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MAY 20
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to Me I will by no means cast out. For I have 43 Jesus therefore answered and said to
come down from heaven, not to do My own them, “Do not murmur among yourselves.
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will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father
the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him
He has given Me I should lose nothing, but up at the last day. It is written in the prophets,
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should raise it up at the last day. And this is ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ There-
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fore everyone who has heard and learned
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from the Father comes to Me. Not that any-
one has seen the Father, except He who is
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from God; He has seen the Father. Most
6:40 everyone who sees the Son and believes assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me
in Him. This verse emphasizes human respon- has everlasting life. I am the bread of life.
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sibility in salvation.Although God is sovereign, 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness,
He works through faith, so that a man must and are dead. This is the bread which comes
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believe in Jesus as the Messiah and Son of down from heaven, that one may eat of it and
God who alone offers the only way of salva- 51
tion (14:6). However, even faith is a gift of God not die. I am the living bread which came
(Rom.12:3; Eph.2:8,9).Intellectually harmoniz- down from heaven. If anyone eats of this
ing the sovereignty of God and the responsi- bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I
bility of man is impossible humanly, but per- shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for
fectly resolved in the infinite mind of God. the life of the world.”
the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone
who sees the Son and believes in Him may 6:51 This pronouncement exactly reiterates
have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at vv. 33,35,47,48. My flesh, which I shall give
the last day.” for the life of the world. Jesus refers here
41 The Jews then complained about Him, prophetically to His impending sacrifice upon
because He said, “I am the bread which came the cross (2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 2:24). Jesus volun-
down from heaven.” And they said, “Is not tarily laid down His life for evil, sinful mankind
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this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and (10:18; 1 John 2:2).
mother we know? How is it then that He says,
‘I have come down from heaven’?”

DAY 20: How do Jesus’“I am”statements in the Book of John
express His saving relationship toward the world?

After the miraculous feeding of the 5,000, Jesus was challenged by the crowd to perform an
even greater miracle in John 6:30.“Our fathers ate the manna,”they said (v.31),implying that Jesus’
miraculous feeding was a small miracle compared to what Moses did. In order for them to believe
in Him, they would need to see Him feed the nation of Israel on the same scale that God did when
He sent manna and fed the entire nation of Israel during their wilderness wanderings for 40 years
(Ex. 16:11–36).They were demanding that Jesus outdo Moses if they were to believe in Him.
Jesus responded that the manna God gave was temporary and perished and was only a mea-
ger shadow of what God offered them in the true bread,Himself,who gives spiritual and eternal life
to mankind (“world”). He is the “true bread from heaven,” and in case that wasn’t understood, He
added,“I am the bread of life”(v. 35).
Twenty-three times in all we find our Lord’s meaningful “I AM”in the Greek text of this Gospel
(4:26; 6:20,35,41,48,51; 8:12,18,24,28,58; 10:7,9,11,14; 11:25; 13:19; 14:6; 15:1,5; 18:5,6,8).In several of
these,He joins His “I AM”with seven tremendous metaphors which are expressive of His saving rela-
tionship toward the world.
“I AM the Bread of life”(6:35,41,48,51).
“I AM the Light of the world”(8:12).
“I AM the Door of the sheep”(10:7,9).
“I AM the Good Shepherd”(10:11,14).
“I AM the Resurrection and the Life”(11:25).
“I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life”(14:6).
“I AM the true Vine”(15:1,5).

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