What Did Jesus Mean by Saying, “I Am the Bread of Life”?

In yesterday's meditation, we discussed the inner emptiness we feel in our lives when we are apart from God's presence. Jesus had just multiplied bread and fish for more than five thousand people. After this miracle, the Jewish people who ate the bread and fish asked Christ for a miraculous sign, similar to when Moses provided manna during their wilderness wanderings. Jesus responded with the following words:

³³For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." ³⁴"Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread." ³⁵Then 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. ³⁶But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. ³⁷All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. ³⁸For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. ³⁹And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. ⁴⁰For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day" (John 6:33-40; emphasis added).

When the listeners responded, “From now on give us this bread” (v. 34), they were thinking of daily food that would come from that time on, similar to the manna that fell from heaven during Moses' time. However, the manna was only a symbol, a picture, of the true Manna that God would send. Jesus declared that He is the Real Bread from heaven, the only One able to satisfy the spiritual hunger. Jesus was speaking in spiritual terms.

What did the Lord mean by His statement that He is the Bread of Life? In those days, bread was a staple of life in Israel. We have an inner stomach that needs spiritual food deep inside our being. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life.” He is the only One who can fill the empty "spiritual stomach." If the Lord were speaking to Asian people, perhaps He might have said, "I am the rice of life." Only Christ can fill our spiritual stomachs. He is the staple diet of the soul, the One who fills the void deep within us.

In this Scripture above (v. 35), we see the core of becoming a Christian and filling the emptiness inside our hearts. It involves coming to Christ and nourishing ourselves on His life spiritually, trusting in Him. This act of eating this bread is not a one-time event, like inviting Christ into your life and being born again, but a daily feast on Christ, which transforms us into His image and likeness as we continue to live for Him.

The daily manna the Israelites ate in the wilderness was a symbol of the future reality that Christ would provide for us spiritually. Paul the Apostle described it this way: “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Our inner being, our spirit, is transformed as we nourish ourselves spiritually on Christ and take hold of His power and life, just as a branch from a vine draws its life from the vine rootstock itself (John 15:4-5).

God connects with us spiritually when we are born again and receive the gift of new life in Christ. The Spirit of God comes to live in us and helps us keep that connection, a flow of spiritual life from God. This sustains us and gives people a sense that all is well with their inner being, their soul. Commentator R. Kent Hughes says this about Christ being the bread of life:

“There are several similarities between manna and Jesus, the Bread of Life. The manna typified Jesus, for it was white like fallen snow, just as Christ was without blemish or imperfection. Manna was also accessible. That was one of its main virtues. When a man walked outside the camp to gather it, he had a choice. He could either tread on it or he could pick it up. We can either tread on Jesus or take Him as our Savior. Put another way, the Scriptures say Jesus can be a cornerstone or a stumbling block. How we respond to Him makes all the difference.”^[1]

Shortened from the more extended study at the following link: Jesus, the Bread of Heaven

^[1] R. Kent Hughes, That You May Believe, Commentary on the Book of John, Page 206, Crossway Publishers.