John 6:15-21

Until John, we have been using older manuscripts of Ryle's Expository Thoughts. Just recently, though, EP Publishing has put out a lightly updated version of Ryle's work, which I am now working from. If you are interested in a physical copy of the Expository Thoughts, you can find it HERE.

1. We should notice our Lord Jesus Christ’s humility.
2. We should notice the trials through which Christ’s disciples had to pass.
3. Let us notice our Lord Jesus Christ’s power over the waves of the sea.

“Tell me how much humility a person has and I will tell you how much Christianity he has.”

"Trial, we must distinctly understand, is part of the diet which all true Christians must expect. It is one of the means by which their grace is proved and by which they find out what there is in themselves."

"Let all true Christians take comfort in the thought that their Saviour is Lord of waves and winds, of storms and tempests, and can come to them in the darkest hour, walking on the sea."

Questions:

1. Ryle exhorts that pride, ambition, and high-mindedness are common, and humility and low-mindedness is rare. How about us? Are we quick to run toward greatness or promotion when offered, or toward being the servant of all?
2. Ryle encourages us that trials are part of the diet which all true Christians must expect. We naturally want the calm weather with favorable winds and Christ at our side and the sun shining down on our faces, and yet, God grants fair weather and storms for various seasons of our lives (Phil 1:29). In times of suffering, do we believe Christ is far from us or that He doesn't love us, or that we need to cling to him more closely?
3. We see, in Christ walking on the water and calming the sea, that He is the Lord and Maker of creation. If we have been Christians for a while, we can sometimes take this for granted, and yet, would it not produce in us a love for our Savior, and a trust that He, and He alone, can calm the waves, both physically and those in our lives?