Every person has some basis for the things he or she believes. We have a background in our lives that shapes our thoughts, and even when we see new things, we filter them through what we have learned or experienced before.
I think of that as I read the verses in today's Scripture where Jesus talks about being the Bread of Life, in John 6.
Two thoughts come into my mind as I read:
Jesus tells everyone that He is the bread of Life and that no one can receive eternal life unless he eat of this bread. The one that believes on Jesus as the Son of God is the one that feeds on this true Bread. What Jesus is saying is that there is no other way, that He is the only Door to heaven.
The other thought that I get from this passage is the role of the Spirit in the whole process. The Father uses the Spirit to draw men and women to Jesus. Drawing seems to be a gentle process, and it can be a time consuming one. Can the actual belief come quickly? Sure, but there is some background from which that belief springs from. Who can fathom the many and varied ways the Spirit of God uses to bring a person to belief?
Using the words of Jesus Himself would lead us away from any thought of universalism, and the idea that all men in all time will be together in heaven. Jesus said in Matthew's gospel that there are many that are called and few that make that choice. He also says that belief in Him would be the only door of entry. We seem to tread on dangerous ground when we don't take the words recorded in the Bible as authentic. Why else claim that this book is God's Word? God wants us to use our minds to study and to think, but we have to beware when we substitute our worldly wisdom for what He has said. When we say the Bible is a book worthy of our reverence, but pick and choose what in it we want to believe, we put ourselves on the throne and not God.
Using caution in who we believe and what we believe is the key. Two words jump out at me from this passage, even if they are not actually in the text, Be Careful.
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