the tindog coffeehouse

I don’t want the Father, I want a vending machine
I don’t want the Father, I want a vending machine
I know what I want if you know what I mean
I don’t want the Father, I want a vending machine

– Derek Webb, “The Spirit Vs. The Kickdrum”

A lot happens between Chapters 5 and 6 of the Gospel of John. By the time we get to John 6:1, Jesus has attracted a huge following. At least 5000, and that was likely just counting adult males. Including women and children, that number could’ve been 10 or 15,000.

Jesus took the time to feed them all, and He didn’t just give them each a small ration of fish and bread. They had so much food, they couldn’t eat all of it, leaving twelve basketfuls of leftovers.

But that wasn’t enough for them.

John 6:15 says they wanted to force Him to be their king, so He had no choice but to get away. Eventually, they caught up with him, though, hungry and demanding more food. Here they were in the presence of the Son of God, and all they could think about was themselves.

Sound familiar?

So who are you following? And who’s following you? How many Twitter followers do you have? How many friends on Facebook? How many people are subscribing to your blog? And why are they following you? Why are you following them? And while we’re at it, why do you go to the church you go to?

These relationships you surround yourself with, these various communities and social networks, are they there just to serve your own needs, build up your own ego, make you somehow feel all warm and fuzzy?

Because that’s not what Jesus is about.

Yes, Jesus met His followers’ immediate needs by hosting an impromptu fish-fry. But that’s not why He was there. He was there to sacrifice Himself, die so that we could have something a lot better.

The crowd didn’t want that, though. They only cared about what they could get from Him, not about what He had to offer.

Too often, I’m guilty of the same thing. I go to church only to get something, not to be an integral part of the body of Christ. I get excited when I have new Twitter followers or new blog readers. I’m happy when it’s all about me, me, me. As if I’m anyone important.

I’m not saying we shouldn’t be active online or that it’s wrong to promote your blog or whatever. But I have to remind myself of what’s really important. It’s not about some numbers on a web page or how many brownie points I get for having perfect church attendance. It’s about developing a personal relationship with the Creator of the universe and showing His love to a world that desperately needs it.

Previously:
In the beginning…
A little social network housecleaning