Why Do You Work?

John 6: 22-29 asks some fundamental questions: Why do we work? Why do we search? Why do we believe? The gospel suggests that the answers must not end with just for my food and drink, my money, my comfort, my family, etc.

One of the biggest traps of our time is constant indulgence, says Gayathri Arvind, founder of Abhasa mental wellness centre. Wherever you turn, you can let yourself be consumed by endless options, like endless movies, web series, etc. Even food is available anytime, anywhere with just a click. They may be useful, entertaining, and satisfying; they give you an instant dopamine hit. The more you consume, the more you trap yourself into long-term trouble, and one day you are left wondering, 'What went wrong?' Constant indulgence is the villain. Once a teacher asked his adult students, whom do you love the most? Among many answers quite a few asserted that they love themselves more than everyone. To one of those the teacher the teacher repeated the question saying, it is okay that you love yourself the most, but after that whom do you love? The student could not see anything more, he said, ‘i keep loving myself, and I seldom finish loving myself to move to another.’ Unchecked self love is a bottomless pit.

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The people who came searching for Jesus were trapped in the constant indulgence of bread given by Jesus. They were trapped by the endless need for self-gratification, the need for self-satisfaction. Therefore, Jesus challenges them, saying, I tell you the truth, you were looking for me, not because of the signs you saw, but because you ate bread to your satisfaction. He encourages us to seek fulfilment beyond material needs, focusing on life eternal. Jesus said, You must work, not for perishable food, but for the lasting food which gives eternal life.

Eternal life is an abstract concept. We cannot see it, but we can see the other who is in need. We could read this passage along with Matthew 25: 31-46. The scene is of the Last Judgment; Jesus is welcoming people to his father’s house; ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you as a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison, and go to visit you? The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

“If I am hungry, that is a material problem; if someone else is hungry, that is a spiritual problem” says, Paul Farmer. When we work for the sake of the other, when we seek for the sake of the other, when our faith turns our steps towards the other we are working for food that does not perish, food that leads to eternal life.

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