John 6:28-35
"Bread of Life"
November 2, 2025
Intro: As this great chapter opens, we find Jesus preaching to a hungry multitude. As He finishes His message, He is aware that they are in need of food for their bodies, so, He does that which only God Himself could do. He takes 2 little fish and 5 small loaves and feeds a multitude that had at least 5000 men plus women and children. After all the people were satisfied the disciples took up 12 baskets filled with the fragments of this miracle. One basket for every doubting disciple! This remarkable miracle served as a life-sized illustration for a sermon that Jesus was about to preach, a portion of which we have just read. After hearing the words of Jesus as the Bread of Life they make but one request, “Give us this bread” and He responds, “I AM that Bread.”
A. The Miracle – The day before this sermon, when He fed the 5,000, Jesus presented a type of Himself. He showed caring for the multitude, providing for the multitude and satisfying the multitude. The implication is that Jesus, like the physical loaves and fishes, is sufficient for the need of mankind. Jesus is the all-sufficient Savior. Jesus tells them in verse 26 that “I know why you follow me! You follow for the fishes and the loaves” and yet he feeds them anyway. Every man took "as much as they wanted", v. 11, then after they had filled themselves, there was still an abundance left over v. 13. Even though hundreds of millions have been saved by the grace of God, there is always grace for one more! Jesus is sufficient for the needs of the entire world! Jesus is enough. Not Jesus plus anything else. They ask what work shall they do? Jesus said, “This is the work of God, that you believe on Him that He sent.” The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:19, “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” This echoes Jesus’ words about God’s care for His creation: the sparrows of the air do not worry or toil for food or clothes (Matthew 6:25–31). It follows that, since God cares for such lowly things in creation, He will also take care of His people. Jesus is enough!
B. The Manna - The Jews come to Jesus and request a miracle, and they remind Jesus of the Old Testament miracle of the Manna. In Exodus 16:15 When the Israelites saw this substance come down from heaven, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said, “It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat.” The Jews tell Jesus that Moses gave the children of Israel Manna, and they want to know what He is going to do. Christ's response is to remind them that Moses was not responsible for the Manna, but that it was the provision of God. He goes on to tell them that the true bread from Heaven is a person. In fact, it is Jesus himself who is the Bread of Life! Why is it so important for us to understand that HE is THAT bread? Jesus is connecting the dots between the promise and the person! He said in John 5:46 “If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.” Jesus says that He is the ultimate bread. The Israelites ate of the Manna in the wilderness and eventually they died. The crowd was filled on the mountainside, yet eventually, they too will die! Jesus is the anti-type of the Manna. All that it was, He exceeds. Jesus is greater than the bread given out on the mountainside. All who partake of Him will live forever. His guarantee is that they will never die! His guarantee is one of eternal life to all who come to Him, “he shall live forever!”
C. The Master - According to these verses, the Bread of Heaven is not a system or a denomination, but He is a Person. This truth simply serves to remind us that we can never be saved by some religious system or method. Salvation comes through Jesus and Jesus alone! Acts 4:12 “There is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we can be saved.” These verses teach us that Heaven's Bread will give man eternal life. Physical bread can only sustain human life for a period of time. However, after that time, the body will still die, even though it has been well fed. Jesus, on the other hand, is bread that gives everlasting life. The simple fact is this, every person who places their trust in Jesus for salvation is going to live forever! This is what separates Jesus from all the religions and self-proclaimed messiahs of the world. While they promise great things, they can deliver only death. Jesus, on the other hand, promises salvation, security, satisfaction and absolute safety for the soul of man. He said, that if you eat this bread, “You shall live forever.” But before Heaven's Bread can be enjoyed by the sinner, it must be received by the sinner. This is a simple enough thing, but many seem to stumble right here. They can believe that Jesus was real and historical figure. But the Bible says that demons believe in that but are not saved! You must place your trust in Jesus that He died on Calvary’s Cross and rose on that Sunday morning! Jesus said, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” He asked the Jews does this offend you? In Mark’s Gospel the Apostle reminds us of a Syrophoenician woman whose daughter was possessed and she begged the Lord to heal her. This gentile woman discovered something that the chosen of God could not understand that “HE is THAT Bread!” I am so glad that she was not offended! Do you remember when Jesus asked her if it was right to give the children’s bread to the dogs? And she said, “Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.” She was not offended because she knew that whatever was in the bread was also in the crumb!
1. If there was milk in the bread, there was milk in the crumb!
2. If there was butter in the bread, there was butter in the crumb!
3. If there is flour in the bread, there is flour in the crumb!
4. If there was egg in the bread, there was egg in the crumb!
5. If there is Healing in the bread, there is Healing in the crumb!
6. If there is Peace in the bread, there is Peace in the crumb!
7. If there is Joy in the bread, there is Joy in the crumb!
8. If there is Salvation in the bread, there is Salvation in the crumb!
Somebody is waiting for a whole loaf of understanding before they make a commitment to God, but I have come to tell you today that it does not take a loaf of knowledge, it just takes a CRUMB! Jesus said, “he who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst… Everyone that sees the Son and believes in Him will have everlasting life; and I will raise him up in the last day.” Because Jesus lives, we live in Him! Because He got up from the grave, we will also rise! Place your trust in Jesus today for He is the Bread of Life!
