Which Group Am I In?

a Tittle of the Followers

John 6

It all started right after the multitudes of people gathered on the hillside (see above pic), and the people witnessed the complete miracle that Jesus Christ performed with the bread loves and the fish. While they were understandably in awe of what was happening, many people neglected to hear the Savior's words and teachings and focus only on the physical act of the miracle. They were so excited to see a good show, that they missed all of the important parts!

The people then followed (almost stalked), Christ, until they finally caught up to him. They asked him

"....Rabbi, when calmest thou hither?" (John 6:25)

To which he replied: 

"..Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled." (John 6:26) 

or  

JST: "...ye desire to keep my sayings, neither because ye saw the miracles."

He knew that those people were not there to hear his words, or find more truth in his teachings. They were there to see what they might compare to a circus act. When something spiritually magnificent like this takes place, the "blind" people don't see the reason behind it, and can only see the coolness factor. 

Which should lead us to question our own motives: 

What motivates my desire to "seek" the Lord?

Do I have the right reasons for seeking the Lord, or do I have more superficial motives? As I thought about what might constitute a superficial motive, I realized that they were sometimes very sneaky. Sometimes a motive that might be a righteous and praiseworthy choice, might not be the best reason. For example: I made a list, and on this list, I put all of the reasons that I personally feel a motivation to follow Christ. It looks like this:

-A deeper testimony

-A better understanding

- Stronger faith

These are all good choices- they are things that will bring me closer to Christ, and they will better my life. The bottom of my list looked like this:

-For my children

-For my husband

-Because I should

While these are good things, and very respectable (at least I thought so), they may not be sufficient for motivation. Shouldn't my desire to "seek" Christ be because I need it, and can't imagine living my life without it? After a lot of reflection this week on my list, I decided to take the bottom half of the list off.  Why? Because I think that those are less like motives, and more like consequences. As I strive to attain the first half, the second half happens as a result. I need to seek Christ, for myself  and with the right motives. In turn, my husband and my family will be enriched. Step one: Check your motives.

Christ, knowing the unholy motives of the people, gave them the opportunity to understand, by presenting them with the Bread of Life discourse. He tells them, in verse 27 of John 6:

"Labour not for the near which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed."

To the reader, this means to look and work for the things that do not end in this life, but for things that we carry with us into eternity. Another example of this is found in Matthew 6:19-20, where Christ talks about treasures on Earth, and treasures in heaven. 

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:"

Simply written, things on this earth perish, but things of heaven last forever. What are things of Heaven then? Your faith, your testimony, your education, your understanding and your choices. 

Then, in verse 21 of the same chapter, Christ tells the people:

"For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also"

Christ tells them that whatever they hold as treasure, will also be their priority. So now, I ask myself this question: 

What do I consider to be treasure? 

Do I cling to my scriptures and honestly seek Christ in prayer, holding every ounce of faith and testimony as my greatest possession? Or do I just really like my boat/car/kids/husband/toys/

computer/house/job..... the most? Because what ever the answer to that question is, determines where my priorities lie. Step Two: Pick priorities.

In John 6:35, Christ explains to the people where their priorities should be, and where to find the treasure. 

"I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst"

If we want to fill ourselves with eternal life, then we need to partake of the Bread of Life, which is Jesus Christ. We need to seek Him, we need to partake of His sacrament, and we need to follow His ways. 

The people, because of their levels of faith, were divided into three groups:

Group 1 

People who didn't want to understand and mocked Him (John 6:41)

Group 2

People who left Him when they thought it was hard (Disciples in John 6: 66)

Group 3

People who were willing to understand and follow Him wherever he went (Apostles in John 6:68-69)

This brings me to the third, and final question I have today: 

Which group am I in?

A few weeks ago, my brother, Justin, asked my daughter, Jadyn (6),  to participate in a High School pageant as his escort for the night. She practiced and worked really hard with the older teenage girls to learn the dances and parts that they would all be performing for the event. As the time of the event grew close, Jadyn was informed that it was a formal event, and that she would need to be in a real formal dress. The older High School aged girls showed her their dresses in a dress rehearsal, which were very beautiful, but very immodest. Jadyn, being young, was in love with the dresses!!

We went to the mall that night and looked in dozens of stores for a dress. Jadyn didn't like any of them. Finally we asked her what she was looking for, and she said she wanted a sleeveless one (and it had to be Elsa blue). We explained to her the standard of our church, and the commandments from the Lord to dress modestly. I think initially she was upset, but she quickly decided to follow the commandments. She was the only girl up there with sleeves on her dress, and she looked amazing. She even proceeded to tell the other older girls about the commandments. I was so proud of her! Jadyn was small, but I will always remember her great faith and desire to do whatever it takes. Jadyn is in Group 3.

Sometimes when we are faced with difficult decisions, it would be really easy to turn and walk away. But before we do this, first, consider this scripture in John 6, where Christ turns to His apostles after witnessing Groups 1 & 2 leave him: 

"Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?" (John 6:67)

It is important for us, as disciples of Christ, to know where we stand. What group are we in?  When things are difficult, will I leave Him? If I don't understand the teachings, will I choose to complain or disagree? Or will I, no matter what he asks of me, choose to follow Him wherever he takes me? 

(I want to be in Group 3. )