Let us commence our service this
evening by singing together hymn number 643. The tune is Colwyn
Bay, 903. Again, dear Lord, we would be
fed. We come to seek for living bread
and feast on love divine. Dear Father, let thy presence
be enjoyed by all thy family and make each face to shine.
Hymn 943. When will all be good again? We've come to see your delivery,
With gifts from God divine. If on earth you can kiss the
tree, Then joy of the world you will be, And may each branch
do shine. In Thee, O Messiah, which we
meet, Thou, heaven, and earth, and souls, and tree, and man, and
Christ, in Thee, ? And let not their glory be dimmed,
? ? For thou hast preached the truth. ? ? O say, does that star-spangled
banner yet wave, ? May faith be strong, and pierce
the skies, and we with pleasure realize the glory now with them. Alleluia. Fetch a friend and
walk in him. He's the poor man that while
the wind is strong. ? He who this we crowned can we
adore ? ? The Banner yet waves in strong ? ? The Bell which
stopp'd the brave ? ? In ev'ry time of need ? ? There's
one wonderful truth ? ? All our needs are one ? ? And love is
one in all ? Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in the Gospel according to John, chapter 6. John's Gospel, chapter 6, and
we'll commence reading at verse 26. Jesus answered them and said,
Verily, verily, I say unto you, ye seek me, Not because she saw
the miracles, but because she did eat of the loaves and were
filled. Labour not for the meat which
perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting
life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you. For him hath God
the Father sealed. Then said they unto him, What
shall we do that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered
and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe
on him whom he hath sent. They said therefore unto him,
What sign shallest thou then, that we may see and believe thee? What dost thou work? our fathers
did eat manna in the desert. As it is written, he gave them
bread from heaven to eat. Then Jesus said unto them, that
verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread
from heaven, but my father give you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which
cometh down from heaven and giveth life unto the world. Then said
they unto him, Lord evermore give us this bread. And Jesus
said unto them, I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me
shall never hunger. He that believeth on me shall
never thirst. But I said unto you that ye also
have seen me, Believe not. All that the Father giveth me
shall come to me, and him that cometh to me I will in no wise
cast out. For I came down from heaven,
not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all
which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raised
up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that
sent me, that everyone which seeth the sun and believeth on
him may have everlasting life. And I will raise him up at the
last day. The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am
the bread which came down from heaven. And they said, is not
this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?
How is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven? Jesus
therefore answered and said unto them, murmur not among yourselves. No man can come to me except
the Father which hath sent me draw him, and I will raise him
up at the last day. It is written in the Prophets,
and they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that
hath heard and hath learned of the Father cometh unto me. Not
that any man hath seen the Father, say he which is of God, he hath
seen the Father. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
he that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread
of life. Your fathers did eat manna in
the wilderness and are dead. But this is the bread which cometh
down from heaven that a man may eat thereof and not die. I am
the living bread which came down from heaven. If any man eat of
this bread, he shall live forever. And the bread which I give is
my flesh. which I will give for the life
of the world.' The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying,
How can this man give us his flesh to eat? Then Jesus said
unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye eat the flesh, except
ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye
have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh
my blood hath eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last
day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me, and
I in him. As the living Father hath sent
me, and I live by the Father, so he that eateth me even he
shall live by me this is that bread which came down from heaven
not as your fathers did eat manna and are dead he that eateth of
this bread shall live forever these things said he in the synagogue
as he taught in capernaum many therefore of his disciples when
they heard this saying said this heard this, said, This is an
hard saying, who can hear it? When Jesus knew in himself that
his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this
offend you? What, and if ye see the Son of
Man ascend up where he was before? It is the Spirit that quickneth,
the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you
they are spirit and they are life but there are some of you
that believe not for jesus knew from the beginning who they were
that believed not and who should betray him and he said therefore
said i unto you that no man can come unto me except it were given
unto him of my father From that time, many of his disciples went
back and walked no more with him. Then said Jesus unto the
twelve, will ye also go away? Then Simon Peter answered him,
Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal
life. And we believe and are sure that
thou art the Christ. the son of the living God. Jesus
answered them, have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is
a devil? He spake of Judas Iscariot, the
son of Simon, for he it was that should betray him, being one
of the twelve. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word, grant unto us a spirit of real prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come, we desire to bow before thy great
majesty to call upon thy great, thy holy, and thy eternal name. We come, Lord, as poor, wretched,
ruined sinners, the sons and daughters of Adam, born in sin,
shaped in iniquity, unclean and unrighteous altogether. And we
painfully feel that unrighteousness. We desire, O Lord, that we might
be clothed upon with that glorious, everlasting righteousness of
Jesus Christ, that we may be complete in him, that we may
be accepted in the beloved. We pray that thou wouldst grant
to us this evening hour that sweet spirit of adoption, whereby we shall cry, Abba, Father. My God, my Father, blissful name. O may I call thee mine. May we
feel the preciousness and power of those words, for the Father
himself loveth you. O most gracious Lord, we do pray
that we may lay hold of Christ, that we may eat of the bread
of life, that we may drink of the water of life, that we may
taste of the wine of the kingdom, that thou wouldst come and spread
the gospel table, that we may banquet with our head. O we do
thank thee, Lord, that thou dost do these things, and they are
able to do them, and that we pray that here this evening hour,
thou wouldst come and spread the gospel table, and that we
may be sealed by the Spirit of God, and that we may be given
that spirit of faith, and have clear, believing views of our
Lord Jesus Christ. May touch the hem of his garment,
may draw from that sacred fullness that is in him, we come like
the dear apostle of old, that I may know him, that I may win
Christ, that I may be found in him, oh, that it may be so, that
we may catch a glimpse of yon lovely man, and that we may truly
feel that we are in Christ. Thou hast exhorted us in thy
word, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Gracious God, grant us the mind
of Christ. Grant us the spirit of Christ.
Grant us the love of Christ. Grant us the power of Christ. For thou, Lord Jesus, art called
the strength of Israel. And we pray that those be our
strength in our day and in our generation, that we may be strengthened
with might by thy Spirit in the inner man, that we may lay hold of that
hope that is set before us in the gospel, that we may be led
by the Spirit of God. For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. to undertake for us,
Lord. Feast our souls this night. Grant
that it may be like it was with the dear spouse. He brought me
into the banqueting house and his banner over me was love.
Oh, that it may be so. May we feel the sweet power and
the divine unction of those precious words. Yea, I have loved thee
with an everlasting Therefore, with loving kindness have I drawn
thee. Thou knowest the needs of each
one here in the sanctuary. Thou knowest the burdens of every
heart, the sorrows of every soul, the needs of each one. Nothing
is hid from thee, all that thou wouldst come and work in our
midst. And any that may be listening
online, may it please thee to grant that it may be a living
word unto them, may enter into their hearts with power, we do
humbly beseech of thee. O Lord, we do pray that thou
wouldst graciously bless our brethren, the deacons, give wisdom,
guidance, and direction in all matters. Bless each one of our
brethren and sisters in Christ, in church fellowship. Help us
to love each other, serve each other, bear each other's burdens,
thereby fulfilling the law of Christ. By this shall they know
that ye are my disciples, because ye have love one to another.
Lord, increase our faith, increase our love. We pray for our dear
aged sister, Ina, in her great age and increasing weakness. May the arms of thy everlasting
love surround her, support her, and sustain her. We pray, most
gracious Lord, that thou in thy precious mercy would remember
the little ones and the children that gather with us. Bless them
indeed. Remember the young friends as
they stand on the threshold of life's journey. Remember them
with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people. O Lord, we do
beseech thee. for thy great namesake. Bring them to living, vital,
saving faith in Jesus Christ. When they're drawn aside with
the things of this world, with the pleasures of sin for a season,
may it please thee, Lord, to put an appetite into their hearts
for spiritual things. May they have an aching void
that the world can never fill. May they have a hunger and thirst
after righteousness. Supply all their many returning
needs in their education, in any future employment, regarding
a partner in life's journey. Lord, we lovingly commend them
to thee and to the word of thy grace, which is able to build
them up. Grant that a generation may be
raised up that shall follow on to know the Lord, that we pray
that thou wouldst cause the prodigals to return. Gracious God, we earnestly
petition thee to have mercy upon them, to cause them to be in
one, to cause them to return. Lord, this is thy work, and thy
power alone do be gracious, do grant that we may see thy work.
Let thy work appear unto thy servants and thy glory unto their
children. O Lord, we do beseech thee. Send out the glory and light
of the gospel into this village and the surrounding villages
and hamlets. May the power that brings salvation
be exerted in the world. May the Lord Jesus be exalted. May poor sinners look and live.
Gracious God, send real prosperity. We think of those precious words,
for I am returned unto Jerusalem with mercies. Build us up a truly
spiritual people. We pray, most gracious Lord,
to remember all in the midst of the journey of life and deliver
us from temptation, from the power and dominion of sin. When
the enemy comes in like a flood, may the spirit of the Lord lift
up a standard against him We cannot stand in our own strength
or in our own wisdom. Leave us not, Lord, to try, but
help us to draw strength from thee. We do humbly beseech of
thee. Thou hast promised in thy word,
but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They
shall mount up on wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary.
Hear us, Lord, we humbly beseech thee. feed our souls with living
bread. And we pray most gracious Lord
that thou would remember each of us in the evening time of
life's journey and remember us for good. Grant that at evening
time it may be light, that we may be delivered from temptation
and the power and the dominion of sin. Hear us Lord. we do humbly beseech thee. Remember
all thy servants as they labour in word and doctrine upon the
walls of Zion. Set them free, set them at liberty. Grant mighty signs and wonders
to follow the preaching of the word. Thou hast set open thy
mouth wide and I will fill it. Come, Lord, and abundantly bless
the provision of thy house and satisfy thy poor with bread. O Lord, we do beseech thee. Grant
that the Lord Jesus may be exalted in all things, we do humbly beseech
them, that he may be lifted high upon the gospel pole. We pray thee, the great Lord
of the harvest, that thou would send true labourers into the
harvest. Come, Lord, and rebuild, and
renew, and revive, and replenish. We long and we watch and we wait
for thy appearing. And, O Lord God, we do pray that
thou wouldst graciously and mercifully fill our hearts with thanksgiving
for the abundance of thy mercy. Lord, each one of us can say,
in you every morning are thy mercies, great is thy faithfulness,
O that we that may have our hearts filled with that spirit of thanksgiving,
of praise, of adoration unto thee for the glories of Christ,
for the wonderful sublime glory of the incarnation of the Son
of God, for the holy life he lived as a man here upon earth
and the holy law that he has fulfilled. Lord, we bow in humble
thanksgiving and admiration of thee. for the wonders and glories
of our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank thee for Calvary, where
the lamb was slain, where sin has been put away, where God
and sinners are reconciled, where peace is made between God and
man. We thank thee, gracious God,
that he died for our sins and rose again for our justification. This is our meat and our drink.
O Lord, we do pray thee that we may feed upon him. We thank
thee that not only thee rose from the dead and swallowed up
death in victory, but he has bodily ascended into heaven and
sitteth at thy right hand. We bless thee, Lord. Come and
touch one's lips with a live coal from off the heavenly altar.
Come and speak to our hearts. For Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 566. The tune is Hazelton, 743. He famished in naked and poor, distressed, tormented, forlorn,
in Christ is a suitable store for all that unto him will come.
He's bread, and the bread of life too, well suited the hungry
to fill, nor one that unto him shall go, but what will approve
the bread well? Hymn 566. ? Oh, say can you see by the dawn's
early light ? ? What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last
gleaming ? O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? O'er the land of the free and
the home Namo'valokiteshvaraya Namo'valokiteshvaraya
? There's wisdom in this new land
? ? On which only things will admit ? O praise ye, O praise ye, O praise
ye, O praise ye, The garden of joy I have become,
Where peace, joy, and silence chime. I know the name of his cross,
and I have not his cross. ? To which we pledge ? ? Eternity
as our duty ? O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? ? Joy to the world ? ? Joy to the
world ? ? Joy to the world ? O say does that star-spangled
banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the
brave? ? Heaven's crown of glory ? ? From
head to toe ? ? Ever praising, ever triumphing ? greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, I would direct your attention to the sixth chapter
in the gospel according to John, and we will read verse 35 for
our text. John's gospel chapter six, verse
35. And Jesus said unto them, I am
the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger, he that believeth on me shall never thirst. Very sacred, precious portion
of the word of God, the Lord Jesus set forth as that one that
is able to nourish and to strengthen his people, and they feed on him by faith. The key to this chapter is verse
63. It is the spirit that quickneth,
the flesh profited nothing. The words that I speak unto you,
they are spirit and they are life. That really, if we can't
get beyond the illustrations that the Lord Jesus Christ uses
from natural things, then we shall never grasp the true meaning. He's not speaking of natural
bread. He's speaking of spiritual food.
And that spiritual food is himself. As he says here in our text,
I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger. He that believeth on me shall
never thirst. To believe, to come, to lay hold, to come into Christ,
that's what it's speaking of. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger. The Apostle Peter in his first
epistle, he says, to whom coming? As unto a living stone, disallowed
indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious. To whom coming? As unto a living
stone. Jesus said unto them, I am the
bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger. He that believeth on me shall
never thirst. You see, my beloved friends,
this spiritual food, the people that had spoken unto Christ,
that they spoke of the manner that was given to them. In verse
31, Our fathers did eat manna in the desert. As it is written,
he gave them bread from heaven to eat. Then Jesus said unto
them, verily, verily, that in the original, that means amen,
amen, or certainly, certainly, I say unto you, Moses gave you
not that bread from heaven. You see, the bread that they
ate in the wilderness was for the nourishment of their bodies.
He gave them by a special dispensation It said in scripture It was like
coriander seed and it was spread all over the camp of Israel and
they went out and gathered it And they made bread etc That
that was a wonderful act of God Now they said our father's deep
manor in the Desert as his Whitney gave them bread from heaven to
eat Jesus said unto them, verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses
gave you not that bread from heaven, but my Father giveth
you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which
cometh down from heaven and giveth life unto the world. This is our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ. He gives life unto the world.
He that hath the Son hath life. He that hath not the Son of God
hath not life. That life is in Christ. Have
we tasted of this bread of life? Have we had some crumbs from
the Master's table? Precious thing if we have. The woman that came to Christ
with her very sick daughter. Do not the dogs eat of the crumbs
from the master's table? Woman, greatest thy faith. She wouldn't be put off. She
needed something. She was seeking something. She
was longing for something. She was hungering for something.
She was thirsting for something. Is there somebody here tonight
that has come hungry, thirsty, longing? You need something. You have an aching void that
the world and all its pleasures and treasures can never fill. Can never fill. There's only
this true bread from heaven that can satisfy your hunger. Blessed
are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they
shall be filled, they hunger and thirst after righteousness. Why do they
do that? Because they feel that they are
unrighteous, unclean, and they long to be made righteous. They mourn over their defilement
by sin. They feel the burden of their
sin and they long to lose it. They feel the defilement of their
sin and they long to be washed in the precious blood of the
Lamb that cleanses from all sin. You see, for the bread of God
is he which cometh down from heaven and give his life unto
the world. In him is life. Nowhere else. You won't find it anywhere else. You know, over the years I've
heard people, and they speak of this experience or that experience,
et cetera, and they say, wasn't this wonderful? Usually something
in providence, and wasn't this wonderful? Wasn't this blessed? They can speak of all manner
of things, but what troubles me is sometimes it's completely
divorced from Christ. You know, that's not a good thing. There's something vital that
is missing. You can have lots of wonderful
experiences, but if they're divorced from Christ, separated from Christ,
there's no Christ in them well you know friends we need to be
very careful as to what we're building on upon this rock I
build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against
it and if you and I not building on this rock then we're building
on a sandy foundation and it will not stand it will
not stand it's only as we're built upon this rock. You think
of that, what Peter and his confession unto Christ, and he says, thou
art the Christ, the son of the living God. And Christ answered him. Thou
art Peter. And upon this rock, he's answering
his confession of faith. Upon this rock, Christ, the son
of the living God, Upon this rock I build my church, and the
gates of hell shall not prevail against it. What are you building
on? What am I building on? What is
the foundation of our hope? Is it in this bread of life?
Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life. He that cometh
to me shall never hunger, He that believeth on me shall never
thirst. But then he spoke to others there
and he said, but I said unto you that ye also have seen me
and believe not. It's not everyone that believed
on Jesus Christ. It's those that the Father had
given him. All that the Father giveth me
shall come to me. And in that cometh to me, I will
in no wise cast out. O my beloved friends, lay hold
of this by faith. I will in no wise cast out. That
thou art coming to a king, large petitions with thee bring. For
his grace and power are such, none can ever ask too much. There's
nothing too great and there's nothing too small that you can
bring to this King, King Jesus. And you see, friends, the great
burden here is this bread. In what we read together in verse
27, he reproves them. labour not for the meat which
perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting
life, which the Son of Man." I think there are 72 times in
Holy Scripture that when this title is given unto Jesus Christ,
mostly they are spoken by Christ himself, which the Son of Man. Who is this Son of Man? God,
manifest in the flesh. the Eternal Son of the Eternal
Father, manifest in the flesh, the glorious person of our Lord
Jesus Christ. That's who the Son of Man is. But labour, he says, for that
meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall
give unto you. For him hath God the Father sealed,
He has sealed Him as a Prince, as a Saviour, for to give faith
and repentance and remission of sins. Unto them that look
for Him shall He appear a second time without sin unto salvation. Are you looking for Him? Are
you waiting for Him? You see, sometimes, my beloved
friends, we get things completely out of kilter in our lives, and
like these people, But they were more looking to Christ for his
miracles and the wonderful things that he did and the bread that
they ate in such a miraculous way which is recorded in the
beginning of this chapter. There's a lad here with five
loaves and a few fishes. And he asked them to sit down
and he fed them all. You know, Where Christ is, there's
an abundance of food. And it's in Him. And it's food
that will nourish your soul. Just for a moment, let us look
at this, I am. I am the bread of life. It seemed
to sort of lay hold of me when I was looking at it, I am. There are many I am's in Holy
Scripture but it reminds us of Moses when the Lord called him
to send him to deliver the children of Israel from Egyptian bondage. Moses says that they will not
believe me and the Lord said unto him that thou shalt say
unto them that I am. Capital letters I am has sent
What does this I am mean? See, I am that I am. I am from everlasting to
everlasting. I am Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever. Or as the Lord Jesus says under
John, on the Isle of Patmos, I am Alpha and Omega. the beginning and the end, the
first and the last. I am he that liveth, and behold,
I'm alive forevermore. There are so many of these wonderful
I ams that I found. That I am that was spoken to
Moses, it's really an abbreviated form of the name Jehovah. I am
the Lord Jehovah. I am that I am. I am from all
eternity, and I shall live to all eternity. I am the Lord,
I change not. Therefore, ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed. You can't be in Christ one day
and out the next. That's an utter contradiction
of the truth as it's found in the Word of God. If you're in Christ, you're in
Him eternity. If you're in Christ, you've been
in him from all eternity. If you're in Christ, you'll be
in him to all eternity. In that parable in the gospel
according to Luke of the rich man and Lazarus, and the Lord
Jesus, he teaches us something there. And he says, when he said,
send Abraham, or rather send Lazarus in Abraham's bosom, That
means in the bosom of the covenant. What did the Lord say? That what
is more between us and thee, that is between heaven and hell,
there is a great gulf fixed. Nobody will ever go from hell
to heaven. And nobody will ever go from
heaven to hell. there is a great gulf fixed. You can't fall out of heaven
into hell. Nor can you travel from hell
to heaven. It's fixed. And that is illustrated
in that word in Ecclesiastes, as the tree falleth, so shall
it be. That means whether it fall to
the south or to the north or to the east or to the west, It
can't move itself once it's fallen. And as it's fallen, and where
it's fallen towards, there it will remain. And if a person
dies out of Christ, he falls into eternal damnation. And if
a person dies in Christ, he falls to eternal life. As it falls,
so shall it be. And that is fixed eternally. And Jesus said unto them, I am
the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger. He that believeth on me shall
never thirst. You know, the bread of life. Not just bread, but the bread
of life. In the fourth chapter of John,
with the woman, By the well, the Lord Jesus, he says unto
her, if any man drink of the water that I shall give him,
it shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting
life. You see, if anybody eats of this
bread, it will be in him as everlasting
life. And it says in verse 40, and
this is the will of Him that sent me, that everyone which
seeth the Son and believeth on Him may have everlasting life,
and I will raise Him up at the last day. You see, my beloved friends, and
again, the Lord Jesus Christ, He says that they said in answer
to Him, Jesus in verse 41 he says the Jews then murmured at
him because he said I am the bread which came down from heaven.
They only saw him naturally as a man. They said he's not this
Jesus the son of Joseph whose father and mother we know. How
is it then that he saith I came down from heaven. No man can
come to me except the father which has sent me draw him and
I will raise him up at the last day. Every man therefore that he hath
heard and hath learned of the Father cometh unto me. You see,
my beloved friends, verily, verily I say unto you, he that believeth
on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your
fathers did eat manna in the wilderness and are dead. You
see, I and the living bread which came down from heaven. If any
man eat of this bread, he shall live forever. And the bread that
I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the
world." You see, again, the Jews, they could only see what was
natural. They couldn't see what was spiritual. And you and I by nature, we can
only see that which is natural. We cannot see that which is spiritual
unless the Lord opens our eyes. See the Jews, they strove among
themselves, how can this man give us his flesh to eat? I was
thinking today and it seemed to remain on my spirit all day.
concerning the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, the breaking of the bread, and the eating of the bread.
This do in remembrance of me. This is my body broken for you. This do in remembrance of me. And in verse 53 he says, verily,
verily, certainly, certainly, I say unto you, except ye eat
the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, ye have no life
in you. But as I pointed out to you,
verse 63, it is the spirit that quickneth, the flesh profiteth
nothing. The words I speak unto you, they
are spirit and they are life. He's speaking here spiritually
concerning the flesh and blood of Christ. And this is that bread
of life, that if a man eat by faith, feasting on that broken
body of Christ. It's a precious thing, you know,
friends, when we can feed on Christ, that living bread that
came down from heaven. My flesh is meat indeed, and
my blood is drink indeed, that those sufferings, those physical
and spiritual sufferings of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane on
the cross of Calvary. This is what the living child
of God feeds on, his flesh. Jesus crucified for me. Jesus standing in my room place
and standing As Joseph Hart says, the soldier's pierced his sight
is true, but I have pierced him through and through. This is
to eat of his flesh and drink of his blood, that precious blood
of the lamb. And you know, when the Lord brought
me into gospel liberty, I was so greatly blessed. But the devil
came in almost immediately, Oh, these wonderful blessings and
the great joy that filled my heart. But the devil comes in
and he says, ah, but this can't be real because you've never
been washed in the blood. It can't be real because you
don't know this and you don't know that and you don't know
something else. It's the devil, he's a master of questions. And that set me to prayer. Lord,
is this real? Is it right? And it was the little
couplet in the hymn that completely broke that snare. Every blessing,
every favor freely flows through Jesus' precious blood. And friends,
that delivered my soul. It brought me into sweet liberty.
I could see that right from when the Lord began with me, that
his blessing flowed through the blood of Calvary. It came through
the blood of Jesus Christ. Jesus said unto them, I am the
bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger. He that believeth on me shall
never thirst. You know, in the next chapter,
in chapter seven, a portion that I often direct you to, in verse
37. In the last day, that great day
of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst,
let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the
scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water. But this is vague of the Spirit,
which they that believe on him should receive. For the Holy
Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified. And in that verse 14 of chapter
four, when the Lord speaks to the woman by the well concerning
that living water, that it shall be in him as a well of water
springing up unto everlasting life. You see, just as we've
read in chapter seven, this is spake of the spirit that they
that believe on him should receive. And that Holy Ghost, when he
enters the heart of a sinner, that when he grants those sweet
graces of the Spirit and faith in Jesus Christ and real repentance
and godly sorrow for sin, it's a springing well within. And
not only that, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. That blessed
Spirit that first quickened your soul into life will never leave
you. It will be in you, a well of water
springing up from within. constantly giving and maintaining
your spiritual life. If it wasn't for the Spirit dwelling
in your heart, that life would never be maintained. But you
have the Divine Person of the Holy Spirit that dwells in your
heart. Know ye not that ye are the temple
of the Holy Ghost? If so, be the Spirit of God dwelleth
in you. And this springing up into everlasting
life in Christ, that's where everlasting life is. It's in
our Lord Jesus Christ. I am the bread of life. Now,
for a moment, let us speak of bread and the illustration here. Bread is one of the mainstays
of life for nourishing. for giving strength. Of course, it's made principally
from wheat flour. In Isaiah, we read bread corn
is bruised. Bread corn is usually very hard,
and to bruise it and to crush it, it has to go between the
upper and nether millstone, and to be ground between those stones,
and what comes out is the flour. And it's the flour that the bread
is made of. And that is what gives us, naturally,
nourishment. The bread, naturally speaking. It will strengthen you for the
day. Well, you know, that's why we eat sandwiches, isn't it?
working man, a hard-working man, he'll usually take sandwiches
to work with him. Why? Because that's what gives
him strength, that's what nourishes him, to enable him to do the
work that he does. Now to make that bread, that
corn had to be crushed or bruised as it says in Isaiah. Bread corn
is bruised. What a beautiful illustration
of Christ. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The justicement of our peace
was upon him and with his stripes we are healed. You see, bread
corn is bruised. That dear suffering saviour And,
you know, at the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, we have wine. This cup is a new testimony in
my blood. You see, drinking all of it,
this wine, again, wine is made from grapes. Those grapes have
to be crushed. And the juice has to be poured
off to make the wine and to be fermented. It's again a beautiful
illustration of the sufferings of Christ. And that bread is
an illustration of the sufferings of Christ. That bruised corn,
the flour coming out, the nourishment to man. So it is spiritually. It is through the sufferings
of Christ that we are reconciled unto God. It's through the precious
blood of the Lamb that our sins are and our iniquities are remembered
no more. When I see the blood, I will
pass over you. This is what these things represent. Bread corn is bruised. I am the bread of life. He that
cometh to me shall never hunger. He that believeth on me shall
never thirst. This is bread and water. I can't just remember exactly
where it is. But in the scriptures, it speaks
of the staff, the whole staff of bread and a course of water. They're the two main things that
keep our bodies alive. Our bodies need water. If we don't have water, then
we will die. Something that is essential.
And the bread, it nourishes us. It strengthens our body. And
without it, we would be weak and we would fade away and die.
So there are two things that are absolutely vitally necessary
to us naturally. But that's why Christ here uses
this as an illustration, because Christ is absolutely vital and
necessary. No man cometh unto the Father
but by me. You see, Whoso eateth my flesh
and drinketh my blood hath eternal life. Verse 54. And I will raise
him up at the last day, for my flesh is meat indeed, and my
blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh
my blood dwelleth in me, and I in him, as the living Father
hath sent me. And I live by the Father, so
he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. This is that bread
which came down from heaven, Not as your fathers did eat manna
are dead. He that eateth of this bread
shall live forever. You see, my beloved friends,
these things that he speaks are spiritual. And the only ones
that can understand it are those that are spiritually alive. And
they feel their need. And the Holy Ghost reveals it
unto them. He reveals unto them their need
as a poor sinner before a holy god he reveals unto them that
are lost and ruined in the fall of adam he reveals unto them
that they've broken god's holy law and they come under the solemn
curse of the law that's what the spirit reveals unto a poor
sinner and then in all their desperate need and helplessness
and hopelessness and insufficiency their poverty the inability to
do anything it's a great burden to them It's a great burden to them,
they feel lost, they feel ruined. It's only as the Blessed Spirit,
who dwells in their heart, He gives faith. Faith is the gift
of God, and when the Spirit gives faith, you believe. He that believeth on me. Every man therefore that hath
heard and hath learned of the Father cometh unto me. So then in verse 47, verily,
verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting
life. I am that bread of life. You see, my beloved friends,
these nourishing, spiritually nourishing, you'll only find
this nourishment in Christ. And as Christ himself here, explains
that this bread of life this nourishment comes from his sufferings
except you eat the flesh of the son of man and drink his blood
you have no life in you whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh
my blood hath eternal life and i will raise him up at the last
day for my flesh is meat indeed and my blood is drink indeed
he that eateth my flesh and drinking my blood dwelleth in me and i
Him, to dwell by faith, to dwell by faith in Christ, to feed on
Christ, to look to Christ, to cast all your care upon Him,
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who
for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despised
in the shame thereof, He that cometh to me shall never hunger. You know, there's those lovely
and those beautiful words that are found in the last chapter
of Holy Scripture, verse 17, and how beautiful they are, how
precious they are, verse, and the Spirit, that's the Holy Ghost,
and the Bride, that's the Church. They speak with one voice, and
the Spirit and the Bride say, come, and let him that hear it
say, come. let him that is a thirst come
and whosoever will let him take the water of life freely it cannot
be bought it cannot be purchased it's beyond price it is and that
that is brought out in isaiah chapter 55 how that this is you
can't buy it you can't purchase it it's absolutely priceless
O every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters. He that hath
no money, come ye, buy and eat ye. Come, buy wine and milk without
money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for
that which is not bread, and your labour for that which satisfies
not? Hearken diligently unto me, and
eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself
in fatness. To whom cometh? unto a living
stone even our Lord Jesus Christ incline your ear and come unto
me here and your soul shall live and I will make an everlasting
covenant with you even the sure mercies of David you see my beloved
friends these things are written to encourage poor sinners to
come to Christ to encourage poor sinners to look to Christ to
encourage poor sinners to cast all your care upon him, for he
careth for you. Oh, that the Lord will enable
you to come, to look, like that dear woman that pressed
through the crowd. If I might but touch the hem
of his garment, I should be made whole. Oh, my beloved friends,
may the Lord enable you to keep coming, to keep looking, to keep
waiting, For they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount upon wings as eagles, they shall run and not
be weary, they shall walk and not faint. And Jesus said unto
them, I am the bread of life, he that cometh to me shall never
hunger, he that believeth on me shall never thirst. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 462. The tune is Kim Ronda, 902. When
I got up this morning and so burdened that the Lord would
give me a word to come. And it was the last two lines
of this first verse that seemed so sweetly to remain on my spirit. Bread of heaven, feed me now
and evermore. Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
pilgrim through this barren land. I am weak, but thou art mighty.
Hold me with thy powerful hand. Bread of heaven, feed me now. and evermore, hymn 900, sorry,
hymn 462. O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? Brick of Bethlehem, brick of
Bethlehem, Take me now and evermore, evermore
Take me now and evermore Harp of Dove, love is in the
mountains, Waves of evening, streams their flow'r, And the
faraway, how deep they know, Give me hope, my journey through
Strong in Ephra, strong in Ephra Be thou still my strength and
shield, strength and shield May thou still my strength and cheer
When I tread the path of Jordan Give my anxious fists of sight
Death of death and hell's destruction Lend me safe on Canaan's side
Songs of praises, songs of praises I will ever give to Thee, give
to Thee Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each both now and
forevermore. Amen.