When the people saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into boats and crossed to Capernaum to look for Jesus. When they found him on the other side, they said to him, ‘Rabbi, when did you come here?’
Jesus answered:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
you are not looking for me because you have seen the signs
but because you had all the bread you wanted to eat.
Do not work for food that cannot last,
but work for food that endures to eternal life,
the kind of food the Son of Man is offering you,
for on him the Father, God himself,
has set his seal.’

Then they said to him, ‘What must we do if we are to do the works that God wants?’
Jesus gave them this answer,
‘This is working for God: you must believe in the one he has sent.’

So they said, ‘What sign will you give to show us that we should believe in you? What work will you do? Our fathers had manna to eat in the desert; as scripture says: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’
Jesus answered:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
it was not Moses who gave you bread from heaven,
it is my Father who gives you the bread from heaven, the true bread;
for the bread of God
is that which comes down from heaven
and gives life to the world.’

‘Sir,’ they said ‘give us that bread always.’
Jesus answered:
‘I am the bread of life.
He who comes to me will never be hungry;
he who believes in me will never thirst.’ (John 6:24-35)

The COVID lockdowns across our country have plunged us back into a world of fear, uncertainty and anxiety. When we experience this kind of anxiety we usually look for two things: someone to blame and someone to be our saviour. The people of Jesus’ time knew exactly who was to blame for their plight: the Romans occupying their land. They looked for a messiah to rid them of the Romans and restore the land to them. But the Messiah they got what not the Messiah they expected, or even wanted. Jesus comes armed not with spears and clubs, but with bread.

Our journey through Chapter 6 of St John’s Gospel continues. Two weeks ago, Jesus showed himself the true shepherd-king, feeding the inner hunger of the people for the Word of God. Last week, Jesus fed the physical hunger of a great multitude with a simple meal of bread and fish. The people, impressed by what they saw, wanted to make him their warrior-king, one who would lead them in a revolt against the occupying Romans and satisfy their every desire. Jesus escaped into the hills.

This Sunday, the crowd has caught up with Jesus. He accuses them of looking for him only because he gave them all the bread they wanted to eat, not because they had understood that the bread was a sign of the real food Jesus was offering: himself. Jesus urges them to work for ‘food that endures to eternal life’. Working for this food means to believe in the one God has sent: Jesus himself.

The crowd asks for a sign to prove that they should believe in Jesus. After all, they say, Moses gave our ancestors bread to eat in the desert; what will you do? Their request underlines their failure to really see the sign that they had already been given. Jesus reformulates their quote from scripture: It is God who gives the true bread from heaven, the bread of God which gives life to the world. In that case, they say, give us that bread always.

Jesus replies: I am the bread of life, those who come to me will never be hungry; those who believe in me will never thirst. Jesus is real food for the hungers and thirsts of the human heart.

To be nourished by Jesus one must believe (have faith) in him. This implies a personal relationship with Jesus. Once this personal relationship has been established everything else finds its proper place and true purpose.

Our relationships feed and sustain us as human beings. They are born of the food of love, compassion and forgiveness. Being in a relationship is to be drawn into communion with another person. We always draw life from those we love and those who love us. It is the same with Jesus. In order to draw life from him, to be fed by him, we have to be in loving relationship with him.

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