‘I am the bread of life. . .(John 6:35).’
"There was a day when Jesus stood up and announced to the people: I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE. The day before Jesus made that speech, he had amazed everyone by miraculously feeding thousands of people with a few loaves of bread. A lot of people had seen that miracle, so, the next day, they went to a lot of effort to find Jesus, in the hope that they would see something similar happen. They were hoping for more of the same."
"They were being led by their stomachs."
"In response to them, Jesus said, Do not work for the food that spoils. You have gone to some trouble to seek me out in the hope that you will score another belly full. Your effort is misplaced. You need to work for food that does not spoil. You ought to labor for the food that will . . . link(link) - - - you to the life ( // TRUTH )* of God."
"Suppose every young person arriving in this world, could be given a piece of advice. One vital clue, that would set them on a course through life that would save him from wasting his time on vanities; that would keep her from going down dead end roads in futile endeavors. It is just such advice that Jesus is offering here."
"He is saying" :
"Don't give yourself to that which will end in disappointment."
"Don't let the whole effort of your life be for nothing."
"Work for something that ultimately affirms your worth."
"Work for the bread that endures to eternal life."
. . "I am the bread of life."
. . . * my addition ! ! !
‘And who is my neighbor?.’ (Luke 10:29)
"Jesus had just finished telling his parable of the good Samaritan. In the story, a desperately wounded man was left by religious leaders to perish. He was saved by someone another man, who happened to be a religious outcast. The lawyer who asked the question, "Who is my neighbor," understood well why the priest and Levite would not help the wounded man. To do so would have meant defilement for them. It was their religion, that prevented them from being compassionate."
"As for the Samaritan, he was one of a breed of people whom Jews in the southern part of the country, counted impure. They were considered unclean, in the same way that the priest and Levite saw the blood stained man as unclean. For the most part, Samaritans were not thought of as neighbors. It is all too easy for any of us, to make love for a neighbor less arduous, by classifying large tracts of the human race, as non-neighbors. Jesus refused answer the question: "Who is my neighbor?" Instead, showed that it was a wrong question."
"The person who asks that question only wants to know what the limits of his duty are? He wants his maximum obligation spelt out so he can leave off being neighborly as soon as possible. Rather than ask, "Who is my neighbor?" Jesus would have us ask, "Am I a genuine neighbor?"
"May God help . . . me to be (( link )) - - - a neighbor."