Daily Reading Reflection: John 6

Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 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 6:26-27)

What is faith in Jesus for? Is it for right now or is for a future time that is still to come? Does this faith make us a people who want to live a life of justice now where we follow God's laws and work to build a world that looks more like what he wants or is it a faith which leads us to sigh at the state of the world and desire to move on?

In this passage Jesus starts by performing a miracle and feeding five thousand with five loaves and two fishes. Then he finishes the passage by speaking about himself as the Bread of Life and refusing to repeat his miracle. He begins by meeting the immediate material needs of the people but at the end he insists that there is a deeper reality which is more important than the bread that fed them.

So is faith for right now or is it for what is to come? The answer is both. When we enter into a life of Faith, when we follow what Jesus says it has an impact on what we experience right now. The Father provides for us, Jesus walks alongside us through our day, we are filled with the Spirit. We also become a part of the Church and are enfolded into a group of people who care for us in a way that most people don't. Your entry into a life of faith will change how you live right now.

But we also live in a world which is not yet as it should be. There are still places where injustice and brokenness occur. We experience disease and famine and heartbreak. Things are not perfect. Those moments of imperfection remind us of the second part of what Jesus says. If we eat bread, we will be hungry again, but the food which he provides is for a life which is everlasting and where we will never go hungry again. He gives us the gift of life everlasting.

So what is faith in Jesus for? It's for right now as God enters into our lives in all kinds of ways. But it's also for what's to come when Jesus returns to make all things right.