In John 6:35 Jesus tells a crowd of people, “I AM the Bread of Life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” What a potent, self-identifying statement by Jesus! Jesus was not just talking about physical hunger and thirst; He was telling us that He will meet ALL our needs.
HE MEETS OUR PHYSICAL NEEDS
Jesus provides for our physical needs (material, earthly, emotional, mental). He is the source of all we need. Even a quick look through scripture shows us He has proven trustworthy.
- John 6:31: “Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: ‘he gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” The Israelites had left Egypt, they were wandering around in the desert and they were desperate. God provided manna, “bread from Heaven.”
- John 6:1-15: Verse 5 says, “’Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?’ He asked this only to test Philip.” In verse 7 we see Phillip’s reply: “…Eight months wages would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite.” Then in verse 9 we see Andrew’s reply, the first step of one of Jesus’ most memorable miracles, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish…” Jesus can take the smallest gift and use it to provide all we need.
- Matthew 6:33-34 says, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” God knows what we need (food, clothing, shelter) and He will provide for us.
- And The Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:11 reminds us that He will, “Give us this day our daily bread….”
HE MEETS OUR SPIRITUAL NEEDS
Jesus is God’s answer to our biggest need: SIN! We’ve all taken quite a few missteps in life. Jesus came to meet our spiritual needs and to address our sin problem. He came to offer us life-saving forgiveness!
It doesn’t have to be complicated. The message of the Gospel (as found in Romans) is clear!
| Rom 3:10 | No one is righteous | Rom 8:11 | Jesus lives in you |
| Rom 3:23 | All have sinned | Rom 8:37 | We are the champions |
| Rom 5:8 | God loves us | Rom 10:9 | Confess Christ as Lord |
| Rom 6:23 | Wages of sin = DEATH Gift of God = LIFE | Rom 10:13 | Everyone can be saved |
| Rom 8:1 | No condemnation | Rom 10:17 | Saving faith in Christ |
HE MEETS OUR ETERNAL NEEDS
Want to know a secret? Everyone will live forever! BUT, not everyone will live in Heaven forever. Jesus came and died and rose so that we can live forever with Him in Heaven – with complete joy, total happiness, and absolute perfection. Jesus says, “I AM the Bread of Life.” He came and died and rose again to meet all our needs. So the question is not, “Do you want to live forever?” The question is, “Where do you want to live forever?”