Bread That Endures
“Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal. Jesus answered them, This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
John 6:26-27, 29
The crowd knew how to find Jesus, they even crossed the sea to do it, but their motive was exposed the moment He spoke. They did not come because the sign pointed to the Savior, they came because the bread filled their stomachs. Jesus does not shame them for hunger, He redirects it. Do not work for food that perishes, work for food that endures. Their next question gives voice to the reflex of every religious heart. What must we do? Which disciplines, which achievements, which works will qualify us for this bread? Jesus answers with a sentence that should be written on our hearts. This is the work of God, that you believe in the One He sent.
Faith is not spiritual laziness, faith is the surrender of self salvation. It is the refusal to trust in our track record and the decision to rest entirely on His. To believe is to come to Jesus with empty hands, to receive from Him what you cannot produce on your own. The crowd wanted a menu of tasks. Jesus offered Himself. The work is to trust Him, to depend on Him, to feed on Him. That is what endures.
You likely feel the pull of perishable bread every day. Success, comfort, affirmation, the next purchase, the next raise, the next win. None of those things are evil, but none of them can sustain the soul. You were made for more than full cabinets and empty hearts. Jesus invites you to a different pursuit. Seek the food that endures. Open the Scriptures and eat. Pray and drink deeply. Trust Him with the things you cannot control. Believe Him for what you cannot provide.
The One with the seal of the Father still gives Himself to those who come hungry. Let your first work today be faith. Come to the table, receive the bread that endures, and let lesser hungers take their proper place.
John 6:26-27, 29
The crowd knew how to find Jesus, they even crossed the sea to do it, but their motive was exposed the moment He spoke. They did not come because the sign pointed to the Savior, they came because the bread filled their stomachs. Jesus does not shame them for hunger, He redirects it. Do not work for food that perishes, work for food that endures. Their next question gives voice to the reflex of every religious heart. What must we do? Which disciplines, which achievements, which works will qualify us for this bread? Jesus answers with a sentence that should be written on our hearts. This is the work of God, that you believe in the One He sent.
Faith is not spiritual laziness, faith is the surrender of self salvation. It is the refusal to trust in our track record and the decision to rest entirely on His. To believe is to come to Jesus with empty hands, to receive from Him what you cannot produce on your own. The crowd wanted a menu of tasks. Jesus offered Himself. The work is to trust Him, to depend on Him, to feed on Him. That is what endures.
You likely feel the pull of perishable bread every day. Success, comfort, affirmation, the next purchase, the next raise, the next win. None of those things are evil, but none of them can sustain the soul. You were made for more than full cabinets and empty hearts. Jesus invites you to a different pursuit. Seek the food that endures. Open the Scriptures and eat. Pray and drink deeply. Trust Him with the things you cannot control. Believe Him for what you cannot provide.
The One with the seal of the Father still gives Himself to those who come hungry. Let your first work today be faith. Come to the table, receive the bread that endures, and let lesser hungers take their proper place.
Posted in The Word Made Flesh
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