In John 6 Jesus first claims to give bread from heaven, bread that lasts and doesn’t spoil. When the crowd then asks Jesus for this bread, he then makes an even more stunning claim. He says, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes tome shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” What was Jesus trying to tell us?
What food is more basic, more essential and more universal than bread? Every culture has bread. It is eaten by rich and poor alike. There is Flatbread, fried bread, tortillas, corn bread, bean bread, unleavened bread and sweet bread. It is among the most ancient of foods. Did you know that loaves and rolls of bread have been found in Egyptian tombs and excavated from ovens in Pompeii. Starchy grains have been found embedded in a grindstone found by the Sea of Galilee that are 23,000 years old. Bread is a constant throughout human history.
Bread is the staple of civilization. It is what enables a people to leave the hunter-gatherer stage and build more advanced forms of society. It formed the socio-economic underpinnings of many ancient cultures. Kingdoms that could supply bread rose to dominance, while those who could not disappeared from history.
Bread is woven deeply into nearly every culture. For people around the world, one of the most important daily rituals is making or choosing and then enjoying their bread. It is so closely tied to our religious expression that it has an almost spiritual value.
Throughout every culture bread represents the basic sustenance of life. It represents the essentials. It is the core. To have your bread is to have all your basic needs met- to be satisfied, to be full, to be fulfilled, to be content.