"The Bread Of Life"

By Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn

(John 6:24-35)

So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

[25] When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" [26] Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. [27] Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal." [28] Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" [29] Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." [30] So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? [31] Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' " [32] Then Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. [33] For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." [34] They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always."

[35] Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

(NRSV)

INTRODUCTION:

We live in one of the most diet-conscious societies that has ever existed. Some of the diets you see are a little bizarre like the Sauerkraut diet or the Spam Diet.

Then there are some that will probably work like the one that says you can eat as much as you want of any food you don't like. Or the one I ran across that's called "The Stress Diet".

Breakfast: 1/2 grapefruit, slice whole wheat toast, 8 oz. skim milk.

Lunch: 4 oz. lean broiled chicken breast, 1 cup steamed zucchini, 1 oreo cookie, Herb tea.

Mid-Afternoon Snack: Rest of the package of Oreos, 1 quart of Rocky Road ice cream, 1 jar of hot fudge.

Supper: 2 loaves garlic bread, large pepperoni and mushroom pizza with double cheese, 2 quarts of Pepsi or Coca Cola, 3 Milky Way Candy Bars, and an entire Sara Lee Pound Cake eaten directly from the refrigerator.

There' probably more truth in that diet than most of us would like to admit.

I. BREAD:

A. The one thing that all diets need is one of the basic food groups. The thing that Jesus talks about in this passage, bread. Bread or bread stuff is different in different cultures. In Oriental countries it consists of primarily of rice based products. In the Native American culture it was Corn based products. And in most Western cultures it consists primarily of wheat based products.

Bread is one of my favorites. I don't feel like I've eaten or the meal is complete if there isn't some sort of bread, even if it's just crackers. The neat thing about bread is that there are so many different kinds of bread. Bagels, English Muffins, Russian Rye, Pumpernickel, Cornbread, Potato Rolls, Tortillas, Croissants, Whole Wheat, White, Dinner Rolls and Biscuits just to name a few.

In Israel, we had three different kinds of bread from the street vendors, there was the fresh hot Pita, there was a Jewish flat bread, just a little bit bigger than the Pita and about and inch thick that would just melt in your mouth. And then there was a loaf that was about 8 inches to a foot across, about four inches tall with a whole in the center. It looked like sort of like a short angel food cake and it was covered with sesame seeds. It cost a whole 10 shekels about 40 cents and it was absolutely the best bread I have ever tasted. I think it was called Cholla but I'm not sure.

B. Are you hungry yet? All that talk about bread should have your mouths watering. I'm not trying to be cruel. There really is a point here. You see, the bread was why the people came looking for Jesus. They weren't looking for Jesus so they could listen to his wonderful sermons and lessons. Oh, sure, some of them were. A handful, maybe. But for the most part the crowd followed after Jesus hoping for another miracle of the loaves and the fishes. They were following Jesus for the free food they thought they would get.

They remind me of a little girl I served communion to one time. I handed her a small piece like everyone else. She popped in her mouth, chewed it up and hollered: "I want more bread." But Jesus saw right through those folks and said: [26] "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves." They came with the wrong kind of hunger.

II. THE HUNGERING:

A. That kind of hunger is still around today. In Friday's comics there was a Broomhilda in which Broomhilda is sitting on the couch watching TV and she says to her friend, "We get 400 channels. I'm no happier than the old days when we only got 200!"

As he is walking away he says: "Something is wrong."

She replies: "Darn right. Maybe if we had 600 channels things would be better!" (2)

That's sort of the way it is in the world today. If it's not more television channels it's something else. It seems that whatever we have isn't enough. What we really need is one that's bigger, faster, newer, better, more expensive, trendier, whatever. There is a hunger within us. And whatever it is that we have is not enough. You can see it in all aspects of life. Jobs, material things and relationships. We have more than any other generation in history but we just are not satisfied. It's like Broomhilda's friend says: "Something is wrong." We go looking for that satisfaction in all the wrong places.

B. That's what was wrong with the crowds that came seeking Jesus, looking for more bread. Jesus confronts us with the same words he used to confront the crowd. He said: [27] "Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you."

When they asked for this bread Jesus said: "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."

And that's the Good News. Jesus can and does fill that void. Jesus can and does satisfy the hungering spirit and the thirsting soul.

Jesus IS the Bread of Life. But in order to be continually fed by the Bread of Life, we have to keep in constant spiritual contact with the Bread of Life.

CONCLUSION:

When you come to the Lord's table this morning, remember that when we partake of the sacrament we eat bread that symbolizes the presence of Jesus, the very Bread of Life, with us.

This Bread is freedom from the distress of life. It is sustenance in the wilderness of life. It is grace in the pain of life. It is God's presence in the loneliness of life.

This Bread is rest in the demands of life. It is peace in the disruptions of life. It is community in the isolation of life. It is security in the uncertainty of life. It is bread that nourishes the soul. It is the Bread of Life.

The only diet that can feed our starving spirits and fill our empty insides is a diet consisting souly of the Bread of Life, "the food that endures for eternal life" (John 6:27).

This morning I invite you to come and feast upon this Bread. May it fill that hungering in your soul.

1. Parables, Etc., September 1987, adapted.

2. Broomhilda by Russell Myers, 8-1-97