Jesus, the Bread of Life
Jesus, the Bread of Life: Far too many people spend their lives chasing after things they think will give them a deep and meaningful life, only to find that years later, they are sadly disappointed. Only Jesus, the bread of life, provides the life we long for. All else will fall short. Only the life found by faith in him will finally and eternally satisfy. He is sufficient; he is enough. Recorded on Oct 8, 2023, on John 6:25-40 by Pastor David Parks.
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Finding Life in Jesus’ Name is a sermon series on the gospel according to John in the Bible. Have you ever felt unsatisfied with your life? Or, even when things were going well, something was still missing? Many people sense there must be something more. But what?? John, one of the closest friends of Jesus, believed that Jesus came into the world so that we may have life and have it to the full. Jesus turned John’s life upside down, and John claims this new life — marked by God’s power, presence, and purpose — is available for all who believe.
Sermon Transcript
All year, we’re going through the gospel according to John in a series called Finding Life in Jesus’ Name. And today, we’re continuing in John 6 with the first of the famous “I AM” statements of Jesus. As I said last week, the gospel according to John, is like an art gallery, with every piece curated to teach us something about the person and work of Jesus. And there are different wings of the gallery organized by unique themes, such as the seven miraculous signs like turning water into wine or walking on the water (like we saw last week). But, like the seven signs, the seven “I AM” statements teach us much about who Jesus is and what he came to do all those years ago. Our statement for today is his claim, “I am the bread of life.” This is a statement about the purpose or the mission of Jesus — what Jesus came to accomplish. And what did Jesus come to accomplish? Well, surely the main work relates to offering the forgiveness of sins through his death and the cross and his resurrection from the dead, right? And the answer is yes to that. But forgiveness of sin is not the only thing Jesus came to do. The good news is that Jesus came to do many good things, including the offer of life — real/abundant/eternal life, the life that God our Creator always intended for us to have/enjoy. Here’s the problem: far too many people (including many Christians) spend their lives chasing things they think will result in a deep and meaningful life, only to find that years later, or decades later, they are sadly disappointed. Far too many people chase things like relationships/career/beauty/power/wealth/family/fame, thinking that their thing will give them the good life, the life they long for. But as we’ll see today, only Jesus, the bread of life, provides the life that we long for. If you’ve ever been unsatisfied with life in this broken world, this message is for you. If you have a Bible/app, please take it and open it to John 6:25.
John 6:25–27 (NIV), “25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” 26 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” Ok, let’s pause here. So, we’re just jumping right back into where we left off last week. Remember that the previous day was the biggest ministry day, yet. Jesus had miraculously fed the five thousand by multiplying the five loaves and two fish. Then, the previous night, Jesus had sent his disciples back across the Sea of Galilee right into a storm. But eventually, he came to them, walking on the water, and calmed the storm when he got into their boat. So here, the crowd of many thousands realized that Jesus sent his disciples away, but then he was gone the next morning, and they didn’t understand what had happened. Which is why, when they found Jesus at Capernaum, they asked him, “When did you get here?” But instead of saying, “Tada!” or something like that (as I would have said), he has a serious response. “Very truly I tell you…” Which means pay attention; what I’m about to say is important. “… you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.” John tells us that the miraculous signs of Jesus weren’t meant only to impress people or win influence over them. They were meant to be seen and believed by his disciples in a way that reveals his glory. Now, some of the crowd became disciples of Jesus, but not everyone in the crowd was a disciple. As we’ll see in John’s gospel, many people in the crowd will leave Jesus when things get hard. They are looking for Jesus; they are there because of what they can get from Jesus, not because they believe in him and trust in him for who he truly is. So Jesus offers a gentle correction, saying, “Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures [remain, Jn 15] to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” Now, two things about this statement. First, the Son of Man is the title that Jesus most often uses for himself, according to the gospel accounts. It comes from Daniel 7 in the Hebrew Bible, where “one like a son of man” came into the presence of the Ancient of Days and was given a kingdom that would never end. So, Jesus is making a big claim here by using that title. But, second, what does Jesus say that he, the Son of Man, will do? He says that he will give “food that endures to eternal life.” The word translated “endures” is an interesting word in John’s gospel. Later on in chapter 15, Jesus says, John 15:4 (NIV), “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. [remain here is the same word as endures] No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain [endure] in me.” And this is a thread that runs through John’s gospel, which speaks about our union/endurance/remaining with Christ. Don’t work for food that spoils. Listen, as good as the bread was that Jesus multiplied to feed the five thousand, it wasn’t going to be as fresh the next day. This is bread that, though it was nourishing for the people, will spoil/perish. Work for food that will nourish you and will provide life to you forever. Doesn’t that sound great? Ok, Jesus, how do we get that bread? What do we have to do?
John 6:28-31 (NIV), “28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” 29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” 30 So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus’ answer is profoundly unexpected. No other religion or philosophy ever conceived of anything like this. Jesus says, you don’t have to do anything, you don’t have to sacrifice anything, you don’t have to stop anything, you don’t have to achieve anything — the only thing you have to do is believe in the one God has sent. in other words, Jesus is saying the only thing you need in order to have the life you long for and are killing yourself by working for is to believe in me. All you need is faith in Jesus. But doesn’t that sound too good to be true? Doesn’t that sound like there’s some hidden catch? What about someone with a bad reputation? What about the sinner? What about the convicted felon? What about our enemies? All they need to do is trust in Jesus, and they will find this real/abundant life, too? This is salvation by the grace of God, and grace isn’t ever fair. Karma is fair, where everyone basically gets what they deserve. But the way of Jesus is totally different. The way of Jesus is that we do not get what we deserve. Why? Because Jesus lived the perfect life, the life we were supposed to live, a life without sin. But on the cross, Jesus got the penalty we deserved in order that when we trust in him, we get what he deserved, which is eternal life. Now, before the cross, the crowd, just as all the other people in the OT before the cross, needed to trust in God’s goodness and willingness to save without understanding all the details of how God was going to do it. Now, we who live after the cross of Christ have the blessing of being able to see how God accomplished all this through his Son. But again, this is a staggeringly unique claim. So, I can sympathize with the crowd asking Jesus for proof of this claim. “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do?” Now, on the one hand, this seems like a dumb question after the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand. But on further reflection, it’s not such a bad question if you know the history of Israel. They bring up the story of the Exodus, where God provided manna or bread from heaven, not just for thousands, but for the whole nation, and not just for dinner, but God sustained his people for years in the wilderness. If all that happened through Moses, what are you going to do, Jesus? How are you going to top that?
John 6:32-35 (NIV), “32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” 35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” Let’s pause one more time. And I love this so much. Jesus is like, wait; you’re looking for me to be more (what?) impressive than Moses? The manna from heaven didn’t come from Moses; it came from God. You’re looking at this completely backward. Don’t look at what you can get from me or how impressive that makes you think that I am. See that it is God the Father in heaven who provided the manna then and is providing something far greater today. Me, the “I AM,” God is providing me, and I am the bread of life. The manna from heaven during the Exodus was only a foreshadowing of what was to come, a sign pointing forward to Jesus, who is, we discover, both the author and the savior of life. And then, Jesus makes this incredible claim: “Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” In other words, when you come to Jesus and believe in him, just as God provided manna to physically sustain his people in the wilderness, and just as God provided bread to feed the five thousand again as physical sustenance, so now, God will provide everything you need to sustain you forever. You will be satisfied forever. You can lay down all the burdens that you carry to try and save yourself. You can stop trying to earn the blessing/favor/love/forgiveness of God. In Jesus and because of Jesus, it’s all a gift of God’s grace: salvation, forgiveness, love, and life everlasting. But what about the people who do not believe? What about the people in the crowd who are not disciples of Jesus, people who are there for what they might get from him and not for him and him alone?
John 6:36-40 (NIV), “36 But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. 37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” Our passage ends with a statement full of grace and truth. First, the truth. The crowd has seen Jesus physically, and they even experienced at least one of his major miracles in the feeding of the five thousand, although they probably saw other healings and the like, or at least heard about those things if they followed Jesus for any amount of time. But here’s the reality, here’s the truth: they still do not all believe in him. D. A. Carson comments, “…they have seen only bread and power, not what they signify. This crowd has witnessed the divine revealer at work, but only their curiosity, appetites and political ambitions have been aroused, not their faith.” (Carson, PNTC, p. 290). But second, and this is so very good, here’s grace and truth. Jesus says, “All those the Father gives me [every single one] will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.” In other words, for anyone who comes to him, Jesus will protect you. Jesus will not let you go; he will not let you slip. Here’s the gospel: God provides his Son, the bread of life; we respond in faith, and the Son nourishes, protects, and sustains us until the age to come and beyond.
Well, how do we apply this teaching to our lives? What does this mean for us today? This is one of those concepts — that Jesus is the bread of life — that is so powerful. Because we all have this internal longing for life, but we all have the common experience that this life we’re all living now is just not it. It’s just not enough. Even when things are going well, there’s always this sense that there must be something more, something better, something more satisfying. As a result, far too many people (including many, many Christians) fall into the trap of spending their lives chasing things they think will result in a deep and meaningful life, only to find that years later, perhaps decades later, they still haven’t found the life they long for. So what about you? Have you spent your life chasing things like relationships/career/beauty/power/wealth/family/fame, thinking that those good things will give you this life you long for? The answer of John’s gospel, and the answer of the whole of the Bible is this: Only Jesus, the bread of life, provides the life that we long for. Only he truly satisfies. All else will fall short. If you chase your career, thinking that it will be enough, what will you do when you retire or can’t work for some reason or your career doesn’t work out how you wanted? If you chase your looks, thinking that other’s love or attention will be enough, what will you do when beauty fades? It’s only Jesus. Only Jesus is enough. Only the life that is found by faith and results in our enduring/remaining in him will finally and eternally satisfy. I’d like to close with an invitation from the Lord from Isaiah 55:1–3 (NIV), “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. 2 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare. 3 Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.” Amen. Let us pray.