"For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heave and gives life to the world...I am the Bread of Life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."
At this the Jews began to grumble about him because He said,"I am the bread that came down from heaven."
At this the Jews began to grumble about him because He said,"I am the bread that came down from heaven."
John 6:33, 35, 40
The Israelites were hunger in the desert. What did God provide to them? Manna or bread. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Guess what Bethlehem means? House of Bread. Five thousand people needed food. What did the young boy have in his lunch? Bread. Jesus is teaching about Himself. What term does He use? The Bread of Life. There is a theme of bread in the bible but an even larger theme of God's provision and He using bread as the doughy glue to connect the Old and New Testaments.
This year what jumped out at me when I read these passages was the response of the crowd. The Jews would've known the stories about the Israelites wondering in the desert and how God provided Manna each morning for them to eat. Instead of rejoicing that Jesus has come to provide and nourish in a way that they could never imagine, they grumble against Him. They are confused and just question His position because He's "just the son of Joseph" (John 6:42). They have head knowledge of the connection He's trying to make between Manna and Himself as the Bread come from Heaven, but not transformative heart knowledge. How does that reflect you?
They are missing the truth that Jesus sustains and gives us our life eternal life! The Word of God is alive and feeds us when we read the Bible. Just like drinking up Jesus as the Living Water, if we nourish ourselves with Jesus as the Bread of Life our souls will never go hungry or long for worldly things that don't satisfy (or less and less). Our bodies can survive a few days without food but eventually we would starve and die. The same is for our souls. However, our souls are starved much longer than a few days. If we deprive our souls of Jesus for our lifetime then we do die spiritually and physically. That's a terrifying thought! I want to feed my soul with the Living Water and Bread of Life, daily just like I feed my body with the nutrients it needs to function.
This year what jumped out at me when I read these passages was the response of the crowd. The Jews would've known the stories about the Israelites wondering in the desert and how God provided Manna each morning for them to eat. Instead of rejoicing that Jesus has come to provide and nourish in a way that they could never imagine, they grumble against Him. They are confused and just question His position because He's "just the son of Joseph" (John 6:42). They have head knowledge of the connection He's trying to make between Manna and Himself as the Bread come from Heaven, but not transformative heart knowledge. How does that reflect you?
They are missing the truth that Jesus sustains and gives us our life eternal life! The Word of God is alive and feeds us when we read the Bible. Just like drinking up Jesus as the Living Water, if we nourish ourselves with Jesus as the Bread of Life our souls will never go hungry or long for worldly things that don't satisfy (or less and less). Our bodies can survive a few days without food but eventually we would starve and die. The same is for our souls. However, our souls are starved much longer than a few days. If we deprive our souls of Jesus for our lifetime then we do die spiritually and physically. That's a terrifying thought! I want to feed my soul with the Living Water and Bread of Life, daily just like I feed my body with the nutrients it needs to function.
How is your soul being fed by Jesus?
In His Love,
A
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