The Bread of Life: John 6: 44-51

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 15:22:25 -0500

“I am the living bread which came down from heaven.”

Bread is a Symbol of Simplicity: John 6: 44-51

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 13:48:33 -0500

Bread is such a basic staple of life that it is depicted as the foundation for the food pyramid published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. We need it for our daily sustenance. By describing Himself as the "Bread of Life," Jesus indicated we also need daily nurturing from Him to sustain our spiritual lives.

Fresh-baked bread is nothing more than a little flour, yeast, salt, sugar, oil and milk. It's simplicity itself. That's what Jesus taught us to pray for in the Our Father: a simple lifestyle.

Nowadays, when we speak of the head of the household as the "bread winner," we're talking about something more complex than bread alone. We're talking about a fast-track career, a home in the suburbs, two cars in the garage, and vacations at pricey resorts.

In our hunger for more, we may be making ourselves sick. Americans spend close to $2 trillion a year on health care, or 16 cents out of every dollar generated by our economy. That amounts to nearly $6,000 for every man, woman and child in the U.S. Yet, our country ranks number 29 in life expectancy, just ahead of Cuba.

Many of our ills are related to our high-compression, high-consumption lifestyle. For example:

• One out of every eight dollars spent on prescription drugs is for cholesterol medications.
• The two other fastest-growing categories of medications are for high blood pressure and diabetes, which are also linked to lifestyle.

To varying degrees, these conditions are found in all economic and demographic strata of our society. In fact, a study reported in a British medical journal found that the richest, healthiest Americans are as sick as England's poorest subjects.

We work too hard, consume too much and worry ourselves sick.

The Fox TV network contrasted the affluent lifestyle with the simple life in a TV series of the same name. Ironically, the show was canceled after three seasons when one of the wealthy, young starlets developed serious health problems related to her lifestyle.

Fresh-baked bread is wholesome and nutritious; it fills the home with its delicate, yeasty aroma; but it won't keep for long. You can't store it up for it soon becomes stale. You have to bake some almost every day.

So, too, with our spiritual sustenance. We need the daily nourishment we can only get from the bread come down from Heaven.

Living Simply

The Bread of Life: John 6: 44-51

Bread is a Symbol of Simplicity: John 6: 44-51