I love Bread!

A great meal usually includes bread, not that white tasteless stuff that some mistake for ‘bread,’ but the whole grain, nutty, dark, and textured bread from the bakery! Our current diet fads demonize bread and carbs but, like most foods, in moderation, bread can still be a part of a healthy, balanced diet. I confess that I do enjoy my bread! In a time past, when meat was expensive and most people could not afford it in the quantity most of us enjoy, bread satisfied hunger. So, what satisfies you, my Christian friend? What is the ‘bread and butter’ of your life?

John tells us about a day when Jesus served bread to 5000 men, a miracle of multiplication, with 12 baskets of leftovers! The people were excited. No more struggle to find food, no more dealing with famines, no more wondering about bread! They were so enthused the Bible says, “they were ready to force him to be their king." (John 6:15, NLT)   

The next day when some of them found Jesus, He told them that He wasn’t around to fill their bellies. “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs. … I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. … I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh.” (John 6:26,35,51, NLT)

The miracle was a means of pointing out His true identity as God’s provision for the soul hunger of humanity. He tried to get them to understand that they had a need that was far more important than getting dinner on the table. He was the “bread of life!”  They could know Him, consume His words, live in His Presence. He would satisfy them with life. But, did they want that? More to the point, do you, do I? Or do we just want a Jesus who makes life easier for us?

We get things upside down most of the time, believing if are bellies are full, our appetites in life satisfied, that then our soul will be enriched.  The truth is that satisfaction flows inside out. A famished heart that is starving for God can never be satisfied with a slice of bread, or cake for that matter!  Jesus Christ feeds us in ways that have nothing to do with our stomachs and bread! He, Himself, was fed in this way by the Presence of His Father. When His disciples brought Him lunch one day at Jacob’s well, He did not eat. He told them, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about … My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work." (John 4:32,34, NLT)

Is Jesus your Bread of Life? 
Have you trusted yourself to Him, fed on His love, turned your life over to Him?

If we only love what Jesus can do for our budget and our belly, but fail to love with ‘heart, soul, mind and strength,’  we are just like those that He fed dinner who came back the next day looking for another meal who turned away when He closed the kitchen. He wants us to go deeper in spiritual things. Go beyond having a religion designed around some principles that will make life work better for you. Seek a relationship with the Lord that is deep, intimate, and soul-satisfying; something that too few who claim to be ‘Christian’ do.

Our word from the Word is His promise - "As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.” (John 6:57-58, NKJV)

____________________

Hungry, I come to You

For I know You satisfy.

I am empty,

But I know Your love

Does not run dry.

And so I wait for You,

So I wait for You.

I'm falling on my knees

Offering all of me.

Jesus, You're all

This heart is living for.

Hungry

Kathrun Scott© 1999 Vineyard Songs (UK/Eire) (Admin. by Mercy / Vineyard Publishing)

CCLI License No. 810055

Pastor Jerry Scott

FAITH DISCOVERY CHURCH

www.FaithDiscovery.com