Eternal Bread Bakery (part 2)
John 6:24-36
2. One can be surprised
when the crowd wants to see signs from Jesus. “What miraculous sign then will
you give that we may see it and believe you?”(vs. 30).
They are comparing Jesus
with Moses.
Jesus fed the 5000; Moses fed
the nation of
Jesus fed them one day; Moses
fed them for 40 years.
Jesus took the fish and the
bread and blessed them; Moses brought the food from heaven.
Jesus explained that they did
not understand Moses at all. Moses brought the food from God. God was the provider and not Moses. Moses was just a facilitator.
The real meaning of manna was
not just bread to eat, but seeing that God is in control and that
He is the provider and there is more than manna. Do not get stuck with the manna.
See beyond it. See above it. Grow up, get mature, and find deeper
meaning. Unfortunately, our relationship with God is on this level. What do I
gain? What’s in it for me? When is He going to provide for us?
I believe God can provide and
answer our prayers according to His will and not ours. Jesus tries to explain
to his crowd that they need to see more than the manna.
3. Let us continue our
journey with the Bread.
Bread is a strong weapon. Bread represents economy.
Today Dow Jones and oil are
important factors that control our daily life. They are “bread” and used to
control people. Historically, and even today bread (or wheat) is used to gain
favors.
These days
When I was student in
college, I remember that it was very difficult for me to receive help from
others. Once one of the providers who was a committed
Christian said: “Do not think what you can do for me to pay me back. Think what
you can do to another who can not pay you back.”
Jesus feed the 5000. He could
feed a nation if he wanted. Providing bread was not a problem at all. Yet, Jesus
did not use bread as a weapon for his interests. He did not use miraculous
signs for his interest.
It was the greatest
temptation for Jesus to use such “power” for his interest. No, he did all these
signs as acts of compassion and mercy. Reaching out to the hungry
and to the weak was so important, that he did his best to bring justice to the
victims of this fallen society.
4. Therefore, he was
interested in bread that was from heaven. For a bread that can satisfy our
inner man.
Do you remember the concept of
strengthening the inner man? We are talking about Bread that can be
everlasting.
What is this bread?
What is “food that endures to
eternal life,” (vs. 27)?
What does it mean when Jesus
declared: “I am the bread of life”? (vs. 35)
Jesus is talking about bread with
a power that will never fail. Bread that can provide love;
bread that can bring joy; bread that can bring health; bread that can save you
from sin and damnation.
We all have inner hunger
in our lives. When we have Jesus as the bread, it completes our life. For
me, the bread that Jesus provides satisfies my imagination, so that I start
using my imagination for his glory. It satisfies my hunger for creativity, so I
can invent things for His Glory. Bread from heaven is new food for my talents
and gifts so I can use them to expand God’s kingdom.
5. There were some
interested to have this bread. They asked: “What must we do to do the works God
required?”
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this; to believe in the one he has
sent.” (vs. 28-29)
Here the great argument comes
again. Faith or works? Paul or
James?
Can we gain this heavenly
bread by works?
The crowd was interested
in material things. It is natural
that their response is again “doing” things to gain God’s favor and eventually
this bread.
The emphasis of Jesus is
on faith which is alive and dynamic.
John’s gospel is talking
about both faith and works.
“Obtaining eternal life is
not question of works, as if faith did not matter; nor is it a question of
faith without works. Rather, having faith is a work; indeed, it is the all-important
work of God. This believing is not so much a work done by man as it is submission
to God’s work in Jesus.” 1
You see the credit goes to
God. Faith that is
not in stagnation; FAITH with dynamism
and fruits.
Last Wednesday we had our
Bible Study. We were studying Philemon. In that book Paul writes about
Philemon’s faith:
“I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about
your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. I pray that you
may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full
understanding of every good thing we have in Christ” (Phil.: 4-6).
This kind of life and faith
helps us “eat, the Heavenly Bread” and enjoy the “heavenly peace.”
Once a social
worker felt pity on a case that needed special attention. The case was an orphaned baby boy. She took him home
to take care of him. He was very weak. He did not have strength to stay on his
feet. This social worker did everything possible to raise this child. She
wanted to help him stand on his feet alone one day. The boy became man and was
full of energy and power.
One day she said to her
friends: “I did everything to raise this child. I taught him to walk. He can
walk very well today. He can even jump and run. Yet his feet are in jail. I
taught him how to walk, but I did not teach him where to walk.”
Jesus answered the crowd:
“The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Are you looking for “bread
from heaven?”
Are you looking for food that
endures to eternal life?
The answer is in simple and
you heard it many times. The answer is in Jesus.
“For the
bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to all.” (33)
Jesus said: “I am the bread
of life.”
Have one!
1 Brown page 265