John 6:24-35 (NRSV)
Read John 6:24-35 on biblegateway.com
Verse 24So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. Verse 25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Verse 26Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Verse 27Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal."
Verse 28Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" Verse 29Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." Verse 30So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Verse 31Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" Verse 32Then Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. Verse 33For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Verse 34They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." Verse 35Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
Devotion
What are these people hungry for?
What are these people looking for?
A sign.
Fed. Satisfied.
Yet looking for more.
We return for the bread not recognizing the source.
Not recognizing the reign of God in our midst.
Martyred Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador tells us that the "Eucharist makes us look back to Calvary twenty centuries ago ... but it also looks ahead to the future, to the eternal ... "
Jesus stands before us: "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never thirst."
That's a forever-thing! The one who came down from heaven, who was from the beginning, now gives us new life in him, sustenance for the life of the world, the whole, hungry world. For all time.
Prayer
Jesus, Our Bread of Life, give us this bread always, and open our eyes to see the signs of your presence that takes to Calvary's cross and then leads us into the future. Amen.