28 Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"
Exploring the Gospel of John, by John Phillips, explains best this verse in John. On page 126 John Phillips says this, “All false religions have an answer to this question, “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” “Fast!” says Islam, as it sets apart the month of Ramadan for that purpose. “Do penance,” Roman Catholicism said for centuries, “earn indulgences, and say masses.” “Torture your body, perform prodigies of physical endurance,” says Hinduism. “Keep the law according to the tradition of the elders,” said the rabbis.” However, let’s take a look at how Jesus responds to this question in verse 29.
29 Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."
The word ‘works’ (egra) in the original Greek refers to those acts that distinguish the peculiar abilities of some person. In this setting it refers to the works God requires of those who please Him. Jesus directed them to the gift of God that could be obtained by faith in Him. 1 John 3:23 says, “And this is his command: to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as He commanded us.” No real ‘work’ to be done at all, believe and love. So it is a fair statement to believe that if any other faith tells you that you must ‘do this’ or ‘do that’ in order to get to heaven or receive salvation; then they are false doctrines.
30 So they asked him, "What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31 Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' "
Again, the crowd goes back to desiring to see more ‘work’ to be done. Most scholars believe that the people asking this question are the same people that saw Jesus perform a miracle the previous day by feeding 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two small fish. Just like in our own daily lives, we see miracle after miracle performed by Jesus and yet only desire to see more and more instead of being satisfied with what He gives us. The fact that the crowd of people revert back to the days of their forefathers and how God “provided them with bread from heaven,” is very much a fine example of the selfishness that we display in our daily lives today and our blindness to miracles performed all around us. To name a few miracles that I have personally witnessed myself as of late is teenagers getting up and walking away from auto accidents that should have very well taken their lives. Granted, they did sustain some injuries, but they are alive today to share their story. Great examples in our community of people who have battled cancer and defeated it by the power of the shed blood of Christ. And finally one that I get to witness day in and day out, teenagers who are deciding to not become a product of their community and the little it has to offer, and are living their lives differently than those before them. They are stepping out in faith and daring to be different, daring to be chastised and made fun of because of their desire to follow Jesus Christ. That to me, is an amazing miracle that I feel certain people are refusing to appreciate and refusing to accept as adequate enough to help them desire a stronger relationship with Jesus Christ themselves.
32 Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, 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. 33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."
Jesus quickly corrects their way of thinking and says that it is not Moses or man that supplies bread from heaven; rather it is God that provides the bread, physical or spiritual either way, God is the provider for all things. Jesus also defines the word ‘bread’ for the crowd as well in verse 33 so that the crowd is no longer confused as to what He is talking about. Jesus says that “bread is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” (Emphasis mine) The Expositor’s Bible Commentary also says of this verse on page 75, that “This may be an oblique reference to Deuteronomy 8:3: “Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” As physical food is necessary for physical life, so spiritual food is necessary for spiritual life.”
34 "Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread."
Without missing a beat the crowd almost taunts Christ and says, “Well from now on, give us this bread you speak of.” The Expositor’s Bible Commentary on page 75 says this concerning this verse, “The request that Jesus should give the people the bread of life parallels the request of the Samaritan woman for the water of life (4:15). In both cases the petition indicates that the speaker did not understand Jesus’ real meaning and reveals a materialistic frame of mind.”
35 Then 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. 36 But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And 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. 40 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 him up at the last day."
This is the first time that we hear one of Jesus’ great ‘I AM’ statements. Again Jesus, I believe, throws out a bit of sarcasm, along with a “No Duh” statement, as it’s called in youth ministry. Jesus says “I am the bread of life.” What is bread? Bread is solid food and it sustains life. We need food to live; Jesus is saying that He is the food we need to live. Hence during the last supper when Jesus refers to His body as “the bread” and His blood as “the wine.” Jesus is all that we need to sustain life. Jesus will provide everything that we need to live life to the fullest. When was the last time that we gave thanks to Christ for every last thing that we have. A school teacher friend of mine said one day, “Could you survive today, off of what you thanked God for yesterday?” It is indeed a beautiful thought if we really believe that Christ is the provider for all things. He says “He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty!” As I sat here dwelling over this text I realized that the brain is made up of 75-77% water. AMAZING! If we desire Christ, He will provide EVERYTHING for us!
So, let’s break it down into numerous arguments, 1. Bread sustains life. Without bread, life cannot go on. Bread is essential for life. 2. What is life? Life is far more than mere existence. Life has a purpose. 3. Life is a new relationship with God. 4. That relationship is only made possible through Jesus Christ. 5. This to say, Jesus gives life. Without Jesus life is impossible in the full sense of the term. Without Him life may be existence, but it is not life. 6. Therefore, if Jesus gives life, if He is essential of life, then He can be described as the bread of life.
Verse 40 Jesus says that it is His “Father’s will” that everyone who not only views Christ as Lord but also those who believe that Christ is Lord will have everlasting life. Praise be to God that He desires to have a relationship with us! God absolutely owes us nothing, but because of His desire to have a relationship with this broken and sinful waste of a man, He sent His only Son, to die to take the place for my sin so that I can have a relationship with Him, that my friends is grace. Kenneth Wuest says in his book titled “Word Studies in the Greek New Testament” this, “Now we come to the passages in the New Testament where aionios is used in connection with the life God gives the believer when He saves him. We have seen that this word is used in connection with the being of God, and it can only mean “eternal”…aionios never refers to a limited extent of time, but always to that which is eternal or everlasting”
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