The Bread of Life

Introduction

New Series - I AM

looking at the 7 “I AM” phrases of Jesus in the gospel of John

these phrases define his role as savior and messiah

they also carry overtones of being claims of divinity

Today - I am the Bread of Life; John 6:22-59.

John 6:35 (CSB)

35 “I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in me will ever be thirsty again.

PRAY!

Tell of how we got here…

Jesus feeds the five thousand men

Andrew brings a boy with 5 loaves and two fish

there was plenty of grass there so the people sat down

Jesus blessed the food and the people ate until they were full

Once they experienced this sign

they proclaimed him to be the prophet that was to come

wanted to take him by force and make him king

so Jesus leaves and goes to a mountain to pray

Jesus walks on water

when he leaves to pray he sends his disciples back to Capernaum

Capernaum was their home base of operations

a storm arises and they are having to work hard to move and see a ghost, so they think

turns out to be Jesus walking on the water

then Peter gets out with him

they get to Capernaum and the next morning those that ate the food come chasing after

Look no further than Christ Jesus, consume him daily and we will be eternally satisfied.

A Misunderstood Problem

John 6:25–29 (CSB)

25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

26 Jesus answered, “Truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled.

27 Don’t work for the food that perishes but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal of approval on him.”

28 “What can we do to perform the works of God?” they asked.

29 Jesus replied, “This is the work of God—that you believe in the one he has sent.”

When we do not know the problem we chase after things that are not the solution

they chased after Jesus because their belly was full

if they have food everyday they’d be rich in their minds

all my physical needs are met, I need nothing else

I am happy in this world and that is all I am really concerned about

We are blind to our blindness

physical blind people know that they are blind, spiritually blind people do not know that they are blind

they believe they have everything figured out

maybe not everything, but they believe themselves to be wise enough that they can figure it out when they need to

They saw the signs that point to Jesus as the messiah but ignored then

this was the purpose of his miracles

They only knew their stomachs were full and they want some

Why do you go to God, when you do

do you only pray when you do not seem to have the answers

do you only read the bible because it is your last resort

The problem with the lost soul is that they are enslaved to sin

because they are spiritually blind, they do not know it

they do not know it, yet they love it

An Unbelieving People

I have so much faith in people, I look both ways before crossing a one way street

John 6:30–36 (CSB)

30 “What sign, then, are you going to do so that we may see and believe you?” they asked. “What are you going to perform?

31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”

32 Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, Moses didn’t give you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.

33 For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

34 Then they said, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

35 “I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in me will ever be thirsty again.

36 But as I told you, you’ve seen me, and yet you do not believe.

People will disappoint and we are used to it so we are untrusting

we project this onto God, assuming that he will disappoint us as well

then when something happens that causes us pain, we blame him

as if God’s role in our relationship is to make sure that we are never hurt, always happy and filled

we are no different than those wanting to have their stomachs filled again

God had been silent for hundreds of years, is it out of the question to want a sign

Misunderstood signs

Manna was a sign

tell how God provided manna for the Israelites wandering through the desert

as nomads and in the desert, there was no way for them to grow the things that they needed to provide food for themselves

they had what they needed as slaves

God provided daily for them as a sign that God would love and care for his people

they would have to go out each morning and get only what they needed for that day

on the day before the sabbath they would get two days worth

if they took extra it would spoil

that if they relied on him, he would take care of them

the miracles that Jesus had performed were the same

that he was the one sent from heaven

not so people would be happy here and now

but that they would be eternally satisfied

Some of the miracles that Jesus performed

four guys drop the cripple through the ceiling

razing Lazarus from the dead

We do not need more signs

We throw out our fleece…

we think we are like Gideon, and that it is Biblical

Gideon was doubting God, not trusting that God was going to take care of him

I am afraid that is us most of the time

sometimes we do not know where to go

but too often, we know where we are to go, we know what we are to do,

but we are afraid that God is not going to go with us

He went to the cross

Instead, lets acknowledge our weakness and like the father of the demon possessed child cry out to the Lord

I believe, help with my unbelief!

we need Holy Spirit to draw us and reveal to us who God is

even with more “signs” without the Holy Spirit revealing things to us, we would not believe

belief, or faith is from God

John 6:64–65 (CSB)

64 But there are some among you who don’t believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning those who did not believe and the one who would betray him.)

65 He said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted to him by the Father.”

Judas walked among the apostles, witnessed all that Jesus did, yet did not believe

We would be an unbelieving ungrateful unlovable without our unbelievable savior

An Unreasonable Demand

There have been times that I look back at conversations and think, I could have handled that differently

Happens a lot actually

sometime while I am preaching, typically when I see Heather drop her head and sigh

I read the rest of this passage and wonder, is Jesus being intentionally provocative

if he said this a little nicer, a little differently, could he have convinced some to stay

many after no longer follow him

John 6:48–55 (CSB)

48 I am the bread of life.

49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died.

50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven so that anyone may eat of it and not die.

51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

52 At that, the Jews argued among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life in yourselves.

54 The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day,

55 because my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.

This conversation took place in the synagogue in Capernaum

they believed they knew everything about this man that was performing miracles

they knew he was from Nazareth, they knew who his parents were…

they just did not know how he was doing the things he was doing

they were so concerned with the miracles and how, that they were not asking why

but they did not know him as God, or believe that he is God

he is just a guy from Nazareth that has done some amazing things

Jesus could have taken the time to explain, trying to persuade them

but it is interesting, by being provocative, he is causing them to reveal their hearts

by feeding them and filling their earthly desires they follow, love him and want him to be king

but once he tells them that he is the one that they must consume

that he must be desired more than the food you need in this world

to be hungry for him

He has offered himself for you

today if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts

obey the Spirit of God and come

come to a relationship with him

Exalting Jesus in John Reflect and Discuss

1. Have you ever noticed your own spiritual hunger?

2. Summarize Jesus’s sermon with three major truths.

3. What two reasons did God have for sending bread to the Israelites in the wilderness?

4. Why does Jesus call himself the bread of life?

5. Why do the people follow Jesus across the Sea of Galilee?

6. How much time and effort do you put into making sure your spiritual hunger is met?

7. Do you feel bored and restless in life? Are you seeking fulfillment in Jesus?

8. Why does Jesus point out that the Israelites ate manna in the wilderness and died?

9. How often does Jesus mention “life” in this section?

10. How do you “eat” the bread of life?