Naylor Community Christian Church
Naylor, Georgia
I. Introduction
--
turn in Bibles to John 6:24-35
John 6:24 Once the crowd
realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the
boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.
25 When they found him on
the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus answered, “Very
truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I
performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27 Do not work for
food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of
Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
28 Then they asked him,
“What must we do to do the works God requires?”
29 Jesus answered, “The
work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
30 So they asked him,
“What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you
do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He
gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32 Jesus said to them,
“Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from
heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For
the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the
world.”
34 “Sir,” they said,
“always give us this bread.”
35 Then Jesus declared, “I
am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever
believes in me will never be thirsty.
--
there is a show on TLC -- The Learning Channel -- called "My Strange
Addiction" -- it's about these people who seem to be normal people in
everyday life, but who have these obsessive compulsions to do some pretty
strange behaviors
--
the shows document people who do things like sleep with running hairdryers in
their bed every night even though they have been burned and they know they run
the risk of catching the bed on fire -- adults who still obsessively suck their
thumb or who live like a baby -- wearing diapers and sleeping in an adult-sized
crib at night
--
some of the people are obsessed with dolls -- one lady carried her
ventriloquist dummies with her every where she went -- to school -- to work --
on dates -- another guy treats his life-size doll like it's his wife -- eating
with her -- buying clothes and gifts for her -- treating her like she's alive
-- others are addicted to smelling things, like mothballs or gasoline
--
but a lot of the episodes cover people who eat strange things -- this one girl
eats toilet paper -- she admits to eating half a roll of toilet paper a day --
another girl eats laundry detergent and bars of soap -- and this one lady, who
used to eat dirt as a kid, now craves cigarette ashes
--
these people who are eating all of this strange stuff actually have a disease
called Pica Disease -- it is diagnosed when a person has an overwhelming desire
to eat things that are not considered food -- they just have this obsessive
desire to eat and fill the body with things that won't sustain them or keep them
alive -- things that might even be harmful for them1
--
thankfully, people with Pica Disease are pretty rare and the disease can be
medically treated -- but did you know there is a spiritual disease very similar
to Pica Disease? -- in fact, it's something we're all born with -- it's diagnosed
when someone tries to satisfy the needs of their heart and spirit with the
things of this world -- when they obsessively chase and long after what the
world tells them is important -- money -- looks -- material things -- bigger
homes -- bigger cars -- better jobs
--
we all do this to some extent -- why do you think all of the gyms in town are
packed right after New Year’s Day and then again right before summer? -- it
could be that some of these people are truly desiring to become healthier and to
get into better shape, but for the majority of these people, the reason they
are flocking to the gym is not for health purposes -- they’re hitting the gym
because they want to look better -- they want to be more attractive
--
think about the advertising and the magazines and all the commercials on TV --
I was at the store the other day and glanced at the magazines at the checkout
stand -- every one of them was telling me I needed to chase after something
different in order to be better in the eyes of the world -- the cover of Men's
Health magazine told me that if I didn't have six-pack abs I wasn’t a real man
-- and then you have Better Homes and Gardens -- the key word there is “better”
-- better than who? -- better than you, that's who -- these people’s homes and
gardens are all better than yours, so this magazine says that you need to fix
up your house or you just won't measure up
--
and when we hear all of this -- when we take in all the messages of the world
that constantly bombard us and encourage us to chase after temporal and
material things -- we find ourselves caught up in spending all our time and
money and energy on things that won't satisfy -- feeding ourselves on the
things of the world to become acceptable to the world while neglecting what is
truly important in life
--
the Bible tells us in Isaiah 44:20 that what we are doing is feeding on ashes
-- we are being deluded by our hearts -- thinking we can save ourselves when
all we're doing is filling our stomachs and our lives with things that don't
matter and that can't sustain us or give us eternal life
--
but what's crazy about this spiritual Pica disease that we are all so prone to
having is that it causes us to turn away from the true source of food that can
sustain us and meet all our desires and give us eternal life
--
this morning, we are continuing in our sermon series on discovering who Jesus is
so that we can answer the question for ourselves that Jesus asked His
disciples, “But who do you say I am?” -- we’re doing so by looking at what Jesus
said about Himself in His seven "I Am" statements from the Book of
John
--
to remind you of the basis of this study, these "I Am" statements of
Christ serve two purposes -- first, Jesus'
use of the phrase, "I Am" -- ego
eimi in the Greek -- is a declaration that He is God -- Jesus is using the
same name of God that Moses was given at the burning bush -- and by saying “I
Am” in that way, Jesus is declaring that He is God to those who are listening
and have ears to hear
-- secondly, in each
of these statements, we see a different aspect of Christ's nature that reflects
how He relates to us in our daily lives
--
so far, we have looked at two of these declarations of Christ -- "I Am the
Good Shepherd" and "I Am the Gate"
--
this morning, we're going to look at Jesus' declaration, "I Am the Bread
of Life"
II. I Am the Bread of Life
--
we find this statement of Christ in the sixth chapter of the Book of John --
and it is obvious this declaration, "I Am the Bread of Life," is
given at this moment because of a miracle the people had just experienced
--
earlier in this chapter, we find the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 -- and
just to refresh your memory of this event -- Jesus had been sitting on a
mountain just east of the Sea of Galilee -- He had been preaching and teaching
the people all day -- sharing with them the good news that the Kingdom of God
was at hand
--
as the day started to end, His disciples urged Him to send the people away so
they could buy food for their evening meal -- but Jesus told them, "You
feed them" -- the disciples didn't know what to do, but Andrew and Phillip
found a boy who had some food with him -- two fish and five loaves of bread --
and they brought the boy to Jesus
--
Jesus took that kid's sack lunch and multiplied those fish and loaves and bread
to the point where over 5,000 people were fed and satisfied -- and there were
even 12 baskets of food left over
--
after experiencing this miracle, the people wanted to declare Jesus as King --
don’t forget that the people’s concept of the Messiah was an earthly king who
would lead a revolution against the Romans and take back the Holy Land and
establish the throne of David in Israel again
-- but this was
not a true understanding of the Messiah or why the Father sent Jesus to earth
-- so, knowing their desires to have Him declared king, Jesus slipped away and
hid Himself and went up on a mountain to pray, sending His disciples on to
Capernaum by boat -- later that night, after all the people had left, Jesus
walked across the Sea of Galilee and met up with His disciples
--
which brings us to our passage for today
-- look at verse 24-26
John 6:24 Once the crowd
realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the
boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.
25 When they found him on
the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus answered, “Very
truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I
performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.
--
when the people got up the next morning, they looked around and couldn't find
Jesus or His disciples -- and they realized they had gone across the sea to
--
sounds good, so far, doesn't it? -- isn't that what we want people to do? -- to
look for Jesus? -- sure, but only if they are looking with the right motive --
only if they are looking for the right reason
--
when the people showed up in
--
you've got to remember, in the Jewish culture, the people looked to the king
and the other leaders to provide them with food -- going back to the time when
Joseph fed the people during the famine in Canaan -- all the way to when God
sent manna to the Israelites wandering in the desert as they waited to get into
the Promised Land -- the Jews had always looked to their leader to provide
--
in their eyes, this was the mark of a king -- and since Jesus had fed the 5000,
obviously they thought that Jesus should be their king -- and when He
disappeared, they sought Him out -- not because they saw Him as the biblical
Messiah -- not because they saw Him as God -- they sought Him out simply
because they wanted breakfast
--
and so, Jesus tells them, "You missed the point -- you missed the reason
for the miracle -- you missed the sign that was given pointing to Me as the
Messiah -- pointing to Me as God -- it wasn't about meeting your hunger in this
life -- it was about meeting your spiritual hunger for eternal life"
--
and pay attention to what Jesus is saying there -- notice that He says that the
people were given miraculous signs -- not just miracles
--
when Jesus did miracles, such as the feeding of the 5000, it wasn’t to get the
people’s attention with awe and wonder at His power -- no, these miracles were
signs -- and signs point to something
--
in this case, the miracles of Jesus were miraculous signs that pointed to Him
as the true Messiah -- as the Son of God -- as the promised Savior -- but the
people couldn’t see the message through the miracle
--
verse 27-29
John 6:27 Do not work for
food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of
Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
28 Then they asked him,
“What must we do to do the works God requires?”
29 Jesus answered, “The
work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
--
Jesus' focus was spiritual -- and He was trying to change the focus of the
Israelites from the temporal to the eternal -- from the material and the
worldly to the spiritual
--
He tells them, "Don't work for and seek food that will spoil, but seek
eternal food -- spiritual food -- that the Son of Man will give you"
--
don't misunderstand what Jesus is saying here -- He's not saying we don't need
food in our daily lives -- we have to have food to live -- just like we need a
place to stay and clothes to wear -- He tells us to pray for this in the Lord's
prayer -- He knows we need this in order to survive
--
but He doesn't want that to become the focus of our existence -- He doesn't
want our physical and material needs to become the reason for our lives -- He
doesn’t want us to put all our time and energy into seeking that which is only
temporary
--
in Matthew 6:24-34 Jesus tells us to not worry about our lives -- about what we
will eat or drink -- or about our bodies -- what we will wear -- He says, "Is
not life more important than food and the body more important than
clothes?"
--
in verses 32-33 Jesus tells us, "The pagans run after all these
things, and your Heavenly Father knows that you need them -- but seek first His
kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as
well"
--
that's what He's trying to get the Israelites to understand here in this
passage -- He's trying to change their thinking -- "You crossed the Sea of
Galilee looking for Me because you thought I could give you breakfast, but you
should have been looking for Me because I can give you eternal life."
--
the Israelites respond by asking, “How do we get this eternal life? -- What
works do we have to do to receive it?” -- everybody wants to work their way to
heaven -- everybody wants to know what price they have to pay to get there --
but Jesus replies with the heart of the gospel -- "All you have to do is
believe in Me"
--
as we read in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith, and this not of yourself -- it is the gift of God -- not by
works, so that no one can boast.”
--
our salvation is the free gift of God through faith in Christ’s redeeming life
and death on the cross -- to be saved, we don’t have to do anything -- we can’t
do anything -- all we must do is believe in Him
--
verse 30-31
John 6:30 So they asked
him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What
will you do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is
written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
--
I can sum up the response of the people to Jesus in two words: "Prove
it"
--
"you say you can give us food that will never spoil -- you say you can
give us food that will endure to eternal life -- prove it -- show us a
miracle"
--
you're probably sitting there with the same thought I had when I read this
passage -- how can they ask for another miracle? -- didn't they just experience
Jesus feeding 5,000 of them with no more than two fish and five loaves of
bread? -- what more do they want?
--
they're still looking at life with earthly eyes and an earthly understanding --
they’re looking for breakfast -- they're sitting there thinking, "He fed
us all yesterday, but can He do it again today? -- was that a one-time deal or
can this Jesus do like Moses and give us manna every day for 40 years?"
--
so, they reply back to Jesus and say, "Look, you tell us to believe in You
-- if you want us to believe in You, then prove you can feed us again and again
and again and then we'll believe"
--
we do the same thing, don't we? -- we don't like to live off of yesterday's
answered prayer -- we don't like to stand on fulfilled promises in our lives --
we want to know what Jesus is going to do for us today -- we want proof that
Jesus will take care of us today because we still harbor a doubt in our mind
that He can do it again -- just like these Israelites
--
why do so many people stay in jobs past their expiration point? -- why do so
many people cling to their current situation? -- because we don't trust that
Jesus is going to take care of them in the future -- we're okay right now, but
if we step out into the unknown, how do we know for sure Jesus is going to be
there?
--
that's exactly what these people are saying to Him right here -- you fed us
yesterday, but now you're telling us to trust you with our future -- to step
out and believe that you will meet our every need -- and that's scary -- so
prove it -- show us another miracle
--
and do you know what would have happened if Jesus had shown them another
miracle? -- they would have asked for another miracle again the next day
--
the Bible tells us that faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of
what we do not see -- Jesus was asking these people to step out in faith -- and
when He calls us to move out of our comfort zones in our own lives, He's asking
us to do the same -- to step out in faith and trust that He will provide, even
though we don't see how it is possible right now
--
verse 32-35
32 Jesus said to them,
“Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from
heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For
the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the
world.”
34 “Sir,” they said,
“always give us this bread.”
35 Then Jesus declared, “I
am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever
believes in me will never be thirsty.
--
Jesus explains to them the truth -- all good things -- ever good and perfect
gift -- comes down from the Father above -- Moses didn't give them the manna --
God did -- the bread and the fish they ate yesterday? -- it came from God
--
in fact, every meal they had ever had -- everything they owned -- everything
they needed to survive in this world and in the world beyond -- all of it came
from the hand of God and no one else -- Jesus tells them the true bread comes
from Heaven, not from man and not from the world
--
He's trying to change their focus -- He's trying to get them to see the source
of life is not this world nor what this world deems important -- the source of
life -- both physical and spiritual -- is God
--
and just as God provided the manna in the desert to keep the Israelites
physically alive, He is now sending the true bread of Heaven to bring spiritual
life to the world
--
in response to their cry for this bread, Jesus issues the proclamation, "I
Am the Bread of Life" -- "I am the source of life -- I am the One who
sustains -- I am the One who meets the true needs of your heart -- I am the One
who gives you eternal life"
--
"If you believe in Me -- if you trust in Me -- if you put your focus and
faith in Me -- you will never hunger or thirst -- the deepest needs of your
heart will be met -- and you will know life -- eternal life -- abundant life --
life to the full"
--
“I Am” -- eigo eimi -- I Am the Bread of Life -- take and eat of Me and
you will live forever
IV. Closing
--
let’s wrap this up -- "In his book entitled God’s Psychiatry, Charles
Allen tells this story:
“As World War
II was drawing to a close, the Allied armies gathered up many hungry orphans --
they were placed in camps where they were well-fed -- [but] despite excellent
care, they slept poorly -- they seemed nervous and afraid.
“Finally, a
psychologist came up with the solution -- each child was given a piece of bread
to hold after he was put to bed -- this particular piece of bread was just to
be held—not eaten -- [the kids were just to go to sleep holding it in their
hands]
“the piece of
bread produced wonderful results -- the children went to bed knowing
instinctively they would have food to eat the next day -- that guarantee gave
the children a restful and contented sleep."2
--
that is exactly what God has done for us -- God sent Jesus to us to be our true
bread -- to let us know that He was the Bread of Life
--
because of Jesus, we can go to bed at night and rest secure in the promise of
God -- because of Jesus, we know that our eternal destination is secure --
because of Jesus, we don't have to worry about the future because our future is
set
--
trusting in Jesus and resting in His promise and presence in our lives causes
us to cease chasing after the wind and seeking to devour all this world offers
-- it causes us to shift our focus to eternity -- it causes us to seek first
the
-- where is
your focus this morning? -- where is your faith? -- are you truly trusting in
Jesus to supply all your needs?
-- or are your
lives characterized by fear and anxiety and worry -- are you living without
faith, not believing Jesus can meet your needs in the future?
-- are you
feasting on Him as the true bread of life or are you still snacking on the
temporary food this world offers?
--
Jesus stands before us and declares, "I Am the Bread of Life -- trust in
Me -- believe in Me -- eat Me -- and you will receive eternal life -- I Am the
Bread of Life -- Come"
--
let's pray
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1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Strange_Addiction,
accessed 26 January 2014
2SOURCE: Quinton
Morrow in "I am the Bread of Life" on www.sermoncentral.com
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