And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. (John 6:35)

I Am The Bread Of Life

One of the basic needs of man is bread. The Lord told Adam before casting him out of the garden that by the sweat of his brow would he eat bread indicating that food necessary for life would only come through toil. Bread is not confined to the product of wheat or barley but a common word including the basic needs of man for food. The body is created in such a manner that without sustenance death will occur. Life is in the food that is ingested to give the body strength, energy and sustain good health. The wrong kinds of food will do harm. Proper nutrition is vital to a longer life and energy to allow the body to function as God created. From the beginning of time man has known the necessity of food and its function in the cycle of life. What man has failed to appreciate is while the physical food is necessary to sustain life in the body God has always offered man the spiritual manna to sustain his eternal life. This comes from a failure to acknowledge the true nature of man as a spiritual creature inhabiting a fleshly tabernacle. All of the attention is given to the physical side of man. Eating properly, exercising and taking supplements are part of the health crazed world that spends billions of dollars each year to maintain a level of youth no matter the age. The sad reality is that when all said and done man dies. There will never be a secret pill to take life longer than the habitation established by God in the mortal body. Man is born and then he will die. Everyone celebrates a day of birth and everyone will lay the body down in death – everyone.

Jesus came to offer man a greater blessing than the physical manna of life. His purpose was not to feed all humanity on the crumbs of bread He could recreate by His power. He fed more than five thousand people with five barley loaves and two small fish. But they were hungry again the next day and became frustrated Jesus had left and could not be found. When they discovered Him on the other side of sea at Capernaum they wanted to know when He had come and why did He leave. His answer is one of the great treatises of scripture that His Father has been telling men since the beginning of time. Life is not about the bread that perishes. Eating a full meal today will be enjoyable and filling but as the body is designed to process the food and then eliminate it hunger will return. What Jesus offered was something that would never diminish or go away. He told the crowd that He was the bread which came down from heaven like the manna of old when God fed the rebellious nation of Israel. The manna was a gift from God that no man could take credit for. Found within the white coriander seed that tasted like wafers made with honey was everything man needed to live along with the water provided by God. Life was in the manna. Jesus tells the multitude that He is the bread of life and the flowing fountain of water where man will never hunger or thirst. The woman at the Samarian well of Jacob learned Jesus was the everlasting fountain of life. Jesus is the bread of life where man will never hunger. He is the water of life as a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. As the bread of life there is nothing man needs but Jesus Christ.

God provided all men the bread of life but few men will come dine at His table. It is tragic to see a sumptuous feast prepared for all those who would come and yet few are willing. There is a cost to come to the table but by the grace of God all things are provided that man needs. Jesus Christ is the bread of life because He is all man needs. Like the physical food, the word of Christ must be ingested to have benefit. The bread of life requires consuming and meditating upon. Bread wrapped up in a package sitting on a shelf will have no benefit. A Bible sitting on a table unopened and seldom gleaned will have no lasting impact on the life of the holder. Jesus as the bread of life requires the consumption of His nature, His glory and His teaching to be infused in every part of life. Weak spirits and disinterested hearts come from not abiding in the word of Christ and letting the bread of life fill the capillaries of the soul will grow the spirit to fill with the Spirit of the Father. Many are sick and weak in the church because they have not feasted on the bread of life. Jesus came to give Himself as the manna from heaven. Let His word dwell in your mouth, your heart and your mind to grow thereby through the knowledge of His love. The more you feast on the bread of life the less hungry for the appetites of sin you will desire. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life.”