HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1329
JOHN 6
page 959
8 Then Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke
up. 9 “There’s a young boy here with five barley
loaves and two fish. But what good is that with
this huge crowd?”
10 “Tell everyone to sit down,” Jesus said. So
they all sat down on the grassy slopes. (The men
alone numbered about 5,000.) 11 Then Jesus took
the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed
them to the people. Afterward he did the same
with the fish. And they all ate as much as they
wanted. 12 After everyone was full, Jesus told
his disciples, “Now gather the leftovers, so that
nothing is wasted.” 13 So they picked up the pieces
and filled twelve baskets with scraps left by the
people who had eaten from the five barley loaves.
14 When the people saw him* do this miraculous sign, they exclaimed, “Surely, he is the
Prophet we have been expecting!”* 15 When Jesus
saw that they were ready to force him to be their
king, he slipped away into the hills by himself.
Jesus Walks on Water
16 That evening Jesus’ disciples went down to
the shore to wait for him. 17 But as darkness fell
and Jesus still hadn’t come back, they got into
the boat and headed across the lake toward Capernaum. 18 Soon a gale swept down upon them,
and the sea grew very rough. 19 They had rowed
three or four miles* when suddenly they saw
Jesus walking on the water toward the boat.
They were terrified, 20 but he called out to them,
“Don’t be afraid. I am here!*” 21 Then they were
eager to let him in the boat, and immediately
they arrived at their destination!
Jesus, the Bread of Life
22 The next day the crowd that had stayed on the
far shore saw that the disciples had taken the
only boat, and they realized Jesus had not gone
with them. 23 Several boats from Tiberias landed
near the place where the Lord had blessed the
bread and the people had eaten. 24 So when the
crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples
were there, they got into the boats and went
across to Capernaum to look for him. 25 They
found him on the other side of the lake and
asked, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, you want
to be with me because I fed you, not because you
understood the miraculous signs. 27 But don’t be
so concerned about perishable things like food.
Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that
the Son of Man* can give you. For God the Father
has given me the seal of his approval.”
28 They replied, “We want to perform God’s
works, too. What should we do?”
29 Jesus told them, “This is the only work God
wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”
6:14a Some manuscripts read Jesus. 6:14b See Deut 18:15, 18;
Mal 4:5-6. 6:19 Greek 25 or 30 stadia [4.6 or 5.5 kilometers].
6:20 Or The ‘I Am’ is here; Greek reads I am. See Exod 3:14.
6:27 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself. 6:31 Exod
16:4; Ps 78:24.
30 They answered, “Show us a miraculous
sign if you want us to believe in you. What can
you do? 31 After all, our ancestors ate manna
while they journeyed through the wilderness!
The Scriptures say, ‘Moses gave them bread
from heaven to eat.’*”
32 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t
give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And
now he offers you the true bread from heaven.
33 The true bread of God is the one who comes
down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 “Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every
day.”
35 Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again.
Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
36 But you haven’t believed in me even though
• Giving
JOHN 6:9
So often our focus is on the miraculous
and spectacular aspects of this familiar
story. We see the huge crowd, the multiplication of bread and fish, and the twelve
baskets of leftovers. But we scarcely
notice the boy who offers his lunch to
Jesus. The miracle began with a single,
simple act of sharing. When the disciples
could see only obstacles to why the
multitude could not be fed, a young boy
gave what he had to give. In the hands of
Jesus, what we share becomes a miracle.
What do you have to share that Jesus
can multiply to minister to others?
• Provision
JOHN 6:35
The miracle of the feeding of the five
thousand (6:5-13) began with sacrifice.
Jesus used the lunch offered by one boy
to minister to the needs of the multitude.
In the same way, he can bless our gifts
and sacrifices so that they minister to
the needs of others.
The more important teaching of this
passage occurs in the follow-up session
Jesus had with his disciples. He said that
although bread is necessary for physical
life, the greater need is for spiritual bread
that satisfies the soul for all eternity. Jesus
is the Bread of Life, and accepting his provision through faith is the only way to satisfy our spiritual hunger. Have you tasted
the bread that only Jesus provides?