I Am the Bread of Life (Going Deeper)

John 6:35

As we look at the I am statement in John 6:35 let us remember that I AM is the divine name of God found in Exodus 3:14.

Now, in John 6:35, Jesus is speaking to the crowd of 5,000 which he had miraculously fed the day before. But they are seeking him for what he provided the day before, not because of who he was. Now Jesus knew this was the case and so he taught them with clarity that they were to seek after the food which does not spoil. This food is the food from above which comes from God the Father alone,

John 6:35 NKJV

And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.

Jesus was refocusing the crowd to the truth that physical needs will fade away when eternity has come, therefore, seek that which will last for eternity, which is Jesus Christ himself.

Jesus here is referring to himself as the bread from heaven which was given by the Father to be the provision for the people. For you see the crowd that Jesus is speaking to is comprised of mostly Jews who would have known how God had provided daily manna from heaven while their ancestors were led out of Egypt to the promised land. They would have known the impact of God’s provision of daily bread which sustained his people during their long journey. The account of this provision is seen in Exodus 16:4

Exodus 16:4 NKJV

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not.

Here we see God is speaking to Moses and he promises to provide for the people, that same promise was made in Genesis 3:15

Genesis 3:15 NKJV

And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”

That God will provide for the needs of his people. Here it becomes evident that Christ being the Bread of Life, is to show us that he alone is our provision for our needs, both daily and eternal. He also is everything we need to be satisfied and sustained in life each day but also for eternity. You see God the Father has sent God the Son, to be our provision just like he sent the Israelites the manna from heaven each day. We must understand when we look at the statement “I am the Bread of Life,” that Christ is first and foremost claiming the divine name of God, and that secondly he is revealing that he is the provision from God the Father to his people for their needs. There is no need for anything beyond Christ for he is sufficient for all things. I hope as you go through this week you will take time to reflect on the nature of Christ as our sufficient provision and sustenance given to us by God the Father for all of our needs. Now, reflect on these 2 questions this week, 1. Am I truly satisfied in Christ? 2. Am I relying on God for my provision? When you reflect on these questions you will begin to understand two important realities about your walk with God, 1. You are striving for too much of this world and not enough of Him. 2. You are relying on your own strength to provide for your life.