Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read John 6:24–35

Hunger pangs. We’ve all felt them. At one point or another, we’ve all been that girl sitting in the middle of a meeting or a test, embarrassed and red-faced because those loud, obnoxious growling noises aren’t somebody’s pet chihuahua hiding under the table. No, it’s your stomach. We’ve all probably gone too long without eating, either intentionally or by accident. We may even have slipped into the “hangry zone” when our hunger makes us unbearably detestable.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, physical hunger pangs are the “sensation of discomfort or gnawing in your stomach or abdomen.” They can be caused by a number of different reasons, including the quality of food you’ve eaten, dehydration, lack of sleep, or the fact that your stomach is actually empty and you need fuel.[1]

I love that definition: “gnawing in your stomach.” I love it so much that I’m stealing it and using it to describe being spiritually hungry: a sensation of discomfort or gnawing in our spirits or souls. I have absolutely felt that way: the ache to know that there is something or someone beyond this present world, the hurtful pangs of demanding to understand the meaning of suffering, the despair of feeling alone and invisible, and wondering if I even matter. 

I know those feelings—hungering for answers, purpose, and belonging. I wonder if you do, too?

In today’s gospel, the last words that Jesus utters are the remedy for this spiritual hunger: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst” (John 6:35).

No matter the cause of the ache, pang, or growl, the intensity or unremitting ferocity, the grueling shame it provokes in us, or the hopeless dejection we feel—Jesus Christ is all we need to never be hungry again. 

My friend, we must not settle for any less than what our Lord promises us. We cannot be like the followers in the gospel who run to catch up to Jesus, demanding more bread, like the loaves He gave to the five thousand, or more signs like the manna given to the Israelites in the desert. 

The living bread that Jesus promises is not merely a symbol. Nor is it like the manna in the desert, which only supplied sustenance to the Israelites for that day, making it a mere shadow of the bread Jesus is offering; the bread of life is ever so much more than a shadow. Jesus has promised us Himself the “radiance of God’s glory,” a “light to everyone in the world” so brilliant that no shadow could stand before Him (Hebrews 1:3, John 1:9).

The world’s promises will never satiate us. The bread we feed on here is corrupted, contaminated, and decaying. It will spoil. It will not last. Feasting on this earthly bread inevitably will leave us malnourished, searching for more; the hunger pangs are sure to return. 

However, if we feed on Jesus, the true bread that has come down from heaven, we are promised supernatural nourishment for all eternity. Gone are the spiritual hunger pangs and “hangry-ness” of this world!

To use Jesus' words in this passage, how can we receive this bread, this food that endures for eternal life, and how do we obtain or work for it? (John 6:27).

The bread of life that Jesus is offering us is not something we receive based on a level of achievement or earning potential, like a raise or bonus. The Greek word for work is “ergon,” meaning “an action to carry out, an inner intention of the heart.”[2] Jesus is saying that in both our actions and in our hearts, we must believe in the one whom the Father has sent (John 6:29). 

We must believe and have faith in Jesus Christ—in who He is (the Son of God, come down from heaven) and in what He has done for us (reconciling us with the Father by His death on the cross). 

“Since we have been justified by faith, we have [been given] peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access to this grace in which we stand” (Romans 5:1). Faith in Jesus leads to our justification before God. When we choose to believe the truth that Jesus endured the punishment due us, we stand justified in the sight of the Father (to help us remember “justified” means: “just as if I had” died on the cross). “We are no longer strangers and sojourners, but fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:19, emphasis added). Jesus stood in our place. And because of this act, we have peace with God. We are reconciled to Him and belong to His family; thus, the inheritance of eternal life is now extended to us. 

Once we obtain the faith deposit gifted to us, the “work” doesn’t end there. We cash it in and then invest it in others. “Faith without works is dead” (James 2:26). True faith and belief in Jesus cannot but make a profound mark in our hearts, transforming and manifesting itself in how we live: offering forgiveness and grace, loving with charity, being “joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer” (Romans 12:12).

What a gift we have in our Catholic faith! In times of desolation, when our faith needs a supercharge, or our endurance is waning, let’s remember we have resurrection power dwelling within us. The Holy Spirit is only too eager to pour “grace upon grace” into our hearts (John 1:16). Like a supernatural cold plunge, the Spirit will jolt us out of lethargy, bolster our confidence, and activate our faith endorphins!

Let us not forget that the real presence of Jesus Christ—Body, Blood, soul, and divinity—is ready and waiting for us in the tabernacles of our churches. Our merciful Lord wants to free us from deep and gnawing hunger pangs. It is Jesus who we hunger for. He longs to satisfy us with the true bread from heaven, the gift of finest wheat, Himself.

With you at the table,
Jeannine

Food for thought or journaling...
What are you spiritually hungry for? What are the deepest longings of your heart? 

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief (Mark 9:24). Amen.

P.S. Dig deeper into Jesus’ bread of life discourse. Get your copy of our Touching the Divine Bible study, and pay close attention to Lesson 7: Jesus, the Eucharist.

[1] “Why Do I Get Hunger Pangs?” Cleveland Clinic (2 July 2024): https://health.clevelandclinic.org/hunger-pangs.
[2] Strongs Concordance, Bible Hub (3 July 2024): https://biblehub.com/greek/2041.htm.