Jesus' Food and Drink is Doing the Father's Will
Jesus' Statement on Food and Drink
Jesus said, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work" [1]. This statement highlights Jesus' focus on fulfilling God's will as His primary sustenance. In the context of John 4, Jesus is speaking to his disciples after conversing with the Samaritan woman at the well.
The concept of "food" in this context is metaphorical, emphasizing Jesus' spiritual nourishment. According to John Gill, doing the will of God was "delightful and refreshing to the soul of Christ" [2]. This interpretation is supported by the Tyndale House commentary, which notes that Jesus received his nourishment from doing what his Father told him to do [4].
The idea of Jesus' food being related to doing God's will is connected to the broader theme of Jesus' mission and purpose. As Jesus said, "I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me" (John 6:38). This statement underscores Jesus' commitment to fulfilling God's will, which is a recurring theme in the Gospel of John [4].
The Last Supper, where Jesus institutes the Lord's Supper, is also related to the concept of Jesus' food and drink. The accounts of the Last Supper in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 26:26-29, Mark 14:22-25, Luke 22:19-20) and 1 Corinthians 11:24-26 highlight the significance of Jesus' body and blood as spiritual nourishment for believers. The Tyndale House commentary on Mark 14:22 notes that the words "this is my body" and "this is my blood" have been understood in different ways throughout history, with some interpreting them as a transformation of the bread and wine into Jesus' literal body and blood [3].
In the context of Jesus' statement in John 4:34, the emphasis is on Jesus' spiritual nourishment through doing God's will. This theme is echoed in other passages, such as Jesus' statement that "the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world" (John 6:33). According to John Gill, Jesus' fulfillment of God's will is closely tied to his role as the Son of God and his mission to provide salvation for humanity [5].
The significance of Jesus' statement about his food and drink lies in its emphasis on his commitment to fulfilling God's will. As Jesus said, "It is finished" (John 19:30), indicating the completion of his mission and the fulfillment of God's will [6]. This theme is central to the Gospel of John and is echoed in other New Testament passages, highlighting the importance of understanding Jesus' mission and purpose in the context of God's will.
Sources
- John “John 4:34 (BSB) — Jesus explained, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work.”
- John (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on John 4:34: Jesus saith unto them,.... His disciples: my meat is to do the will of him that sent me. The Ethiopic version reads, "of my Father that sent me", and who is undoubtedly intended. Now as food is pleasant, and delightful, and refreshing to the body of man, so doing the will of God was as delightful and refreshing to the soul of Christ: he took as much pleasure in it, as an hungry man does in eating and drinking. One part of the will of God was to assume human nature; this he had done, and with delight and pleasure: another part of it was to fulfil the law; and this was ”
- Mark (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Mark 14:22: 14:22-25 The Last Supper began with a blessing. In modern practice, Christians ask God to bless the food; Jews in Jesus’ day blessed God for providing the food with the words, “Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” • this is my body. . . . This is my blood: Some understand these words to mean that the bread and wine are transformed into the very body and blood of Jesus (transubstantiation); others, that the bread and wine remain bread and wine but that the real presence of Jesus is found in them (consubstanti”
- John (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on John 4:32: 4:32-34 While Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman, the disciples were gone buying food (4:8); now they urged Jesus to eat. Jesus continued to speak symbolically, but they did not understand him (4:33). Later, when the disciples received the Spirit, they understood (2:22). Jesus received his nourishment from doing what his Father told him to do (see 5:30; 6:38; 7:18; 8:50; 9:4; 10:37-38; 12:49-50).”
- John (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on John 6:51: Then Jesus said unto them,.... The Jews, who were litigating this point among themselves: verily, verily, I say unto you; or you may assure yourselves of the truth of what follows, except ye eat the flesh of the son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you: by "the son of man", Christ means himself; under which title he often speaks of himself; because it was a title of the Messiah under the Old Testament; and was expressive of the truth of his human nature, though as attended with weakness and infirmities. The "flesh" and "blood" of Christ do not design ”
- John (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on John 19:30: When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar,.... Of the Roman soldiers, who offered it to him, either by way of reproach, or to quench his thirst; and he drank of it, as is very likely: he said, it is finished; that is, the whole will of God; as that he should be incarnate, be exposed to shame and reproach, and suffer much, and die; the whole work his Father gave him to do, which was to preach the Gospel, work miracles, and obtain eternal salvation for his people, all which were now done, or as good as done; the whole righteousness of the law was fulfilled, an holy”