Maybe you were one of the millions who were glued a few months back to their television sets to watch the final episode of the Fox reality show, “Joe Millionaire”? The premise of the show was that they would take an ordinary guy making a working man’s salary, clean him up, put him up in a castle in France and then tell a number of ladies that he was heir to a fortune and whoever he picks will be his girl. The test would be that when the last girl is chosen, the truth would be told that he was not really a millionaire and we would see if she loved him for who he was or for his money.
Now if you watched the conclusion of that show, you know the woman did choose to stay with Joe millionaire, even though he was really only Joe hourly wage earner. For this choice, the show gave both the girl and the guy a million dollars to split between them. It had seemed true love had blossomed but soon after the show ended, their love quickly dissolved.
Now what made that show so appealing to many is that they knew that those women could have cared less if it was Joe, Tom, Dick or Harry…as long as millionaire was his last name, and they wanted to see their response when they found out who he truly was. Because we know that so many relationships are not built on love for the other person, but on a selfish motive focusing on what can I get from it.
You might remember the reaction people gave former Guess Jeans model Anna Nicole Smith when she married Texas millionaire J. Edward Marshall who was old enough to be her to be her Great Grandfather, and when she told the world she married him not for his money, but because she loved him. People simply laughed and said, “Right.”
I love you not because of who you are, but rather what you can do for me. Does that sound familiar? We don’t say it, but we are often guilty of it. We’re guilty of building relationships based on selfish motivation.
Perhaps it’s with somebody at your work. If you get in good with him, he’ll help you get to the top. And though you can’t stand his attitude or lack of morals, for your career sake you call him your friend. Or you seek out a friend who is well known so that you could become part of the hip crowd. We often do things for less than honorable reasons. When I was a kid, I once became friends with a guy simply because I thought his sister was cute. I’m not proud of that, especially since she never took a liking to me, but like others, I sought a relationship not because I cared about that person, but because of what I could obtain from it.
Today, we heard the story how the people flocked to Jesus. It was wonderfully read I must say, and it’s wonderful to hear how once word spread about Jesus how the people came to Him. And when the crowds swelled and followed Jesus to a distant spot, the bible says that He looked at them and had compassion for them. I love that phrase. And since it was to far for them to get home for supper, Jesus decided to feed them then and there.
And here is where we see the miracle of the fish and loaves. Jesus took two fish and five loaves of bread and fed 5000 men. Some commentators say that when you count the women and children who were present that number could swell to nearly 15,000, and they still had left-overs. That night Jesus walked on the water and crossed the lake with His disciples, and the next morning when the crowd awoke, the sought out Jesus. That’s the good news. They wanted to be with Jesus. That’s good. But what is not so good is why they wanted to be with Jesus.
The bible makes it clear that Jesus knows the hearts of all men. That means that He not only knows what you do, but He also knows why you do it. He knows what the hidden motive of your actions, and whether they are pure or impure, and Jesus knew why these people had followed Him.
In John’s gospel, we find the same account, but with some added details. John 6:25-26 says, “When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, "Rabbi, when did you get here?" Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.”
Jesus says, “You are not following Me because you saw a miracle that pointed you to the fact that I am the promised Messiah, God in the flesh. No, you are following Me because I gave you a free lunch and now you want breakfast.” You see they did the right thing by following Jesus, but they did it for the wrong reason. And why you do something is just as important as what you do.
Jesus tells us as much in the sermon on the mount. He says, “Don’t pray to be seen by men, but rather to speak to your Father in Heaven.” Don’t fast just to have people say what a holy guy you are, do it for the right reasons. Don’t give to have everybody think you’re a kind, generous person, give because God wants you to. In other words, do it for the right reasons.
We often do things for the wrong reasons. As a young sailor I was stationed at Pascagoula at the ship yards and I started attending a small Methodist church near by living quarters. I went every Sunday, dressed to kill, but I wasn’t doing so to be noticed by God, not even the preacher…but rather the preacher’s daughter. I was in love with her, so soon I started attending every church function just because she was there. One day as I was leaving for church, a young man by the name of HT3 Highsmith asked me if I could wait and take him with me. Now understand that Highsmith was a young man who looked like he belonged on the cover of Men’s health and fitness. He was a ladies fantasy. Now the problem was that in this church, there were only two girls, one was leaving for college and the other was the one that I had a crush on, and I wasn’t about to jeopardize that, so I said, “I’m in a hurry; Maybe next week!” Of course, next week didn’t happen either. Needless to say, I didn’t have the proper motive for attending church, even though I did marry that pretty girl.
But we all have different reasons for attending church, don’t we? Some are here so that they could see other people. Perhaps for the fellowship or to catch up on the latest gossip. Perhaps it for the pot luck supper that often follows the morning service. Some are here not to see others, but to be seen by others. Have you noticed the increase of political figures at religious functions here lately? Coincidence, I don’t think so? Perhaps it’s to make you feel better. Now, these are not all bad in themselves. But the purpose of this service is to worship God. We often sing for our opening hymn, “We have come into His house and gathered in His name to worship Him.” That should be your motive for being here this morning. Not to see your neighbor, but to see God!
Now, just as that crowd in our text followed Jesus primarily for a selfish reason, often people today follow Jesus for selfish reasons. There is a brand of theology out there called “prosperity theology” and if you’ve ever watched TBN very long you’ve seen it. It’s a theology that says if you come to Christ, He will take away all of your troubles. If you want to be healed, follow Jesus. If you want to take care of your financial difficulties, follow Jesus. If you want to meet a man, follow Jesus.” Now all these are true in a sense. Jesus does heal, but not all the time. Jesus often does help you in your finances, but not always. The whole man thing I don’t know. All though I do think that God has a hand in are finding a mate. But if this is why you want to be a Christian, then you are being a Christian for the wrong reason. The focus of Christianity quickly becomes not how can I love and serve Christ, but what can I get from Him, and the focus of Christianity is not Christ, but rather the by-products of Christ.
Could you imagine if you built a marriage on the same principle? I love to eat my wife’s chicken spaghetti. In my opinion, there is none better this side of the Mississippi. But you would say I was crazy if I told you that I married her for her chicken spaghetti, (unless of course you have tasted it). But how long do you think my marriage to my wife would last if I was married to her not because I love who she is, but rather I love the way she cooks her chicken spaghetti? It wouldn’t last a year. The same thing happens when we follow Christ not because of who He is, but rather because of what He can give us.
You see we need to ask the question, “What happens when we follow Christ for the wrong reasons?” Often the response to that question is, we become disappointed and leave. A woman falls in love with a man because he has stomach you could iron a shirt on, but 5 years down the road when that six pack starts to look more like a barrel, she is disappointed and the marriage quickly falls apart. When I follow Christ because He will heal my cancer, or fix my marriage, or balance my check book, and when that doesn’t happen, I quickly fall away.”
A story was told once about a woman who joined a church and on the first Sunday had both her twin 5 yr old boys baptized. The next Sunday she didn’t show up, nor the next, so the pastor went to check on her. She told him she had stopped going to church because it didn’t work. When the pastor asked what she meant, she said, “I had those boys baptized so that they would stop fighting, but they are still biting and pulling each others hair, so it didn’t work!”
And when you follow Christ for any reason other than who He is, you will be disappointed and you will say, “It didn’t work. Let me try something else.” Now, don’t get me wrong. God does heal, He does perform miracles, He does do all these things, but these are not why you become a Christian. You became a Christian because you were convinced that Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah. You follow because of who He is.
And that is what true faith is. It’s when you follow God not for the blessings that come with it, but from the blessing of who He is. Let me ask you a harsh question. If you were to lose your job, your family, and your health; would that change your relationship with God? Job is a good example of faith. Job was a wealthy man who had it all, but in one day he lost his children, his wealth, and what was his response. Did he curse God, “God, if this is how you treat your friends, I don’t want to be one!” No, listen to what Job said. In Job 1:20 when he hears this awful news, vs. 20 says, “At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: "Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised."
You see, Job’s possessions, his family, even his health did not affect who God is. And here is another amazing thing to hear, even if God chose not to bless you in any way, He’d still be God and worthy of your worship. You see, I follow Christ today not because of what He can give me, but rather because of who He is. He is the Christ the Son of the living God. That would be enough, but instead He has done so much more. He has given us blessings upon blessings, He has met all of our needs, but most importantly, He has taken care of our greatest need. The bible says that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for the ungodly. When you were dead in your sins, Christ died for you. And when He rose from the grace and ascended into Heaven, He left the back door open for us to come in.
As we come to this table this morning, it is in part to remind us to keep the proper focus. If we ever get to the point where we think that Christianity is about finances, or healing our physical ailments, or about meeting my needs, or about making me feel good, all we have to do is to hear these words, “This is my body, broken for you.” And we are reminded where are focus is to be and why we are here. Jesus, we love You, just simply for who You are.
