Bread and Water

John 6:27 - Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.

I think it's ironic that awhile back people sent to prison were sometimes given only bread and water. Punishment for a crime committed. Certainly not the healthiest of meals; food that could lead to malnutrition, even death, among the other things one had to live in and through.

So isn't it ironic also that it is the Living Bread and Living Water, Jesus Christ, who today brings eternal life, who forgives all the sins of those who come to Him, who sets the captives free...sins past, present and future? And all we need do is call on Him, receive Him as our Lord and Savior.

Jesus used the miracle of the five loaves and two fish to feed five thousand men (not including women and children) and to again show them Who He was, to get them to believe. Food. Aren't we a people enamored with food? Aren't church socials all about food? Don't we get together with friends and visit and there's always food available? Even Bible study and Sunday school classes involve snacks and beverages. We love to eat. Eating in any society or time is a social event...it's part of fellowship. 

Jesus departed their company and crossed over the sea of Galilee. When the people had realized He was gone, they did the same, to seek Him out. They were, however, interested in more food rather than hearing what He had to say, although they did listen.

He admonished them not to work for the food (and drink) which perishes, which is what they were hoping He would again provide to satisfy their stomachs. He wanted them to understand that He was what they should be seeking, that they would believe in Him for eternal life. It went over their heads. He was supplying a very physical need, but they were missing the spiritual need they had. They asked what they could do in order to do what God wanted them to do! His answer was simple: Believe in Me.

They wanted more miracles so they might believe, yet here was the Miracle right in front of their eyes. They knew about their ancestors in the desert being fed manna. He told them in verse John 6:32 - Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven.  In other words, I am that bread. They asked to be given that bread (just like the Samaritan woman asked for that living water) and again they missed the point that if they would just believe in Him...the true Living Bread...come to Him and receive...and He would not turn anyone away who would receive.

So simple, yet sometimes we over complicate it. No works, just receiving Christ. Just believing on/in Him. I mentioned awhile back that the word "believe" is what trips us up. On October 12 I wrote: Believe on means to receive by faith, not by works, with the heart...in vitality and depth in our innermost being. It is believing "on" Jesus Christ. He becomes our foundation. It is "in" Him we abide and He abides in us. Faith brings the transformation, not anything we think we can do.  It's more than just knowing in our heads...and living our lives in the way we always have.  A transformation must take place. It's knowing in our spirits and turning our lives in a different direction, to follow wholeheartedly after Jesus. It's delighting in His Word, obeying and not purposely going against it.

Jesus's words were easy to understand but they were considered harsh because they went against the will of the people. Same is true today. There is no middle ground. It's black or white, evil or good...no room for compromise...a narrow road...with few on it.

If we find those words difficult, hard to swallow, and narrow minded, Jesus tells us, and He does not lie, Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world. (John 6:47,51)

There will always be some who believe that their good works and being good people, will secure a place in heaven for them.  This is very similar to the response of the people above. We need to see beyond the physical works and look into the spiritual. Do not be deceived. The only works God accepts are those that He desires for us to do. It's done to glorify Him.

John 6:40 - For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.