Bread of Life - Part 1

The Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost

John 6:22-35

August 4, 2024

 “Bread of Life – Part 1”

I am a bread lover, and I know I’m not alone. There are many of you out there. It’s sort of a love/hate relationship that we have with bread, though. We crave the wonderful taste, but we struggle with all the carbs that we could do without. And for those who deal with gluten issues, bread is a real no-no, unless it’s gluten-free. But bread has been a staple of the human diet for thousands of years. It has even been called “the staff of life”; that is, something so essential to daily life that it is a must-have. Our own modern diet has become less bread-centered for sure, but we still love it. It is bread that we hear about in today’s Old Testament lesson (Exodus 16:2-15) and Gospel lesson (John 6:22-35). Although technically not bread, manna in that Old Testament lesson became the literal staff of life for God’s people in their wilderness wanderings. In the Gospel lesson for today, we begin a 3-part series from John 6 on Jesus as the Bread of Life. For the next three Sundays, the Gospel lessons all come from John 6 and follow one after another, pointing us to Jesus as the Bread of life. May the Lord’s rich and abundant blessing rest upon the preaching, the hearing, and the living of his Word for Jesus’ sake.

The backstory here is that Jesus had just fed a crowd of 5000 people, multiplying five loaves and two fish to feed them all. That’s what we heard as the appointed Gospel lesson two weeks ago (Mark 6:30-44). After this, he walked on water as he met his disciples on the Sea of Galilee and got into the boat with them. This was the Gospel lesson last Sunday (Mark 6:45-56). Now it’s the next day, and the people Jesus fed are hunting him down because they want Jesus to be their vending machine and give them more. In fact, we are told in the verses that come before today’s Gospel lesson that Jesus had to make a quick get-away because the people wanted to make him king (John 6:15). They thought that if Jesus could multiply loaves and fish like he did, then they wanted him to be in charge because he could do anything. They literally wanted to make Jesus the King of Bread! But that’s not the kind of king Jesus came to be. Jesus is not there to fulfill everyone’s wish list. He’s not a political king, then or now. What Jesus did identify himself as is the “Bread of life” (John 6:35). That’s how today’s Gospel lesson closes. So what does that mean?

“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst” (John 6:35). This is the first of Jesus’ “I am” statements, and these are found only in John’s Gospel. These include “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35); “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12); “I am the gate” (John 10:7); “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11, 14); “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25); “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6); and “I am the true vine” (John 15:1). Each time Jesus says, “I am” (Ἐγώ εἰμι) he is using the same words that God spoke to Moses when he appeared to him in the burning bush, calling him to go and tell Pharaoh to “let my people go.” Moses questioned God: “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am” (אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה, Exodus 3:13-14a). Jesus is making clear that he himself is that same “I AM” God.

Despite all that he’s said and done already, it’s not enough for the people. They still don’t believe. They want more proof. Jesus speaks to them and to us: “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). Almost sixty years ago, the Rolling Stones famously sang how “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction.” And it’s often true. We’re always chasing after what we think is going to satisfy us in life. What happens when we try to be one of the cool kids? We find out that the cool kids are not people we want to be around. What happens after we’ve enjoyed that wonderful meal at that amazing restaurant? We get hungry again. Or the newest, shiniest thing that we just have to have? After a little while, it’s not new or shiny anymore. We end up feeling empty and dissatisfied. We want more. True and lasting satisfaction in life comes through Jesus the Bread of life.

The people ask Jesus for a sign. John doesn’t use the word “miracle” to describe these works that Jesus does, like feeding the 5000. Instead, he uses the word “sign” (σημεῖον). Jesus’ signs authenticate who he really is, with the end-goal being his glorification as the Son of God. “’What sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat’” (John 6:30b-31, quoting Nehemiah 9:15). Wow – really? Jesus just fed 5000 people with five loaves and two fish, and that’s not enough of a sign for you? Stubborn, hard-hearted, stiff-necked – these are all words used in Scripture to describe God’s own chosen people who so often refused to believe; refused to receive correction from the Lord; refused to trust and obey. It is as the old comic strip, Pogo, put it: “We have met the enemy, and he is us.”

Then and now, Jesus points all people to himself: “For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world” (John 6:33). The bread of God is not a thing, but a Person. The bread of God is the Word of God who became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). Jesus is that Bread and that Word, who gives life to the world through his own death upon the cross. In the death of Jesus, we have died to sin. In the resurrection of Jesus, we have received the promise of our own resurrection. All that Jesus has done for us becomes ours through faith in him. How blessed we are again today to receive Jesus the Bread of Life as he comes to us in his holy Supper.

If there is one song or hymn that resonates with Jesus’ teaching that he is the Bread of life, it is “I Am the Bread of Life.” Written by Sister Suzanne Toolan, S.M., in 1964, it has found its way into congregations across denominational lines, and has been translated into twenty languages. We will be singing it today as our hymn of the day, and we’ll be singing it as a distribution hymn over the next several Sundays while we are here in John 6. Sister Suzanne, now well into her 90s, wrote about “I Am the Bread of Life”:

I was teaching high school at the time and wrote the song during my free period.  When the bell rang for the next class I decided I didn’t like the music, so I tore it up and threw it in the wastepaper basket. My classroom was next to the infirmary, where the girls who didn’t want to take tests or were otherwise unprepared for class went for a period or two until they were tracked down by an exasperated teacher. As I left my classroom, a freshman girl came out of the infirmary and said, “What was that?  It was beautiful!” I went back into my classroom, took the manuscript out of the basket and taped it together. It has had a life of its own ever since… I also think its popularity stems from its message of resurrection, which is so strong in these words of Jesus. We so need that message of hope. I am always touched when people tell me that at the funeral of a mother, father or friend, these sung words of Jesus gave them consolation.  Then I know the hymn has done its work” (The Story of “I Am the Bread of Life” - Sisters of Mercy).

Jesus, Bread of Life, feed us and we shall be satisfied. Amen.