I Have Food to Eat Part Two

Today’s Reading: John 4:31–34
(Read the full passage before reflecting below.)

“In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, ‘Rabbi, eat.’ But He said to them, ‘I have food to eat of which you do not know.’” (John 4:31–32, NKJV)

The disciples return from town concerned about something very natural—Jesus must be hungry. He has traveled. He is weary. He sat by the well at noon. Surely now He should eat.

But Jesus speaks of another kind of nourishment.

“My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.” (John 4:34)

The disciples think in terms of bread; Jesus speaks in terms of obedience. They are focused on physical sustenance; He is sustained by communion with the Father and participation in the Father’s purpose.

This is not a rejection of physical need. Jesus had just asked a Samaritan woman for a drink. He knows hunger and thirst. But here He reveals something deeper: there is nourishment that comes from alignment with the will of God.

Obedience feeds the soul.

At the well, while the disciples were away buying bread, Jesus was doing the Father’s work. A conversation became transformation. A woman became a witness. A village was about to encounter the Messiah. What satisfied Him more than food was seeing redemption unfold.

This language prepares us for something Jesus will later declare plainly:

“I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.” (John 6:51, NKJV)

In John 4, Jesus is nourished by doing the Father’s will.
In John 6, He reveals that He Himself is the Bread given for the life of the world.

The One who feeds on obedience becomes the Bread who feeds humanity.

This is the mystery of the Incarnation. Jesus does not merely teach us about spiritual nourishment—He embodies it. His life is perfectly aligned with the Father. His will is surrendered. His obedience leads to the cross. And through His self-giving, eternal life becomes available to all who believe.

When He says, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me,” He is ultimately pointing toward Calvary. The will of the Father would lead Him to give His flesh for the life of the world. The satisfaction of obedience would cost Him everything—and save us.

There is also a pattern here for us.

We do not become the Bread of Life—that role belongs to Christ alone. But we are invited to partake of Him. As we feed on Christ—through faith, through His Word, through communion with Him—our desires begin to change. What once satisfied us grows dull. What once seemed costly begins to taste like joy.

There is a kind of fullness that comes from participating in what God is doing.

When we obey, when we serve, when we share the gospel, when we love sacrificially—something inside us comes alive. We discover that life in Christ is not sustained merely by receiving from Him, but also by walking with Him in His purpose.

The disciples were thinking about lunch. Jesus was thinking about harvest.

The woman at the well was more urgent to Him than bread in His hands. Eternal life was more pressing than temporary hunger. And in that moment, heaven’s priorities were revealed.

Today, consider what feeds you. What sustains your joy? What gives you strength when you are weary?

Christ is the living Bread from heaven.
His flesh was given for the life of the world.
And as we feed on Him, we learn that obedience is not burden—it is nourishment.

There is food you may not yet know.

And it is found in doing the will of the Father.