We know his father and mother. How can he say that he has come from heaven?” Jesus
answered them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. No one can come to me unless he
is drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise him up on the last day. It has been
written in the Prophets: They shall all be taught by God. So whoever listens and learns
from the Father comes to me. For no one has seen the Father except the One who comes
from God; he has seen the Father. Truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.
I am the bread of life. Though your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, they died. But
here you have the bread which comes from heaven so that you may eat of it and not die.
I am the living bread which has come from heaven; whoever eats of this bread will live
forever. The bread I shall give is my flesh and I will give it for the life of the world.”

READ: The Jews murmured because Jesus referred to himself as the bread from heaven.
Jesus was sent by the Father. However, they thought they knew Jesus. Jesus told them
that nobody could come to him unless drawn by the Father. The one listening and learning
from the Father would come to Jesus. Jesus further told his listeners that no one has seen
God except the one who came from God. Jesus referred to himself as the bread of life, and
again, as the living bread coming down from heaven. The one who ate of the living bread
would live forever. The bread which Jesus would give was his flesh for the salvation of the
world.

REFLECT: In John’s Gospel, Jesus is the Revealer of the Father. Jesus came from the
Father and would return to the Father. The only one who can reveal God is the one who
came from God. Today’s Gospel describes Jesus as the bread of life. Jesus told his
listeners that he is the living bread who came down from heaven. The Father sent Jesus
into the world not to condemn the world but to save the world because God loves the
world (cf. Jn. 3:16). Jesus came from a loving God and to such a God Jesus returned.
Jesus now leads us in this return while revealing God’s love. Do we want to be led by
Jesus?

PRAY: Let us pray that we may also become instruments of God’s revelation.

ACT: Today, let us lead someone closer to God.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2024