( Published July Of 2007 by carlvasta.com )
( 191kb - 53 pages )
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Jesus Offers The Bread Of Life The next day the crowd that Jesus fed on the other side of the lake realized that he was in Capernaum, and when they found him, they asked him, "Teacher when did you get here?" Jesus answered, "I am telling you the truth: you are looking for me because you ate the bread and had all you wanted, not because you understood my miracles. Do not work for food that spoils; instead, work for food that lasts for eternal life. This is the food which the Son of Man will give you, because God, the Father, has put his mark of approval on him." ( Author's Note: When you read the next passages, please keep these most important points in mind.. ) *The book of John is the only gospel where Jesus refers to himself as the "bread of life." *John starts his gospel by introducing Jesus as the Word Of God. ( Book of John, Chapter 1, Verses 1-18 ) *In Matthew 4:4, The Devil came to Jesus in the desert after 40 nights without food and said, "If you are God's Son, order these stones to turn into bread." Jesus answered, "The scripture says, 'Man cannot live on bread alone, but needs every word that God speaks.'" ( Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 from the Old Testament ) *Within the Holy Trinity, ( Father, Son, and Holy Spirit ) Jesus is identified as the Son Of God, and the Word Of God. When he says; 'whoever eats my flesh', he is referring to the scripture above. Bread is for the nourishment of the body, the Word Of God is for the nourishment of the soul. The bread we eat nourishes the body and passes through it, but the Word Of God, that we take in us, remains dormant until it is given life by the blood. As blood gives life to the flesh, so BELIEVING that 'God sent his son Jesus to take our sins' is the 'blood of Christ' that we drink. Our BELIEF gives life to the 'Word Of God' that we take in. And it becomes the living and growing 'Word Of God' which is able to change us from our sinful nature to God's nature. ) So they asked Jesus what God would have them do and Jesus answered "What God wants you to do is to believe in the one he sent." They asked Jesus to perform a miracle so they might believe in him, saying, "Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, just as the scripture says, 'He gave them the bread from heaven to eat.' Jesus tells them that what Moses gave them was not the bread from heaven. Jesus added, "For the bread that God gives is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." "Sir," they asked him, "give us this bread always." "I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE," Jesus told them. He who comes to me will never be hungry; he who believes in me will never be thirsty." Jesus tells them, "You have seen me and the miracles I performed and you still do not believe, but everyone that my Father chooses will come to me and I will not turn anyone away. I have come down from heaven not to do my will, but the will of the one who sent me. And it is the will of him who sent me that I should not lose any of those he has given me, but that I should raise them all to life on the last day." The people started grumbling because he said, "I am the bread of life that came down from heaven." So they said, "This man is Jesus son of Joseph, isn't he? We know his father and mother. How, then does he now say he came down from heaven?" Jesus tells them, "The prophets wrote, 'Everyone will be taught by God.' ( Isaiah 54:13 ) Anyone who hears the Father and learns from him comes to me. This does not mean that anyone has seen the Father; he who is from God is the only one who has seen the Father. I am telling you the truth: he who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate manna in the desert, but they died. But the bread that comes down from heaven is of such a kind that whoever eats it will not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. The bread that I will give him is my flesh, which I give so that the world may live." This started an angry argument among them. "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" they asked. Jesus said to them, I am telling you the truth: if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you will not have life in yourselves. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him to life on the last day. For my flesh is the real food; my blood is the real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me, and I live in him. Many of his followers heard this and said, "This teaching is too hard. Who can listen to it?" Jesus knew that they were grumbling about this, so he said to them, "Does this make you want to give up? Suppose, then that you should see the Son of Man go back up to the place where he was before? What gives life is God's Spirit; man's power is of no use at all. The words I have spoken to you bring God's life-giving Spirit. Yet some of you do not believe." ( Jesus knew from the very beginning who were the ones that would not believe and which one would betray him. ) And he added, "This is the very reason I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father makes it possible for him to do so." Because of these words, many of Jesus' followers abandoned him, so he asked the twelve disciples, "And you... do you want to leave me too? Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. And now we believe and know that you are the Holy One who has come from God." Jesus replied, "I chose the twelve of you, didn't I? Yet one of you is a devil!" He was talking about Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. For Judas, even though he was one of the twelve disciples, was going to betray him. Previous Quotes ( Printer Friendly ) ( 191kb - 53 pages ) 2006 January Lazarus And The Rich Man ("about death & believing") February The Greatest Commandment ("about love") March The Lost Sheep & The Lost Son ("rejoicing for who has given up their life of sin") April The Meaning Of Easter - Three Examples From Jesus May The Worry Of Daily Life June The Ten Lepers July The Good Samaritan August How To Give and How To Pray September The Un-believing Towns October Signs Revealing Christ's Return To Earth November The Last Supper December Why We Should Celebrate Christmas 2007 January The Things That Make A Person Unclean February Marriage, Adultery, and Divorce March Jesus Chooses The Apostles April The Coming Persecutions For The Believers May Jesus Feeds 5000 Men, ( not counting the women and children ) ( part 1 ) June Jesus Walks On The Water ( part 2 ) August The Meaning Of The Cross September Jonah And The Whale October Jesus And The Devil ( Satan ) November Jesus And The Sabbath ( The Day Of Rest ) December The Christmas Story ( The Birth Of Jesus )
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