Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. 36 But I told you that although you have seen [me], you do not believe. 37 Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, 38 because I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me. 39 And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it [on] the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him [on] the last day.
Jesus makes the claim, “I am the bread of life (v. 35).” The crowd did not understand him because of their lack of faith. Faith in Jesus satisfies the deepest hunger, our most profound thirst (Jn. 4:14). The crowd had seen his works and continues to see his works but many still refuse to believe in him. Belief is a free act of the will, and we have to believe individually in the Son. He will welcome those whom his Father, through grace, has given to him because it is his Father’s will, and he will raise them on the last day. Only those given to Jesus by the Father will come to Jesus in faith and none of them will be lost. Faith leads to eternal life and it is God’s will that Jesus saves and resurrects to eternal life all whom the Father gives to him. Jesus has the responsibility to save everyone the Father gives to him.
Almighty God, grant us your grace that we may seek the true bread from heaven, and by following your commands, may we be able to feast on the Bread of Life through all eternity. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen!
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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