FEED ON JESUS

Passage: John 6:41-59

Key verse: 54

NIV

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,(A) whose father and mother we know?(B) How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”(C)

43 “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. 44 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them,(D) and I will raise them up at the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’[a](E) 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;(F) only he has seen the Father. 47 Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life.(G) 48 I am the bread of life.(H) 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died.(I) 50 But here is the bread that comes down from heaven,(J) which anyone may eat and not die. 51 I am the living bread(K) that came down from heaven.(L) Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”(M)

52 Then the Jews(N) began to argue sharply among themselves,(O) “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(P) of the Son of Man(Q) and drink his blood,(R) 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.(S) 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.(T) 57 Just as the living Father sent me(U) 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.”(V) 59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

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Footnotes
  1. John 6:45 Isaiah 54:13
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

41 So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, (A)“I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They said, (B)“Is not this Jesus, (C)the son of Joseph, whose father and mother (D)we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43 Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me (E)draws him. And (F)I will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets, (G)‘And they will all be (H)taught by God.’ (I)Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— 46 (J)not that anyone has seen the Father except (K)he who is from God; he (L)has seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, (M)whoever believes has eternal life. 48 (N)I am the bread of life. 49 (O)Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and (P)they died. 50 (Q)This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it (R)and not die. 51 I am the living bread (S)that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give (T)for the life of the world is (U)my flesh.”

52 The Jews then (V)disputed among themselves, saying, (W)“How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of (X)the Son of Man and drink his blood, you (Y)have no life in you. 54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood (Z)has eternal life, and (AA)I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood (AB)abides in me, and I in him. 57 As (AC)the living Father (AD)sent me, and (AE)I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. 58 (AF)This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread[a] the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 Jesus[b] said these things in the synagogue, as he taught (AG)at Capernaum.

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Footnotes
  1. John 6:58 Greek lacks the bread
  2. John 6:59 Greek He
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

The crowds of people could not accept Jesus as the bread from heaven and grumbled because they thought that they knew who Jesus was. But they knew very little. Jesus saw their unbelief from God’s sovereign perspective. A person’s coming to Christ and having faith in him is possible through the word and work of God who is sovereign. God draws his chosen ones to Christ. God also teaches them who Jesus Christ is. God speaks through his words to lead us to Christ Jesus.

Those who are taught about God are also able to understand and accept Jesus’ teaching rightly: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life” (54). As our body needs bread to sustain physical life, our soul needs to feed on Jesus, the bread from heaven. Jesus is food for our soul. Just as we put bread into our mouth, chew it, and enjoy it, we are to receive Jesus into our soul. It is said, “You are what you eat.” As healthy food makes us strong and healthy, the soul that feeds on Jesus will bear many fruits and possess eternal life. Come to Jesus and be nourished and satisfied.

Prayer: Lord, I come to Jesus to get bread for my soul. Cultivate within me a greater spiritual appetite to feed on Jesus who gives us eternal life.

One Word: Feed on the bread from heaven