Bread and Water, Please.
What’s your favorite fresh bread at a restaurant? Mine used to be at Longhorn Steakhouse, before I had to go gluten free. Warm, honey wheat bread with soft, sweet butter. Yum! (Sorry if I’m making your mouth water.) One bite will have you craving more. You just can’t stop eating it. And they’ll bring all the bread you want, which is good because one little loaf goes pretty fast. Combined with the water, though, you end up feeling like a rat that ate d-Con. Before you know it, you’ve spoiled your appetite for your meal.
Someone posted on Twitter the other day that they wanted to serve only stuffing and pie for Thanksgiving. Sounds like it a plan. Cut out a lot of the work and make everyone happy? I’m in!
But man doesn’t live by bread alone (Matthew 4:4). We need other nutrients. We weren’t meant to get stuffed on bread only, which will leave us feeling bloated but not satisfied. Soon we end up craving something more.
Besides, I’d be leery of eating only bread these days. Most of today’s breads are full of empty calories, to say the least. The wheat has been so adulterated, processed and chemical-laden that in reality it probably does more harm than good. But I digress.
“I am the Bread of Life…” John 6:35
But there is a bread that is pure and has every nutrient we could ever need or want. It’s called the “Bread of Life.” This bread gives nourishment, strength and life to our soul. It even has the ability to sustain us eternally. Wow, that’s some nutritious bread!
However, Jesus said, “Whoever comes to me…” (John 6:35). In other words, we have to come to Him through His Word and prayer to receive it. We must gather it each morning just as the Israelites had to gather manna.
Then this bread has to be consumed in order to nourish and sustain life. Like earthly bread, the more we consume, the more we will crave it (1 Peter 2:2), but we can never consume too much of it. And unlike earthly bread, it will never make us feel sick. (Disclaimer: Beware of the “adulterated” kind.)
And when we do consume it? The verse goes on, we “…will never be hungry…” This isn’t talking about having our physical needs met, but our spiritual needs. Jesus, the Bread of Life, fills the God-shaped hole inside each one of us. We were made to crave Him. He is the lover of our soul (Jeremiah 31:3), and so satisfies our deepest longings.
Finally, the verse finishes, “…and will never be thirsty.” He serves all the water you want, too – Living Water (John 4:10-15, 7:38).
Oftentimes we don’t recognize that food cravings are our body telling us we need something nutritionally. We mistake the craving for being hungry and fill it with the wrong foods and continue to have cravings. It can be the same spiritually. We can have an emptiness inside & try to fill it with worldly things, the tainted bread the world serves, instead of Jesus’ pure, life-giving, soul-quenching Bread. We can be hungry for God, His Word & prayer & not even realize it. (click to tweet)
His Bread has healing power for our souls. When we come to Him and partake of His “Daily Bread,” we will never be left wanting. He satisfies what our soul craves, and His Bread is the only bread in life that can do this.
In closing, let’s take a look at Isaiah 55:1-3 ESV:
“Come, everyone who thirsts,
come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me;
hear, that your soul may live…
What are you hungry for?
How might you be spoiling your appetite for God?
I would love to hear from you. Join the conversation in the comments, or if you have questions about Jesus and how you can be satisfied by His “Daily Bread,” feel free to reach out to me via my website here.
Jesus taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread…” (Matthew 6:11). Something tells me He wasn’t only talking about physical food. The E of the prayer acrostic in Pursuing Prayer – Being Effective in a Busy World examines this “bread” and how we can “enjoy” it as it satisfies our spiritual hunger, as well as how God provides for our physical needs. Pursuing Prayer releases from New Hope Publishers soon! More information and preorder here.
And please join me for my release day celebration on Monday, November 18 on my Facebook author page here. Be sure to “like” and “follow” the page beforehand so you can join the fun and prizes.
Meanwhile, don’t forget to download your free copy of “Ten Prayer Tips for Busy Days” here.