The King We Need

12 And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” 13 So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. 14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”
15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.
John 6:12-15
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The King We Need
The crowds saw the miraculous feeding and wanted to crown Jesus as king. They longed for a ruler who would fill their stomachs and drive out the Romans. But Jesus withdrew, for His kingship would come not through bread in the wilderness, but through the cross. His throne would be a cross of wood; His crown, thorns. The Bread of Life came not simply to meet daily needs, but to give His flesh for the life of the world. We too are tempted to seek Jesus for earthly blessings, security, health, prosperity, forgetting that His kingdom is not of this world. At the cross, He gives what we truly need: forgiveness, life, and salvation. Here, the King reigns by mercy, not force. Fed by His Word and Sacrament, we receive the food that endures to eternal life, and we confess with joy, this King is ours forever.