Dear Friends,

READ: JOHN 6:1 THROUGH 7:53

The Food and Drug Administration and the Food Safety Inspection Service work to ensure that the food supply available in the United States meets certain standards and is safe for consumers. When something slips through those safety nets and an outbreak of food-borne illnesses occurs, the Centers for Disease Control seeks to halt the outbreak by identifying and removing the bad food from the supply chain.

Speaking to a group that included some of the five thousand who had earlier eaten of five loaves and two fish, Jesus said this about food:

“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval” (John 6:27).

“Food that endures to eternal life” refers to belief in Jesus (verses 35–40, 47–51). Some, even among Jesus’ followers, found His words difficult, even impossible to accept, and they walked away.

When facing difficult, hard-to-understand issues, believers need to follow the example in verses 68–69 and reaffirm Who Jesus is and what He offers.

Thought for Today: Jesus is the bread of life.