Advent: The Bread of Life

Bread is something many of us eat everyday. It is something that is a regular part of our diet. In the Bible passage for today, Jesus declares, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, . . . “ (John 6:35)

In meditating on this passage, I am reminded of another time that bread was important in the Bible. When the Israelites had left Egypt and were in the desert on the way to the Promised Land, they began to complain that they had been better off in Egypt and they cried out that they would starve. God heard their cries and had compassion on them. He sent them manna on a daily basis for the forty years that they wondered in the wilderness, until they reached Canaan, the Promised Land (Exodus 16). In many ways this is foreshadowing of the Bread of Life provided by Jesus Christ. Just like the Israelites needed manna every day as they traveled the wilderness, you and I need the Bread of Life as we travel through this world. We need Jesus every day.

The Old Testament is fulfilled in the New Testament, and this is true in this case as well. Jesus does so much more that saying he is the Bread of Life. He fulfills this promise as he and his disciples share the Last Supper (Mark 14) and he proves it through his sacrifice on the cross (Mark 15). This is an important symbol for the early church as Christians gathered and “they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, the breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts 2:42).

As we prepare for Christmas and reflect on the gift of Jesus, the Bread of Life, let us remember that we need him daily, and that because of his sacrifice on the cross, we will never go hungry, He is all of the spiritual food we need. Christ gave himself freely for us, and because he is the Bread of Life, we can look forward to His second coming and life eternal.