At My Bistro - Episode 3 Jesus is the Bread of Life

 On the Menu: Meat and Bread

Jesus is the Bread of Life

John 6:35

“And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.”

John 6:51

“I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

John 14:13-21 

13 HWhen Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed Him on foot from the towns. 

14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, He had compassion on them and healed their sick.

15 As evening approached, the disciples came to Him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”

16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.

18 “Bring them here to me,” He said. 

19 And He directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 

20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 

21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

Matthew 15:29-39

29 "Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on a mountainside and sat down. 

30 Great crowds came to Him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and He healed them. 

31 The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.

32 Jesus called his disciples to Him and said, “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.”

33 His disciples answered, “Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?”

34 “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.

“Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.”

35 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. 

36 Then He took the seven loaves and the fish, and when He had given thanks, He broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people. 

37 They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 

38 The number of those who ate was four thousand men, besides women and children. 

39 After Jesus had sent the crowd away, He got into the boat and went to the vicinity of Magadan.”

John 21:1-14  Jesus Feeds the Disciples

1 “Afterward Jesus appeared again to His disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 

2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 

3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 

8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 

9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 

11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 

12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 

13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 

14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.”

The Milk and the Meat of the Word

It is interesting to me that there is a belief that milk and meat ought not be eaten together. Perhaps it is not so far fetched to say, then, that milk is for the beginner, and meat is for the mature believer in the word of God.

The disciples walked with Jesus for three and a half years, and some of them witnessed almost every miracle first hand. A few witnessed every miracle, and were with Him in agreement as lives were changed, healed, saved, or raised from the dead. 

Even so, at the darkest hour of their time together, the miracles were forgotten, and even the Miracle Worker was separated from them. It was in this moment that Jesus prayed that faith would remain, regardless of the circumstances. 

When He comes again, He will be looking for this same faith. How do we remain faithful in the darkest hours of our generations?

1 Peter 2:1-2

1 “Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 

3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.”

Hebrews 5:13-14

13 “For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 

14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” 

Jesus Loves those who are Growing in Faith

Three times, Jesus manifested His glory by sharing bread and meat with those who followed Him, by the thousands.

Now, we find Jesus speaking with Peter, asking him three times, to feed His Sheep.

 Peter was part of two of the miracles, as Jesus passed out the bread and fish to His disciples, so, Peter says, yes, I love You -- the brotherly kind of love, translated from the original Greek language. 

The third time, Jesus asks Peter again, and Peter answers with the "agape" love -- the love that loves even when it is hard to love those who have harmed, hurt, offended, walked away, or abused us. This kind of love that has no conditions attached to it.

In the third miracle -- Jesus Himself makes the bread and the fish meal for them, even though they had all left Him, except for John and Mary, who remained at the foot of the cross as Jesus was dying for all of them.

Let's look at what Jesus says to Peter about the call that was still on his life:

John 21:15-17

15 "When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” 

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love You.” 

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

16 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” 

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love You.”

Jesus said, “Take care of My sheep.”

17 The third time He said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.”

Love Like God Loves -- Walk in Love

Unconditional love is only possible with the indwelling Holy Spirit, Who enables us to love as God loves us. Jesus commands us to walk in love. 

Forgive quickly. Repent quickly. Honor one another above ourselves. 

Love must be genuine. 

May the God of Peace give you the ability to love, even in your darkest hour, just as Jesus did, Who on the cross said, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do."

And if you must feed your enemies, as Jesus taught, then do so knowing that He prepares the Table, even in the midst of your enemies, as David declares in Psalm 23, with the meat and the bread which gives life.

Be at Peace.

A Prayer Journey with our Creator God

 

At My Bistro - Episode 2

Devotional Series: At My Bistro — Episode 2 

Welcome to My Bistro

Today I will be reading from the Book of Genesis, beginning with Chapter 14, from the New International Version.

1 “And it came about in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar [also known as Nimrod], Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim [Hebrew: the nations], 2 that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). 

3 All these came as allies to the valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). 

4 Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but the thirteenth year they rebelled. 

5 In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him, came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim and the Zuzim in Ham and the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the Horites in their Mount Seir, as far as El-paran, which is by the wilderness. 

7 Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and conquered all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, who lived in Hazazon-tamar. 

8 And the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah and the king of Admah and the king of Zeboiim and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) came out; and they arrayed for battle against them in the valley of Siddim, 9 against Chedorlaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goiim [Hebrew: the nations] and Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. 

10 Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and they fell into them. But those who survived fled to the hill country. 

11 Then they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food supply, and departed. 

12 They also took Lot, Abram’s nephew, and his possessions and departed, for he was living in Sodom.

13 Then a fugitive came and told Abram the Hebrew. Now he was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner, and these were allies with Abram. 

14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he led out his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 

15 He divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them, and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is north of Damascus. 

16 He brought back all the goods, and also brought back his relative Lot with his possessions, and also the women, and the people.

17 “After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).

18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, 19 and he blessed Abram, saying,

“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
    Creator of heaven and earth.

20 And praise be to God Most High,
    who delivered your enemies into your hand.”

Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”

Psalm 76:1-3

1 “God is known in Judah;
His name is great in Israel.

2 His tabernacle is in Salem;
His dwelling place also is in Zion.

3 There He broke the flaming arrows,
The shield and the sword and the weapons of war. Selah.”

NOTE: God’s High Priest overrides the reason for the war, which was about paying tribute to an earthly king. 

Hebrews 7:1-3 says of this King:

1 “For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2 to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace. 

3 Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually.”

NOTE: Melchizedek re-establishes God’s Kingdom way. A tenth of the outcome of the victory was the amount which was required to take care of the needs of God’s ordained King-Priests, not an earthly king. Tribute was the earthly king’s counterfeit to tithing.

Let’s continue in Genesis 14:21-24

21 “The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people [Hebrew: souls] and keep the goods for yourself.”

22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “With raised hand I have sworn an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, 23 that I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even a thread or the strap of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 

24 I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and the share that belongs to the men who went with me—to Aner, Eshkol and Mamre. Let them have their share.”

NOTE: The king asked for the people, rather than the spoils of war. The Hebrew says that he asked for “the souls.” 

The enemy of our soul is after our soul, but as believer’s in Jesus Christ, our souls belong to God Almighty.

Now, let’s look at Psalm 110, and I will be reading from the NIV. This is a Psalm of David.

1 The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”

2 The Lord will extend your mighty scepter from Zion, saying,
    “Rule in the midst of your enemies!”

3 Your troops will be willing on your day of battle. Arrayed in holy splendor, your young men will come to you like dew from the morning’s womb.

4 The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind:
“You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”

5 The Lord is at your right hand; He will crush kings on the day of His wrath.

6 He will judge the nations, heaping up the dead and crushing the rulers of the whole earth.

7 He will drink from a brook along the way, and so He will lift his head high.”

Jesus, our Savior and Lord, our High Priest before God, in the Order of Melchizedek, is the One Who intercedes for us still today, for our salvation, our deliverance, our healing, and our total well-being.

God fulfills His word through King David, in Hebrews 6:19-20

And I am Reading from the NIV:

19 “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, 20 where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”

You will always have company on your journey with God, for Jesus Himself is praying for you.

On the Menu: Bread and Wine

Jesus instituted the partaking of Communion at the meal before His crucifixion. Paul also taught the Church at Corinth, the proper etiquette when taking Communion. 

1 Corinthians 10:15-17

15 “I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. 16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? 

And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? 

17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf.”

And in 1 Corinthians 11:22-24, Paul continues the thought…

22 “Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? Certainly not in this matter!

23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.

25 In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 

26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”

Help me proclaim the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ today. 

The Apostle Paul tells us, in Ephesians 3:10-12, that when we proclaim the truth, we proclaim it to the principalities, powers and thrones in heavenly places. In this case we proclaim, Jesus died for me, so I am now off limits to the demonic powers in heavenly places. 

10 “to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, 11 according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him."

Let us give honor and tribute to Him, by remembering all He did for our salvation. Partake of bread and wine, or grape juice if you prefer, in celebration of His ultimate gift of Love for us, when He made it possible for us to become One with God.

Jesus, like Melchizedek, proclaims the Covenant Blessings upon those who believe in Him as their King and High Priest.

Matthew 5:1-16

1 “Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, 2 and He began to teach them. He said:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 

12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 

15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.'”

 And finally, the Apostle Peter reminds us, in 1 Peter 2:9-10

9 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 

10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

There are many benefits given to us as members of the Family of God. Two of them we have learned about today are Communion and Tithing.

Communion: partaking of the Body and Blood of Jesus, by taking the bread and wine, instituted in the Priestly Order of Melchizedek. By doing so we partake in His eternal life, health and well-being.

Tithing: The natural response to being blessed by God is sharing that blessing with Him, by giving Him the King’s Portion — called a tithe, or ten percent of the blessing. By doing so we enjoy God’s continued provision and sustenance. 

In Abram’s case, it was a tithe of the spoils of war, because God gave him the victory. So do whatever the Lord tells you to do in your unique circumstances, and be blessed by Jesus, the High Priest of our souls, Himself.