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“Feasting on the Bread of Life”
John 6:48-59
Eternal life is the topic of Jesus’ teaching in John 6. The chapter began with Jesus’ miraculous feeding of the five thousand, and in his subsequent teaching Jesus sought to elevate his hearers from earthly to heavenly bread. This chapter contains the first of Jesus’ “I am” sayings: “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35, 48). His Jewish audience connected this claim with the manna that had fed the exodus generation in the time of Moses—bread that fell from heaven. Jesus wanted them to see that he is not only a new Moses, but a greater Savior than Moses ever was. The people, however, struggled to understand and grumbled against his words.
The Bread of Life: A Claim(vv. 49-52)
Starting in John 6:48, Jesus continues his teaching, pointing out a significant difference between the bread that he gives versus the manna of Moses’ day. Whereas the ancient manna sustained physical life for just a day at a time, the bread that he offers gives so much more (vv. 48–50).
This makes some important points:
First, it reminds Jesus’ hearers of how the Israelites of the exodus complained about their manna and revolted against Moses. Jesus’ present hearers were making the same mistake.
Second, as a result of their sin, the exodus generation was judged by God, so that none but the few believers ever left the desert. The entire generation that witnessed the great miracles of the exodus—miracles such as the ten plagues on Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea—subsequently died in the desert because of their sin. This point would have been all the more poignant since John 6 takes place during the Passover celebration—the main feast that commemorated the exodus! Even though this crowd was fed by Jesus’ miracle, the result of their unbelief would be the same judgment and death experienced by their ancestors.
Third, Jesus makes a contrast between the bread he gives and the manna. His bread conveys life not just for the body but for the soul. His bread overcomes the deadly curse of sin and gives eternal life.
There are good reasons to be sure that Jesus was speaking of his coming death on the cross. This chapter takes place at the time of the Jewish Passover (6:4). This festival remembered Israel’s deliverance from Egypt when God sent the angel of death to slay the firstborn of Egypt. Only God’s people were spared, by sacrificing a lamb and spreading its blood on their doorposts. The Passover meal consisted of eating the sacrificial lamb. This is a vital theme in John’s Gospel; we remember John the Baptist’s witness to Jesus: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (1:29). This is how Jesus meant the Jews to understand “eating” his “flesh.” By eating the Passover lamb, the Israelites identified with the sacrifice for sin offered by the Lamb of God. Jesus wanted his hearers to make the connection between the Passover lamb and his own sacrificial death.
The Bread of Life: A Requirement(vv. 53-57)
Eating/drinking is Necessary
You must eat to stay alive!
Eating/drinking is Personal
Someone else cannot eat for you!
“Feeding on Jesus:”
Read the Bible; Use a good study Bible; Learn how to study the Bible
Pray
Get involved in a small group
Attend worship regularly
Read/listen to solid spiritual stuff
Eating/drinking is Regular
You must eat every day!
The Bread of Life: A Promise(vv. 58-59)
A life of quality and quantity
Jesus promises that when you come to him through faith in his cross, you will live in him and he will live in you. The apostle Peter said that believers “become partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). This does not mean that we become little deities, but rather that we are “born of the Spirit,” as Jesus told Nicodemus (John 3:8). The risen and ascended Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to live within us, conveying “righteousness and peace and joy” (Rom. 14:17). To abide in Christ and have him abide in us is, Paul wrote, “to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:23–24). What, I ask, has the world to offer in comparison with this?
-Invitation:“If anyone,” and “Whoever.”
-Warning:“Unless and “No life.”