Living Bread

Living Bread

John 6:51-58

We all have our favorite foods, our “comfort foods.” The foods that we turn to most often… Foods we were reared on. Sometimes we call those foods “soul food.” They’re the kinds of foods that truly satisfy, not only our hunger, and our taste (our cravings)... but they bring us a sense of well being and connect us to our heritage like few other things can.

Certain foods remind us of people we’ve loved... I can’t eat chocolate pound cake without thinking of my mother. Or fried green tomatoes without remembering my grandmother. Something as simple as roast beef reminds me of a former parishioner at my previous church who made the best roast I’ve ever eaten. Food invokes memories, and touches our emotions.

Jesus was aware of all this when he said, “I am the bread of life.” It’s one of Jesus’ many “I am” statements: like “I am the Resurrection” - “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life” “I am the Light of the world” “I am the Good Shepherd.”

These statements were intended to identify Jesus as the incarnation of God Himself... the promised Messiah... who came to deliver and redeem God’s people. They all point to Jesus being our hope and security and provision, not only in this life, but the life to come.

In the Old Testament, God revealed His name to Moses: “I AM WHO I AM.” (Exodus 3:14). For the Hebrew people, “I AM” is unquestionably understood as an identifier for God. And whenever Jesus made an “I am” statement, He was claiming divine attributes, He was identifying Himself as God.

Now when it comes to Jesus being the Bread of Life... our understanding and appreciation is much different than it was in Jesus’ day. You and I tend to use bread to supplement our diets today. We tend to think of bread as a side... or an “add on” to a meal. We even omit bread from our diets for a host of reasons. But that wasn’t the case back in Jesus’ day. Back then, bread was essential. It was at the center of every meal, and if you didn’t have enough bread, you’d risked starving. It was the foundation of survival. It literally, sustained life.

Of course, some of the people who heard Jesus say “I am the bread of life” were offended. They would eventually accuse Jesus’ followers of cannibalism: after all, Jesus was talking about eating flesh and drinking blood. Even today, we don’t talk like that in polite company.

But then... when you and I hear these words, we immediately think of the Lord’s Supper, communion. We think of the bread that represents Jesus giving his life for us. And we should think that! But there’s a problem here: because at this point, when Jesus first spoke these words, the Last Supper was yet to come. It had not happened yet. So we can’t just write this off as an illusion to Lord supper. Jesus is saying something different here.

What Jesus is saying is “I am what sustains you.” I’m the source that sustains you unto life.

It’s kinda like when you go to the steakhouse and you order a ribeye dinner, with a baked potato, and a side salad. You didn’t order that combo for the baked potato and the side salad. You ordered it for the steak. The steak is the main part of the meal. It’s the most caloric and nutritionally dense part of the meal.

And... in a way, that’s what Jesus is saying. He’s NOT just a side item, or an “add-on” to this life. He’s not just an appetizer or even desert. “I am the bread that gives life.” Jesus is the most important part of our spiritual sustenance.

Sometimes, even in light of our best efforts, we lose sight of the fact that Jesus is the Bread of Life. We get so busy doing life... our daily work... the ministry, so to speak… Everything from meals on wheels, to Sunday school, to fellowship events, different types of outreach projects; All good, all necessary… All beneficial… But they’re all kind of appetizers if you will. They’re all compliments... but Jesus… Jesus is the true nourishment that satisfies.

There are a couple of cooking shows that I like to watch one is called “A Taste of History” and the other one is called “18th Century Cooking.” Both of these shows explore techniques, and recipes, that were common in 1700s, and the 1800s.

I don’t think too many of us appreciate how difficult it used to be to prepare food. We’re blessed to live in an age of fast, convenient foods. We forget how much effort and energy... and time... was invested in the simply putting food on the table.

You had to raise the chickens, you had to tend to the to the cows, you had to plant and grow your own vegetables, you had to harvest it all. You had to grow, harvest and thresh the wheat before you could even begin the process of making bread. And when it came time to actually cook, there was a tremendous amount of effort laid out, from chopping wood, to building and maintaining a fire, just to simply cook everyday food.

Today, if we want to, all we have to do is remove the cellophane. Someone else has done all the hard work... Someone else has committed the time and effort required to do the bulk of the preparation. All we have to do is assemble a few ingredients, and viola... we have supper.

The Truth is: we need to remember, that Jesus is the one who did all the heavy lifting for us in regards to our salvation. He sacrificed, himself... humbling himself, “and became obedient unto death—even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8) to give us eternal life…

Always know: as Jesus said in Matthew 4:4, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

And what is the Word of God: John 1 says it’s Jesus. “For the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”

Other things in this life may satisfy for a while, but they’ll never sustain us. Only Jesus... only the Bread of Life, can provide our greatest need.