Jesus, the Bread of Life

When Jesus said "I am the bread which came down from heaven" the listening Jews found this impossible to accept.   He was known to them as a local man.   How could he possibly be from heaven.   They were acquaintances of his parents, Joseph and Mary.   He was known for being their local village carpenter.   I can sympathise with them.   How difficult it must be to accept someone you know personally as "Son of God".

Jesus was part of a three way tension.   Until recently I saw this as two way only but I have realised that there was a third element to the tension going on then.  

One force in this tension was the Jews and their very traditional beliefs.   Their history was one of a "chosen race" who occupied a special place in God's heart.   The felt to be going somewhere under God's guidance.   The truth was that it was their version of God's guidance that prevailed.   I am sure they were honest when they worked out what God wanted of them.   Yet it turned out to be anything but what God wanted.   Over the years, despite the efforts of many serious religious thinkers they had  built up a distorted image of God and what he desired of them.   They yearned for the promised Messiah (anointed one) yet when he came they did not recognise him.   On top of this there were a number of prestige figures who would be unseated if the Messiah came, so there was bound to be a struggle when he announced himself.

The force that, until recently, I had not recognised was the Roman occupying force.   Some while earlier the Romans had reached the conclusion that Julius Caesar was a god.   This meant that all his descendants were gods too.   Augustus reigned until 14 AD and was followed by his son, Tiberius.   Had we been living in the Mediterranean area in those days and asked "Who is the son of god?" the answer would have been, Tiberius.   Jesus was shown a coin in the story relating to tributes to Caesar.   The Latin inscription on that coin would have been, in English, "Augustus Tiberius Caesar, son of the divine Augustus."   We can see from this that the Romans who were running things in Palestine would not have taken lightly to a man claiming to be "Son of God."

The third force in this tension was Jesus, who had come to ensure God was placed centrally in the hearts of his people once more.   All that he said and did in that very short time was to demonstrate that God remained, creator and Lord of all.   His credentials was superb because he was speaking as advocate for his Father and was, by his deeds, demonstrating that he really had come from heaven.   When John the Baptist's supporters came to Jesus they asked if he really was the expected one or was this person still to come.   What Jesus said to them as a message for John, could not be argued with.   He said, "Go back and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind can see, the lame can walk, those who suffer from dreaded skin diseases are made clean, the deaf can hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is preached to the poor."

When we look at what Jesus said we see just how plain it was.   He was the Messiah.   He was the bread of life.   Just imagine you are a Geordie and hear Jesus speaking like this.   The answer to John's supporters was plain - "What do you think, bonnie lad?"   It was as obvious as the noses on their faces.   The Messiah had come and God was taking charge again.  

Earlier in John's gospel we come across an amazing conversation between Jesus and a Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well.   No Jew would ever have spoken with a Samaritan, and certainly not with a woman.   It was totally outside the current convention.   Yet here they were talking about water.   She had come to water to quench her thirst and to be used for other purposes.   That was how she thought of the well water below.   Yet Jesus was talking about the water he could supply - living water that would quench her thirst for ever.   It would be all she ever wanted and would sustain her throughout life.

In this part of John's narrative Jesus spoke of a bread that would completely satisfy anyone.   This was the bread that would be all in all to absolutely anyone.   Listen again: "I am the bread of life."   This is who Jesus is!   He is the bread that will completely satisfy and nourish the individual.   He is all things to all people.   Chasing after all the modern inventions and gadgets will not, ultimately, satisfy anyone.   Let all the bankers get all their bonuses and they will still never get the satisfaction available to humankind through Jesus.   So, in him is all that we shall ever need.   He offers complete and utter satisfaction and there is nothing in this world that can offer us that.

The richest one among us cannot, through his or her wealth, gain ultimate satisfaction.   This is the message of the Christian Gospel:   Jesus is Lord, and he is the source of everything you need.   Follow him and life will take off!   All that we need is bread and water and Jesus is the Bread of Life and offers the living water.   What an offer!