many of us know what it’s like to be in bondage. If you have ever gotten into debt that was beyond your ability to pay, you know what it’s like to be in bondage. If you’ve ever had a marriage that was falling apart and your spouse wasn’t wanting to do anything to fix it, you know what it’s like to be in bondage. If you’ve ever been the victim of an overbearing, cruel, abusive parent, you know what it’s like to be in bondage. Some of us in here might have even known what it is like to be in bondage to drugs or alcohol or pornography or gambling or greed or lust or any number of other things. And when a person comes to realize that they are in bondage, there is nothing they want more than to have a deliverer come and rescue them from that situation. I’m sure that many people in the crowd in our passage were in bondage to many things. I’m sure even many of the same things people are in bondage to today. Judging by the area of Galilee that they were from, many of them were in bondage to poverty. The hunger that they felt before Jesus fed them was real hunger. They were in bondage to the Roman government. They were in bondage and were desperately looking for a deliverer. They were looking for the prophet who would come and deliver them like Moses did. But when they chased after Jesus in order to make Him their deliverer, what did Jesus do? He departed from them alone. Does that mean that Jesus will not deliver us from bondage? Of course not. But is that the only reason that you are seeking Him? Jesus, I want you to make my marriage better. Why? So I can have a better marriage. So I can have peace. So I can be happy. So I can get what I want in life. Jesus, I want you to deliver me from my addictions. Why? Because it is ruining my health. It is making people turn away from me. It has made me lose my job. When a person says that, what are they saying? They’re saying, “Jesus, you are my get out of bondage free card. I want you to deliver me for me—for my sake.” Is that the kind of king you’re looking for?
Once again, we see that Jesus will not be had for what He does. When we try to make Jesus our king because of the things that He does for us, He will depart from us. Jesus will only be made King for who He is. And do you know what the wonderful thing is? When you make Jesus your King for who He is, He will provide your needs. When you make Jesus your King for who He is, He will give you ultimate healing. When you make Jesus your King for who He is, He will deliver you from bondage. For His sake and for His glory. So that His name will be magnified. So that His name will be lifted up and glorified.
So our question is, what kind of king are you looking for? If you are only looking for a king who will fill your stomach and provide for your physical desires, Jesus will depart from you alone. If you are only looking for a king who will heal your sickness and make you feel well, Jesus will depart from you alone. If you are only looking for a king who will deliver you from whatever difficulty you might find yourself in, Jesus will depart from you alone. But—if you are looking for a king who will be your Lord and Master and Savior, you will find Him. In Matthew 7:7-8 Jesus said, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” The great crowd in our passage this morning was seeking Jesus. But they were seeking Him for the same reasons that many people today are seeking Him. They were seeking Him only as a convenient accessory to make their lives a little bit better. Jesus will not be a convenient accessory. He will not be an add-on. Jesus is already King. He wants us to seek Him as such. Seek Jesus as your King this morning. And when you do, He will never leave you alone.
