Bread from Heaven
[Read John 6:26-59]
Have you ever had one of those moments where you’re talking with someone about an experience or event and the longer you talk about it, the more confused you are because, even though you were both there, both experiencing the same thing, both seeing the same thing, it seems like you were at a different event or experience?
We had this once at one of our Winter Retreat events. All of our youth events required some level of challenge for the students and we used it as an illustration to teach them about life and faith and godliness. One year we were teaching about burdens and had the teenagers carry massive rocks around for part of the weekend, and then pitch them off a cliff. One year, we were talking about spiritual warfare and the way it puts us in bondage, so we had the kids spend much of the weekend with their hands bound…lol. Needless to say, that weekend some of the teenagers thought we took things a little too far. We had a group of teens that rebelled on this and a whole host of other issues. The leaders spent the entire weekend disciplining and talking to the kids in our group. Many of the leaders talk about that being one of the most difficult and frustrating trips of their entire life. You can talk to some of the students on the trip, and they’ll tell you it was one of the most frustrating trips they’ve ever taken. On the other hand, you can talk to some of the other students from that trip, and they will tell you it was the best trip we’ve ever done. It was amazing and life-changing—totally changed the course of their life—AND they didn’t even notice any of the disciplinary problems and issues. Same trip, same experiences, seeing all of the same things, listening to all of the same things, COMPLETELY different stories. What’s that all about?
There are many different ways to explain these types of situations. One of the things I’ve been thinking about this week, though, is our natural tendency to see what we want to see, which results in a level of blindness. Human beings tend to go into certain situations with specific expectations and then look for things that connect with our expectations. We see what we want to see, which prevents us from actually seeing what is really there. One group of teenagers goes on a trip with the expectation that “This is going to be terrible,” and then naturally look for things about the trip that are terrible. Another group of students go on a trip with the expectation that “This is going to be life-changing,” and then look for life-changing moments. Often we see what we want to see and that blinds us to reality.
That’s what happened in last week’s passage. Jesus feeds a large group of people—fifteen to twenty thousand—in a miraculous way. And every time Jesus does a miracle, he is revealing something about himself to the world—that’s why they’re called signs. So, like we said last week when Jesus feeds this massive group of people with only five loaves and two fish (with leftovers!!), he’s revealing that he’s the one who provides abundantly and he’s the one who ultimately satisfies. But, did the crowd see that? No. Why not? They were looking for something else. They were looking for a political messiah. So, that’s what they saw and it blinded them from actually seeing what Jesus was trying to reveal to them.
That’s why Jesus begins by rebuking the crowds. He says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.” (John 6:26, ESV). What he’s saying to them is that they didn’t REALLY see the signs. Sure, they saw the miracles Jesus was doing and that IS why they are following him BUT they didn’t actually SEE the signs—they didn’t understand them properly. Like I mentioned last week, they were only seeking Jesus because of what they could get from him NOT because they wanted Jesus himself. They didn’t want Jesus, they just wanted his gifts.
Later on in this passage, Jesus points out that this isn’t a new thing. They have missed other miracles as well. Jesus tells them that they’ve misunderstood—haven’t truly seen—the miracle of the manna in the desert. He says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” (John 6:32–33, ESV). Notice how this is worded. Jesus makes a distinction between bread and TRUE bread. He tells them that Moses wasn’t the one to give them bread from heaven, but it’s the Father who gives TRUE bread from heaven. Then, he tells them that the TRUE bread of God comes from heaven and gives life to the world. The manna didn’t do that. They ate the manna but still died. The manna—the bread from heaven—was also a sign that was pointing to something greater than itself—bread that would come from heaven and give eternal life. And they had missed the point of it.
That’s why Jesus makes it very clear to them by saying, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35, ESV). The manna in the desert was a sign pointing forward to Jesus Christ. The miracle of the loaves and fish was a sign pointing people to Jesus Christ as the bread of life—the one who ultimately provides in abundance and the one who ultimately satisfies our every longing so that we never hunger or thirst again. He tells them that He not ONLY gives them bread, He IS the bread. There’s a massive difference.
And they missed it because they were looking in all the wrong places and looking for all the wrong things. Jesus rebukes them saying, “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” (John 6:27, ESV). Jesus is telling them that they haven’t really seen the signs because they were looking for the wrong things. They were looking for food that perishes. They were overly focused on earthly things and because of that, they were blinded to the reality of what was happening. If they truly want to understand the signs—and see reality—they must long for and look for “food” that endures for eternity and the only place they can get that “food” is from Jesus Christ. He’s telling them that they need to look to HIM and not at His gifts. They need to seek first the Kingdom of God and then trust that the other things will be added to them.
Again, they miss it. They respond, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” (John 6:28, ESV). Remember, these people were sold out and committed to following Jesus. They followed him out into the desert where there was no food. They followed him across the lake. In many ways, they were willing to do whatever it takes to follow Jesus. So, their response is, “Tell us what we need to do and we’ll do it!” And Jesus responds by saying, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (John 6:29, ESV). That’s what they need to do—BELIEVE. Faith. That’s the “work” they need to perform if they want to be ultimately satisfied. They need to believe in Jesus—have faith in Jesus. Herman Ridderbos builds on this and says, ”All the labor and effort the people are investing to remain near Jesus is vain and unprofitable—a dead work—as long as they follow him on the basis of human expectations and not on the basis of faith.” (Ridderbos, 225-226). They can work and work and work and work and it will mean NOTHING, apart from faith. They can follow Jesus all over the place—into difficult and dangerous places—and it will mean NOTHING apart from faith. The only way you will ever be truly satisfied is through faith in Jesus Christ.
That’s why Jesus describes faith in him by saying, “For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.” (John 6:55–56, ESV). True faith is about feeding on Jesus Christ—being nourished and sustained by Jesus Christ himself. And what I love about this passage is all of the different ways Jesus describes true faith. It gives us a multifaceted understanding of what true faith looks like. At one point Jesus says that those who believe have eternal life. At another point, Jesus says it’s those who come to him who have eternal life. At another point, Jesus says it’s those who truly see Him who are given eternal life. At another point, Jesus says it’s those who feed on Him that have eternal life. At another point, Jesus says it’s those who abide in him who have eternal life. All of those are pointing us to a proper understanding of true faith. True faith is believing and being nourished by and drawing near to and abiding in Jesus Christ. True faith is finding our ultimate nourishment, strength, rest, and satisfaction in Jesus Christ.
Yet, from here, Jesus says something that should cause us to take a step back—to pause a moment. He says, “But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.” (John 6:36, ESV). They have “seen” Jesus, they’ve “seen” his miracles/signs, but they still don’t believe. They still don’t have faith, which means they still don’t actually see Jesus. The question is, “Why?” I mean, don’t you think that if you saw this miracle it would be easy for you to believe? Don’t you think that if you saw Jesus do all of the things he did, it would be easy to believe? The answer is, “No.” We’re not better than the people that were alive during the time of Jesus. So, what is causing people from truly seeing and believing in Jesus? AND, more importantly, what needs to happen for people to truly see Jesus and believe in him?
Jesus answers this question very clearly. He says, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him…Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me…” (John 6:44–45, ESV). These are all-encompassing statements that use words like “No one” and “Everyone.” NO ONE can come…unless the Father draws him. You can also use that same logic on the second part of this. NO ONE can come unless they have heard and learned from the Father. Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father and Everyone who is drawn by the Father comes to Jesus. That teaching is very clear from this passage AND Jesus says it multiple times in multiple places throughout this teaching—and throughout the rest of the Gospel.
Here’s the point Jesus is making. He’s showing us that our blindness is so strong, that the only one who can overcome it is God himself. We will constantly keep our eyes focused on the wrong things and the wrong places until God himself breaks in and changes some things—opens our eyes, speaks to us, teaches us, and draws us to Himself. Then, and only then, can we truly begin to see Jesus for who He truly is. Then, and only then, can we truly come to Jesus, believe in Jesus, and ultimately be satisfied in Jesus. God has to do the work first, otherwise, we will always be trapped in our blindness.
That is why the people haven’t truly seen the signs of Jesus—they haven’t been drawn nor taught by God. They were still blind. That’s also why so many people can continually see and hear about Jesus Christ, continue to reject him and walk away from him. They are still blind. They haven’t been drawn nor taught by God. God must do a work first. Then, and only then, will anyone—including ourselves—see Jesus for who he truly is, draw near to him, believe in him, be satisfied in him, and receive eternal life.
Here’s one very practical application of this. This is teaching us that we can do nothing apart from God—nothing. We can’t see apart from God and we can’t even believe apart from God. So, what do we do? We believe. I know that sounds like a contradiction, but it’s true. You cannot believe apart from the work of God, so believe in Him. Haven’t we already seen that logic throughout this book? When Jesus told the lame man to take up his bed and walk, could the lame man do it? No. He could only do it because of the work of God. Same thing with our faith. When Jesus tells you that “Whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35, ESV) he’s telling you to do something you cannot do apart from the miraculous work of God, so do it. And if you do it, give thanks to God for doing that miraculous work in you—knowing that you did NOTHING to bring that about. It was completely a work of God.
And the rest of your Christian life will also be a work of God. That’s what’s so powerful about this. Listen to these repeated lines from Jesus throughout this passage: “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out…I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day…I will raise him up on the last day…And I will raise him up on the last day…Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:37,39,40,44,54, ESV). Once you turn to Him in faith, and are satisfied in Him, he will NEVER cast you out, NEVER let you go, ALWAYS continue to strengthen and nourish and satisfy you, ALWAYS give you what you need for life and godliness, and WILL raise you up with him on that last day. You weren’t the one who started this process—God did—and you will not be the one to finish it—God will. Jesus is BOTH the Author of our faith AND the Perfecter of our faith. He’s the beginning AND the end.
Let that give you hope and peace as you live your Christian life. Don’t live in fear—always worried about whether you will finish the race. Christ will bring you to the finish line. Trust him. Have faith in Him. Then, run the race. Are you strong enough to run? No. Are you smart enough? No. Are you good enough? No. You never were. So, stop worrying about it, trust your Savior, and follow him. Follow him with the strength that he supplies. Do the impossible things He asks you to do, in the strength that He supplies. Trust Him with the faith that He supplies. And look forward to the day when Christ will bring you all the way to the finish line and will raise you up on that final day.
And, people of God, let me tell you THAT will be a glorious day. When Christ brings us through this life and into the next—when Christ perfects our faith and raises us with him on that final day—we will hear, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” (Revelation 19:9, ESV) and then “They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:16–17, ESV). On that day, we will fully—ultimately—experience Jesus Christ as the Bread of Life and we will spend eternity eating and drinking and being nourished and satisfied by Him.
And we will praise Jesus for eternity because we will know that it was all his work from beginning to end. He came in the flesh, died in the flesh, and rose again in the flesh to satisfy and nourish all who come to him in faith. Then, he drew us to himself, opened our eyes, and stirred faith in our hearts. Then, he walked with us, perfecting our faith, strengthening us, nourishing us, and comforting us in this life. Then, he will raise us up with Him on the last day to spend eternity with Him. It’s his work from beginning to end and we will praise him for that work from beginning throughout eternity.