ACTS 7:51–8:1A

Stephen said to the people, the elders, and the scribes: "You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always oppose the Holy Spirit; you are just like your ancestors. Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They put to death those who foretold the coming of the righteous one, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become. You received the law as transmitted by angels, but you did not observe it." When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him. But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and Stephen said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them"; and when he said this, he fell asleep. Now Saul was consenting to his execution.

JOHN 6:30-35

The crowd said to Jesus: "What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do? Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat." So Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." So they said to Jesus, "Sir, give us this bread always." Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst."

Why do the crowds still not believe? Why do they still need more proof? Is our faith like this, always asking for more proof instead of accepting the ample proof that Jesus has already given us?

Perhaps there is a hint as to why the crowds are asking this question. Jesus fed them once. Now they start asking questions about the manna Moses gave in the desert. Their motive is not so as to believe in Jesus. They want to get more out of him. They are eager that Jesus do for them what Moses did in the desert. It is about them getting a free ride. They seem to be saying: “If you feed us for the rest of our lives we will believe, at least until we think of something else we want from you.” Do we only believe in Jesus if he promises us a free ride in this life?

Jesus did not come to make our life easy. He did not come to remove difficulties and sufferings from our life. Instead he came to share them with us. Jesus came to give us an example of how to live in the midst of difficulties and suffering. He came to suffer with us, so that we could never complain: “Lord, you don’t know what it is like.” Jesus always does what is best for us, and not necessarily what corresponds most to our desires and comfort.

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Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most.

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