Imagining Jesus as Your Bread of Life | John 6

Often the reason we desire other things more than God is a lack of using our imagination in worship. With any desire we have that we pursue, we use our imagination. That’s what makes us want it. We imagine a possible experience that makes us desire it more. A desert. A purchase. A relationship. A vacation. A job. A house. A meal. Do I want to go out to dinner? Have someone over? Go to church? Go golfing? I have to imagine it to want it. Our imagination — the imagery that allows our mind to picture an unseen reality — a possibility — is what fuels all of our desires. That’s why the Bible gives us lots of images for us to imagine as we worship. We need to learn to worship God through biblical mental images. Like when Jesus calls himself the Bread of Life in John 6. Have you ever used that image to worship him? Let’s try it here. John 6:3–6 NIV 3 Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. …5 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6 He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. John 6:8–11 NIV 8 Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, 9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.   John 6:12–13 NIV 12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. John 6:26 NIV Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because yo