The Bread of Life

In the beginning, was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

The same was in the beginning with God. 

All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

John 1:1-3,14 

   ​ Ah, yes, the miraculous manifestation of the Almighty God. The day divinity stepped down into humanity and made Himself known unto His creation. The Apostle John so wonderfully bridges the gap from Genesis 1:1 to John 1:1,14 with the words he penned on his parchment ––the embodiment of God declared in the flesh.

   ​What Moses and the prophets had written about had finally come to pass. The Messiah had come. The Holy One of Israel —their redeemer. As John the Baptist so eloquently put it, "the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world."

​The Word would no longer need to be read off scrolls to perform ceremonial rituals. No, God's Word was now living, breathing, and walking amongst His people —the Word was made flesh.

​He was living in the world and leading by example, showing that the Word could be lived in and out of the flesh and wasn't only reserved for the letter.

Preaching and teaching brilliantly and masterfully crafted sermons, each homily was laced with deep metaphorical themes — depicting a transition from the literal to the spiritual. Christ was ushering a paradigm shift in the religious mindset of His day and the world. It was now humanity's turn to live out this Word not only in the flesh but, more importantly, in their hearts.

Scorned for His disobedience to the Law by the religious establishment of His day, the Scribes and Pharisees, a witch hunt ensued. They attempted to catch Him at His words, tempting Him with politically motivated questions in an effort to tarnish His character and influence over the people.

Infuriated by His healings on the Sabbath and eating with unwashed hands, many of His peers considered it blasphemy! His outlandish statements, like "go thy way, thy sins are forgiven," further inflamed them. How could the carpenter's son make such heretical remarks?

Because they were so focused on the natural and not the spiritual! They had overlooked the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah. 

Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. 

Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you. 

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 

Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.

Isaiah 35:3-6

    ​There He stood before their eyes, the Creator of the world, the one whom Isaiah had prophesied about. The very God who had called them by His name and brought them forth from the fiery furnace of Egyptian bondage — Jehovah-Jireh.

You might be asking yourself the same question I asked myself: How did they not realize who and what Jesus was? Despite all the signs and wonders (which were evident to a select few), the majority of the population failed to recognize Him. Really? Yes, really. Because the intent of the Word couldn't be fulfilled in their hearts and minds; it was only seen as a duty, not something from the heart. Please, don't take this offensively; Jesus himself cast the scornful diatribe when he quoted Isaiah 29:13 in the Gospel of Mark 7:6 Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

The Word was Holy only on the external but not on the internal. Being Holy like the Lord goes beyond just loving the Word. It has to become our character. It has to become the very fiber that makes up our soul if we want to see the Lord someday. No, you don't have to be a master of hermeneutics or exegesis to be Holy like the Lord; that's why God gave us a Pastor to lead and guide us through the scriptures. Our job is to eat the Bread of Life (which is the Word of God) and live it day in and day out. 

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 6:35

​When the Word of God becomes Holy to us, we'll become Holy unto it. Then we can realize the true meaning of the Bread of Life and what it means to never thirst again.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Matthew 5:6

What is driving your appetite? Only the Word of God can satiate our souls and remove the world's hunger. The grave is the great equalizer. God's Holy Word, the bread of life, is the only thing separating the living from the dead on judgment day! Live it, love it, apply it to your heart, and you shall see the Lord on that resurrection day.