Sermon - John 6 - Seek the Bread of Life - Littleby Baptist Church - May 12, 2019

Last week we looked at how Jesus had compassion on someone who was deemed as untouchable. In doing so, Jesus showed us that it does not matter how bad we think things are, Jesus is still standing there reaching out to us. He wants us to feel His loving touch that breaks through every known barrier.

All we have to do is have faith in Jesus, His love for us, and know that our faith in Him has made us clean.

It is as simple as that. No need to over think it, no reason to feel guilty, no reason to dwell on the past. Simply have faith.

Open your Bibles to John 6, as we continue our series on the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus.

The first part of John 6 has Jesus taking 5 barley loaves and 2 fish, blessing them and feeding 5,000 men and who knows how many women and children. When all had eaten their fill, they collected 12 baskets of bread. A miracle that was obvious to many.

Jesus then spent some time alone as His disciples got in a boat to cross the sea. As night came the seas were rough and Jesus walked on water as He drew near to them. When He got on board, they were miraculously at the shore.

John 6:22-25

“²² The next day, the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw there had been only one boat. They also saw that Jesus had not boarded the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone off alone. ²³ Some boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. ²⁴ When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. ²⁵ When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?””

The crowd had witnessed the miracle of 5 loves and 2 fish feeding over 5,000 and they began to seek Jesus. It is neat to see people who do not understand who Jesus is yet and they keep looking for Him. They know enough to want to know more about Him. They understood that there was something different about Jesus, but could not put their finger on so they looked for Him.

All of us have been there at one point in time. Someone here may still be wondering who Jesus really is, or we know people who ask about Jesus and what makes Him so important in our lives, but haven’t taken that next step. You could say there have enough knowledge to know that there is something interesting and unique about Jesus, but all the dots have not been connected yet.

Seeking Jesus is the crucial first step. A step that we pray many if not all will take. We pray regularly for friends and loved ones to have their eyes opened. Kind of like the miracle of Jesus walking on the water that was witnessed by only His disciples. When someone’s eyes are opened to the truth of Jesus Christ they begin to see all that He does.  

John 6:26-27

“²⁶ Jesus answered, “Truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled. ²⁷ Don’t work for the food that perishes but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal of approval on him.”

The people were looking for Jesus because He had provided for them, they had yet to grasp what He was really offering them. They were focused on their physical needs and not their spiritual needs. Jesus was telling them to not work for the physical things that will perish in this life. Instead focus on the things that last for all eternity.

When Jesus responded to the first of the devils attempts at tempting Him, He said, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

The were seeking Jesus because He gave them bread, when what they really needed to be doing was seeking Jesus for the message He was sharing. The bread will hold you over for a day, the Word will hold you over for an eternity.

The starting point for many who head down this path is simply seeking Jesus or a church that will meet a need. Could be an obvious physical need such as food or clothes, but it could also be something such as a sense of belonging. People seek for many different reasons and Jesus is saying don’t stop with the initial need, look deeper. Look into the words He is speaking. Keep seeking until you see Jesus standing there offering that eternal gift.

John 6:28

“²⁸ “What can we do to perform the works of God?” they asked.”

The people still did not get it. They were trying to figure out what they needed to do. They wanted to know how they could please God and earn their reward.

John 6:29

“²⁹ Jesus replied, “This is the work of God—that you believe in the one he has sent.”

Jesus made it as clear as He could. There is only one thing you need to do, there is only one way to work your way into the Kingdom of God. You must believe in the Savior. You cannot sacrifice enough, you cannot give enough, you cannot work enough, you cannot earn your way to the eternal gift, you simply need to believe that Jesus is Lord and Savior.

We get so trapped in the ways of the world that it is hard to grasp that we do not need to straighten out our lives to have this amazing gift, we do not need to stop sinning, we do not need to be more good than bad, we simply need to believe.

We start seeking Jesus for many different reasons but as we draw closer to the truth we need to turn from the physical or emotional need to simple belief that Jesus is right there ready to save us.

John 6:30-31

“³⁰ “What sign, then, are you going to do so we may see and believe you?” they asked. “What are you going to perform? ³¹ Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”

The people were asking Jesus, what are you going to do so that we can believe. I think that is a common mix-up. People are so focused on needing to see it to believe it, but that is not the way it works with God.

John 11:40

“Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”

Instead of seeing to believe, we need to embrace that we need to believe to see.

Logic and reasoning tell us that we need to prove something to believe in it. The Bible tells us if we really want to see God at work in our lives, we need to believe first.

Jeremiah 29:13

“You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart.”

If you are searching for God with all your heart you have to believe. You cannot do anything with all your heart without being completely bought in. If you want to see God at work in your life and those around you, believe. Believe Jesus is the King of Kings. Believe that He is the Lord over everything in all creation. Believe that He is all knowing. Believe that He is all powerful and Believe that He is with you always. Believe and your eyes will be opened.

Seek God and Believe.  

John 6:32-33

“³² Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, Moses didn’t give you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

To some in the crowd this would have been a slap in the face. They idolized Moses and Jesus corrected them. Moses may have been the spokesman, but he did not have the power to give you anything. Everything your ancestors received was from God. The manna from heaven came from the Father who is still providing for you today.

John 6:34-40

“³⁴ Then they said, “Sir, give us this bread always.” ³⁵ “I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in me will ever be thirsty again. ³⁶ But as I told you, you’ve seen me, and yet you do not believe. ³⁷ Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out. ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. ³⁹ This is the will of him who sent me: that I should lose none of those he has given me but should raise them up on the last day. ⁴⁰ For this is the will of my Father: that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him will have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

Those who had witnessed the feeding of the 5,000 were laser focused on having their physical needs met. They were looking for something like manna from heaven that would last the rest of their lives and Jesus was trying to show them the way to an eternity with Him. Their eyes had yet to be opened to the truth they were seeking.

Jesus is the bread of life or put another way, the bread that gives life. We only get the life-giving bread by seeking Jesus, believing in Him, and then and only then do we receive the amazing gift of eternal life.

The crowd could not look past the moment, the here and now. They did not believe. I encourage you to diligently seek Jesus. If you already believe, dig deeper. If you are unsure what all this means, step out in faith, and trust Jesus when He says that if we believe in Him we will have eternal life. Not something that ends when we take our last breath, but an eternity with Him.

Seek the bread that gives life, believe in Him, and you will have eternal life.


Happy Mother's Day!

Robert