*Title:* The Bread of Life — Jason Summers, July 11, 2026

Why did Jesus choose bread? On this Communion Sabbath, Jason Summers asks why Jesus called Himself "I am the bread of life" — and why that choice matters before we take the bread and the cup. "I am" is one of John's eight great "I am" statements, and by using those words Jesus identified Himself with the divine name revealed to Moses at the burning bush: He is God, the one who has always provided for His people and the only one who can satisfy the deepest hunger of the human heart. Bread has always been life's necessity across nearly every culture — yet much of the bread on grocery shelves today has been processed and stripped of nourishment to appeal to taste rather than the body. The same can happen spiritually when the gospel is altered to be more appealing and less demanding. Against that stands the unleavened bread, the matzo: leaven is Scripture's symbol of sin, and the bread without leaven pointed forward to the One who would come without sin — Jesus, the true bread from heaven.

The sermon stays in John chapter 6, where Jesus fed 5,000 men — at least 15,000 counting women and children — and the crowd came back the next day wanting another meal rather than the Messiah in front of them. "You seek me not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled." They demanded a greater sign still, manna as Moses gave — and Jesus corrected them: Moses did not give the bread from heaven; His Father gives the true bread, the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. Manna itself means "What is it?" — the Hebrews did not recognize God's gift in the wilderness, just as the nation did not recognize God's Son. Our deepest hunger is not for more possessions or comfort, but for forgiveness, peace, purpose, and fellowship with our Creator — and, as Summers puts it, Jesus is "THE REAL SOUL FOOD," the one who meets our needs for this life and the next.

Before communion came humility: in the upper room, before Jesus placed the bread in His disciples' hands, He knelt and washed their feet. Before the bread came the basin — and that is why the ordinance of humility comes first, because pride has no place at the Lord's table. With Peter's confession — "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" — we come to the table itself: unleavened bread, His sinless body given for us, and the cup of redemption, the new covenant in His blood. Self-examination before partaking is not a worthiness test, Summers insists: none of us is worthy, and if worthiness were required every seat would be empty. "Communion's not for perfect people. It's for forgiven people." We come because we are hungry — hungry for grace, forgiveness, peace, and Jesus — and the bread of life still satisfies every soul that comes to Him.

*Key texts:* John 6:26, 6:31–35, 6:48–51; Matthew 4:4; Exodus 16; John 13; 1 Corinthians 11:23–26; Luke 22:19–20; Matthew 16:6; Revelation 2:14–15

*Watch:* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gga0zMMatvE · *Listen:* https://cloud-1de12d.becdn.net/media/original/f77e36fda24e4d0eb1f38cfea1573ee3.mp3