‘I am the Bread of Life.’ John 6:35
I have a slight intolerance to bread but it is so slight that i haven’t bothered to find out which ingredient it is that upsets my stomach. But it has made me realise how much we rely on bread in our lives and how many of our meals include bread in one form or another.
In the Bible we often read how bread or its equivalent is interwoven into the structure of people’s lives. In the desert the Israelites cried out for bread until God miraculously gave them manna. This manna sustained them for nearly forty years until they reached the Promised Land. Jesus included the need for bread in His model prayer ”Give us this day our daily bread.’ I imagine this refers to everything involving all our daily needs. It is a phrase that is prayed by millions of Christians all over the world every day.
In the miracles of the feeding of the 5,000 and 4,000 Jesus provides for the needs of all the hungry masses. Whenever we take communion we are obeying God’s command to us when in obedience we take the bread and the wine. ‘Take it. this is my body.’ Mark 14:22. In taking this bread and wine we are remembering Him. Jesus then tells us He is the bread of life. Everything we need in every way is supplied by Him. With Him there is no want. We need earthly bread to feed an empty stomach for a while, but how much more do we need heavenly bread which feeds our hungry souls for eternity.