From: May 11, 2025
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” — John 6:51 (ESV)
In this powerful statement, Jesus identifies Himself as “the living bread that came down from heaven.” This is one of the seven “I AM” statements in the Gospel of John. In the Greek, Jesus used the emphatic expression “ego eimi,” which literally might be translated, “I, I AM,” pointing to His divine identity as Yahweh, the God who revealed Himself to Moses in Exodus 3:14. Jesus is not just a teacher or miracle worker; He is God in the flesh, offering Himself as the true source of eternal life.
This verse anticipates the language of the Lord’s Supper, but even more, it calls us to deeply trust in the crucified and risen Christ for our very life. The crowd was looking for physical bread, but Jesus offers spiritual, eternal sustenance—His very self.
We often find ourselves seeking temporary solutions to eternal problems. Like the crowd that followed Jesus for more food, we are tempted to look to the things of this world to satisfy us. But only Jesus, the living bread from heaven, can give true and lasting life.
When we come to Him in faith, believing in His sacrificial death and resurrection, we “eat” of the bread He gives—His flesh offered on the cross. This isn’t a one-time act but an ongoing dependence on Jesus as our life. As believers, we are called to daily draw nourishment from Christ through His Word, through prayer, and through remembering His sacrifice. Let us not settle for perishable bread when eternal life is found in the One who gave Himself for the life of the world.
PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for sending Jesus, the living bread from heaven. We confess how often we look to temporary things to satisfy us when only Your Son can give us true and lasting life. Help us to trust in Christ more deeply and depend on Him daily as our sustenance. Teach us to receive His sacrifice with faith and gratitude, and to share this life-giving truth with the world around us. Strengthen us to walk in the fullness of life that Jesus provides. In His name we pray, amen.
From: May 11, 2024
“After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him” (John 6:66 ESV).
In John 6:66, the shocking statement that Jesus made concerning His body and blood as spiritual food, made many so-called disciples desert Him. Just as Moses had led a “mixed multitude” into the wilderness from Egypt (Ex. 12:38), so a mixed multitude followed Jesus. On this day in the synagogue in Capernaum, Jesus separated those who only followed for the free bread, from those who followed because they truly believed him to be the Bread of Life.
In John’s Revelation, he wrote of another “666” (Rev. 13:16-18), the mark of the beast, which in the last days will tempt many to turn away from God and turn to the Antichrist, in order to buy bread. Those who receive this mark will come under the “wrath of God” (Rev. 14:9-11), for they will have rejected the eternal Bread of Life, in order to eat the temporal bread of this world.
I suppose there are many “666” moments when those who follow Jesus must count the cost. In those moments, true believers will continue to follow Jesus no matter the cost. For they have believed that Jesus alone offers the “words of eternal life” (John 6:68).
PRAYER: Dear Father, do not lead us into temptation, but when “666” moments come, deliver us from evil. Help us to walk by faith in Your Son even when trial and temptation come. For Jesus is our eternal life. In His name we pray, amen.
From: May 11, 2023
‘“Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. He led them from the darkness and deepest gloom; he snapped their chains.’ (Psalm 107:13-14 NLT).
The psalmist gave thanks to God for His deliverance in times of trouble and distress. He praised the Lord for bringing them out of the darkness and gloom of slavery. Perhaps a reference to Israel’s time of being enslaved in Egypt. He gave thanks to God as Deliverer. Yet, what had the people done during their time of trouble? It took a while, but they had finally looked up and cried out the Lord for help. And the Lord heard their cry.
Where do you turn when you’re in trouble? When the darkness of depression or the gloom of grief fall upon you, where do you go? When the chains of addiction or bitterness enslave you and you’ve lost friends and family as a result, where do you turn?
You can cry out to the Lord. This is not bargaining with God. This is not a negotiation of equal parties. No. You cry out to God like a helpless child that has no where else to turn, surrendering completely to Him. And He hears. He answers. He delivers us from trouble.
PRAYER: Dear Father, we rarely cry out to You unless we have exhausted all our means. Forgive us for our stubborn attempts at self-reliance. We are learning to depend on You for even our daily bread. We cry out to You this day for the trouble we see in our nation and our world, in our neighborhoods and in our families. Deliver us O Lord. We cry out to You. In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: May 11, 2019
MUST THE ONE IN THE PULPIT BE CALLED TO PREACH?
One of the confirming signs that God had chosen Saul to be king over Israel was that he would prophesy. Saul had gone to the prophet Samuel for help in finding his father’s donkeys. But he left with the prophet’s anointing oil dripping down from his head and the prophet’s words ringing in his ears that he was soon to be king. As he left, all the confirming signs that Samuel had given Saul took place, including the sign of him prophesying.
When others witnessed Saul prophesying, they wondered at how he had come into such a calling. Who was his father or master that he could be able to do such a thing? At which school of prophecy had he studied? Who had given him the authority? So it became a proverbial thing to say in Israel when an unschooled preacher was heard prophesying, “Is even Saul a prophet?”
We still have a tendency today to overemphasize which seminary a preacher attended and under which church he was ordained. It’s not that these things are unimportant, it’s that the calling and anointing of God are so much more so. Biblical education and the affirmation of God’s calling in ordination are valuable in establishing and confirming a preacher’s calling. But it is the calling and anointing of God that is paramount. Yes, the one in the pulpit must be called of God to preach.
PRAYER: Dear Father, we pray for the pulpits in our city, in our country and in our world. May they be filled with called preachers, anointed of the Lord and filled with the Spirit. For You have ordained the Church as Your Body and Bride and You have given her the gifts of the Spirit to accomplish Your purposes. Lord Jesus, You are the Over-Shepherd of the Church. Cleanse our pulpits of false shepherds and fill them with Your anointed, God-called under-shepherds. Give them Holy Spirit boldness to preach the gospel in season and out. In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: May 11, 2016
‘ (John 6:64 ESV).
Many followed Jesus without truly believing. They had their own reasons. Some followed for the free bread. Others for the chance to see a miraculous sign. Still others followed because they hoped He would fulfill their own earthly ends. Yet, Jesus was not naive. He knew their hearts (Matt. 9:4). Today’s church is no different. It is a mixed congregation. The fellow members may not suspect, but Jesus knows who truly believes and who does not.