Bread at the time of Jesus’ ministry was the main food for many people. The white bread we eat today is nothing like the bread of Bible times. It was packed with fiber, vitamins and minerals.
The day before Jesus said, “I am the bread that gives life,” he used five loaves of bread and two fish to feed 5,000 people. It was a miracle. The next day these people came looking for Jesus. They wanted another free meal.
These people were shocked when Jesus said, “This bread is my body. I will give my body so that the people in the world can have life” (John 6:51). They didn’t understand.
But we know that Jesus was offering them himself as the bread of life who would satisfy them forever. Eating is a picture of faith. When you’re hungry, you don’t just look at bread. You eat it. In a similar way, you don’t enter into Jesus’ kingdom by thinking of him as a nice man. You must believe in your heart that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross for your sins. That’s eating the Bread of Life!
Not only is Jesus the bread of life, but he is also the great multiplier. He can take something small that we offer him and multiply it. When the Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years, God caused it to rain bread from heaven (Exodus 16). Jesus could have asked his Father for bread from heaven to feed the 5,000 people, but he chose to use a boy’s lunch to do this mighty miracle.
If God could use such a small meal from a child to do so much, I wonder what he could do with something more? What if you offered Jesus your time, talents and money as a way of saying thank you? He gave his life so that you could live with him forever, but he wants to live through you now to share his love with others.
Think About This: Jesus is both God and man in one person, and he wants to live his life through you. WOW!
Memorize This Truth: “Here is a boy with five loaves of barley bread and two little fish. But that is not enough for so many people” (John 6:9).