Sermon Text: John 6: 24-36
24 Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.
Jesus the Bread of Life
25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.
27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
30 So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do?
31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.
33 For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
35 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.
36 But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe.
Morning Message:
This morning we gather around the communion table once again, to celebrate the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. The elements that we will partake of are simply bread and juice. We hold them to be sacred because of what they represent, and because Jesus commanded us to do this in remembrance of him. We have a basic understanding of what these elements represent: the body of Jesus broken for us, and the blood of Jesus poured out for the forgiveness of our sins. We might ask, why bread, why not something more special to celebrate the most glorious fact in our Christian faith? It would seem more appropriate to celebrate with steak or prime rib and maybe champagne. I can almost picture the preparation for communion if we used such elements. Attendance would definitely be up on communion Sundays and there would probably be a demand for communion more often.
So why bread? There are many basic and scriptural reasons that we break bread to celebrate communion. First and foremost, this is what Jesus used and commanded us to do. Bread is the most basic and common food to all people. No matter where you travel you will find bread in some form. It may not be bread that we are used to, but the basic make up is the same. Our human bodies are made in such a way that bread, or the lack of bread, makes a difference in how our bodies react. How many of you have ever gone on a low carb diet? I learned this a long time ago through the Adkins diet, when you eliminate bread, carbs from your diet, your body goes into starvation mode and starts to burn fat and other things to produce energy. This trick only works for a short amount of time and then our bodies adjust. I only bring this up to point out how wonderfully we are made, and how basic and essential bread is to us. What better food could there be to represent eternal life than that which gives us physical life.
In today’s reading we hear the people refer to the manna that their ancestors ate in the wilderness. As Israel traveled to the promised land, God sustained them with bread from heaven called manna. Every morning the people would go out and collect what they needed for that day. These people that Jesus was talking to knew the scriptures well and they wanted this same kind of blessing from God. All that they could think about is what can God do for me; wouldn’t it be nice to never have to worry about food. Jesus makes this point right from the beginning of today’s reading; he says, “you are not looking for me because you believe in me or because you want to be saved, you are looking for me because you had your bellies filled and you desire to stay physically satisfied.” We can fall into this same trap as God’s people. Our spiritual lives become too tied to our physical needs. Communion is meant to sustain us spiritually. I know that no one takes communion because they are physically hungry, but does it feed your soul, do you allow it to strengthen your faith? Remembering the sacrifice that God made for us should invigorate our spirits and refresh our souls.
They asked Jesus, basically, how can we do enough of God’s works in order to be fed the rest of our lives? Jesus says to them and to us and to the whole world, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry or thirsty.” He is not talking about physical hunger or thirst, he is speaking of eternal life and spiritual satisfaction. The only way to be spiritually satisfied is to partake of Jesus through God’s word regularly. Jesus sums it up for them in the last verse. “You have seen me and still you do not believe. I have come to save your souls and you have rejected me. I have offered you eternal life and all you would take is whatever your bellies could hold and things that would satisfy your flesh.” Friends, the Christian life is a constant struggle to keep our eyes on Jesus and not allow our flesh to rule over us. One way that we do this is by partaking in communion. I am always struck by the words of Jesus, “Do this in remembrance of me.”
In Christ’s Love and Peace
Pastor Bob
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