The Bread Of Life In The Testaments

Uplook – February 2014 — Grace & Truth Magazine

The BREAD Of Life
In The Old And New Testaments

“I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.” — John 6:51 NKJV

Introduction
God cares for His people. The Bible speaks from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22 about His provisions of food for His loved ones. After God created Adam and formed his wife Eve, He blessed them and provided a great variety of food for them (Gen. 1:29). There was only one exception to this abundance: they were not allowed to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (2:17). However, the serpent tricked Eve into thinking that it was all right to eat from it – in defiance of God’s clear commandment. She took of its fruit and ate, and also gave it to her husband to eat. This rebellion caused God’s judgment to come over them with tragic consequences for the human race and even the whole universe. Thorns and thistles would grow, and from now on Adam and Eve would have only the herbs of the field for food (3:18). Some years later, their oldest son Cain killed his brother Abel (ch. 4), and soon violence and corruption marred God’s beautiful creation (ch. 6). After a long time of patient waiting (see 2 Peter 3) God sent a terrible judgment (the Flood) over the whole earth. Only Noah and his wife survived together with their three sons and their wives (Gen. 7-8). For over a year God protected them, having provided them with the food and resources needed to sustain them in the ark.

Meat Added To The Food-basket
After the Flood Noah and his family were brought into a new, purified world. God provided food for them, as He had for Adam and Eve, and even added meat to their diet. Some of this was from the animals which were sacrificed to God, but it must be noted that the blood was not permitted for human consumption in recognition of God’s rights as Creator-Redeemer. After the Flood He promised them His protection and blessing (8:22; 9:1-17). Nevertheless, these families, or at least their immediate descendants, fell into idolatry, replacing the true God with various counterfeits. They brought animal sacrifices to their many different idols and soon also offered human sacrifices (see Rom. 1:18-32). It was from this environment that God called Abram. The matter of food once more became an important issue as God gave Abraham and his descendants what they needed. Then, when a great famine afflicted the whole known world, Jacob moved to Egypt under God’s direction. Through Joseph’s wisdom and skillfulness, God provided food for Egypt – sustaining His people (as well as many others). The Israelites multiplied abundantly to the point that the next Pharaoh wanted to drastically reduce their population (Ex. 1). The kings of this new dynasty, particularly the one whom Moses met when he came back from Midian, refused to obey God. Despite the severe consequences of the judgments or plagues, the Egyptian leader refused to listen to the Lord’s voice through Moses.

Food In Difficult Circumstances
When the tenth plague came, all the first-born in Egypt were killed through God’s direct intervention. The Israelites were spared because they obeyed God’s instructions and took the Passover lamb into their homes; then killed it on the fourth day. This lamb provided not only protection from judgment, but also food for the whole family (ch. 12). We could call it the “bread of life” because the lamb died to keep the oldest son in each family alive and to give food to all. It sustained the people as they prepared to leave Egypt. Following the great miracle of their deliverance from that country, the Israelites journeyed through various wildernesses. They had to learn again and again to rely entirely on the Lord. When the people of Israel complained that they missed the flesh-pots they had had in Egypt, God stilled their murmuring by giving them so many quails to eat that these birds covered the camp (16:13). More than that, early in the morning as the dew was going up from around the camp, the people discovered that God had given them something totally new: the manna, meaning “What is it?” In His grace, during all the years of the wilderness journey, God sustained the people with this special food, even after they refused to enter the land that He had promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In a careful reading of Exodus 16, we may find seven miracles linked to this divine provision. We leave that for your further study.

More About The Manna
Through the manna God not only fed them but also formed them, preparing them for the Promised Land. The Israelites had to learn what it was to obey and to have faith: both were needed for entering the land. The manna came straight from heaven, like the Man from heaven, our Lord Jesus Christ, who was always marked by obedience. Some of the manna’s characteristics are mentioned: it was small, round and fine (16:14; other features are mentioned later). These illustrate some of Christ’s features as He came, by the grace of God, in a freshness that had never been seen (the dew), and in taking a low place among His people. The Lord Jesus was also marked by humility and by the fact that He did not need any correction. This was also illustrated by the manna, emphasizing the kind of food God gives to His people as they go through the wilderness today. Christ was taught in God’s school morning by morning (Isa. 50:4-7), just as the manna was there for the people to collect every morning. God teaches us through such object lessons or examples, and He forms us after Christ’s likeness, teaching us obedience. This is needed to make us ready to enjoy the heavenly land where Christ is crowned with glory and honor (Heb. 2:9). However, the people in the wilderness did not appreciate God’s provision of the manna; they even despised it. The Lord Jesus is the Manna from heaven – our Food for today – to feed and form us after His image that we might learn from Him and be His disciples. Sadly, entertainment and all kinds of things can take Christ’s place in our lives. Is there not a tendency to despise the things connected with the humble Man of Nazareth?

John’s Gospel And The Bread Of Life
John’s writings present the Lord Jesus as the Son of God, equal with the Father (especially in ch. 5). Chapter 6 of his Gospel introduces Him as the Son of Man who came to give His life. Furthermore, John 6 describes His greatness (“I am”) as the Bread of Life. This is seen from His incarnation (6:32-35) all the way to His ascension (v. 62) and includes references to His work, death and resurrection. This chapter also contains many questions that were asked by His listeners and records His answers. It compares the manna given by God in Moses’ days with Christ, who is the Bread of Life. While John 6 shows parallels between Moses and Christ, it also records several great contrasts. “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world” (v. 51 NKJV). Thus our blessed Lord laid the foundation that was needed to give us life (vv. 51-53), although this was rejected by the Jewish leaders then and by many others throughout history into the present day. Christ is also the One who sustains the life He has given. This is an ongoing process from the moment of our salvation until the Rapture (vv. 54-57). The participle form of the verb clearly indicates this point. To avoid confusion, our Lord used two different verbs in the Greek text which both mean “to eat”: the first is receiving Christ once for all at the moment of one’s salvation through faith, and the second verb emphasizes digestion, continuous feeding on Him. This ongoing feeding on Him parallels the manna in the wilderness which the people needed to collect and eat every day in order to be sustained. But the manna could not give eternal life: only the Son of God was, and is, able to do that. This is in tremendous contrast with the manna in the wilderness. Furthermore, Christ is “the true bread from heaven” (v. 32), in contrast to types or counterfeits. (Besides this, Christ is “the water of life” and as such He will continue to bring eternal satisfaction.) And He is “the bread of God” (v. 33), for the special satisfaction of God Himself. There is so much more in this wonderful chapter!

A Brief Summary
John’s writings are designed to emphasize Christ’s personal greatness, but they also help the believer in this scene draw his resources from our Lord. Continuous feeding on Christ is, therefore, also presented as a reward for the overcomer (Rev. 2:17) who has learned to draw from Him, and who will enjoy Him forever and ever. It is up to each individual believer to put his or her trust in Christ, no matter the opposition and trouble this may imply. This will have an impact with lasting results – even for eternity. He brings what is needed for salvation, He sustains the saved one in a scene of adversity, and He gives him true satisfaction now and for eternity.

Praise God!

By Alfred Bouter