Bread of Life

 

Bread of Life

 

John 6:32-35 『Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. Then they said unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. And Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.』

The people who had their hungry stomachs filled by the miracle of the five loaves and two fish wanted to make Jesus their king. They thought that if they made Jesus their king, he would solve the problem of their food and shelter. Jesus, who knew their hearts, avoided the place. They searched for Jesus and followed him to Capernaum by boat. For them, food was a serious and realistic problem, so they approached Jesus cautiously. However, Jesus knew both their realistic problems and their inner intentions.

“Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Very truly I tell you, you seek me not because you saw signs but because you ate your fill of the loaves.’” Jesus performed many miracles during his public ministry. He raised the dead, healed the sick, and cast out demons. He raised the lame, fed five thousand people with two fish and five barley loaves, and left twelve baskets full. He calmed the wind and waves and walked on water.

Jesus pitied their situation and circumstances, and was filled with compassion. With a heart of love and compassion, Jesus performed miracles to heal and free those who were bound by suffering. However, if the people, seeing these miracles, continue to be bound by these real problems, as if they were people who live to eat, and do not seek the heavenly food that gives eternal life, they will eventually lose the Lord while seeking the perishable things of the world.

The ultimate reason Jesus performed many miracles was to let people know that he was sent by God. He came to fulfill the will of God the Father, to spread the gospel of the resurrection life of the kingdom of God to people who do not know God and the gospel of the kingdom of God and live in fear and anxiety amidst sin.

Jesus looked at the people who came to Him and knew that they did not come because of signs, but because of the practical problem of eating bread and being full. They came again hoping for signs and miracles, and not just once, but continuously, to solve the problem of physical food. Jesus does not ignore the problem of food. The miracle of the five loaves and two fish was to give them physical food. However, no matter how many miracles people experience, if they are only interested in earthly problems and want to obtain them, they will never know that the Lord is the Messiah, the One sent by God, and the One who gives eternal life.

Jesus tells us not to work for the food that perishes for the flesh, but for the food that endures to eternal life. “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has sealed his seal.” At these words, the crowd asked Jesus again. “They asked him, ‘What must we do to work the works of God?’ Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.’”

They asked Jesus how they could do the work of God that would lead to eternal life. Their question was because they thought that keeping the law of Moses was the work of God, and they did not know what else they should do. The work of God that the people asked was expressed in the plural in the Greek Bible. "What works must we do to obtain the food that leads to eternal life? What many works are necessary?" However, Jesus said that the work of God that brings not the food that perishes but the resurrection and eternal life is to believe in the one whom God sent. To believe is to believe that Jesus, the Son of God, is the one who gives the resurrection life of heaven.

We believe that Jesus Christ is the one sent from heaven by God, and that he alone can save our dead spirits from sin and reconcile us to God. Believing does not mean simply believing that Jesus is someone to me, but rather becoming one with Jesus and entering into Christ.

The people asked again, “If Jesus is sent by God, how can we believe it? What kind of sign will he show us? Moses fed the Israelites with manna for 40 years. How much greater a sign can we see if we can gain eternal life?” They also understood the miracle of manna as the solution to the problem of physical food.

They do not see the God who brought the Israelites out of Egypt, who saves them, protects them, and guides them. It is because they are caught up in worldly problems. To these people who continue to seek signs, Jesus says that he is the bread of life and the spiritual food that will never hunger or thirst.

“Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never hunger, and he who believes in me will never thirst.’” Jesus tells the people that he is the true manna sent down from heaven by God the Father, the bread of life through resurrection, and that they should believe in him to gain eternal life. Everyone’s body decays and is buried in the ground. However, it is God’s will and the purpose of Jesus’ coming to this earth for the spirit to be saved and gain eternal life. God’s will is for us to believe in the Son and receive resurrection and eternal life. He says that believing is the way to gain eternal life. Believing in the Son means believing in Jesus’ death and present resurrection.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The tradition of the elders

  The tradition of the elders   Mark 7:5-9  『 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands? He answered and said to them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. 』 In the Galilee region, Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem came to Jesus. They came with accusations against Jesus. This is because Jesus' disciples neglected washing their hands, a Jewish ritual of purification. They called it  “ the tradition of the elders. ”  The Jewish leaders ...
Read more

Question 32. How is the grace of God manifested in the second covenant?

  Question 32. How is the grace of God manifested in the second covenant? Answer. The grace of God is manifested in the second covenant, in his free provision and offering to sinners of mediation, and of life and salvation by it; and by requiring faith as the condition of their entering into a relationship with Christ, the mediator; and by promising and giving the Holy Spirit to all his elect, he works faith in them, with all other saving graces, and enables them to do all holy obedience; which obedience is a true evidence of their faith and gratitude to God, or the way which God hath appointed for their salvation. If we divide God's covenant into two for convenience, the covenant that appears in the Old Testament is called the first covenant, and the covenant that appears in the New Testament through Jesus Christ is called the second covenant. Luke 22:15-16 “ And he said to them, ‘ I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will n...
Read more

Question 49. How did Christ humble himself in his death?

  Question 49. How did Christ humble himself in his death? Answer. Christ humbled himself in his death, in being betrayed by Judas, forsaken by his own disciples, mocked and rejected by the world, condemned by Pilate, suffering under persecutors, struggling with the fear of death and the powers of darkness, feeling and enduring the terrible wrath of God, laying down his life a sacrifice for sin, and enduring the pains, shame, and cursed death of the cross. Matthew 27:28-30 “ And they stripped him of his clothes and put a scarlet robe on him. Then they platted a crown of thorns and put it on his head. And they put a reed in his right hand. Then they knelt before him and mocked him, saying, ‘ Hail, King of the Jews! ’ Then they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. ” Jesus did not humble himself before the death on the cross, which was condemned by the Jewish leaders as a blasphemer, but humbled himself before the justice of God. And he endured and endured ...
Read more