Jesus, the Bread of Life
John 6:25 - 59
Jesus fed the hungry 5 thousand men plus their women and children in John 6:1 - 15. After this miracle, Jesus walked on the water to join his disciple’s boat in John 6:16 - 24.
The crowd discovered Jesus on the other side of the lake and chased after Him (25). They followed Him eagerly because they ate food that filled their physical hunger (26). What did Jesus teach them? See v27.
27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
Jesus explains about ‘work’ in v29.
29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Note that ‘belief’ here is not mere theological knowledge but something that leads us to obedience.
But the crowd still looked for physical bread (30-31). So Jesus taught them “the bread from heaven, the true bread, the bread of God” that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world (32-33).
So, the crowd requested this bread (34). What is the answer of Jesus? See v35.
35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
In v37 - 40
- It is the Father who enables them to come to Jesus (37, 44, 45b, 65)
- Jesus will never drive them away (37)
- They will have eternal life (40)
- They will be raised up at the last day (39, 40)
v41 – 42 shows that the Jews could not understand the spiritual meaning of what Jesus said. They thought not spiritually but physically. So, Jesus explained to them again in v43-51.
Believing Jesus depends on the Father who draws them (44). God teaches them and all who hear and learn from Him will believe Jesus (45). What does Jesus declares, who is from God and the only one who has seen the Father (46)? See v47.
47 Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life.
While we are very keen on bread that gives limited life, believing Jesus brings eternal life. So Jesus calls Himself “the bread of life” (48) and “the living bread” (51a) of heaven and of eternal life (51b). This bread is the flesh of Jesus (‘my flesh’), which represents love & sacrificial giving on the cross to forgive our sins (51c).
The Jews still could not understand the word of Jesus, saying ‘my flesh’ (52). They asked “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” (52b) What is the answer of Jesus? See v53 – 58.
53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”
This time, Jesus included ‘my blood’ as real drink that gives eternal life.
Now we can conclude that what Jesus means is “When we believe in His love & sacrifice on the cross, we will remain in Him and live eternally due to His forgiveness and blessing”. I pray that whenever you read the Holy Bible, you may experience “eating His flesh and drinking His blood” and so be deeply touched by His Love and clothed with the likeness of the Christ.
