John 6:22-40
The next day the people came looking for him, noticing there was only one boat and Jesus had not gotten on it. They asked when he got to the other side, obviously perplexed about it. However, the reason they were seeking Jesus was not because of the miracle but because they wanted more to eat. In response, Jesus told them to seek food that endures to eternal life, speaking of Himself.
Bread is a natural fuel to satisfy a physical appetite of hunger that leads to the body functioning the way it should. Similarly, what Jesus offers leads to satisfaction of a spiritual hunger that leads us to eternal life and spiritual function.
In verse 32, Jesus referred to Moses and manna. The manna God gave the Israelites in the wilderness was to teach them to depend on God each morning for their daily bread. It was a lesson of reliance, surrender. They were not to gather on the Sabbath, so the dependency of their faith also included obedience.
Jesus spoke on a true bread from heaven. The lesson Jesus was teaching was reliance on His Lordship, and through surrender in a relationship with Him, we can know life, here and now, as well as for eternity. The people asked for this bread, and Jesus said, “I am the bread of life.” He wanted the people to seek Him. A spiritual hunger causes for us to seek Him.
In verse 38, Jesus says that He has come down from heaven. In Philippians 2:5-8, we read that Jesus chose to leave glory and take the form of a human being. Jesus existed before He was born to Mary. He came to do what the Father wanted for Him to do. He didn’t come to do what He wanted to do.
To depend on God and obey Him is what satisfies spiritual hunger. He is what we are made for. He is what we are missing if we are separated from Him. We lack the life and glory for which we were designed. However, when we know the Lord, we find He completes us. He makes us whole again, nothing missing, nothing lacking. He is our everything.
2 Kings 18-19
During King Hezekiah’s term of office over Judah, Israel’s northern tribes are taken captive by Assyria. Hezekiah was a war time king, fighting the Philistines and resisting Assyria. He also did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and he removed all other forms of false idols and false worship.
A decade later, King Sennacherib of Assyria comes against Hezekiah. This time Hezekiah pays the king off. Then King Sennacherib boasts against the Lord for dominating Judah.
The prophet Isaiah prophesies deliverance for Judah. King Sennacherib gives a threat and King Hezekiah offers a prayer. The Lord responds to his prayer, and the Assyrian king is defeated and dies.
God hears us when we pray in the surrendered and obedient posture of faith. Has God changed, or is He the same? If we sow sin, will we not reap the consequences? If we sow righteousness, won’t we reap the rewards? Galatians 6:7-9 is clear. If we think we don’t reap what we sow, we are deceived; we think a holy God can be mocked by our sinning without consequence. If not for the mercy of God given to the repentant heart, our seeds will reap a harvest. We must humble ourselves before God and come to Him through faith in the blood of Christ Jesus. There is forgiveness with Him (1 John 1:9).
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