Believe in the Bread of Life
John 6:22-34
Main Idea: We can only find true satisfaction by believing in Jesus and submitting our whole lives to Him in faith.
I. Seeking Satisfaction in the Bread of Life (6:22-24)
John 6:22-24: On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
"The Lord Jesus, we should never forget, is still the same.... He reads the secret motives of all who profess and call themselves Christians. He knows exactly why they do all they do in their religion. The reasons why they go to church ... are all naked and opened to the eyes of the great Head of the Church."
~ J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (Volume 1)
II. Finding Fullness in the Bread of Life (6:25-27)
John 6:25-27: When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.”
Isaiah 55:2-3: Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.
“Are you trying to live without Christ? You might satisfy your ego with success. You might satisfy your material needs with money or your desires with pleasure. But you will never satisfy the inescapable needs of your soul without Jesus Christ.”
~ Richard Phillips, John: Reformed Expository Commentary
III. Believe and Live by the Bread of Life (6:28-34)
John 6:28-34: Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ” Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”
“The human mind is always flattered when it is conscious of doing something for God. What is more, for his doings man considers himself entitled to a reward. How pleased we should all be if we could only earn salvation! In that case we would have succeeded in bringing God into the humbling position of being in debt to us, and we would love it. But this is not the way of salvation.”
~ James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of John
“The works of God” touch every area of life (1 Corinthians 10:31; 15:58) and therefore our submission to God’s word and willingness to “hold fast” to what he commands has eternal significance and impact (Revelation 2:26).
“But we may think it strange that God approves of nothing but faith alone; for the love of our neighbour ought not to be despised, and the other exercises of religion do not lose their place and honour. So then, though faith may hold the highest rank, still other works are not superfluous. The reply is easy; for faith does not exclude either the love of our neighbour or any other good work, because it contains them all within itself. Faith is called the only work of God, because by means of it we possess Christ, and thus become the sons of God, so that he governs us by his Spirit. So then, because Christ does not separate faith from its fruits, we need not wonder if he make it to be the first and the last.”
~ John Calvin, Commentary on the Gospel according to John. Vol. 1
John 6:34: “Sir, give us this bread always.”
