John 6:22 - Meaning and Application

In these verses, we see the people’s earnest search for Christ, though their hearts were not right before God. They had watched the disciples go off by boat and had seen Jesus withdraw to the mountain, likely because he wanted to be alone for a time. But because they hoped to make him king, they watched for his return and kept looking for him the next day.

First, they were puzzled about where he had gone. He was no longer there, and they did not know what had become of him. They also saw that no boat was there except the one his disciples had taken, which fits God’s providence in proving the miracle of Jesus walking on the sea. If we want to find Christ, we must pay close attention to where he is and where he is not, so we can follow rightly.

Second, they made a determined search for him. They looked around the area, and when they saw that Jesus was gone, and his disciples were gone too, they decided to search farther. People who want to find Christ must seek him steadily, even from place to place, rather than live without the word of God. Those whom Christ has fed with the bread of life should feel deep desire for more of him. Many would gladly have more of Christ if they truly knew him.

They decided to go to Capernaum, where Jesus usually stayed and where his disciples had gone. They expected he would not be away from them long. Those who want to find Christ should follow the track of his people. In God’s providence, they were given a quick way there by sea, because other boats had come from Tiberias, a town farther along the same shore. People who sincerely seek Christ, and who want time with him, are often helped by Providence in those efforts.

The evangelist also notes that after Jesus had given thanks for the bread, the disciples remembered those words with special warmth. They had been deeply moved by the grace and beauty of that meal. His giving thanks left a strong impression on them, and they cherished the memory of it.

Third, they did not wait when the chance came. They got into the boats and went to Capernaum, looking for Jesus. They did not delay in hopes of seeing him again on their side of the water. Their convictions were strong and their desire was warm, so they followed at once. Good stirrings in the heart are often lost because people fail to act quickly. They came to Capernaum, and it seems these insincere followers had an easy trip, while Christ’s true disciples had a rough one. In this evil world, it is not surprising if the best people suffer the hardest treatment.

They came seeking Jesus, and that is always the right direction for a person’s heart. Those who want to find Christ, and find comfort in him, must be willing to take effort. They must be ready, as these people were, to cross land and sea in order to seek and serve the One who came from heaven to earth to seek and save us.

Second, their search succeeded. They found him on the other side of the sea. Christ will be found by those who seek him, sooner or later. It is worth crossing a sea, and even going from one end of the land to the other, if we may find Christ at last. These people later proved to be unsound in heart, and they had no good motive, yet they were zealous. Hypocrites can be very active in attending God’s public worship. If all a person can show for love to Christ is running after sermons, prayers, and good preaching, that person should be careful and examine himself.

Even so, though Christ knew their hearts were not right, he was still willing to be found by them and to let them come near. Even if we could know the hearts of hypocrites, we should not keep them from fellowship as long as their profession seems fair. Much less should we do so when we do not know what is in their hearts.

Third, when they found him, they asked, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” It seems from later verses that they found him in the synagogue, the Jewish house of worship. They were wise to look for him there, because it was his habit to attend public worship (Luke 4:16). Christ is to be sought, and is found, in the gatherings of his people and in the use of his ordinances, the appointed means of grace. Public worship is what Christ chooses to honor with his presence and with special signs of himself.

Their only question was, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” When they saw he would not be made king, they dropped that matter and called him teacher instead. Their question was about both the time and the way he had come there. They were curious about Christ’s movements, but not careful about their own.

Fourth, Christ answered them, not by satisfying their curiosity, but by speaking to their real need. He showed the wrong reason why they were following him. He said, in effect, “I know your hearts. You seek me, and that is good in itself, but your motive is not good.” Christ knows not only what we do, but why we do it. These people followed him, not because they valued his teaching, but because they had eaten the loaves and were filled.

He had given them a full meal, and some of them may not have had enough to eat for a long time before that. It was also a rich meal, and likely very pleasant, since the miraculous wine had been the best wine, and the miraculous food was likely especially good. It was also a free meal, with no cost to them at all.

Many people follow Christ for bread, not for love. That is what people do when they use religion to gain worldly advantage, or when they follow it because it helps their career. Even a pope once said in effect, “What a profitable story we have made out of Christ.” These people gave Jesus respectful names like “Teacher,” and showed him honor, yet he still spoke plainly about their false motives.

His ministers should learn from this. They must not flatter those who flatter them. They must not be bribed by kind words into telling everyone that all is well. When there is reason for it, they must give honest correction, even to people who speak well of them.

Jesus then directs them to a better goal (John 6:27): “Work for the food that lasts to eternal life.” He had spoken to the Samaritan woman about spiritual things under the picture of water. Here he speaks of them under the picture of food, using the bread they had just eaten.

His purpose is, first, to limit our worldly chasing after things. “Do not work for the food that perishes.” This does not forbid honest labor for daily needs (2 Thessalonians 3:12). But it does warn us not to make the things of this world our main concern.

The things of this world are food that perishes. Wealth, honor, and pleasure are like food. They satisfy the imagination, and often that is all they do. They fill the body for a time, but they pass away. They wear out on their own and are exposed to many accidents. Even those who have the most cannot keep them forever. They must leave them behind when they die.

So it is foolish to chase these things too hard. We must not work in religion for this perishing food, with worldly gain in view. We must not make religion serve our money interests, or seek business advantage through sacred things. We must also not make these passing things our main good. They should not be the chief thing we seek, or the main work of our hands and hearts (Proverbs 23:4-5).

Second, Jesus wants to stir us up to better work. He says, in effect, “Use your effort on something better. Work for the food that belongs to the soul.” He shows that this food is greatly desirable. It is food that lasts to eternal life. It is a blessing that will last as long as we must live, and it not only endures forever itself, but also feeds us into everlasting life.

The blessings of the new covenant, that is, God’s new saving promise in Christ, prepare us for eternal life, keep us on the way to it, and give us a sure promise of it. And this food can certainly be had. No one can gather all the treasures of the earth and put them together to supply what will last forever. This cannot be bought with gold.

But it is what the Son of Man gives. That is, either the food itself, or the life it leads to, comes from him. The Son of Man is the great master of the storehouse. God has trusted him with the rule of his kingdom among people, and with giving the gifts, grace, and comfort of that kingdom. He has power to give eternal life, together with all the means that prepare us for it.

We are told to work for this as if it were gained by our own effort. But even after all our labor, we have not earned it as wages. The Son of Man gives it as a gift. And what is more free than a gift? It is a comfort to know that the giver is the Son of Man, because then we may hope that human beings who seek him and labor for him will not be turned away.

Jesus also has authority to give this food, because “on him the Father, God, has placed his seal” (John 6:27). That means the Father has proved and marked him out as the one sent by God. He has declared him to be the Son of God with power. He has given him full authority to deal between God and people, as God’s messenger to people and people’s mediator, that is, the one who stands between them and brings them together with God. He has also confirmed his mission by miracles.

Since the Father has given him authority, he has also given us solid assurance of that authority. He has entrusted Christ with full power, and then given us clear proof of it. So Christ could go forward with confidence in what he came to do for us, and we can surrender ourselves to him with confidence too.

God the Father sealed him by the Spirit resting on him, by the voice from heaven, and by the witness given in signs and wonders. God’s full revelation comes to completion in him. In him, vision and prophecy are brought to their intended end (Daniel 9:24). All believers set their seal to this, that he is true (John 3:33), and in him they are also sealed (2 Corinthians 1:22).