More bread, please!

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

There is an experience that is uniquely Christian

Psalm 34:8 ESV

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

Note the admonition to experience (taste and see) and the description (blessed); for they necessitate that neither the enjoyment nor the refuge are reality aside from God.

In spite of the so-called wisdom of our age, all paths do NOT lead to God aside from His judgment and wrath, so the only means to this safety and enjoyment are through faith in Christ

Also, any Christianity that is devoid of experience fails at this one verse (as well as countless others)

There is an internalizing; a feeding, a digesting for nourishment

Revelation 10:9 ESV

So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, “Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.”

We are not asked to view Christ as a museum piece; externally for judgment, inspiration, and opinion, but rather to take hold of and ingest Him; His person, His message, His suffering.

The image of eating the flesh of Christ and drinking His blood may be bizarre, in fact shocking, but it is a fitting and powerful picture of conversion and faithful Christianity.

It is no wonder then, that this image carried forward into the second ordinance of the Church; Holy Communion

There is a satisfaction available

John 6:35 ESV

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.

This satisfaction is deeper than the physical desires and even needs that we have; more fundamental to all humanity, and as such the path to get there cuts deeply

Jn4:

John 4:15–16 ESV

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.” Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.”

John 4:15 ESV

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.”

Jn4:15-16

This stands in contrast to the dangerous prosperity gospel of our age. It is not that coming to Jesus will fix all your ails, or even that they will be prevented in the future; rather that THE core issue you may not know to ask about will be solved, namely you will be made a new creation in Christ Jesus.

You will then have peace with God and communion with Him; you will no longer be alone in your struggles.

This not thirsting and not hungering is what is meant by

English Standard Version Psalm 23

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

The invitation to Christ then is invitation to a knowable, deeply satisfying & pleasing experience wherein you will be changed and nourished from the inside. I invite you to come to the table, to eat the true food and drink the true drink that is the body and blood of Christ; come to Jesus, believe on Him and be saved.

All you can eat

There is a real sense in which once you are saved, you will never be or need to be more saved. In saying this, we mean that being born again cannot be undone; once justified always justified, once adopted by God, never returned. That in no way however means that there is no more of Jesus to offer for the rest of your life. The table to which you are invited is all you can eat.

This aspect is not specifically addressed in today’s text, but we will in short order show that the ‘all you can eat-ness’ of Christ is both in unity with and behind some of what we do see in .

1 Kings 19:4–8 ESV

But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.” And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank and lay down again. And the angel of the Lord came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.” And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.

Elijah had been faithful to serve the Lord and was in need.

God knew his need, both physically and not, and perfectly provided. This is a powerful picture of the ongoing ministry of Christ in the life of the believer.

Ephesians 4:16 ESV

from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

When Satan tempts me to despair, And tells me of the guilt within, Upward I look, and see Him there Who made an end of all my sin.

Because the sinless Savior died, My sinful soul is counted free; For God, the Just, is satisfied To look on Him and pardon me.

The gospel of Jesus has a lasting and renewing effect continually throughout the life of His children.

Ephesians 4

Ephesians 4:15–16 ESV

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

English Standard Version Chapter 4

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

It is the purpose and plan of God in Christ that the gospel of Jesus (His death, burial, and resurrection) have not only an immediate transformative effect at the point of conversion, but have lasting effect and be continually available for the needed nourishment and equipping of His Church.

Just as none will ever be turned away who seek to be saved, none will ever be turned away from this table as long as they live. Come and eat. Come and drink. It’s all you can eat.

More Bread?

Yes please

John 6:67–69 ESV

So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

John 6:67-68

There is an awakening and conviction of the truth that comes from the work of the Spirit on the heart of men.

Matthew 16:16 ESV

Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Matthew 16:16–17 ESV

Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

There is additionally a desire for Christ and things pertaining to Him in those who have been born again.

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” - C.S. Lewis

But once we have tasted the true, nothing else can rival it.

This can be lessened by neglect, but once re-awakened there is nothing that can satisfy the soul like Jesus.

Eliza Edmunds Hewitt (1887)

More about Jesus would I know, More of His grace to others show; More of His saving fulness see, More of His love who died for me.

More, more about Jesus, More, more about Jesus; More of His saving fulness see, More of His love who died for me.

More about Jesus let me learn, More of His holy will discern; Spirit of God my teacher be, Showing the things of Christ to me.

More about Jesus; in His Word, Holding communion with my Lord; Hearing His voice in every line, Making each faithful saying mine.

More about Jesus; on His throne, Riches in glory all His own; More of His kingdom’s sure increase; More of His coming, Prince of Peace.

There is no wonder why those who truly belong to Christ, when asked if they want more of the Bread of Life, reply Yes please!

What an unnecessary tragedy then, that so many instead say No, go away...

John 6:60–65 ESV

When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”

No, go away!

John 6:60–65 ESV

Some are already in the Yes, Please! category; you have tasted and know the goodness of God in Christ Jesus. I pray your appetite for righteousness increase.

Some are in the initial stages of interest and awakening. There is something compelling about this Christ, but you are yet to trust. There seems to be a hunger, a desire, but you are still afar off, seeing and smelling, but not yet tasting. Come to the table. Come to Jesus believing His death, burial, and resurrection are true, were for you, and are sufficient for you, and He will satisfy your very soul today.

Some want no more at all. Some of you are biding your time until I stop talking about Jesus for a while. You are perhaps resolute that this Christ is a nice story, but has nothing to do with you. You bristle inside if not out at the thought of bowing to the absolute Lordship of Christ Jesus. I pray that your soul is shaken, that whatever false foundation you have been relying on crumbles sooner rather than later. I pray your defenses that you have erected around your heart are over-run thoughts of the gospel, that you see the absolute sham that is a worldview absent the truth of Jesus. I pray this because it will have to be God’s Spirit who wins you.

it is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all.

I pray this because

John 3:36 ESV

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

Here is the true tragedy of it all; it’s for naught. It’s as sensible as smugly jumping out of an airplane with no parachute, content that you are not discomforted by tight straps and buckles as you plummet to your certain death. Jesus will be no less savior, no less the Son of God for your suffering in Hell for eternity. The Church of Christ will be no less the Church of Christ for your not being a part of it. The saved will be no less saved, nor will there be shed any tears in Heaven over your torments. To reject Christ then is to demand that you stand alone, on your own worthless merits and receive the due penalty; eternally dying without the release of final death.

In stark contrast to that chilling reality, Christ sets Himself still today as the feast for all who would come, so come to the table. Come back to the table again and again. All are welcome. All are invited. All who come will be satisfied, never turned away; never cast out. All who come to this table will be raised on the last day to eternal joy and glory.