Topic: Jesu said, “I am the Bread of Life”

John 6:1-58

Early on in this story, the crowds catch up with Him (the same crowds who had been fed miraculously the day before) and they ask Jesus, “What sign will you give us that we might believe in you?” What do you mean, “What miraculous sign will you give us?” He had just fed the 5,000 with a few loaves and fishes!

The crowd of 5,000+ who were fed miraculously by Jesus wanted him to keep meeting their needs just like that. But he taught them what was more important than getting their bellies filled was to discover that He was the bread of life—the very sustenance their souls needed, and the key to their experiencing eternal life. There may be some miracle you’ve been waiting for in your life. Financial blessings. Physical healing. Restoration of a relationship. What will you do with Jesus if, in His sovereign plan, He decides not to grant you the answer to your prayer at this time? Or what will you do with Jesus if perhaps you feel like you can’t understand everything He says?

Jesus says “I am the bread of life.” I’ve been sent here by my Father to provide what you need for the sustenance of your soul. I’ve come to give you what you need for eternal life.

But let’s think about bread, bread nourishes those who take it in. It does nothing for those who smell it or look at it or know how to bake it. If it is to do any good, it needs to be taken into the body. So Jesus has come to the world to be the bread of life—to be our spiritual nourishment—but we’ve got to eat that bread if it’s going to do any good for us.

So the question is, “What does it mean to ‘eat’ the bread of life, or as Jesus put it so graphically, to ‘eat his flesh’ and ‘drink His blood’?” It means to believe in him. Throughout the book of John, that is a loaded term. It means to receive Him as the authority in your life in chapter 1. It means to place your faith in Him in chapter 3. Here in chapter 6, it means to take Jesus into you just like you take food into you. It means to come to Him as your source of spiritual nourishment. It means to follow him because you believe he is the Son of God—and not just because you think you can get something from Him.

Is Jesus your bread of life?

See you Sunday,

Dr. Scott Kallem