"I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE"

JOHN 6:30-40

          So they said to Him, What then do you do for a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? "Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness as it is written, 'He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.'"

          Jesus then said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world." Then they said to Him, "Lord, always give us this bread."

          Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day" (NASB).

INTRODUCTION

          A couple of months ago, we completed our series on the Seven Signs (Wonders or Miracles) of Jesus in the Gospel of John. I hope you were blessed through the series. This week, we are beginning another series of the seven "I AM" Statements of Jesus in the same Gospel of John. I would like to submit to you that John did not select these seven "Signs" and seven "I AM" statements at random. As we deal with the series, it will become evident to you that there is a divine purpose behind them.

          Before we delve into the biblical text, let us acquaint ourselves with the purpose of the Gospel of John. John is one of the Gospel writers that articulates his purpose of writing in chapter 20: 30-31, "Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name" (NASB).

          The Bread of Life discourse in John 6 follows immediately after Jesus' feeding of the five thousand people. The truth is that "when multitudes chase Him down, Jesus has no illusion as to why they follow Him" (Andreas Kӧstenberger, Encountering John, 101). Jesus told the crowds unequivocally, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for Me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill" (v. 26). Jesus has the divine ability to discern people's true motives. He knew the motives of His first disciples when He called them (John 1:35-51). He knew the motives of the people during His first appearance in Jerusalem (2:24-25). Jesus saw through the true motives of Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman (chapters 3-4). Jesus knows your true motives as you follow Him as a disciple. This proves that Jesus is the Son of God.

          Now let's make a transition into the text before us

          I. THE CROWDS DEMAND FOR A SIGN VV. 30-31

          These two verses confirm what the Apostle Paul asserted concerning the Jews, "Jews demand miraculous signs" (1 Cor. 1:22). We could hardly look for a better example (John 2:18). The natural man wants something he can see or feel instead of believe. The demand of the multitude is curious because they had just witnessed one miracle (John calls it "sign"). "The feeding of the 5000 [people] is a clear indication that you never satisfy the carnal nature of man" (Paul R. Van Gorder, I AM: The Great I AM, 3).

          The feeding of the 5000 people had not penetrated to the spiritual significance of what they had seen. "They dare to impose on God the sign they must have before they would believe" (Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, rev ed., 321). The obvious fact is that Jesus could produce no credentials so conclusive but that the Jews demand one more conclusive still (Gregor). These people were always deceiving themselves with the idea that they wanted more evidence and pretending that if they had the evidence then they would believe. Thousands of people are doing the same today. They are flocking to self-acclaimed "prophets" expecting miracles. Dr. Ryle said it well, "It is want of heart, not of want of evidence that keeps people back from Christ."

          These people were missing the fact that the Person who was with them was the Messiah, the Son of God. They failed to see that this was the day of visitation prophesied many years in the Old Testament.

          The interrogators of Jesus pointed to the manna in the wilderness as the kind of thing they had in mind. They wanted Jesus to mimic or duplicate what Moses did for their fathers in the wilderness. They said, "He gave them bread out of heaven to eat" (v. 31). The emphasis was on the manna from "heaven." There was an idea among the Jews that God would send the manna in the latter days. "Very importantly, there was an idea that the Messiah would be associated with the renewal of this gift" (Leon Morris, Expository Reflections on the Gospel of John, 224). Therefore, the Jews who talked with Jesus had a similar idea in mind. They had a vested, selfish and self-indulgent interest of what the Messiah would do for them. Are these vested and selfish interests not the reason some people pursue Jesus today?

          II. THE COUNTER RESPONSE OF JESUS VV. 32-33

          Jesus counters that it was not Moses but God who had provided the manna. Here Jesus sets the record straight. He was saying that Moses was not the source of the manna but the instrument of the manna. Moses was God's channel or vessel for the miracle of the manna. Jesus refutes the position the interrogators have taken up. Jesus begins with the emphatic "Truly, truly" (Amen, Amen), which implies that what He is about to say is very important. Jesus points to three errors or mistakes the questioners have made. First, Moses did not give the gift; God did. Second, God's gift is not only in the remote past. He gives now. Finally, the bread from heaven that matters is a spiritual gift; it is not something physical like the manna. They were mistaken in looking for such a gift (Morris, Expository Reflections, 225).

          It is always a grave error to confuse the Divine Giver with the earthly instrument through whom He makes His gift. Moses was a faithful servant of God but it was not him who supplied the manna, and in fact, he never did. He simply told the Israelites what God would do. He told the people God's commands concerning the use of the manna. After Jesus has corrected their misunderstanding of the provision of the manna during the wilderness wandering, Jesus tells them the real bread of God that the Father has sent from heaven. The manna given in the wilderness had no power to ward off death because after eaten the manna many of them died. The manna given in the wilderness was not the true bread, but only a symbol of it. The manna was for Israel alone. Others in the desert did not partake of the manna. However, this bread, this True Bread, the Lord Jesus, gives life to the world. He is divine and eternal. He is the Bread of God.

          III. THE CROWDS REQUEST FOR TRUE BREAD V. 34

          After Jesus has corrected their faulty theology and misperception, the multitude, like the Samaritan woman in John 4, asks Jesus to give them the same bread from heaven. Like the Samaritan woman, the crowd is thinking of physical bread that would sustain them always. However, Jesus is speaking of spiritual bread that will sustain them permanently. And the truth is that it is not so much that Jesus gives certain gifts--He Himself is the gift. Jesus Himself is the Bread of Life. "Only He can satisfy people's hunger, only He can quench their thirst, not merely for material food and drink, but for spiritual sustenance (cf. Isaiah 55:1-3; Rev. 21:6)" (Kӧstenberger, Encountering John, 102).

          Is history repeating itself today? Today many people crave all kinds of stuff to satisfy their hunger and inner longings. Some use junk food to satisfy their hunger. Some have become addicted to prescription pain medication as stimulant to keep them functioning. Some use alcohol to dull the pain in their lives. Others crave illicit and dangerous drugs to give them ecstasy that is short-lived. Many people have become addicted to cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and all kinds of illegal drugs but their problems are still there. The truth is that they are dealing with the symptoms but the real problem is left untouched and untreated. The main problem is sin in the human heart and the only panacea is Jesus Christ Himself.  

          IV. JESUS CHRIST IS THE BREAD OF LIFE VV. 35-40

          In a supremely majestic and illuminating statement, Jesus removes this misconception. The bread that Jesus speaks of is not like the manna, something they could pick up and eat. The bread is nothing less than Himself. In other words, when you come to Him, the craving and the God-shaped hunger and emptiness you feel suddenly come to an end because Jesus provides you the fulfillment and satisfaction that are enduring and liberating.

          Jesus' "I am" in this context is a solemn emphatic statement, which has the overtone or connotation of divinity or deity. It is a reminder of the "I AM" that Moses heard from the burning bush as he was tending his father-in-law's sheep in the desert of Midia (Exodus 3). 'The Bread of Life' is another way of "linking life in the closest fashion with Christ" (Morris, The Gospel of John, 324). Jesus Himself is the food, the sustenance that nourishes spiritual life. It is only from this bread that you and me obtain or receive life. In effect, Jesus is saying to you and me that the life we live independent of Him is a life of insatiable hunger, craving, thirst and discontentment. Some things in life are luxuries, but bread is a necessity. We can live without dainty appetizers, rich desserts, and fancy food preparations, but we must have bread. Jesus is the Bread of Life and without Him we perish.

          During the Old Testament time, the prophet Isaiah had longed for God to come down (Isaiah 64:1-12). "Against this backdrop, the apostle John contends that now with the coming of the Messiah, Isaiah's longing has been fulfilled in Jesus. God has come down from heaven and not merely to feed [His] people as [He] did in the wilderness but to atone for their sins (cf. Isaiah 52:13-53:12)" (Kӧstenberger, Encountering John, 104).

          Here Jesus charges the Galileans of unbelief as He has done to the citizens of Jerusalem (John 5:36-38). The sin of unbelief is what has kept many people outside the gate of heaven and the presence of Christ. Unbelief has blinded them to their real need--the Savior.

          Then in verse 37 Jesus says, "People do not come to Him because it seems a good idea to them." Apart from a divine work in their heart people remain more or less content in their sin. Before people come to Christ it is necessary that the Father gives them to Him. It is the sovereignty of God at work in the hearts of those who come to Christ. In theology we call this "Divine Election." This explains the disconcerting fact that those who follow Jesus to hear Him, and wanted to make Him a king were not His followers (disciples) in the true sense. This people did not belong to the people of God. Therefore, when some people profess to be Christians and something happens and they go back to their former evil ways of life, it is an indication that they do not belong to Christ. For Jesus welcomes those the Father gives Him; He rejects none. The word "never" is emphatic. Jesus is saying, I will never, no never reject them.

          In salvation or redemptive history, Jesus is in the most perfect harmony with the Father. Jesus came down from heaven specifically to do the Father's will. Therefore, Christ will accept all the people that the Father gives Him. This underlines the certainty of perfect unity that exists between Christ and the Father. Jesus goes on to state that the will of the Father is that He (Jesus) will not lose anyone that the Father gives Him. Even if death should take them, Jesus says He will raise them up in the last day. These are comforting words to those of us who have lost Christian brothers, sisters, mothers, and friends to death. Christ will raise them in the last day. There will be a day of reunion. The salvation that Jesus brings is no ephemeral (lasting a short time) thing. The salvation that Jesus brings is ultimate and final. This is a word of comfort and encouragement to every Christian. This means that your assurance of salvation is not based on your feeble hold on Christ, but His sure grip on you (John 10:28ff).

          Verse 40--Therefore, "everyone who sees (behold) the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life." In the Gospel of John eternal life is both present and future. Therefore, if you are a genuine believer in Christ, eternal life is a present reality for you. Not only that but also Jesus will raise you up in the last days (eschaton, eschatology).

          *A Side Note: Jesus the Bread of Life was born in Bethlehem, which literally means, "The House of Bread." Is this a coincidence or it has a divine purpose? Contemplate or ponder on it.