22 The next day the people who had stayed on the other side of the lake knew that Jesus had not gone in the boat with his followers but that they had left without him. And they knew that only one boat had been there. 23 But then some boats came from Tiberias and landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24 When the people saw that Jesus and his followers were not there now, they got into boats and went to Capernaum to find Jesus.
25 When the people found Jesus on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Teacher, when did you come here?”
26 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, you aren’t looking for me because you saw me do miracles. You are looking for me because you ate the bread and were satisfied. 27 Don’t work for the food that spoils. Work for the food that stays good always and gives eternal life. The Son of Man will give you this food, because on him God the Father has put his power.”
28 The people asked Jesus, “What are the things God wants us to do?”
29 Jesus answered, “The work God wants you to do is this: Believe the One he sent.”
30 So the people asked, “What miracle will you do? If we see a miracle, we will believe you. What will you do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the desert. This is written in the Scriptures: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, it was not Moses who gave you bread from heaven; it is my Father who is giving you the true bread from heaven. 33 God’s bread is the One who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 The people said, “Sir, give us this bread always.”
35 Then Jesus said, “I am the bread that gives life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 36 But as I told you before, you have seen me and still don’t believe. 37 The Father gives me the people who are mine. Every one of them will come to me, and I will always accept them. 38 I came down from heaven to do what God wants me to do, not what I want to do. 39 Here is what the One who sent me wants me to do: I must not lose even one whom God gave me, but I must raise them all on the last day. 40 Those who see the Son and believe in him have eternal life, and I will raise them on the last day. This is what my Father wants.”
41 Some people began to complain about Jesus because he said, “I am the bread that comes down from heaven.” 42 They said, “This is Jesus, the son of Joseph. We know his father and mother. How can he say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”
43 But Jesus answered, “Stop complaining to each other. 44 The Father is the One who sent me. No one can come to me unless the Father draws him to me, and I will raise that person up on the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. 46 No one has seen the Father except the One who is from God; only he has seen the Father. 47 I tell you the truth, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread that gives life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but still they died. 50 Here is the bread that comes down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will never die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give up so that the world may have life.”
52 Then the evil people began to argue among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
53 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, you must eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood. Otherwise, you won’t have real life in you. 54 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day. 55 My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood live in me, and I live in them. 57 The living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father. So whoever eats me will live because of me. 58 I am not like the bread your ancestors ate. They ate that bread and still died. I am the bread that came down from heaven, and whoever eats this bread will live forever.” 59 Jesus said all these things while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
Read John 6:22-59 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
During one of the more unique conversations that Jesus has with a group of people in Capernaum, He shares what God commissioned Him to do. In some ways, we could describe this as God the Father’s job description for Jesus – and we could measure the effectiveness of Jesus’ ministry through His words during this conversation.
The big statement Jesus shared is this: “The Father gives me the people who are mine. Every one of them will come to me, and I will always accept them. I came down from heaven to do what God wants me to do, not what I want to do. Here is what the One who sent me wants me to do: I must not lose even one whom God gave me, but I must raise them all on the last day. Those who see the Son and believe in him have eternal life, and I will raise them on the last day. This is what my Father wants.” (v. 37- 40)
A few verses later, Jesus summarizes this idea again by saying, “The Father is the One who sent me. No one can come to me unless the Father draws him to me, and I will raise that person up on the last day.” (v. 44)
Jesus’ job description is simple: (1) Don’t lose any of the people who God has given Him, and (2) raise these people on the last day.
The significance of this statement is amazing and challenging to what many of us have as a preconceived notion regarding how God interacts with His people following Jesus’ resurrection. The first part of this description is easy for us to grasp, because for those of us who believe Jesus is God, there is absolutely nothing that anyone (Satan included) could do to steal from Jesus.
But with that said, Satan has done a masterful job of blurring the significance of this second part of Jesus’ job description. Jesus has been called to resurrect God’s followers on the last day. The only way for this to happen is through the sacrifice He gave on the cross. It is through this sacrifice that we are able to accept the gift of eternal life.
However, many people, even many Christians, believe that death is more like a doorway into eternity and that those who have “died” in this life are alive in heaven. The conclusion drawn is one of immortality for their soul and that death isn’t “death” but it is more like a transition into (or continuation of) the eternal life Jesus promised.
It is worth pointing out that Jesus challenges this idea in this passage because His focus is on resurrection – on raising up His people on the last day. If His people are already experiencing eternal life in heaven prior to the last day, raising them up “on the last day” seems irrelevant if they are already experiencing what Jesus promised to raise them into.
As Christians, we have the assurance that we will be saved and brought to heaven, and we know that through Jesus’ sacrifice, death is not the end of our story. For all but a few of God’s followers who live during the final days of earth’s sinful history, death counts as an intermission to our lives, stories, and relationships with God because we look forward to the resurrection Jesus promised us on the last day.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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