bread of life

Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself. — Jesus | Scripture References: John 6:35, John 4:14, John 14:12-21, John 14:23-27, John 15, John 16:12-15, John 16:23, John 16:27, John 16:33

Special music by Brandon Coz.

John 6:22-40

22The next day the crowd that had stayed on the opposite shore of the lake realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with his disciples, but that they had gone away alone. 23Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus. 25When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, "Rabbi, when did you get here?" 26Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval." 28Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" 29Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." 30 So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, 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 the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” 35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever 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 those 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 those 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 them up at the last day.”

      Focusing on the person of Jesus

      I am the bread of life 

       v.35: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger.”

       v.41: “I am the bread that came down from heaven.”

       v.48: “I am the bread of life.”

        v.51: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever.”

        v.55: “My flesh is true food.”

     Working by Faith 

     John 6:27 “Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”

      1.     The Father’s Seal on Jesus

      2.     Food that endures to eternal life

      3.    The Food that perishes

Saint Athanasius Church

Contra Mundum Swagger

Video Version 

All of us have our own personal experiences of encountering Christ in our lives.  Sometimes they come us as epiphanies where we have “mountain top” experiences that change how we see ourselves and the world.  These encounters can motivate us to seek out more divine experiences where we can come closer to God and taste the fruits of the Spirit.  Continually recognizing the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives and the presence of Christ around us can be described as abiding in Christ.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus tells his followers that those who eat his flesh and drink his blood will abide in him, and he will abide in them.  This was such a controversial statement that many of his followers left him, but he did not retract his statement.  He only pressed his point further by rhetorically asking them if they were offended.  Abiding in Christ has been a goal for Christians from the beginning, and this week we will explore this teaching and how we might come closer to God.

It is His Word that shall lead us to the right path and out of harms way. It is this Bread (Word) that we ought to always depend on for it’s wisdom for our lives. 

“For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst" - John 6:33-35

"Who is, and who was, and who is to come."
What a comfort this December verse is! 2020 has been a doozy, y'all. But, we haven't walked this crazy road alone. God, in his unchanging character, has met us time and time again.  

As we chose our 2020 memory verses last year, we could never have imagined how perfectly timed they would be! We have already prayed over and chosen our 2021 verses- and we promise we only picked realllly light hearted, easy ones! Just kidding (but we are praying that 2021 is kinder to us all!). We are so grateful that you're here learning scripture with us and listening as we introduce our December verse, Revelation 1:8:

I // a m 
t h e // A l p h a 
a n d //  t h e //  O m e g a
s a y s // t h e // L o r d // G o d
w h o // i s // a n d
w h o // w a s // a n d 
w h o // i s // t o // c o m e
T h e // A l m i g h t y
R e v e l a t i o n // 1 : 8

Pop Quiz! Do you know what's happening to Jesus as he shares Matthew 4:4 with us? Context is so important and we are answering this question for you in today's podcast with Wren Robbins.

Jesus tells us that we are not meant to live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Scripture is not just important, it is crucial. It's our weapon against the enemy. It's our source of truth. It's our life line.  

As Wren shares, it's not a matter of IF you'll need scripture, but a matter of WHEN you'll need it. And guess what? It's all day, every day. 

Thanks for spending a few minutes listening in our our chat with Wren today. We're so glad you're here!

Find out more about Wren here.
Ellie Holcomb Fighting Words

Happy November! We could not be more excited to share this month's verse with you!

Jesus answered; "It is written: 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" -Matthew 4:4

While this month is often filled with feasting on good food, we will also be dwelling on the idea that God's word is our true feast.  It's not the turkey and mashed potatoes that will keep us full- it's the very word of God. We are eager to share with you some examples of how the scriptures have fed our souls this year, and we also want to hear how that has happened for YOU! Shoot us an email, leave us a comment, head over to Insta and DM us...we want to know how you've been feasting on the word!

If we're going to do much of anything for God for very long, we're going to need liberal amounts of communication from Jesus through the Holy Scriptures.

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