John 6:28-33: a reflection

28They said therefore to him, “What must we do, that we may work the works of God?” 29Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” 30They said therefore to him, “What then do you do for a sign, that we may see and believe you? What work do you do? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness. As it is written, ‘He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.’” 32Jesus therefore said to them, “Most certainly, I tell you, it wasn’t Moses who gave you the bread out of heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread out of heaven. 33For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world.”

The crowd asks a very human question: what must we do to work the works of God? They want a task, a list, something to accomplish. Jesus answers by narrowing every work down to one. This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent. Before all the doing, there is a trusting. Faith in Christ is the labor God most desires.

Unsatisfied, they ask for a sign and remind him that their ancestors ate manna in the wilderness. Jesus gently corrects them. It was not Moses who gave that bread, but the Father, and now the Father gives the true bread from heaven, the bread that comes down and gives life to the world. The manna was only a picture. He is the reality it pointed toward.

You may find yourself, like the crowd, wanting religion to be a set of tasks you can check off. Hear Jesus draw you back to the one thing needful: believe in him. All your good works are meant to flow from this, not to replace it. Come to him as the true bread, the One who feeds the deepest hunger, and let your trust in him be the ground of everything else you do.

Lord Jesus, you are the true bread that comes down from heaven to give life to the world. When I am tempted to reduce faith to a checklist, draw me back to the one work God desires, to believe in you. Feed my deepest hunger with yourself, and let all my doing grow out of trusting you. Amen.