John 6:48-51
I am the bread of life.
Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and they died. This is the bread that comes down out of heaven:
in order that someone should eat out of it and he should not die. I am the bread of life that came down out of
heaven. If someone should eat out of
this bread he will live into the age.
And the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.
Thoughts for Today
First Thought:
Jesus is making an interesting point here when He claims
that the ancestors of the Hebrew people ate manna in the wilderness and they
died. Here’s what Jesus is really
saying. Yes, the manna that they ate
came out of heaven. But it did not save
them because it was not meant to save them.
In fact, the Hebrew people in the wilderness demonstrate that salvation
is a matter of the heart, not a matter of the physical world. The ancient Hebrew people ate manna from God,
but the stubbornness of their hearts prevented them from passing into the Promised
Land. It is not the bread that is important;
it is relationship with the bread-giver.
Why is it always so tempting to try and think of actions as
having an effect upon salvation? Why is
it important for us to realize that we cannot save ourselves?
Second Thought:
Jesus then makes His point clear. The natural conclusion of the true bread from
heaven is eternal life. When we put our
faith in things, we cannot have eternal life.
But when we put our faith in God we can avoid death and instead enter
into eternal life.
What does the promise of not dying mean to you? What does Jesus mean when He says “eat of the
bread that comes out of heaven?”
Third Thought:
Jesus now introduces God’s plan of salvation to the Jewish
leaders. Jesus tells them that the bread
of life that He will give is His life.
He will give His life so that salvation can come to the world. God takes care of salvation for us – for those
who would receive it. We truly cannot
save ourselves. God saves us by becoming
man, taking sin upon Himself, and sacrificing His own flesh. That is God.
Do you find this idea of sacrifice inspiring? Why?
What does it inspire you to do?
How does it inspire you to live?
Passage for Tomorrow: John 6:52-59
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