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Read John 6:32-40.

Jesus’ first “I am” statement in the gospel of John occurs just after an incredible miracle. Five thousand men, plus women and children, had followed Jesus and His disciples out into a rural area where, after a while, the people began to get hungry. Jesus fed them supernaturally—divinely—with just five loaves and two fish. All those gathered saw it with their own eyes. There was no denying how miraculous it was to feed so many with so little.

Later on, when the people came to find Jesus, they were seeking more of the bread that He had given them. This is precisely why Jesus went on to claim, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35). He wanted to lift their eyes upward. He wanted to shift their focus from their bellies to eternal life—to the eternal God and to eternal food. As important as bread was for their daily living, the spiritual bread found in Christ alone is far more important.

Without that spiritual bread, Jesus Himself, there is no hope of heaven—only eternal suffering and pain. Without Jesus, life becomes slow death and eternal agony. And so He told the crowd—and us today—“I am the bread of life.”

This claim of being the only eternal, life-giving bread did not even make sense to Jesus’ disciples. Although everyone there that day knew how bread was made, they could not understand the fullness of Jesus’ statement until after His death and resurrection. In Jesus’ day, everyone made their own bread at home. A woman would take two stones in a clay pot, one stone on the bottom and one on the top, add some wheat, and then crush the wheat between the two stones to make flour. Then she would take that flour and knead it, beating it again and again to make a dough, which she then would break apart and place in a blazing furnace to be baked.

This is exactly what Jesus, the Bread of Life, endured. It was only after the crushing of the crucifixion, after the burial and the resurrection, that Jesus’ disciples were able to comprehend passages like Isaiah 28:28, “Grain must be ground to make bread,” and Isaiah 53:5, “[H]e was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities.”

Jesus is the Bread of Life. We must continuously, daily, even moment by moment feed upon Christ and His Word. He is our spiritual nourishment, and there is no other!

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for nourishing my soul with Yourself. What a gift to know You, my Savior and King. May I share the wonder of the Bread of Life so that many might find their fill in You and receive salvation. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

“Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty’” (John 6:35).

Learn more in Dr. Michael Youssef’s sermon There Is an ‘I’ in the ‘I AM’, Part 1: LISTEN NOW

Check out more from Dr. Michael Youssef, here!

About The Author

Dr. Michael Youssef, Ph.D.

Even before he was born, it is clear that God had a vision for Michael Youssef. His mother was in poor health when she became pregnant with Michael, and because his life was in danger at the time of birth, the doctor recommended terminating the pregnancy. An abortion was scheduled. But God intervened and sent the family pastor to reassure them that God was involved in this pregnancy. He told them not to be afraid and that the child would be "born to serve the Lord." Michael's parents accepted the pastor's message as a message from God and obeyed. His mother gave birth, and lived to see him give his life to the Lord at the age of sixteen.


Believing that God had called him out of Egypt, Michael sought an exit visa in a time in which no university student was allowed to have a passport or leave the country. God intervened again, and miraculously he managed to acquire a visa. He immigrated to Australia, where he studied at Moore Theological College in Sydney, was ordained as a pastor, and met Elizabeth who became his wife.


The Youssefs came to America in 1977, and in 1978 Michael received a master's degree in theology at Fuller Theological Seminary in California. Then he earned a doctorate in social anthropology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Michael served nearly ten years in the Haggai Institute, traveling around the world more than 32 times, teaching courses in evangelism and leadership. He rose to the position of Managing Director at the age of 31 years. The family settled in Atlanta, and in 1984, Michael became a citizen of the United States, making his dream of many years come true.


He founded The Church of The Apostles in 1987 with fewer than 40 adults with the mission of "Equipping the Saints and Searching for the Lost". The church has since grown to be a congregation of over 3,000 people today. This church has driven the international ministry of Leading the Way. While it is heard by millions at home and abroad, behind every message preached through radio waves, is the heart of a pastor, willing to nurture and care for these people. Clearly God has uniquely equipped Dr. Youssef to speak to a global audience. The path he has taken has given him an understanding and firm grasp of the Scriptures that transcend cultures. He preaches, teaches and calls with a sincere, based on the authority of the inerrant, inspired Word of God. With his personal knowledge of the Holy Land, its history and culture, Dr. Michael Youssef transmits life to listeners all over the world.



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