Jesus Brioche

Big Idea: Only Jesus can bring true fulfillment.

Intro

Close your eyes, and imagine something for me. You’re walking down the street in an old Italian village. You look around and take in the beautiful scenery. A radiant golden sun seems to be setting right inside the valley of the mountains that surround the town, and the bright and vibrant flowers line the streets with color and life. The air is clean and fresh, with the breeze from the sea flowing through out the town.

However, you begin to walk past a particular building when something catches your attention. Ah yes, a smell! This smell is a warm, fresh scent. It reminds you of home, bringing a cozy and comfortable feeling. Of course, this smell is the smell of fresh bread! Thank you for imagining with me, you may now open your eyes.

But bread! Who doesn’t love a warm, fresh loaf of bread. I personally love baking, and I certainly have a plethora of recipe’s I’m planning to bake this summer. Bread is a staple of practically every culture all over the world, and certainly has great significance in the Bible. There are constantly references to bread, whether it be the showbread of the ancient Israelite tabernacle, part of important ceremonial meals, or as we will observe today, an object of importance in Jesus’ teachings.

Our passage for tonight is John 6 22-59, where we find Jesus teaching a multitude of people about a type of bread that truly fulfills. Tonight we will look at who Jesus is teaching, what He is teaching them, their responses, and Jesus response to their response. But most importantly, we will learn how only Jesus can bring true fulfillment… Only Jesus can bring true fulfillment. Before we begin, lets pray…

Context

Well, before diving into the passage, we must ask ourselves first, how did we get here? A quick read through John 5 lets us know that Jesus had just been up in Jerusalem, teaching and performing miracles, where He famously healed the lame man at the pool of Bethesda. Those in Jerusalem were astonished at what Jesus was doing and what He was teaching, so when Jesus crossed the Sea of Galilee after all of this, they followed him.

Jesus went up on a mountain, and the people followed. But it was Passover, and so Jesus asked His disciples about giving the people food. This of course is the famous miracle of Jesus feeding the five thousand. And the people ate, and they loved it! They had all the bread they wanted, and there was even more left over.

Oh man, Jesus, this is amazing! Thank you! And do you know what they did? They were going to try to take Jesus and make Him king, but He knew that this wasn’t his mission at the time, so He withdrew from the crowd. Evening came, and the disciples got into a boat to cross the sea to Capernaum, but a tempest arose, violently shaking and flooding the boat. Jesus then walked on the sea to the boat, comforting them and transporting them instantaneously to the other side.

Phew! I know that was a lot, and it was pretty intense, but now we find ourselves just there, back on the other side of the sea of Galilee.

Following Christ or Follower of Christ?

The first chunk of our text is John 6:22-25, which tells us that,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

22 On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 23 Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24 So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

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

Well, Jesus and his disciples were then on one side of the sea, but all those who came and had their fill of bread hadn’t yet crossed over! So, they woke up to find that Jesus wasn’t there, and they hadn’t seem him get into the boat with his disciples, so they were quite confused. So, they went to Capernaum knowing Jesus was often there, where they found him and asked Him how He got there.

You can almost imagine the mood of the people asking. There most likely was an air of excitement, wonder, confusion, relief. “Oh man Jesus! What you did was amazing! Wow… but um… how did you get here exactly? When do you leave?” Some of them were probably like, “I don’t care how you got here, lets get some food! I’m ready to eat!”

While people will naturally read this passage and say, “Of course they’d follow Jesus! Look at all the wonderful thing’s He’s doing!” We must ask ourselves, “Why are they following Him? Why are they giving up all their time to pursue Him?” And Jesus quickly strikes the heart of the issue in the next verses.

Leavened Hearts

We see Jesus’ response in John 6:26-29 where the Scriptures say,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

26 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” 28 Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

Woah! Jesus calls these people out right away! “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves?” Jesus exposes their intent in following Him right here! They didn’t follow Jesus because His signs truly touched their heart, or that His teaching was touching their soul. They followed because they were hungry and found a seemingly infinite source of food. They saw Jesus as profit instead of prophet. They were concerned about profiting rather than listening to the prophecy of the kingdom of God being at hand.

Yes, the bread was a great sign and surely was a marvel to experience, yet there was something deeper they were to see in it. Jesus tells them that the bread that they seek after is perishing, which they toil for in vain. The bread they ate did not endure, or else they wouldn’t have came back to Jesus the next day. We all know that one night you can eat the most mouth watering, stomach filling, and appetite satisfying meal, but you will grow hungry again the next day.

Yet Christ then suggests that there is food that endures even to eternal life, that the Son of Man (which we know is Jesus) will give to them, even claiming that God the Father has set His seal on Him. To give context to the question the people are about to ask, Jesus tells them to work for this eternal food, which they understood to be the work of God. Now curious about this eternal food that Jesus speaks of, they ask how they can obtain it, to which Jesus simply replied that they must believe in Him who the Father has sent. That is the work of God, to believe in Christ.

However, growing upon their mistake from earlier (that being seeking Jesus for food alone), the unbelief in their hearts seems to leaven, as now they ask something else of Jesus. John 30-34 tell us what the people said next. Verse 30 reads,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

30 So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ” 32 Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

Seriously? Jesus has been doing all of these crazy miracles, and you still need a sign? Jesus healed the sick, and that wasn’t enough. Jesus taught with authority, casting out demons, and that wasn’t enough. Jesus produced unlimited bread right before your own eyes, and that wasn’t enough?!? Not only this, but they would go as far as to compare this situation to God providing manna in the wilderness.

Even though Christ just produced bread right before their eyes, they won’t believe. Yet they believe the accounts that their ancestors ate manna from heaven, and attribute it to Moses, but believe it in spite of not having bore witness to the manna itself. Do you see how ridiculous this is getting? They believe in what they haven’t seen, but miss the miracle happening right before their eyes.

Jesus goes on to make a bold and awesome claim. He corrects their statement, sharing that it was God the Father who provided the manna, not Moses, and that the true bread from God is He who comes from heaven to bring life to the world (which we know is Christ). We see a clear distinction here once again. The people that were seeking Jesus were seeking physical bread. They wanted something to fill their stomachs. Yet Jesus was trying to teach them that there is an eternal, spiritual bread to be gained. And when Jesus told them this, they wanted this bread!

But even though this bread is spiritual, that doesn’t mean it’s this spiritual ghost loaf of bread that you’ll try to eat and it will pass right through your body like some phantom. Jesus clarifies what this bread is in the next portion of our text.

Jesus is The Unfailing Bread

John 6:35-40 shows Jesus’ response to their request for this bread. These verses share that,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

Now it is clear as day! The matter at hand couldn’t be more clear! Jesus is this bread that they were just discussing! With Jesus, you won’t hunger or thirst, you will be truly fulfilled. Yet to obtain Him, we must believe like He said! Yet the people did not all believe. Christ makes it clear that certain people will come to Him, given by the Father, and obtain this spiritual bread, never being cast away. And this is the will of the father! That everyone who is given to Christ, those who believe in Him, should have eternal life and be raised eternally on the last day. This is the fulfilment of this bread.

Does Jesus mean that those who believe in Jesus will never hunger and thirst physically? No, of course not. Jesus was getting at something deeper. He was comparing the nourishment of physical bread to the body, leading unto physical life, to the eternal fulfillment that He brings, leading unto eternal spiritual life! This is amazing! It all makes so much sense! No matter how much of that physical bread the people ate from the hand of Jesus, they would still return hungry, yet it was all to point to the true fulfillment that Jesus can bring in the Spirit.

Wow… this is amazing… and surely now the people will understand, believe, and follow Jesus to obtain this eternal bread from God… right? Surely after this clear message you would have to believe. No. They didn’t. What did they do? Well, they grumbled. They grumbled! Verses 41 and 42 show us this when they say,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

41 So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”

Seriously? These people are getting hung up on every detail of what Jesus is saying. Now they can’t believe that Jesus came from heaven. To be fair, if you knew someone and their parents and they claimed to come from heaven, you’d be suspicious too. But come on! This is Jesus! Sure this is Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother they knew, but He also is the Jesus that has been proving his authority and divinity time and time again! But Jesus responds to their unbelief in verses 43-51, where we read that,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

43 Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— 46 not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one 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. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

Now you may start to see very familiar language in this text, that being language relating to communion. Jesus claims to be the bread of life, and tells them that if anyone eats of this bread, that person will live forever. He even specifies that this bread is His flesh! Now we won’t get into a debate about the inner workings of the communion elements, that’s not the point of this passage.

Jesus then makes the matter more clear, teaching that those who will come to Him (obtain the bread of life), come because the Father draws them. If we put the pieces together here, this is what we get. The Father’s will is that those who believe would obtain eternal life, eternal life is obtained through the bread of life (Jesus), and to obtain the bread of life is to believe in the bread of life itself (to place your faith in Christ).

Additionally, Jesus makes the distinction between the physical and spiritual once again. He observes that the very ancient Israelites that the people were referring to ate the manna given to them and yet still perished. He contrasts this with the eternal bread of life, that being Himself, which ensures that one will not perish, but have eternal life. Once again, it’s important to understand this in light of the context, with the eternal life being spiritual life.

Yet again, those listening got hung up on what Jesus said. This time however, it’s slightly more relatable. They begin to debate what Jesus meant when He suggested that they needed to eat His flesh. In verse 52, we see that,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

But Jesus seems to answer in a way that doesn’t really clarify anything for them, but can seem slightly disturbing at first. Verses 53-59 finish out our text for today, and read,

English Standard Version Chapter 6

53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum.

What? I thought there would be some clarification, Jesus. I thought you were going to tell them that they don’t need to really eat your flesh and drink your blood. But no, you say I need to eat your flesh and drink your blood? What is going on? Well, it appears that Jesus is saying this to teach that we are to abide in Christ, even as if we had His very flesh and blood inside of our bodies.

Now again, this is not a debate on whether the elements of communion truly become the body and blood of Christ or not, because that’s not the point of what Christ is saying here necessarily. See, a look into the latter half of what Christ was saying displays the clear idea that, like Christ abides in the Father, we can abide in Christ for this eternal life that we’ve been hearing about.

Additionally, though it’s not our text for tonight, Christ goes on to clarify that this matter He is speaking of is a spiritual matter, and not a physical matter. After the people wrestle with His sayings, he states in verse 63 that

English Standard Version Chapter 6

63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life

So what does any of this mean for us?

Application

Well, we face a choice in this world. In life, there is always a table before us. On this table, there are two loaves of bread. One loaf is the pleasures and novelties of this world, and the other is Christ. We know that Christ is the bread of life that we can take hold of by believing, finding true satisfaction in Him. Yet the other loaf represents the temporary, unsatisfying things of this world. We can take hold of the temporary pleasures, yet they will not eternally satisfy.

Take the parable of the rich man and Lazarus from Luke 16. The rich man laughed, ate, drank, enjoyed the splendors of this world, all while Lazarus scrapped crumbs from his table. The rich man took of the temporary loaf, and Lazarus the eternal loaf. Family, I tell you today that Lazarus was more full eating those crumbs than the rich man with his feasts could have ever been.

How often do we settle for temporary loaves, even as Christians!?! We struggle and strive for these loaves that fail us. We take the pleasures of the world, yet we end up hungry again! We try to take hold of all we can in this life, yet it grows stale, molds, and crumbles away.

But family, we don’t have to struggle and strive for these things. We need to remind ourselves that the things of the world can’t satisfy, for we will always want more. We will always want more money, more fame, more glory, more pleasure. But Christ is sufficient. Christ is enough. In Christ we’re freed from our spiritual hunger. And we very simply find this fulfillment through faith in Christ. Only Jesus can bring true fulfillment.