Why Did Jesus Walk Away From a Crown? (John 6:1-15) | Daily Devotional & Bible Study

Today in Bible Study 101 we mark every action word in John 6:1-15 in red and then ask a simple question: who is doing all of this? The answer is Jesus, every time, and that changes how the last verse reads. When the crowd finally tries to act first and make Him king by force, He walks away, and that tells us a lot about what He really came to do.

"So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone." (John 6:15)

Questions this episode answers

Why did Jesus refuse to be made king in John 6?

The crowd had just been fed, and they wanted a king who would deal with Rome and keep the bread coming. Jesus would not be crowned by force on their terms, so He withdrew to the mountain alone. His kingdom would come through the cross, not through a political uprising.

How can I tell what kind of writing a Bible passage is?

Look at the action words. A passage full of things happening in order, like crossing, sitting, eating, and gathering, is historical narrative. A letter like Romans has very few actions because Paul is building an argument, and poetry and law look different again.

Why does John slow down in John 6:11?

John names three separate movements: Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them. When a writer slows down like that, he is pointing at something important. It is the center of the whole passage.

Timestamps

00:00 Where we are in the series

00:59 What counts as an action word

01:56 The picture test

02:50 Reading John 6:1-15

08:42 Verse 11, and why John slows down

10:45 What all that red tells you

13:31 Jesus initiates. Everyone else responds.

14:32 Verse 15 and the crown

Links

If walking through the Gospels slowly like this stirs something in you, come study Scripture with us on a Bible Study Live trip to Rome, where we visit a room tradition connects to Luke's house.

Bible Study Live is a small-group Bible study trip with Rachael Groll. Study Scripture where it happened in Rome, or slow down for a contemplative Bible study retreat in Maui. Dates and details at BibleStudyLive.org

Listen ad-free, plus the full library of past series, on Patreon: patreon.com/HearingJesus

Questions or prayer requests? Leave me a voicemail: SpeakPipe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices