I Am the Bread of Life Coloring Page

This week’s “Scripture Sunday” coloring page is based on John 6:35. In the New International version, it reads, “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.'”

This is the first of 7 “I Am” statements Jesus made in the gospel of John. After receiving a reader request for a coloring page based on another of Christ’s “I Am” claims, I decided to do the full series. (Thanks for the inspiration, Kim!) I’ll be posting the remaining six over the next month and a half.

The True Bread

A high school friend of mine used to say, “The whiter the bread, the sooner you’re dead.” And, indeed, so much of the grain’s goodness is lost in the refining process that goods baked with white flour may taste good, but they aren’t necessarily good for you.

I think when presenting Christ, many churches today strip away some essential components in an attempt to make the gospel more palatable. Softer. Easier to swallow. They talk much about love and grace and heaven. But sin and judgement and hell are downplayed, if not thrown out all together. Those former ingredients taste good on our tongues, to be sure. But the latter helps to cleanse our hearts of impurities and keep our lives in balance, just as whole-grain fiber cleanses our insides and keeps our colons healthy.

Interestingly, once you grow accustomed to the nutty, rich flavor of bread made with whole/sprouted grain, that refined stuff loses much of its appeal. It seems bland. Boring. Without substance. Just a bunch of fluff.

The good stuff, on the other hand, sticks to your bones. It’s delicious and nutritious and completely quells hunger. After such a meal, you can leave the table satisfied and strengthened, ready to return to work with vigor.

The same is true when we feast upon Jesus through His Holy Word. “Man does not live by bread only, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)