1 I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE JOHN 6:35-59 You're driving down the ...

I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE JOHN 6:35-59
You’re driving down the highway and you happen to glance up at the side of a hill
along the way and there you see it. Written in large, clumsy letters – maybe in
white paint that has trickled down from the bottom of the letters – is a message:
“Jesus saves.” When you see that – or something similar to it - how does it make
you feel I saw such things more often growing up in the south, but you can see
it in the north as well. We’ve all seen these well intentioned, but crude attempts
to point people to Jesus along our nation’s highways: a hastily constructed sign
with a Bible verse on it in large letters warning of judgment at any moment…
three crosses erected in a pasture… even a “Jesus” license plate. How does it
make you feel when you see it I’ll be honest: I usually find myself cringing
inside. Most of what I’ve seen along our nation’s highways just seems tacky,
tasteless and inappropriate. I wonder if it produces sometimes exactly the
opposite reaction in lost people than was intended by whoever created it.
I wonder why I feel that way. Is it because it reminds me of sweaty preachers
pounding pulpits and generating more heat than light Is it because we live in a
culture where nothing is embarrassing except faith Or, is it because it reminds
me in a crude, “in your face” and unexpected way that I need saving It’s true,
you know, Jesus saves. Those roadside signs remind me – however crudely,
however lacking in artistic merit, however evangelistically useless - “You can’t
get peace on your own. You can’t find happiness on your own. You can’t make
it on your own.” Jesus saves. The irony of it all is that those clumsy, hopelessly
amateurish, tacky signs are true. Jesus saves. He gives eternal life. He makes
people whole. He forgives my sin. He makes peace with God for me. Jesus
Himself makes it very clear.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life.” During this church season of Lent, we’re
making a study of Jesus I AM statements in the Gospel of John. It’s actually a
name for God Himself going all the way back to Exodus 3 where God revealed
Himself to Moses as “I AM THAT I AM.” When Jesus used that same title - I AM
– He was making a clear, unequivocal claim to be God Himself in human flesh.
But Jesus often adds a predicate: I am the door; I am the good shepherd; I am
the true vine; I am the way, the truth and life; I am the resurrection and the life.
By doing so, Jesus reveals how His deity impacts our humanity.
Here, in John 6, Jesus says, “I am the bread of life.” Why is Jesus comparing
Himself to bread Earlier in the chapter He miraculously fed over 5,000 people
with a few pieces of bread and fish. The people remind Him of how God in the
Old Testament had miraculously provided the Israelites this bread-like substance
called manna to meet their physical needs on their journey from Egypt to the
Promised Land. It was their way of implying, “Now THAT was a miracle! Can
you top that Can you provide bread from heaven like that” In response Jesus
draws a distinction between literal food – necessary but not permanent – and
spiritual food – that which satisfies forever the deepest needs in our lives. “Jesus
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said, ‘I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father
did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven. The true bread of God is
the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.’” (John 6:32
NLT) In case anyone didn’t quite get it yet, He also says, “… ‘I am the bread that
came down from heaven… Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this
bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh.’” (John 6:41, 51 NLT)
Here’s the first of two concepts on which to hand our thoughts today.
AS THE BREAD OF LIFE, JESUS SAVES.
The word “bread” was synonymous with the word “food” in Jesus day. Bread
was the staple in everyone’s diet. Bread was necessary to life itself. Bread
enabled you to live and prevented starvation. Do you see the significance of
what Jesus means He might as well have said, “I am the food of life.” He’s the
One you cannot do without. He also implies that there are different kinds of
hunger. There’s a hungry stomach and the remedy for that is bread. Then,
there’s the hungry heart and the only remedy for that is Him – the Bread of Life.
Why do people have hungry hearts It’s because we’re disconnected from God.
You were created for a relationship with Him and your heart tells you something
is wrong. It’s as if God excavates an emptiness in your life that only He can fill
with Himself. People hunger for heart stuff like truth, love, joy, peace, purpose,
forgiveness and relationships. Jesus claims here that He’s the ultimate answer
for those kinds of heart hunger. The ageless message of the Bible is this:
“‘There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven
by which we must be saved.’” (Acts 4:12 NLT) Jesus saves you from spiritual
starvation because He is the bread of life. Jesus saves.
How does He do that It’s clear to me from what Jesus says here that God
chooses us long before we choose Him. Jesus says here, “‘However, those the
Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them…. For no one
can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the
last day I will raise them up.’” (John 6:37, 44 NLT) In other words, God took the
initiative to restore the broken relationship with us - not you and not me.
That word “draws” is an interesting one. When it’s used in other places in the
New Testament, it always implies some kind of resistance – like when the
disciples were “drawing” a heavy net of fish to shore. How does God draw you
Despite your reluctance, He draws you with love. Despite your foot dragging, He
draws you with kindness. The Old Testament prophet describes God’s method
like this, “‘I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing
love I have drawn you to myself.’” (Jeremiah 31:3 NLT) Let’s face it; we’ve all
resisted the drawing of God at some point in our lives. God tugs at us; we pull
away from Him. He, then, lets us feel the inner emptiness of life without Him; we
move back in His direction a little. How we can fight against and resist the love
of God and yet how we yearn for it all at the same time! Jesus saves.
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What happens next You believe – you put you trust – in Jesus and what He’s
done. Bread won’t do you any good unless you eat it. No one can eat the bread
for you. You must take it and eat it. Faith is believing in Jesus – who He is and
what He’s done for you. That affects your destiny past, present and future. But
how did Jesus save us Well, there it is in v. 51-58. It sounds pretty gory and
cannibalistic, doesn’t it, with all this language about eating Jesus’ flesh and
drinking His blood Of course, Jesus isn’t speaking literally. In a graphic sort of
way, He’s pointing to His future death on the cross for us and our need to
appropriate that for ourselves. And whenever we receive Communion – as we
will today - this almost hideous description makes sense spiritually. The bread
represents His body broken for us on the cross. The cup represents His blood
spilt there for us. Eating and drinking those substances represents faith or trust
in Jesus and what He’s done on our behalf.
Jesus points out the result of all this believing and trusting. He says, “‘I tell you
the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life.’” (John 6:47 NLT) Life – God’s
life in you! Yes, it is eternal in that you will continue to experience it after death,
but you begin to experience it even now in this life. That’s why Jesus, in a sense,
questions the crowd, “So what really is the genuine bread from heaven Was it
that manna stuff that fell from the sky way back in Moses’ day Yes, people ate
it. Yes, it met their physical needs. But, they died eventually just the same. No,
the real bread from heaven came down in Me. And when you partake of Me,
when you feast on Me, you receive life. This is life with a capital L. I am the
Bread of Life!” Jesus saves.
In January 2008, a 15-year-old girl in Australia named Demi-Lee Brennan,
became the world's first known transplant patient to change blood types from O
negative to O positive, taking on the immune system of her organ donor. At first
the doctors assumed a mistake, because it's always been assumed that a
change like that can't happen. Now they say she's a "one-in-six-billion miracle."
The blood stem cells in Demi-Lee’s new liver invaded her body's bone marrow,
taking over her entire immune system. She now has an entirely different kind of
blood—blood that welcomes life, rather than carrying death. "It's like my second
chance at life," Demi-Lee says. Something similar happens to you when you ask
Jesus to save you. He has an entirely different kind of life than you do. There's
nothing mortal in Him. When you put your faith in Jesus, He gives you that life.
It’s a miracle that’s been happening to people for nearly 2000 years!
Many people try to live their lives without the Bread of Life. I’ve never met
someone who was allergic to all food. Allergies to specific foods are common
enough, but not to all food. Everyone has to eat. In the same way, Jesus is for
everyone. Very bright people can think Jesus is only for very dull folk, while dull
folk conclude that Jesus is only for those who are smart. Sophisticated people
think Jesus is only for the simple, while the simple assume that Jesus is only for
those who thing they’re elite. People who consider themselves successful
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assume that Jesus only came for people who society considers to be losers,
while those same losers conclude Jesus is only for winners. Morally upright folk
think Jesus came for those who are terrible sinners, while terrible sinners
conclude that Jesus only came for “goody-goodies.” But Jesus is for everyone!
We all need Jesus, because we all need the food He alone can give. Himself!
He is the Bread of Life. As a pastor, I can tell you that there’s nothing more
discouraging than to encounter a person who’s convinced himself or herself that
he or she just doesn’t need Jesus. You can see the hunger in their hearts, but
they refuse the bread from heaven. They choose to starve to death spiritually.
Just as much as your body needs food, your heart needs Jesus. “I am the bread
of life.” As the bread of life, Jesus saves. Here’s a second concept.
AS THE BREAD OF LIFE, JESUS SATISFIES.
It’s one thing to eat in order to keep from starving. It’s quite another to eat to be
satisfied. Most of us here today are followers of Jesus. Oddly enough, however,
many of us have placed ourselves on a kind of self-inflicted starvation diet
spiritually speaking. God invites you to a feast, but you can sort of pick at what
He provides as if there was a famine! Jesus saves you. But are you allowing
Jesus, the Bread of Life, to satisfy you Just because you became a follower of
Jesus doesn’t mean your heart stays full all the time, does it One of the
necessary discoveries of your relationship with God is figuring out how you
personally can keep on feeding on the Bread of Life. No one here stopped
eating after just one meal. You learned the importance of eating regularly very
quickly! In the same way, you need to keep on feeding on Jesus. Your first meal
– when you first trusted in Jesus and what He did for you – wasn’t meant to be all
you’d ever need. Jesus is your spiritual food. You need to keep on eating so to
speak! Jesus said, “I Am the Bread of Life.” Jesus satisfies.
Followers of Jesus should keep on having hungry hearts. Not starving hearts, no;
but hearts that still hunger for more of Jesus, yes. Your hunger for God can be a
gift; it’s one piece of evidence that you belong to Him. If your heart is hungry for
God today, praise the Lord! That simply means God is drawing you just now to
the only One who can satisfy - Jesus, the Bread of Life. For instance, your heart
might be aching today. So many things cause heartache. You failed at
something. You missed an opportunity. Someone rebuffed you. You’ve been
mistreated or misunderstood. A precious relationship is broken. You’ve said
words you wish now you could retract. Someone so dear to you has died. Your
future seems dark at worst and uncertain at best. Heartache is real and it hurts.
Someone once said, “An aching heart is a hungry heart.” Heartache is a spiritual
hunger pang. You recognize that hollow feeling in your stomach that tells you
that you need food. Heartache is God’s way of telling you that you need the
spiritual nutrition He alone can give. True, heartaches can be our own fault many
times, but the ache is the same. So is the recipe. Jesus said, “I AM the Bread of
Life.” Jesus satisfies.
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The next time you walk into a J.C. Penny store, remember this story about him.
J.C. was a good, honest man, but his life focus was on becoming a success and
making money. “When I worked for $6 a week, it was my ambition to be worth
$100,000. When I reached that goal, I felt a certain temporary satisfaction, but it
soon wore off and my sights were set on becoming worth $1 million.” J.C. Penny
and his wife worked hard to expand their business, but one day she caught cold,
developed pneumonia and died. It was then that J.C. Penny realized that having
money was a poor substitute for the real purpose in living. “When she died, my
world crashed around me. To build a business, to make a success in the eyes of
men, to accumulate money – what was the purpose of life I felt mocked by life,
even by God Himself.”
After several other major heartaches, J.C. Penny was financially ruined and in
deep distress. But that’s when God began to deal with his self-righteous nature
and his love for money. Late in his life, He became a follower of Jesus. “I had to
pass through fiery ordeals before reaching glimmerings of conviction that it is not
enough for men to be upright and moral men. When I was brought to humility
and the knowledge of dependence on God, sincerely and earnestly seeking
God’s aid, it was forthcoming, and a light illumined my being. I cannot otherwise
describe it than to say it changed me as a man.” Jesus said, “I AM the Bread of
Life.” Jesus satisfies.
We all have basic needs: food, clothing shelter; financial security; the approval
of people we value; a sense of being useful; having a purpose; love. But
sometimes circumstances prevent some of those perceived needs from being
satisfied. What then Jesus promises to satisfy your deepest needs, but not
every want or every desire that you think you need. And sometimes life is
discovering the difference between what you think you need and what you really
need. Kids think they need candy every day. Kids think they need to play video
games five hours a day. Kids think they need more time to play and less time for
chores. But a loving parent provides what a child truly needs: love, guidance,
encouragement, boundaries and discipline. Here’s a question: can you trust
Jesus to know the difference between your wants and your needs and can you
trust Him to meet every true need in your life It’s OK to ask for wants and
desires, but if Jesus says, “No” or “Wait”, will you still trust Him He did say, “I
AM the Bread of Life.” That means He satisfies. Do you really believe that
What’s the ache in your heart about today Is to be loved Jesus loves you and
delights in you. Is it to be clean inside Jesus waits to forgive you. Is it to be a
part of something bigger than you Jesus invites you to do mission in His
Kingdom. Is it loneliness Jesus offers His companionship. Is it death or the
fear of death Jesus promises eternal life. Whatever name you give that ache in
your heart today, Jesus is the Bread of Life that satisfies. The Bible says, “For
he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.” (Psalm 107:9 NLT)
When you eat food, you get new strength and energy to live physically. When
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you feed on the Bread of Life, Jesus gives you new strength and energy to live
spiritually. Whatever He wants and ask you to do, you get the energy, the
wisdom and the power to do it. Jesus said, “‘I am the bread of life. Whoever
comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be
thirsty.’” (John 6:35 NLT) Jesus saves. Jesus satisfies.
A Scottish immigrant was making his way to our country in the early years of the
20 th century. He’d purchased passage on one of those great ocean liners of the
day. He didn’t have much money, so he decided to save on food by stocking up
on crackers, cheese and fruit before his departure. The ship sailed and he
began to eat his meager, little meals. It all worked pretty well for the first four or
five days of the trip. But as the boat neared New York City, the crackers became
stale, the cheese moldy and the fruit spoiled. Finally, there was nothing left of his
rations that was fit to eat. The man decided that he’d go to the dining room and
have one last good meal before the ship got to the port there in Manhattan and
he went ashore. Imagine his surprise when he discovered only then that
anything and everything in the dining room was available to him at no extra cost!
Anything and everything he wanted to eat had already been included in the price
of his ticket before he left Scotland.
Silly man! Silly you. Silly me. I see so much of myself in that man. I’m saved;
yes, it’s true. But am I satisfied God offers us a spiritual feast with Him every
day of our lives, but so often we’re satisfied to settle for the stale crackers, the
moldy cheese and the spoiled fruit of yesterday’s relationship with God. I believe
Jesus is here this very moment. Right now He’s whispering into our hearts –
perhaps hearts that are aching for some reason. He’s saying, “I AM the Bread of
Life.” Bread saves. Jesus saves. Bread satisfies. Jesus satisfies.
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