August 2, 2009 Sermon
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Proper 13 - Year B Morning Prayer
John 6:24-35 August 2, 2009
Gary Sanford San Angelo
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. Amen Psalm 19:14
When Eldra and I first started coming to Emmanuel we were amazed at how much this congregation enjoyed eating. And not just eating, but eating together...in community. There are Wednesday night suppers, Supper Sharing, Thanksgiving dinners, Christmas dinners, magnificent receptions, Mardi Gras parties, and the list goes on. And there always seems to be enough to satisfy the hungriest of guests. We quickly came to see that these gatherings were, and are, more than just food, they offer a time for sharing in conversation and thanksgiving. It is a time to laugh and joke and share the joy of those around us...and a time to comfort those in need. These gatherings feed and satisfy us with the food that sustains our bodies, but you know what? We are always hungry again the next day.
So it was with the people who came to see Jesus. In last week's Gospel reading we witnessed the feeding of the multitudes. With just a handful of bread and a few fish Jesus was able to feed 5,000 people. And not just a meager bite. They were satisfied: Full to the point of there being leftovers, a true miracle. Yet they wanted more.
When those who remained arose the next morning they found that Jesus and his disciples had left. They followed and found him on the other side of the sea. They followed him, not because of the works he had done or the signs he had given them, but because they saw the potential for having an unending supply of bread. This seemed like a really good idea to them and they wanted more. So, they thought, if they could have him, they could have an unending supply of bread. They would always have enough.
Jesus did feed the hungry. He knew that people had to eat. He instructed his followers, just as he tells us, to feed the hungry, the poor and the destitute. Real, tangible, nutritious food. But he also promised that he would be enough to satisfy their needs and so he said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that parishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you."
OK. So what does this mean? If we believe in Jesus, in God, we no longer have to eat? I don’t think so and the followers of Jesus questioned this, also. They remembered that while in the wilderness manna was provided for them; food where there was none that they may live. Jesus says to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." And it finally dawns on them that Jesus is not talking about bread that nourishes the body, but rather bread that nourishes the soul, and they ask how they can always have this bread. Jesus says to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."
Jesus is the bread of life and he wants to fill our hearts. He wants to be the one to fill that gnawing, aching loneliness that we so often try to fill with lesser things. He wants to dispel the longing or the boredom that we often try to quiet with other substances. Jesus is there to save us from the grasping, fretting, and worrying about having enough that will in the end possess us. He is there to lead us to the one true God.
Believe in Jesus. That sounds like an easy thing to do, but just believing is not enough. Just believing is like eating Iceberg lettuce--it will fill you but does not have any real nutritional value. It is not just enough to believe in Jesus we must live into Jesus. We must not only accept Jesus as a part of us as we are a part of him, we must strive to be like him.
In his letter to the Ephesians Paul gives us a short list of gifts given through the grace of God. This list only deals with those given gifts for the work of ministry with the specific purpose of building up the body of Christ that we all might come to the unity of faith and the knowledge of the Son of Man. This is important, we all look to our evangelists, pastors and teachers to lead us in the word of God, but I believe that we all are ministers of God’s word. I believe that we all have been given gifts through God's grace. I believe that those gifts should be used fully to bring a greater awareness of God’s presence and the redeeming presence of the Son of Man. It is when we use these gifts for the honor and glory of God that we truly live into Jesus. That is when we can honestly say we believe in Jesus and it is then that we will know that Jesus is the bread of life.
Almighty Father, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days. Amen
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Revised: 08/18/09