Today’s scripture can connect us to one of the “I AM” claims of Jesus—
I AM the Bread.
How does this scripture speak to us today?
Today as we think of our own lives, what do you focus your life on?
What needs do you spend most of your time trying to satisfy?
Listen to what you are saying as you talk to your family and friends every day.
(Pause)
Don’t we all today work really hard for a lot of things to satisfy what we think we need…
to the exclusion of things that REALLY satisfy.
Some of us may be spending all of their time on our careers to the exclusion of everything else—
driving ourselves for success.
Others are making sure their children are at every social activity, even though now today this has taken on other forms due to Covid-19…
to the exclusion of other things.
(Pause)
St. Augustine said,
“Our hearts are restless until we rest in Thee.”
Let us here then end of that sentence….
Until we rest in Thee….
Are we filling our lives with things that are not really satisfying to us?
Do we really understand the Point when Jesus said
“I AM The Bread”:
(Pause)
Jesus is referencing transition from the natural bread to the spiritual bread,
For complete satisfaction for our lives to be whole.
(Pause)
How often do we, too, miss the point?
Jesus was saying:
1. No one will be attracted to me unless God pulls him toward me.
2. The person who has allowed God to teach him will come to me.
3. The person who believes in me will receive unending life.
4. I am the living bread, and the person eats me shall live forever.
(Pause)
How then Do We You Do This?
Jesus was trying to teach us a spiritual concept.
That’s why we read the scriptures, join in study groups, come to church
because we need to turn our focus on spiritual truths.
Many people make it so difficult, but Jesus made it quite simple.
The key is what Jesus says we are to do—
”He that believeth on me has everlasting life.”
(Pause)
Believe in Him means to recognize that He is present in our lives.
Believe that when He died and rose again and ascended into heaven
and sent the Spirit again into the world,
it was in order to make Himself available to us.
(Pause)
Believing in Him means to learn to look at our situation through His eyes,
to see life as he sees it.
Jesus is saying,
“believe that I know what I am talking about. Believe that I can work.”
Learn the resources that he makes available to you. The Bible calls these “spiritual weapons” in II Corinthians 10:4—
they can pull down strongholds,
they can remove obstacles to the knowledge of God.
They allow people to have light in their darkness
or Bread when they are hungry.
(Pause)
Coming to Christ and believing in Him are seen to be synonymous.
Believe in Him means to count on Jesus to be at work in our ordinary responses
to situations in which we find yourself.
Expect Him to be involved in them.
(Pause)
Jesus tells us in scripture plainly how to eat and partake of the bread of life.
He uses two things that we all understand--hunger and thirst.
When you are hungry you eat.
When you are thirsty you drink.
And if you keep on eating regularly you will never hunger.
What Jesus is saying is that coming to Him—
is to respond to Him by seeing Him as present in your life
and expecting Him to do something—
to act, to comfort, to strengthen, or whatever it is.
(Pause)
“Eating means a sense of expectancy that He is available
and will fill that Loaf shaped vacancy in your life.
(Pause)
Drinking is believing, listening to what He has to say and obeying it.
Keep on coming to Him.
Keep on believing.
This is the way to lay hold of the gift of bread from heaven,
life that is real life. Acts 17:28 says which is our reflection verse says,
“in Him we live and move and have our being.”
Bread must be eaten.
Christ must be invited into our daily walk to sustain spiritual life.
To eat means to appropriate Christ as one’s life.
Come to Him daily.
How?
We do this by FAITH.
Our RESPONSE is an activity of the individual. Matthew 5:6 says,
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”
Let us be filled today and
respond to Jesus’ call.
Are you with me?
Say Amen if you are!!