The Bread of Life

Give Us This Day

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Every morning in the wilderness, God's people walked out of their tents and found food on the ground. They could not store it up for next week. They had to trust God one day at a time.

Enough for today. “He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack” (Exodus 16:18). God gave each person exactly what they needed.

Jesus' prayer. When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He included this line: “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11). We ask God for what we need today.

Don't worry. Jesus also said, “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’” (Matthew 6:31). Your heavenly Father knows what you need.

Seek first. “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

One day at a time. “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things” (Matthew 6:34). Like the manna, God's help comes for each day.

New every morning. “His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23). Just like the manna, God's kindness is waiting for us each morning.

God supplies. “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

More than bread. God fed Israel with manna to teach them “that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 8:3). We need God's Word as much as food.

Every good gift. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights” (James 1:17). Every meal is a gift from God.

Sharing what we have. Paul used the manna to teach Christians to share. He quoted Exodus 16:18: “He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack” (2 Corinthians 8:15). When God gives us more than enough, we can help others who need it.

Remember His gifts. “Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits” (Psalm 103:2). Israel kept a jar of manna so they would not forget. We can remember too, by thanking God out loud for the good things He gives.

Instead of grumbling. The Bible says, “Do all things without complaining and disputing” (Philippians 2:14). When we are tempted to grumble, we can pray instead, the way Moses did.

What to do. This week, thank God before every meal, and pray Jesus' words each morning: “Give us this day our daily bread.”

The manna trained Israel in daily dependence. It could not be stockpiled, earned or controlled.

Equal sufficiency. Exodus 16:18 shows a miracle of distribution: whatever was gathered, each had enough. Paul applies it to Christian generosity in 2 Corinthians 8:15, urging churches to share so that there may be equality.

The Lord's Prayer. “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11) echoes the manna. The request is modest and present-tense: today's need, not tomorrow's surplus.

Worry and trust. Matthew 6:31-34 forbids anxious questions such as “What shall we eat?” because “your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” Worry is a practical denial of the Father's care.

Priority. “Seek first the kingdom of God” (Matthew 6:33). Jesus does not tell us that food and clothes do not matter. He tells us to put God's kingdom first and trust the Father to add what we need.

Morning mercies. Lamentations 3:22-23, written amid national disaster, says God's compassions “are new every morning.” The manna pattern becomes a picture of God's faithfulness even in suffering.

The Word as food. Deuteronomy 8:3 interprets the manna: hunger and provision taught Israel that life depends on “every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.” Jesus quotes it against the devil (Matthew 4:4), refusing to turn stones to bread on His own terms.

Grumbling as unbelief. Philippians 2:14 and 1 Corinthians 10:10 both draw on the wilderness complaints. Complaining is not just a bad mood; it questions God's goodness.

Remembering benefits. Psalm 103:2 commands, “forget not all His benefits.” The jar of manna (Exodus 16:32-34) helped Israel remember. Israel often failed in the wilderness because they forgot what God had already done. Thankfulness keeps God's past kindness fresh in our minds.

Sharing as trust. Paul's use of Exodus 16:18 in 2 Corinthians 8:15 shows that generosity rests on the same trust as the manna. Those who believe God will provide tomorrow are free to give today. Hoarding and stinginess both assume that we must secure our own future.

Gratitude. James 1:17 traces every good gift to “the Father of lights.” Thanksgiving at meals is a small daily confession that God, not we, is the source.

Contentment. The manna taught Israel to be content with enough. Paul says he had learned contentment in every situation, and that God would supply every need “by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). Contentment is not resignation; it is confidence that the Father's provision is sufficient.

Application. Keep a short list this week of one way God provided each day, and pray Matthew 6:11 every morning.

The True Bread from Heaven

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Hundreds of years after Moses, Jesus fed a huge crowd with a few loaves of bread. The next day, the people wanted more. Jesus used that moment to talk about the manna.

The crowd remembers. They said, “Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat’” (John 6:31).

Not Moses. Jesus answered, “Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven” (John 6:32). The manna came from God, not from Moses.

Bread that gives life. “For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world” (John 6:33). Jesus came down from heaven when He was born as a baby in Bethlehem.

“I am the bread of life.” Then Jesus said it plainly: “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst” (John 6:35).

Better than manna. “Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead” (John 6:49). Manna fed bodies for a day. Jesus gives life that lasts forever.

Living forever. “If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever” (John 6:51). To “eat” this bread means to believe in Jesus and trust Him.

Given for us. Jesus said, “the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world” (John 6:51). He was talking about giving His life on the cross.

Remembered for generations. Psalm 78:24 says God “rained down manna on them to eat, And given them of the bread of heaven.” Israel kept a golden pot of manna in the ark of the covenant (Hebrews 9:4).

Hidden manna. Jesus promises those who overcome, “I will give some of the hidden manna to eat” (Revelation 2:17). God will feed His people forever.

Taste and see. “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” (Psalm 34:8). You cannot know how good bread is just by looking at it. You have to taste it. In the same way, we come to know how good Jesus is by trusting Him.

Every day. Israel gathered manna every morning. We can come to Jesus every morning too, by praying, reading the Bible and thanking Him.

What to do. The next time you eat bread, remember that Jesus is the bread of life. Thank Him for giving His life for you.

John 6 is Jesus' great sermon on the manna. It follows the feeding of the five thousand and takes place near Passover (John 6:4).

The crowd's appeal (John 6:31). The people cite the manna, quoting Psalm 78:24, perhaps hoping Jesus will repeat the miracle daily. They want a Moses who keeps the bread coming.

The correction (John 6:32). Jesus makes three points: the giver was not Moses but the Father; the gift is present (“gives,” not “gave”); and the bread He now gives is “the true bread,” the reality to which the manna pointed.

A person, not a substance (John 6:33-35). “The bread of God is He who comes down from heaven.” Jesus then speaks the first of His “I am” sayings in John: “I am the bread of life.”

Contrast (John 6:49-50). The manna sustained mortal life; those who ate it still died. The bread from heaven is given “that one may eat of it and not die.” The contrast is between temporary and eternal life.

Sacrifice (John 6:51). “The bread that I shall give is My flesh.” The future tense points to the cross. The life of the world comes through the death of the Son.

Eating as believing. In John 6, coming and believing are parallel to eating and drinking (6:35). To feed on Christ is to receive Him by faith.

Manna remembered. Psalms 78 and 105 celebrate the manna as “the bread of heaven,” and Hebrews 9:4 notes the golden pot kept in the ark. Revelation 2:17 promises “hidden manna” to those who overcome, an image of final, everlasting provision.

Passover setting. John notes that the Passover was near (John 6:4). In this sermon Jesus ties together the Passover meal, the wilderness bread and His own coming death. The Lamb who is also the bread will give His flesh for the life of the world.

The Father's drawing. In the same sermon Jesus says that coming to Him is the Father's work in us. The bread is given; even our hunger for it is a gift. Salvation from beginning to end is grace.

Invitation. Psalm 34:8 invites, “taste and see that the Lord is good.” Faith is personal experience of God's goodness, not only agreement with facts.

Daily communion. The manna came every morning; so the believer's life with Christ is daily, not occasional. Prayer, Scripture and the Lord's Supper are ways the church continues to receive the bread of life, always by faith in the crucified and risen Lord.

Application. Read John 6:30-51 alongside Exodus 16. Write down three ways Jesus is like the manna and three ways He is greater.

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