6:25-26 – “Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Most certainly I tell you, you seek me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves, and were filled.” Their motive was inexcusable. They “sought Him not because they saw signs which could lead them to faith” (The Moody Bible Commentary). They should have realized God was the One who gave them bread.
6:27–Don’t work for the food which perishes, but for the food which remains to eternal life. Physical hunger can only be satisfied by physical food, but spiritual hunger will never be satisfied by physical food. The Jews were only interested in physical satisfaction. One kind of food perishes. The other kind of food lasts eternally. The manna in the wilderness lasted only a day (Read Exodus 16:19-21). For God, the Father has sealed him. “Sealed” means “has solemnly attested (seriously or genuinely) confirmed the statement “God is true” (Word Studies in the New Testament). God sealed the Son as the giver of eternal life.”
6:28-29 – They said therefore to him, “What must we do, that we may work the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” “When Jesus said, “the works of God,” the Jews immediately thought of doing good works. They believed if they lived a good and moral life, they could earn God’s favor. “The work which God (wants us to do is) to believe (to be persuaded of or to trust) in Him who God has sent” (William Barclay). The Apostle Paul says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and not that of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works (Ephesians 2:8-9).
6:30-31 – What then do you do for a sign, that we may see, and believe you? The skeptics had seen Jesus’ previous signs. The question made it clear they were spiritually blind. For many, the feeding of the multitude marked Jesus out as the second Moses (Read 6:14), but the skeptics wanted more evidence.
6:32-33 – Jesus said, I tell you, it wasn’t Moses who gave you the bread out of heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread. The bread given by Moses in the wilderness was temporal. Jesus said His Father gives you the true heavenly bread. The bread of God that gives life to the world.
The feeding of the five thousand should have been a sufficient sign to show Christ’s deity (divinity). But the skeptics demanded that Jesus had to do more if they were to believe in Him.
DOES JESUS HAVE TO PERFORM GREATER MIRACLES BEFORE YOU WILL BELIEVE IN HIM?
-All Scripture passages are based on the World English Bible (WEB)-
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