34 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread from now on.” 35 Yeshua answered, “I am the bread which is life! Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever trusts in me will never be thirsty.[Footnotes:
John 6:31 Psalm 78:24; Nehemiah 9:15]
Saint Anselm, Bishop and Doctor of the ChurchMy Father gives you the true bread from heaven. (John 6:32)
Have you ever seen a horse wearing blinders? Drivers use them so that the horse looks straight ahead and is not distracted by what’s going on around it. But if the blinders were never removed, the horse would have a very narrow view of life. In some ways, this is what Jesus was trying to do with the people seeking bread: he wanted to remove their blinders.
We shouldn’t think badly of the people who were following Jesus looking for bread. They were relying on their past experience: Jesus had fed them when they were hungry in the past; they were hungry now, so they assumed he would feed them once again. They believed he could provide for them. They even compared this miracle to the way God miraculously fed the Israelites in the desert.
But their sights were set too low; their horizon was too narrow. It was as if they had blinders on. Jesus had so much more in store for them than ordinary bread! He didn’t just want to solve their immediate problem of hunger; he wanted them never to be hungry again. He wanted to give them his very self so that they would be profoundly nourished.
Let’s remove our blinders today! Let’s not succumb to narrow vision. Yes, we trust Jesus and know that he has worked in our lives, but sometimes we don’t expect anything deeper.
Maybe you are struggling today and just want to see Jesus smooth things out for you. But what if he wants to do more? Maybe he wants to lift your spirit above your struggles or show you how to deal with them once and for all. Maybe you’re planning on going to Confession but just want to “get it over with.” What if Jesus wants this to be the best confession of your life? Maybe he wants to give you deep freedom over a sin pattern or confidence in his unfailing love.
When you read the Scriptures or pray today, expect something great. Don’t shy away from the ways he may be trying to give you awesome gifts from his Spirit. Give him the freedom to go deeper than you asked!
“Lord Jesus, I want more than mere bread. I want never to be hungry again! Lift my eyes to expect from you the life you want to give me!” Amen!
Acts 7:51 “Stiffnecked people,[a] with uncircumcised hearts and ears![b] You continually oppose the Ruach HaKodesh![c] You do the same things your fathers did! 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who told in advance about the coming of the Tzaddik, and now you have become his betrayers and murderers! — 53 you! — who receive the Torah as having been delivered by angels — but do not keep it!”
54 On hearing these things, they were cut to their hearts and ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Ruach HaKodesh, looked up to heaven and saw God’s Sh’khinah, with Yeshua standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look!” he exclaimed, “I see heaven opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”[d]
57 At this, they began yelling at the top of their voices, so that they wouldn’t have to hear him; and with one accord, they rushed at him, 58 threw him outside the city and began stoning him. And the witnesses laid down their coats at the feet of a young man named Sha’ul.
59 As they were stoning him, Stephen called out to God, “Lord Yeshua! Receive my spirit!” 60 Then he kneeled down and shouted out, “Lord! Don’t hold this sin against them!” With that, he died;
8:1 and Sha’ul gave his approval to his murder.
Starting with that day, there arose intense persecution against the Messianic Community in Yerushalayim; all but the emissaries were scattered throughout the regions of Y’hudah and Shomron.[Footnotes:
Acts 7:51 Exodus 32:9; 33:3, 5
Acts 7:51 Leviticus 26:41; Jeremiah 6:10; 9:25(26)
Acts 7:51 Isaiah 63:10
Acts 7:56 Psalm 110:1]
Psalm 31:3 (2) Turn your ear toward me,
come quickly to my rescue,
be for me a rock of strength,
a fortress to keep me safe.
4 (3) Since you are my rock and fortress,
lead me and guide me for your name’s sake.
6 (5) Into your hand I commit my spirit;
you will redeem me, Adonai, God of truth.
7 (6) I hate those who serve worthless idols;
as for me, I trust in Adonai.
8 (7) I will rejoice and be glad in your grace,
for you see my affliction,
you know how distressed I am.
17 (16) Make your face shine on your servant;
in your grace, save me.
21 (20) In the shelter of your presence
you hide them from human plots,
you conceal them in your shelter,
safe from contentious tongues.
John 6:35 Yeshua answered, “I am the bread which is life! Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever trusts in me will never be thirsty. 36 I told you that you have seen but still don’t trust. 37 Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will certainly not turn away. 38 For I have come down from heaven to do not my own will but the will of the One who sent me. 39 And this is the will of the One who sent me: that I should not lose any of all those he has given me but should raise them up on the Last Day. 40 Yes, this is the will of my Father: that all who see the Son and trust in him should have eternal life, and that I should raise them up on the Last Day.”
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