"Bread for Today" - Sermon for the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany

Bread for Today
John 6.35-59
Epiphany 6 – Narrative Lectionary 4
February 16, 2014
Grace, Mankato, MN

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven … and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (John 6.51)

Today, we have the first of seven “I am” sayings in John’s gospel, rich images for God’s provision, that tell something of who Jesus is and what God has sent him to do. Like much of John’s Gospel, we have an extended conversation following a sign. In this case the sign is the feeding of 5 thousand, where Jesus multiplies five loaves of bread and two fish while have 12 baskets left over. After being fed, the multitude follows Jesus across the Sea of Galilee where Jesus has fled because they want to make him king. Jesus points out their misunderstanding about the feeding and invites them into a deeper faith. As Jesus does so, he challenges their current understanding of a relationship with God. Furthermore, although it’s outside of today’s reading, Jesus’ sayings are so radical that some choose to leave and follow him no longer.

One reason some people find Jesus hard to swallow is his reference to eating his flesh and blood. Many of you see the obvious connection to Holy Communion in these verses, as did the early church, but for 1st century Jews, drinking blood was an abominable and forbidden act. But there are two other aspects to Jesus as the bread of life that are important: first, when Jesus uses the term “flesh and blood,” a term meaning the whole person, he means we need all of him. We don’t have the option to pick and choose those parts of Jesus we want and discard the rest like some kind of buffet. Second, as Jesus talks about giving himself for the life of the world there is an implied commitment that those of us who follow Jesus and feed on him for life are to give ourselves away, too.

As we reflect on this image of Jesus as the Bread of Life, have you ever stopped to think about how much we focus on food and drink in our society? Billions of dollars are spent on advertising, meals at restaurants are super-sized and all you can eat buffets flourish while our food pantries are seeing record usage and some schoolchildren are going hungry. Furthermore, the First Lady, Michelle Obama, is focusing on childhood obesity while incidents of bulimia and anorexia run rampant. I think this food folly is a symptom of a deeper spiritual issue that is also ironic: in an age where people have more spiritual options than ever, and more places to get them, there is a gnawing hunger for the real spiritual bread that gives life.

In CS Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Edmund finds his way to the mythical land of Narnia through a magic wardrobe and meets the White Witch, who through magic has made Narnia “always winter, but never Christmas.” She plies him with Turkish Delight, a delishes confection. Unfortunately, Turkish Delight increases his hunger rather than satisfying it, but for the wrong things: power over others. Ultimately, Edmund will be redeemed from the White Witch’s clutches through the sacrifice of Aslan, the Christ figure in the story in the form of a lion. Aslan gives his flesh and blood for Edmund’s life. When Jesus tells us he is the Bread of Life, he gives us an opportunity to embrace an authentic existence, drawing us into a sharing of his death, where true life comes in giving ourselves away. You see, we need to take all of Jesus into ourselves because Jesus gives all of himself to us.

This life that Jesus offers is not just some future time when God brings all to completion. It is available to us each day, and we experience that deeper life when we worship together regularly, read the Bible together, pray together, create community together, and give ourselves away together. On his death bed, the last thing Martin Luther said was “we are all beggars.” DT Niles added to this by saying that Christianity is simply one beggar telling another beggar where to find food. So as we gather around the altar and take in the very life of Jesus, offered to us, he challenges us to face those things we “eat” that don’t give life and invites us to partake in those things that do. For Jesus is the Bread of Life for today. Amen.