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The bread of Life,
Introduction: Do you know that humans can survive by eating just one food for long periods of time? It is the simple bread which contains almost all nutrients needed for the human body. The bread is called ‘the staff of life’ and people make it different ways.
Joke: Once an Englishman came to India and he goes to Punjab to have a feel of a rural village. After some time he became hungry and saw a lady making food on the roadside. She gave him a thick flat roti with lots of cooked vegetables on it. The man eats the entire vegetables, washes his hands, and returns the roti saying, ‘Mam, here is your plate.’
In the Bible God provided bread from heaven in the form of manna which sustained lives in the wilderness. On two occasions Jesus miraculously provided bread for his followers. Jesus then went on to call himself ‘bread from heaven.’
Let’s start from Exodus 16. A month has passed since Israel left Egypt. Water had already been a problem and God made bitter waters sweet. Now they ran out of a meal or two. When food got short the Israelites grumbled and complained. Some people when faced with difficulties and problems give in to despair, complain, and grumble. You see, complaining does not solve any problem.
Joke: I once heard of a farmer who had a complaining wife. From morning till night she would complain about something or the other. The only time he got relief was when he went to the farm with his donkey. One day as he was plowing, his wife brought him lunch. He put the donkey on the shade of a tree and began to have his lunch. Immediately, his wife began her complaining. All of a sudden the donkey lashed out with both hind feet, hit her, and killed her on the spot.
At the funeral, the pastor noticed something odd. When women would come, the farmer would listen for a minute, nod his head in agreement, but when men approached him, he would listen for a minute and shook his head in disagreement. This was so consistent that the pastor decided to ask him about it. After the burial the pastor asked him as to why he nodded his head in agreement to the women but always shook his head in disagreement with all men. The farmer said, “The women would come up and says something nice about my wife – how she cooked, how good she was and so on. I’d nod my head in agreement.” And what about the men the pastor asked. The men knew that the donkey killed my wife and all they wanted to know was if my donkey was for sale.
Grumbling is a contagious problem. Once someone complained, it spread the entire camp and everyone except Moses and Aaron complained.
What did God do? Exodus 16:11-12 11 The LORD said to Moses, 12 “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’”
Where God guides, He provides; and where He leads, He feeds! Even if it is a wilderness, God will feed. He didn’t bring the Israelites this far to starve them. He has a plan for them and he will provide for them.
Maybe you are thinking about the shortages in your life – Shortage in salary, you do not have enough money for the basic necessities of life, your peace is short-lived, you have lost your joy. God is not limited by the economy; he is not limited by the medical report, God is not limited by your circumstances. Look at the Israelites. God provided for them when they were over the mountain, right in the depth of the valleys, even through a sea, in the desert, and around the wilderness. Whatever God promises, He will do. He will meet your need along your way wherever you are in life only if you follow Him. Even if today you are going through the wilderness experience; maybe you lost your job, your business, if you just follow him, you will see provisions of God right where you are.
But the people didn’t believe it, and returned to their complaining. They were ready to go back to the slave camps of Egypt. Psalms 78:19 They spoke against God; they said, “Can God really spread a table in the wilderness? Listen, each time they complain and grumble, God did not punish them; God worked a miracle on their behalf. Are they taking advantage of God’s mercy? I don’t know but I know that God is the same in my life; even when I have complained, grumbled, and not trusted in Him, God has provided for me. In spite of all their shortcomings God provided for them.
Exodus 16:13-15 13 That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14 When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. 15 When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat.
God can provide and He did! God is the same today. He can provide for your child’s education, can God provide for this expense and that expense. Our God can, God does, and God will. God not only provided food, God sustained the Israelites 40 years in the wilderness, and took them to the Promised Land.
Now with this in mind, I want to turn your attention to: John 6:32-35 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.
So Jesus is telling the crowd that is following that He can do more than what manna did for their ancestors. John 6:49-51 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. 50 But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. Jesus is the living bread. If we compare Ex. 16 and Jn. 6 we can get some understanding of the bread of life.
1. Manna shows who Jesus is.
Exodus 16:31 The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.
Manna was like a coriander seed. The small manna shows the humility of Jesus. Jesus left heaven and formed as a small cell in the womb of Mary. What an act of humility! Jesus came not to a palace, but a stable! The creator God took the humble form of a helpless child. He needed to be fed, groomed, and taught. What humility God displayed? His humility continued throughout his ministry until finally took up the cross like a servant.
Manna was round. A complete circle speaks of His deity. Jesus did not begin in Bethlehem. He has no beginning and no end. He has always been and he will always be. Jesus is God. There is no other god like Jesus.
Manna is white, which speaks of Jesus’ purity. Jesus was born without sin, lived without sin, and died without sin. Jesus is the sinless son of God. Jesus can cleanse us from all our sins.
Manna was sweet. All those who receive Jesus as their saviour find him sweet to the soul and satisfying for life. There’s no sweeter name than Jesus!
2. Manna shows how Jesus came.
a. Jesus came from Heaven. Manna wasn’t brought from Egypt nor manufactured in the wilderness along the way. It came from heaven!
Exodus 16:4 Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you.
John 6:51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven.
Jesus is the only God who came down from heaven. Salvation comes in the name of Jesus.
Manna fell as a gift from heaven right where the people were. You can come to Jesus today and He’ll bless you right where you are. Jesus is not concerned about your education, ability, or background. He loves you and he has blessings in store for you. I can see blessings raining upon City Harvest in Jesus’ name. When you come to God he will leave us changed, blessed, fed, and fully provided. All those who receive that blessing shout a Hallelujah.
b. Manna came before sunrise.
Number 11:9 When the dew settled on the camp at night, the manna also came down.
Due forms on the ground just before sunrise while it is still dark and along with the due came the manna. You may be going through a dark period of your life. You are in a critical point of your life, you do not have direction, you are confused. You are following God but you do not have a direction. That is where Jesus has promised to come in your life and lighten up your way.
Jesus also lightens spiritual darkness. Jesus came into the world lost in spiritual darkness and gave us light. Even to this day Jesus is the only source of light and hope for this world. If we die without Jesus we die in darkness.
Illustration: There's a grave in Texas. It has a little window where you can see all the way down to the casket 6 feet under. Sunlight makes its way through the glass each day down to it. It’s the grave of a 10-year-old boy who on his death bed said, “Daddy, when I die promise me you won’t leave me in the dark!”
If we die outside of Christ, a window in the grave won’t help you. The Bible says without Jesus you are on your way to eternal darkness, chains of darkness, so black you can feel it! Jesus came as a light in the dark world.
3. Manna is meant to be consumed.
Manna had to be picked up and eaten every day. What did Jesus tell the multitude that followed him? Eat! Partake of me. John 6:48, 50 48 I am the bread of life. 50 But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die.
You see manna came before sunrise and the Israelites had to pick their manna early morning. It was daily bread, not weekly bread. Jesus must be our daily bread. Many feel that coming to church on Sunday can sustain their entire week. Yes, coming to church is important, but God also wants us to get our daily bread.
They had to stoop down and take it for themselves. We need to feed on Jesus Christ every day. Spend time in prayer, daily devotions, live with Jesus every moment. Some people sit down in front of TV messages daily, it is good but you need to pick up your own manna. They couldn’t be satisfied by watching another partake, and no one else could gather for them. Each had to receive their own!
Every day the children of Israel had 2 choices when they woke up. They could gather their manna or they could walk around the manna or they could trample it under feet. Hebrews 10:29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?
We trod Jesus under foot when we do not accept him, when we do not have devotions daily, or when we live a life of sin. Listen, on the other side God is so gracious. God could have rained down fire and brimstone but instead He said, “I’ll rain down manna upon them.” In spite of our shortcomings, in spite of our sin, God loves us so much. He has manna for you every day. Now I want to give 2 conclusions about the Bread of Life.
4. Jesus meets all spiritual needs.
John 5:40 These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. Jesus has a life to offer us other than our physical life. Jesus offers us spiritual life. How can we receive that life?
John 6:53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
John 6:35 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.
We can have life if we eat his flesh and drink his blood. This is not eating literal blood and flesh. This is also not talking about the Holy Communion, communion was not instituted now. Jesus is talking about accepting Him as our saviour. This is talking about our salvation experience. If you are born again you have eaten of that flesh and blood and you have life in you.
What does salvation give? John 6:54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. Salvation gives us eternal life.
John 6:60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” The disciples themselves could not understand it. Many people are confused about salvation and baptism. If you want eternal life you need to accept Jesus as your Lord and saviour.
Romans 10:9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Do you believe that Jesus died for your sins? Is Jesus in you today? Jesus meets all spiritual need of man.
2. Jesus meets all physical needs.
I do not know if you are sitting here with various needs in your life. Maybe you are waiting impatiently, getting frustrated over the mounting needs of your life. God has a set time for your breakthrough. Don’t lose hope, his timing is perfect and he will meet all your needs.
Matthew 11:28 Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” If you see the miracles of Jesus mentioned in the Bible, without doubt Jesus proved that He can meet all human needs.
In John 6, after speaking to the multitude the disciples and crowd were hungry. Jesus took the little what the boy had, multiple it and meet their need. Jesus meets all human needs. The little that you have is enough for a miracle. With just 5 loaves of bread and 2 fishes over 15,000 people had their full and had 12 basketfuls leftover.
Don’t worry if people are against you; don’t worry if your plans are not getting through. God still loves you and has a great plan for you. He still has victories (not victory more than one) coming your way because he has called not to pauper you but to prosper you. Wait for God’s time. Trust in God, when your appointed time comes there will be abundant leftover. Amen.
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