Bread of Life

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Passage Breakdowns, SOAPS Format & Instructions (Weeks 1-12)
Passage Breakdowns, SOAPS Format & Instructions (Weeks 13-26)

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8:40 Service | 10:00 Service | 11:20 Service | Sermon Audio

When my kids were little, they drove me crazy with the why questions. “Paul, you can’t eat that cookie now.” Why? “Because it’s almost dinner time.” Why? “Well, because we eat at 6:00.” Why? Well, because that’s when we’re all hungry. Why? Parents—are you feeling this? Honestly, it could get annoying. But he truly wanted to understand why.
So today, I’m going to be annoying, just like my kids were, because I have a question for you: Why are you here? I mean, unless your parents forced you to come, you chose to get up and get dressed and get in your car and drive here, or at least you turned on the livestream. Why’d you do that?
Because I like the music and the preaching.
Okay, but why?
Because it helps me handle life better.
Okay, but why? In what way? Better how?
If you find that annoying, I’m okay with that, because that’s what Jesus does. He’s very interested in people’s motives for following him. Back in chapter 2, it says Jesus did not need any testimony about mankind, because he knew what was in each person. In other words, Jesus already knows why you came today. And he knows that our decision to follow him or to come to church any given Sunday—are decisions that are very often driven by motives that will ultimately fail us and get us into trouble. In other words, our motives matter. So today, let’s allow Jesus to expose our motives, and possibly replace them with something more pure and healthy.
So: last week we looked at the beginning of John 6, where Jesus takes a little bit of bread and fish, and somehow multiplies it to feed thousands of people. Amazing miracle. The next day, many of the people who were fed by that miracle go looking for Jesus. And that’s where the story continues today—John 6, starting in verse 25. Let’s hear God’s Word…
25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
30 So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given 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 the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 36 But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. 37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
41 At this the Jews there began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”
43 “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. 44 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. 46 No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. 47 Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. 50 But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”
52 Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”
61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”
66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.
68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.” This is the Word of the Lord.
So Jesus is focusing on the motives of the people who come looking for him. And since they had just experienced that miracle of bread the day before, Jesus frames this in terms of different kinds of bread that we can seek.
So first, let’s talk about The Bread that Spoils. This crowd finds Jesus on the other side of the lake, and they say, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” And as he so often does, instead of answering their question, Jesus directs the conversation where it needs to go—verse 26: “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. In other words, “I know what you’re after. Yesterday you ate the food I provided. And you’re coming to me now for more of the same. You’re pursuing me because you believe I can make the outward circumstances of your life better. I can put more bread on your plate. I can put more fish on your table. I can put more money in your wallet. That’s what drove you to come and find me: you are here for what you can get out of me.”
That motive is confirmed by what the people say in verse 30: 30 So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” In other words, “Hey—back when Moses was the leader—not that we’re comparing—but the people got manna every day! So…you know, nice job on the miracle yesterday—we appreciate that. But today’s a new day, and we’re hungry again. So…whaddya got for us?”
How about you? Do you come to church—do you seek Jesus—primarily for the external blessings you can get from him? It’s actually a very understandable motive. Think about it: God created us with the need for food, so what’s the problem with coming to God to get the food we need? Didn’t Jesus even teach us to pray that God would give us our daily bread? So why is this such a wrong motive?
Well, look at verse 27: Do not work for food that spoils. I used to buy sliced turkey breast from the deli counter at Shop Rite every week. You know why I stopped? It spoils so fast. It gets that layer of slime, and it starts to smell funky. Are any of you food sniffers? How about milk—anybody else sniff your milk before you drink it? Of course! Quick story: Norma Jean and I once flew to Nevada to visit her parents. When we got there we were exhausted and hungry. So I was carrying stuff into the bedroom, and I heard this scream from the kitchen. It turns out Norma Jean had opened the fridge and found a can of Redi-Whip whipped cream; she shook it and squirted it straight into her mouth (don’t tell me you’ve never done that). But it was spoiled. It had green, fuzzy mold in it. And she was traumatized for years.
Because food goes bad! It spoils! And here’s the thing: so does every other thing in this world.
So here’s what Jesus is saying: it’s not that seeking external blessings from God is wrong, but be careful you don’t make that your main thing. Be careful that your driving motive is not getting something that doesn’t last. Does that make sense? Make sure you main thing isn’t a temporary thing.
Paul said it like this in 2 Corinthians 4:18…So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Jesus said in Matthew 6:19…“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.”
And that’s what he’s saying here in John 6: “Don’t make your main thing—don’t make your driving motive—something that doesn’t last.”
Have you ever heard preachers or authors who primarily motivate you with promises that Jesus will make the outward circumstances of your life better? Watch out for them. It’s very subtle, but it shifts your focus from the giver of the blessings to the blessings themselves.
And when you start thinking that way, everything will be fine as long as you’re getting your needs met! You’ll be praising God, and loving God. But what happens when the tough times come? What happens when you lose your job, or the money runs out, or you get a cancer diagnosis? What happens when the bread stops? Usually one of two things. Either you blame yourself: “I must not be believing enough; I must not be praying enough; I must not be trying enough.” Or, you blame God. You doubt his goodness, or you doubt he even exists.
Do you see why our motives are so important? Because if you’re seeking Christ primarily for the blessings he can give you, when the blessings stop, your relationship with him is in danger. Maybe that’s where you are right now: you’re in a spiritually bad place, because life has gotten hard. So here’s the question: will you allow Jesus to purify your motives and rebuild your spiritual house on a stronger foundation?
Let’s talk about The Bread that Endures. So remember the people ask Jesus about Moses and the manna, “so come on Jesus, how about another miracle from you?” Here’s how Jesus responds—verse 32: 32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given 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 the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 
Here’s what he’s saying: that event in the Hebrew Scriptures—just like every event in the Hebrew Scriptures—was ultimately about me! It was pointing to me, and getting people ready for me. Because look: the manna satisfied their spiritual hunger, but there is a deeper hunger in the soul of every human. And it’s a hunger that can only be satisfied by me. The manna satisfied them for a day; I can satisfy you eternally.
I am the bread of life! Not anything I’m giving you; it’s me.
Many years ago, when I proposed to Norma Jean, I got on one knee, and opened up a little box, and I said, “Will you marry me.” And she was caught off guard—she was not expecting it that day. So she was expressing her surprise and her shock. And I kept taking the ring box, and showing her—like, “Look!” I had never held anything that expensive in my hands before and I wanted her to be amazed by it! I wanted her to say something about it! But she wouldn’t even look at it. Because at that moment she didn’t care about the ring; she just wanted me. Isn’t that sweet? But it was true! Now, full disclosure: she did want the ring! Eventually she took it and put it on! But the main thing she was focused on wasn’t anything I could give her, it was me.
And Jesus invites us to a relationship with himself where we are so amazed by him and in awe of him and so loved by him, that our focus shifts from the blessings to the giver. Because he is the bread your soul needs. More than anything your body needs—more than any external blessing—you need him at the center of your being. That’s where real satisfaction is.
Look again at verse 35: Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. When you are seeking Jesus not because he fills your stomach, but because he fills your soul, your life will have a certain quality about it. You might be hungry and thirsty on the outside. You will face painful challenges, and even terrible loss, but it will be well with your soul. At the deepest part of who you are, there will be a peace, and a confidence because of him. Later in John, Jesus will say I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. Other translations say “abundant life.” When Jesus himself is the bread you seek, regardless of what’s happening externally, you will have abundant life,
But more than that: when Jesus is your bread, you’ll have eternal life. Do you realize that eternal life is not something everyone will experience? If you take the teachings of Jesus seriously, you have to conclude that there’s a heaven, and there’s a hell. And they’re both very real places. And several times through this passage, Jesus makes the point that eternal life comes through the Bread of Life. Just as you will die physically if you don’t eat bread, you will die spiritually—eternally—if you don’t eat the Bread of Life.
Look at verses 48 to 51: 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. 50 But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. 51a I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. If you want to live abundantly in this life, and if you want to live eternally after this life, you need the Bread of Life. You need Jesus. He’s the only way.
Now: when you talk that way in 2026—when you say Jesus is the only way—people struggle with that. Lots of people get offended by that. And you know what? People had the same response when Jesus first said it. It’s always been that way. So let’s talk about The Bread that Offends. After Jesus calls himself the Bread of Life who’s come down from heaven, look at this response in verse 41: 41 At this the Jews there began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?” How can this regular guy, whom we’ve known since he was a kid, make this claim for himself? It seemed ridiculous, and they were offended.
I’m pretty sure they were also offended earlier in this conversation. Look at verse 27—Jesus says: 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” 28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” Because every Jewish person knew that God had certain laws and requirements, and they just assumed that in order to be right with God, you had to obey the rules. So they ask Jesus, “What’s the path to this eternal life you’re talking about? What do we have to do?” And in verse 29, 29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” That’s it? The work of God is to believe? To moral, self-righteous people, the idea that none of our spiritual accomplishments get us anywhere with God—because all he requires is belief—that is deeply offensive.
And here’s what we need to remember: the claims of the gospel have always been offensive. The idea that this man who lived in the first century, named Jesus, is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that no one comes to the Father except through him, is a radical claim. Especially in a highly tolerant, highly pluralistic society like ours, it’s offensive. The idea that humans are naturally sinful, and it doesn’t matter how good and moral we are; we need a Savior to rescue us, and the idea that there will be final judgment, and there’s a heaven and a hell—those are offensive concepts. The New Testament Greek word for “offense” is the word skandalon. It literally means a stumbling stone—something that trips people up. And people have been tripping over the offense of the gospel for 2,000 years. It’s a hard message to accept.
So the people listening to Jesus are offended. And the response of Jesus is so important—verse 43: 43 “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. 44 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. In other words, listen: the only way you’re going to get over the offense of this message is for something supernatural to happen: you have to be drawn by the Father. God has to get into your life and start messing with you and making you restless and pulling you in. In chapter three, we saw the Father drawing Nicodemus, and he was compelled to go and see Jesus at night. In chapter four, we saw the Father drawing a Samaritan woman that Jesus met by a well. It always starts with God drawing. And that experience is so real and so undeniable, it overcomes the offense.
That’s exactly what happened in the life of Rosaria Butterfield. She was a tenured professor of English and Women’s Studies at Syracuse University, and an outspoken LGBTQ activist. She viewed Christianity as dangerous, oppressive, and hateful. She taught her students to hate the Bible, and she viewed the claims of Christianity as intellectually shallow. In other words, she found Jesus highly offensive.
So at one point, she published an article attacking Promise Keepers—the Christian men’s movement. A pastor read that article, and he reached out to Professor Butterfield. He invited her to come and have dinner with him and his wife, and she wasn’t even sure why, but she accepted. He welcomed her to ask questions. He encouraged her to read the Bible carefully. And through that process, something completely unexpected started happening: her heart started to soften. The way she said it was, “As I began to read the Bible, the Bible began to read me.” She described it as the Bible placing a “loving offense” in front of her. And the Father kept drawing her. And eventually she said, “I realized this was true whether I believed it or not.” She describes her conversion as a “train wreck”—not something she chose, but something that overwhelmed and overtook her. She left her former life, and she’s been following and serving Christ ever since. She found the Bread of Life.
The gospel will always be offensive. People will stumble over it. And if you hear someone preaching a gospel that removes the offense—it’s just a message of love and kindness and being nice to everyone—that’s not the gospel. It’s a false gospel. The real thing always has an edge to it, but when God moves in a person’s life, they realize it’s true. And they run to the truth.
Besides the inner circle of Jesus’ twelve disciples, there was a larger group of disciples who’d been following him around. And they were getting so offended by the message, that verse 66 says: 66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. 67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”
In other words, “Jesus, no matter how countercultural and challenging and offensive your teaching is, where else are we going to turn? There’s no one else like you. We might not have the answer to all of our questions, but we have you. And that’s enough. You’re the bread that fills us and satisfies us. And at that end of the day, that’s all we need.”