34 "Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread."
35 Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty."
Not too dissimilar to the Samaritan woman at the well respectfully asking Jesus for water, these Jewish followers of our Savior respectfully request of Him bread – albeit both were desirous of the commodities alone - missing the mark of the teaching sought which was Christ alone. Is that not human nature illuminated for us to see? While it is never wrong to pray for our needs, how much of our prayer life is often consumed with asking for meeting the physical in lieu of the spiritual – not taking into account that our bodies could better fare without food than our souls without Christ. Most often our priorities are askew because our focus is not fixed - choosing to dwell on the temporal rather than the eternal. We find earlier in John:
15 The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water." John 4:15 (NIV)
Oh that we would have the greater desire of King David – the man after God’s own heart – to seek God’s face prior to seeking His hand. Psalm 27 gives us his earnest petition to the Lord:
4 One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. Psalms 27:4 (NIV)
To dwell in the Lord’s presence is to dwell in security – resting in His shadow. I am reminded of the words of the great Psalm 91 attributed to Moses:
1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Psalms 91:1-4 (NIV)
I am certain that is why Jesus lays out for us in the Sermon on the Mount the proper priorities in what we are to seek first:
25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 28 "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matt 6:25-34 (NIV)
Interestingly, Jesus responds to His hearers in our verses for today giving them the first of many “I AM” statements presented in John. “I AM” was the terminology God used to describe Himself to Moses. Jewish hearers would have known when Jesus used those same words regarding Himself He was equating Himself with God. I thought it would be a wonderful conclusion to our discussion today to list some of the “I AM” statements found in John and what they perhaps mean to Jesus’ followers – or at least to this follower!
John 6:35
“I am the bread of life.” Jesus is my sustenance, my sufficiency.
John 8:12
“I am the light of the world.” Jesus is my guidance, my direction.
John 10:7
“I am the gate for the sheep.” Jesus is my access to the Father.
John 10:11
“I am the good shepherd.” Jesus is my caring protector, my safety.
John 11:25
“I am the resurrection and the life.” Jesus is my surety.
John 14:6
“I am the way and the truth and the life.” Jesus is my eternal counselor.
John 15:1
“I am the true vine.” Jesus is my source, my power.