When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26 Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” 28 Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” 30 So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us, then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ” 32 Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is that which[d] comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 They said to him, “Sir,[e] give us this bread always.” 35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
John 6: 25-35
In my work as a counselor, I have spent many hours with couples as they work on their relationships. Often, two people realize that one source of their problems and struggles is their tendency to “make their partner in their own image.” They realize that they have a well-developed picture in their mind of who their partner is an who they want their partner to be. Then, they spend all of their time and energy relating to this picture. And, of course, when the partner doesn’t act in ways that agree with that picture, you can imagine how that leads to frustration, anger, and conflicts.
Now, the counseling process can become more meaningful. They stop figuring out what is wrong with the other person and how they can get them to change. Instead, they figure out what is wrong with their picture of the other person and how that is contributing to the problem.
One of the discoveries many couples make is that this “making the person in your own image” does more than create conflicts; it keeps them from being able to see, to embrace, and to love this truly unique and special person that is right in front of them.
“Making a person in your own image” is not something that happens just between couples. It is a dynamic that can be found in almost every relationship. It is a dynamic that can be found in the crowd’s response to Jesus in these words from John. The miraculous feeding has peaked their interest and fascination with Jesus, but it is a Jesus that, in many ways, they have made in their own image.
As we consider some of the questions of faith posed to us by the biblical story, notice the questions asked by the crowd throughout this exchange in the Gospel of John. Rabbi, when/how did you come here? What must we do to be doing the works of God? Then what sign do you do that we may see and believe you? Lord, give us this bread always.
They seem like honest enough questions and requests. But notice how Jesus responds. He doesn’t answer their questions. In fact, he doesn’t seem that interested in addressing their questions. That is because he realizes the questions are leading and loaded.
I am reminded of the advice from one of my counseling supervisors: Gary, never ask a question to which you have already formed an answer.
When you do that, you are making the client into your own image, instead of learning fully who he/she is. You are taking them on a journey into what you think is true about their lives, instead of joining them on a journey where they can reveal what they know to be true about their lives.
The crowd was asking these kinds of leading questions. They had some ideas of who Jesus was, what he was about, what he could offer to them, and what difference he could make in their lives.
“What must we do to be doing the works of God?” really meant, “I have a pretty good idea of what I want the work of God to be, can you confirm what I’m thinking?” “What sign do you do that we may see and believe you” is really “I have in mind an act that would really convince me that you are who I believe you to be; let’s see if you are willing to perform it.”
Perhaps Jesus is inviting us to consider the reasons that we seek him, to consider the reasons we seek the God and the life he offers. To be sure, there is nothing wrong with being a seeker. In fact, there is a lot that is good about seeking God and having our own reasons for seeking God.
But in these exchanges, the Jesus in John’s Gospel may be telling us that our seeking, and the reasons for our seeking, are only the beginning of a life of faith. If we go no further than our seeking, we run the risk of making Jesus in our own image. Because the truth is, what we seek from Jesus is far different and far less that he is prepared and willing to give.
Every week, the church in which I grew up would talk about asking Jesus into my heart or inviting Jesus into my life. But what if this journey of faith is about hearing and considering and then accepting Jesus’ invitation into his heart and into his life?
Jesus does not come into the world to meet our expectations.
Jesus comes into the world, and into our lives, to call us beyond our limited perspectives, and the limited ways of living that go with these perspectives. Jesus does not come into the world to add what he can to the deeds and actions that shape our lives. He comes with the transforming power of God to shape our lives into what he defines as meaningful and purposeful. Jesus does not come into the world to fortify our intent for living. He comes that might receive and be shaped by his intent for living.
Quite simply, Jesus offers himself to us as the bread of life. But Jesus as the bread of life is not just a summary statement to wrap up the dialogue of this story and bring it to a meaningful end. The image of Jesus as bread of life captures everything, everything Jesus has been trying to say…to the crowd and to each of us.
Jesus as bread of life is the answer to the leading questions asked by the crowd.
“Rabbi, when do you get here?” There is no “let me tell you about me stroll across the lake last night.” Instead, Jesus challenges them to look at why they are even seeking him at all, no matter when or how he got here.
“What must we do to be doing the works of God?” Jesus does not recite a list of good and honorable deeds to perform and check off as completed. With an ironic twist, he says that the only “work” you can do is believe, trust me, enter into relationship with me, and accept the call to be with me and live like me.
“What sign do you do that we may believe and see you?” There is no attempt to outdo Moses’ miracle of bread from heaven. Instead, Jesus offers the invitation to eat of the bread of life that satisfies any hunger you can experience or imagine in this life.
Jesus as bread of life is the answer to any of the questions we have about our lives. It is not bread that we make ourselves and then enjoy. It is bread made by the hands of another and offered to us. There are no leading questions that we ask of Jesus, so we can figure out the place we want him to have in our lives. There is only the invitation to enter into life with him and see where the journey takes us.
