199 – Bread of Life

John 6:22-71 Matthew 15:21-28 Mark 7:24-30

The day after Jesus fed the 5,000, the people found him on the other shore and knew that he had arrived by a particular boat. They also knew that same boat had left the day before without him. They said, “How did you get there?”

Jesus ignored their question and got right to the real issue. He said, “You’re here because you filled your stomachs with the bread I gave you. You should be looking for living bread that gives you eternal life.”

They said, “What does God require of us?”

Jesus said, “This is what God requires. Believe on the One He has sent you.” 

They said, “Give us a sign so we can believe. You could feed us from now on. That would be like Moses who gave us manna in the wilderness.”

He said, “Your fathers got manna in the wilderness, but eventually died. I am the Bread of Life that God sent down from heaven. The bread I offer is my body, and the drink I give is my blood. My flesh and my blood will bring you eternal life.”

The people were shocked! They said to one another, “How can this man say he came down from God? We know his parents. And how can he give his flesh for us to eat, and his blood for us to drink?”

From that day, many of his listeners stopped following him. They said, “This is too hard to believe.”

Jesus turned to the twelve and said, “Do you want to leave as well?”

Peter said, “Lord, where can we go? You’re the one who gives us eternal life. We’ve seen, and now believe. You are the Holy One of God.”

Jesus said, “I’ve chosen you twelve, yet one of you will turn against me.”

After that, Jesus took his disciples to Tyre and Sidon, a Gentile area north of Israel. While he was there, a Gentile woman came and begged him. “Son of David, Have mercy on me. A demon has taken control of my daughter and tortures her constantly.”

Jesus totally ignored her and didn’t say a word. She kept begging until his disciples said, “Lord, send her away. Her crying is starting to annoy us.”

Jesus looked at her and said, “God sent me to help His lost sheep, the people of Israel.”

With that, she knelt down in front of him and said, “Lord, help me.”

He said, “It’s not right to take the food that belongs to the children and feed it to wild dogs.”

She said, “Yes, Lord, that’s true. But the puppy dogs are allowed to sit under the table and eat the crumbs that fall down to them.”

He said, “Woman, great is your faith! You can go home now. The demon has left your daughter.”

She got up and went home. There she found her daughter lying on her bed. The demon was gone.

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