The Bread of Life
John chapter 6 opens with crowds of people following Jesus “because they saw the miraculous signs He had performed” (v. 2). Jesus and His disciples headed for the mountainside, only to find “a great crowd coming toward (them)” (v. 5). Jesus seems to choose this time to “test” His disciples by asking them how the crowd of people could be fed. There were several solutions offered for feeding such a large crowd. The first one as read in Mark 6:36 was to send the people away. Philip added it up and said it would take 8 month’s wages to buy food that would barely feed the crowd. Andrew seemed to be the one to show some faith as he found the boy with 5 loaves and 2 fish and brought him to Jesus. The final and only viable solution came from the Lord.
Jesus gave thanks and then had the disciples pass out the food. Warren Wiersbe reminds us that “whenever there is a need, give all you have to Jesus and let Him do the rest.” He also points out the fact that Jesus gave thanks. He writes, “God is the source of all good and needful gifts. . . Instead of complaining about what we do not have, we should give thanks to God for what we do have and He will make it go further.” I loved that Ann Voskamp wrote about his in her book “One Thousand Gifts” as well. She says, “Jesus embraces His not enough. . . He gives thanks. . . And there is more than enough. . . Thanksgiving creates abundance; and the miracle of multiplying happens when I give thanks - take the just one loaf, say it is enough, and give thanks - and He miraculously makes it more than enough” (p. 72). So often in life, we face great obstacles and there seems to be a shortage of what we need, but Matthew 19:26 reminds us that “with God all things are possible.”
The Harvest study reminds us that “you will never know that Jesus is enough until you experience times when He is all you have!” Oh, how I can relate to this. All through Dennis’ cancer treatment, there was nothing we could do but throw ourselves on the mercy of the Lord. He has proven to be our provider in all ways. I find that I worry less and less because I am able to fully trust that God is in control and that whatever He allows into our life is for our good and His glory.
The large crowd of people believed that Jesus was the One whom Moses and spoken of, but they were looking for an earthly king and wanted to make Jesus one by force. Sadly, this revealed that the people’s motives were worldly and they had no concern for their spiritual condition. Wiersbe relates this to today as well. He writes, “many want Him only as Healer or Provider or the One who rescues them from problems they have made for themselves. Very few want Him as Savior and Lord.” John 5:40 says, “yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” As I have learned to live for eternity, I find more joy and peace here in this life. There is less worry and more fulfillment in seeking to do the Lord’s will.
Following the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus withdrew from the crowd and had the disciples take the boat across the lake. A strong wind came up and the disciples were afraid. Warren Wiersbe writes, “the Lord has to balance our lives, otherwise we will become proud and then fall. The disciples had experienced great joy in being part of a thrilling miracle. Now they had to face a storm and learn to trust the Lord more.” Jesus came to them walking on the water. He identified Himself and told them not to be afraid. Once Jesus entered the boat, the wind died down and they arrived at their destination immediately.
1 Peter 4:12 tells us not to be surprised at trials. Wiersbe writes, “sometimes we are caught in a storm because we have disobeyed the Lord. Jonah is a good example. But sometimes the storm comes because we have obeyed the Lord. When that happens, we can be sure that our Savior will pray for us.” There have been times in the midst of Dennis’ cancer journey where we felt overwhelmed and wondered if/when we would ever come out of the struggle. But during these times we experienced the Lord “walking on the stormy chaos of (our lives)” (Harvest study) and found ourselves on the other side of our difficulties. Wiersbe adds that this event in John 6 is “a picture of Christ and His church. Christ is in heaven interceding for us, but we are in the midst of the storms of life, trying to reach the shore. One day, He will come for us and we shall reach the port safely.” How we long for that day!
John continues chapter 6 with the next morning when the people discovered Jesus on the other side of the lake. Jesus was aware that the people were following Him because they had seen His miracles and had their physical needs met. The people were still looking for a tangible sign of the Messiah and referred to the manna that was provided for the Israelites in the wilderness. While food is necessary for life, Jesus taught that our focus should be fixed on eternal life. Wiersbe writes, “faith that is based on signs alone, and not on the truth of the Word, can lead a person astray.“ Jesus reminded the people that the manna of Moses’ time was only a type of “true bread” and that God the Father gives the true bread from heaven. Jesus declared Himself to be “the bread of life”. This bread is free to all who come to Jesus in belief. And those who receive it are promised to never hunger or thirst again. But believing is not just an intellectual exercise, it is a yielding of yourself to Christ.
Jesus declaring Himself to be the “living bread” from heaven caused the Jews to begin grumbling. The people focused on Jesus’ “typical boyhood upbringing in Nazareth” (Harvest) instead of seeing Him “based on what He said and did in their midst” (Harvest). John 6:44-45 says that those who are drawn to Christ by God will yield to Jesus. Wiersbe writes, “the sinner hears, learns and comes as the Father draws him”.
In John 6:51 Jesus says, “the Son of God will give Himself as a sacrifice for the life of the world.” This caused the Jews to begin quarreling among themselves because they didn’t understand what Jesus meant. He explained “that man’s desire for intimacy with God is answered in the Son” ‘Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.’ (v. 54). The flesh and blood Jesus (spoke) about refer(ed) to the sacrifice He must make on our behalf. It would require His ultimate death and they were greatly agitated by this” (Harvest).
The Jews struggled because they took his statement about His flesh literally. Jesus meant that “just as you take food and drink within your body and it becomes a part of you, so you must receive me within your innermost being so that I can give you life” (Wiersbe).
In John 6:63 Jesus teaches that the Spirit gives life and no one can come to Christ unless the Father has drawn him. “Those who turn away form Jesus are initially offended at what He says in His Word. Some will summarily dismiss His teaching as too difficult to understand. Ultimately, they turn their backs on Him and walk away. The salvation He offers is for those who are seeking the truth, no matter where it leads them or how uncomfortable it is or how difficult it is to understand. The believer’s role is to feed on the whole Word of God -not merely those passages that we want to hear or find easy to swallow!” (Harvest) Wiersbe adds that Jesus’ “teaching was not hard to understand but hard to accept once you understood it.” Just as the Jewish leaders misunderstood and rejected Jesus’ words and were offended by what He taught, so it is today. There are many people who are quite hostile to the Word of God and appear angry by what the Bible teaches. We see in John 6:66 that those who could not accept the truth turned away and didn’t follow Jesus anymore. How sad that they chose to return to their “old, hopeless situation” (Weirsbe)
And while many were walking away, Jesus asked His disciples if they wanted to leave too? Peter spoke for the group by declaring true faith in Christ - admitting that Jesus had the words of eternal life. Wiersbe writes, “the preaching of the Word of God always leads to a sifting of the hearts of the listeners. God draws sinners to the Savior through the power of truth, His Word. Those who reject the Word will reject the Savior. Those who receive the Word will receive the Savior and experience the new birth, eternal life.” The Harvest study adds, “in every church body, there are believers who start out well; but when things get tough, they turn around and walk away. These are those who want Christianity on their own terms. Those who hear and truly believe are those who have been drawn by the love of the Father. Their hearts belong to the Son and their faith has convinced them that only Jesus has the words of eternal life.”
So the question is, if you feel a spiritual hunger within, are you willing to admit your need and come to the Savior? He will save you and satisfy you forever.
Jesus gave thanks and then had the disciples pass out the food. Warren Wiersbe reminds us that “whenever there is a need, give all you have to Jesus and let Him do the rest.” He also points out the fact that Jesus gave thanks. He writes, “God is the source of all good and needful gifts. . . Instead of complaining about what we do not have, we should give thanks to God for what we do have and He will make it go further.” I loved that Ann Voskamp wrote about his in her book “One Thousand Gifts” as well. She says, “Jesus embraces His not enough. . . He gives thanks. . . And there is more than enough. . . Thanksgiving creates abundance; and the miracle of multiplying happens when I give thanks - take the just one loaf, say it is enough, and give thanks - and He miraculously makes it more than enough” (p. 72). So often in life, we face great obstacles and there seems to be a shortage of what we need, but Matthew 19:26 reminds us that “with God all things are possible.”
The Harvest study reminds us that “you will never know that Jesus is enough until you experience times when He is all you have!” Oh, how I can relate to this. All through Dennis’ cancer treatment, there was nothing we could do but throw ourselves on the mercy of the Lord. He has proven to be our provider in all ways. I find that I worry less and less because I am able to fully trust that God is in control and that whatever He allows into our life is for our good and His glory.
The large crowd of people believed that Jesus was the One whom Moses and spoken of, but they were looking for an earthly king and wanted to make Jesus one by force. Sadly, this revealed that the people’s motives were worldly and they had no concern for their spiritual condition. Wiersbe relates this to today as well. He writes, “many want Him only as Healer or Provider or the One who rescues them from problems they have made for themselves. Very few want Him as Savior and Lord.” John 5:40 says, “yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” As I have learned to live for eternity, I find more joy and peace here in this life. There is less worry and more fulfillment in seeking to do the Lord’s will.
Following the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus withdrew from the crowd and had the disciples take the boat across the lake. A strong wind came up and the disciples were afraid. Warren Wiersbe writes, “the Lord has to balance our lives, otherwise we will become proud and then fall. The disciples had experienced great joy in being part of a thrilling miracle. Now they had to face a storm and learn to trust the Lord more.” Jesus came to them walking on the water. He identified Himself and told them not to be afraid. Once Jesus entered the boat, the wind died down and they arrived at their destination immediately.
1 Peter 4:12 tells us not to be surprised at trials. Wiersbe writes, “sometimes we are caught in a storm because we have disobeyed the Lord. Jonah is a good example. But sometimes the storm comes because we have obeyed the Lord. When that happens, we can be sure that our Savior will pray for us.” There have been times in the midst of Dennis’ cancer journey where we felt overwhelmed and wondered if/when we would ever come out of the struggle. But during these times we experienced the Lord “walking on the stormy chaos of (our lives)” (Harvest study) and found ourselves on the other side of our difficulties. Wiersbe adds that this event in John 6 is “a picture of Christ and His church. Christ is in heaven interceding for us, but we are in the midst of the storms of life, trying to reach the shore. One day, He will come for us and we shall reach the port safely.” How we long for that day!
John continues chapter 6 with the next morning when the people discovered Jesus on the other side of the lake. Jesus was aware that the people were following Him because they had seen His miracles and had their physical needs met. The people were still looking for a tangible sign of the Messiah and referred to the manna that was provided for the Israelites in the wilderness. While food is necessary for life, Jesus taught that our focus should be fixed on eternal life. Wiersbe writes, “faith that is based on signs alone, and not on the truth of the Word, can lead a person astray.“ Jesus reminded the people that the manna of Moses’ time was only a type of “true bread” and that God the Father gives the true bread from heaven. Jesus declared Himself to be “the bread of life”. This bread is free to all who come to Jesus in belief. And those who receive it are promised to never hunger or thirst again. But believing is not just an intellectual exercise, it is a yielding of yourself to Christ.
Jesus declaring Himself to be the “living bread” from heaven caused the Jews to begin grumbling. The people focused on Jesus’ “typical boyhood upbringing in Nazareth” (Harvest) instead of seeing Him “based on what He said and did in their midst” (Harvest). John 6:44-45 says that those who are drawn to Christ by God will yield to Jesus. Wiersbe writes, “the sinner hears, learns and comes as the Father draws him”.
In John 6:51 Jesus says, “the Son of God will give Himself as a sacrifice for the life of the world.” This caused the Jews to begin quarreling among themselves because they didn’t understand what Jesus meant. He explained “that man’s desire for intimacy with God is answered in the Son” ‘Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.’ (v. 54). The flesh and blood Jesus (spoke) about refer(ed) to the sacrifice He must make on our behalf. It would require His ultimate death and they were greatly agitated by this” (Harvest).
The Jews struggled because they took his statement about His flesh literally. Jesus meant that “just as you take food and drink within your body and it becomes a part of you, so you must receive me within your innermost being so that I can give you life” (Wiersbe).
In John 6:63 Jesus teaches that the Spirit gives life and no one can come to Christ unless the Father has drawn him. “Those who turn away form Jesus are initially offended at what He says in His Word. Some will summarily dismiss His teaching as too difficult to understand. Ultimately, they turn their backs on Him and walk away. The salvation He offers is for those who are seeking the truth, no matter where it leads them or how uncomfortable it is or how difficult it is to understand. The believer’s role is to feed on the whole Word of God -not merely those passages that we want to hear or find easy to swallow!” (Harvest) Wiersbe adds that Jesus’ “teaching was not hard to understand but hard to accept once you understood it.” Just as the Jewish leaders misunderstood and rejected Jesus’ words and were offended by what He taught, so it is today. There are many people who are quite hostile to the Word of God and appear angry by what the Bible teaches. We see in John 6:66 that those who could not accept the truth turned away and didn’t follow Jesus anymore. How sad that they chose to return to their “old, hopeless situation” (Weirsbe)
And while many were walking away, Jesus asked His disciples if they wanted to leave too? Peter spoke for the group by declaring true faith in Christ - admitting that Jesus had the words of eternal life. Wiersbe writes, “the preaching of the Word of God always leads to a sifting of the hearts of the listeners. God draws sinners to the Savior through the power of truth, His Word. Those who reject the Word will reject the Savior. Those who receive the Word will receive the Savior and experience the new birth, eternal life.” The Harvest study adds, “in every church body, there are believers who start out well; but when things get tough, they turn around and walk away. These are those who want Christianity on their own terms. Those who hear and truly believe are those who have been drawn by the love of the Father. Their hearts belong to the Son and their faith has convinced them that only Jesus has the words of eternal life.”
So the question is, if you feel a spiritual hunger within, are you willing to admit your need and come to the Savior? He will save you and satisfy you forever.
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