The Year of our Lord, Jesus Christ
Luke 4:4
And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.
Many times, the Lord said It is written. This means it is fixed. It is sure. It is commanded. It is immovable, immobile, and unchanging. We may write many things, and later change them. But not God. When Jesus says It is written, it is permanent. But what is “it”?
In this instance the “it” is the fact that humans cannot live by bread alone. We need something else to live. Certainly, Jesus is speaking of living in a broader sense of the word than simply existing physically. Reflect for a moment on two definitions of “live” that are frankly overlooked by many.
One is “live” as in eternally “live”. For a person to obtain eternal life something more than bread must be consumed. This is the life that Jesus is focusing on in John chapter 6, especially verse 51 when He said: I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. To live eternally a person must partake of the living bread, the Lord Jesus Christ. This is done simply by receiving Him by faith in and through the Gospel.
The other meaning of “live” is to fully experience the life on this earth that God intended for mankind from the foundation of the earth. What type of life is that? A type of life wherein we commune with Him, where we receive blessings from Him, have our prayers answered, walk through difficulties with confidence that He is with us, even face death being confident that He has given us the victory. By consuming Him through prayer, Bible reading, preaching services, songs, hymns, and spiritual songs we feed on Him.
To live life to the fullest, partake of the Bread of Life. To live eternally, eat of that Bread of Life. Physical bread alone cannot give spiritual life on this earth and eternal life in the next. But Jesus can! Of this… It is written.
Until Next Time,
William T. Howe, Ph.D.
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