Bread was baked daily in the ancient world. Made from a variety of grains, it was usually shaped into small round loaves that looked more like rolls or buns than the large loaves of bread we eat today.
Because bread was a primary staple, it was also used in various aspects of worship. Cereal offerings took the form of loaves or cakes, and bread was also used as a firstfruit offering or a peace offering. The Bread of the Presence, consisting of twelve loaves of unleavened bread, symbolized the covenant between God and his people. Displayed in the temple sanctuary next to the Most Holy Place, it served as a constant reminder to the priests and the people that it was God who sustained his people. Psalm 78:24–25 speaks of how he fed them in the wilderness:
He rained manna down on them to eat
and gave them grain from heaven.
Humans ate the bread of the mighty ones,
and God sent them plenty of food.
It seems clear that without bread no one in ancient Palestine would have survived for long. In what has become known as the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus instructed his disciples to pray for their daily bread. Yet he challenged his followers not to work for food that spoils, announcing himself as the only food that would enable them to live forever.
Certainly, it was no accident that the one who called himself Artos Zoes, the Bread of Life, was born in the town of Bethlehem, which means “house of bread.”
Praying to the Bread of Life
Every Christmas, I celebrate with a barrage of sugar—caramels, fudge, chocolate, assorted cookies, and whatever else crosses my path. The candy dish is soon empty, and I am forced to return to a healthier diet, reminding myself to watch what I eat more carefully. Which brings me to the subject of bread—a subject that comes up over and over in the Bible.
Take the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples, instructing them to pray for their “daily bread.” In this case the word “bread,” is what’s called a synecdoche. It is a part that describes a whole. Just as one might refer to a farm worker as a hired hand, Jesus was using bread to refer to God’s provision for all our needs—physical, spiritual, and emotional.
What’s more, the phrase “daily bread” calls to mind the way God sustained the Israelites in the desert. Instead of providing them with a huge warehouse of food, he supplied them with manna daily. Doesn’t that sound great—no need to work for your food. You just have to wait for it to fall from heaven. But imagine the anxiety you would feel, especially at first. Sure, God provided manna today but what about tomorrow? What about next week or next month? For my part, I would much rather see a huge grocery store drop down from heaven than a little bit of manna every day. That would really ease my fear about the future. But would it? Wouldn’t the next difficult circumstance set my anxiety in gear all over again?
By giving his people bread in the wilderness, God was not only feeding their stomachs but also nourishing their faith, because through it they learned to depend on his provision day after day.
What is it that you need right now—healing, wisdom, forgiveness, a sense of purpose, confidence, hope, money to pay the rent? Jesus called himself the “bread of life,” “the living bread that came down from heaven.” He said that “whoever eats this bread will live forever” (John 6:51). Ask God today to teach you what it means to feed on Jesus, to look to him for what will truly nourish and sustain your life.
