Jesus, the Bread of Life: Far too many people spend their lives chasing after things they think will give them a deep and meaningful life, only to find that years later, they are sadly disappointed. Only Jesus, the bread of life, provides the life we long for. All else will fall short. Only the life found by faith in him will finally and eternally satisfy. He is sufficient; he is enough. Recorded on Oct 8, 2023, on John 6:25-40 by Pastor David Parks.

Finding Life in Jesus’ Name is a sermon series on the gospel according to John in the Bible. Have you ever felt unsatisfied with your life? Or, even when things were going well, something was still missing? Many people sense there must be something more. But what?? John, one of the closest friends of Jesus, believed that Jesus came into the world so that we may have life and have it to the full. Jesus turned John’s life upside down, and John claims this new life — marked by God’s power, presence, and purpose — is available for all who believe.

Sermon Transcript

All year, we’re going through the gospel according to John in a series called Finding Life in Jesus’ Name. And today, we’re continuing in John 6 with the first of the famous “I AM” statements of Jesus. As I said last week, the gospel according to John, is like an art gallery, with every piece curated to teach us something about the person and work of Jesus. And there are different wings of the gallery organized by unique themes, such as the seven miraculous signs like turning water into wine or walking on the water (like we saw last week). But, like the seven signs, the seven “I AM” statements teach us much about who Jesus is and what he came to do all those years ago. Our statement for today is his claim, “I am the bread of life.” This is a statement about the purpose or the mission of Jesus — what Jesus came to accomplish. And what did Jesus come to accomplish? Well, surely the main work relates to offering the forgiveness of sins through his death and the cross and his resurrection from the dead, right? And the answer is yes to that. But forgiveness of sin is not the only thing Jesus came to do. The good news is that Jesus came to do many good things, including the offer of life — real/abundant/eternal life, the life that God our Creator always intended for us to have/enjoy. Here’s the problem: far too many people (including many Christians) spend their lives chasing things they think will result in a deep and meaningful life, only to find that years later, or decades later, they are sadly disappointed. Far too many people chase things like relationships/career/beauty/power/wealth/family/fame, thinking that their thing will give them the good life, the life they long for. But as we’ll see today, only Jesus, the bread of life, provides the life that we long for. If you’ve ever been unsatisfied with life in this broken world, this message is for you. If you have a Bible/app, please take it and open it to John 6:25.

John 6:25–27 (NIV), “25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” 26 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” Ok, let’s pause here. So, we’re just jumping right back into where we left off last week. Remember that the previous day was the biggest ministry day, yet. Jesus had miraculously fed the five thousand by multiplying the five loaves and two fish. Then, the previous night, Jesus had sent his disciples back across the Sea of G...