I Am - The Seven Statements of Jesus

» The Bread of Life «

» Bible Passage: John 6 «

» Target Verse(s): 25-58 «

» Statement: "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." «

In this passage, two great miracles were performed; Jesus fed the five thousand men (and women and children) and walked on the water to the disciples. But in our target verses, Jesus is talking to those that he fed in his first miracle of this chapter.

Initially, he called them out on their true motives for following him because he could see inside their hearts. When they doubted him and asked for signs, Jesus replied, "Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Jesus is speaking metaphorically here, not about real bread like the people asked about, but about himself.

When the people still believe he is talking about real bread, something to satisfy their physical hunger, Jesus has to explain. "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty... For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day."

When they continued to doubt and grumble, Jesus added, "...Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."

Though they may not have been able to see the context of Jesus's words, we, two thousand years later, know he is talking about his sacrifice. "This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." Not physical life, but spiritual life, as he gave himself over to death to be our payment for our sins.

In Matthew 26:26-28, Jesus and his disciples are taking the first communion. Jesus goes on to use the bread metaphor in this symbolic tradition as well. "While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, 'Take and eat; this is my body.' Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, 'Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.'"

Through Jesus's death, we are given life for all eternity. The bread was broken to give us sustenance, energy, and life.

» Thought Questions: «

q1: When have you found yourself trying to rely on physical bread (the things of this world) for problems only the Bread of Life could fix?

q2: What was one verse that stood out to you in John 6 and why?

» Prayer: «

Dear God, we come to you today with the understanding that you sent the Bread of Life to be broken for our shortcomings and sin. We deserved to be the ones broken, but instead, you gave your only son as a sacrifice so that we may live. We thank you for your love and compassion for us and pray that we never take your sacrifice for granted. Help us to put our trust in the Bread of Life that never lets us go hungry. In Jesus name, amen.

» Response: What are your thoughts about today's "I Am" statement? «