Jesus Is the Bread of Life: The First “I Am”

Jesus is the bread of life. Bread symbolizes sustenance and life.

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. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

“Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”

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. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 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. 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.”

John 6:32-40 (NIV) (emphasis added).

Jesus Sustains Us

Although we need bread—or food in general—to live, we need so much more than that to thrive. We need Jesus, who is the spiritual bread that feeds our souls.

Life without faith, without Jesus, becomes dry and parched. Our soul becomes emaciated and weak without time spent with Him in prayer and in His Word.

Fighting for Sustenance

As I write this article, six hummingbirds are fighting over ten drinking stations on one of six feeders in my yard. There’s plenty to go around, but a couple of bully hummingbirds are trying to keep the smaller birds from eating. It’s below freezing and there is snow on the ground. They all need to eat to survive. I wonder why they can’t all just get along. I know there is plenty to go around and my husband will refill any empty feeders. Maybe the hummingbirds don’t quite understand.

Sometimes we Christians fight over things we should know God is in charge of. The Scriptures tell us that Jesus is the bread of life and all we need for our sustenance. Yet our humanity sometimes gets in the way.

Jesus Is Enough

One of the amazing things about Jesus is that He has enough love, enough grace, enough compassion for every single person in the whole world. Even if every person was praying to Him at the same time, He could hear and attend to each prayer intimately. There is enough of Him to go around.

Do you sometimes feel like He’s too busy for you, that your concerns are too small? Scripture tells us this isn’t true. No prayer need is too small or to insignificant. If it matters to you, then it matters to Him.

Find hope in Jesus and His promises.

Closing Prayer on the Bread of Life

Heavenly Father, I pray for those reading this article who are in need of bread—whether physically or spiritually. Sustain them with Your love and grace. Hear the prayers of their hearts and draw near to them, providing sustenance for their weary soul. In Jesus’s name, amen.