“Come
and Get It!”
Texts:
John 6:24-35 (main focus); Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15; Psalm 78:23-29;
Ephesians 4:1-16
Dear friends in Christ, grace and peace to
you from the one who is and who was and who is to come, our living Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
[Ring bell] “Come and get it!” How many of
you have heard a dinner bell or used one? Typically we see them used on ranches
or farms, more of a Western, cowboy instrument, to summon when it was meal
time.
It also leads me to think about what people
may ask when they hear that dinner bell. How many of you remember the old “Hee
Haw” show? It was a little before my time, but I have seen the reruns…People
would shout to Grandpa Jones and ask, “What’s for supper?” Then, he would offer
some reply…Let’s try it: What’s for
supper? “Here’s what’s on the menu tonight: Fresh country sausage and
apples stewed, the best cup of coffee that ever was brewed. Hot biscuits with
plenty of country butter and chocolate cake so rich, it’ll make you shudder”
(Episode 19 from Season 4; Episode 96, aired 2-3-73). Okay, who’s hungry now? J
So, a
question: Do you eat to live, or do you live to eat? Think about it…For
many years, I lived to eat, but then I surrendered that way of thinking. Now, I
still love to eat…For example, I had a couple of dinners to celebrate my
birthday—one with friends at Davanni’s and another one with family at Olive
Garden…Then, later that week, last weekend, we were out of town for a family
reunion. It was a potluck, so everyone brought something…Celebrating time
together around a meal is good. After all, we partake in a meal together in the
Lord’s Supper almost every week. Bread was meant to give us life.
Do we recognize true bread when we see it?
There are MANY different types of bread out there. The question or concept to think about today is, “Where am I going to
be fed?” “Which bread do I seek for fulfillment?”
Think about it…But, first, a little background to this passage in John…Last week,
we have the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand, in verses 1-15. Verses
16-21 report that in the evening, the disciples got into a boat and started
across the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, encountering strong winds. Jesus
demonstrates another miracle by walking on water, and somehow, immediately, the
boat reached the land toward which it was going. Then, we approach the text for
the day—the next day, the crowds go looking for Jesus. Today’s text helps to
explain the meaning of the feeding miracle of last week.
In verses 26-27, Jesus explains that the
focus should not be on the loaves but on the real food that endures for eternal
life. Instead of focus on the gift, it needs to be placed on the giver, the
true bread, Jesus.
In verse 31, mention is made of manna in the
wilderness, “He gave them bread from heaven to eat.” This references our reading
from Exodus and the Psalm. There was fascination about this manna, when the
people were fed in the wilderness each day, after they left slavery in Egypt,
during the time of Moses. It some Jewish literature, it was believed that this
treasury of bread from heaven would be reopened with the coming of the Messiah,
the Savior and Redeemer they have been waiting for. God provides.
Three things we can remember from today’s
passages, all connected with God providing: 1) God provides manna for the
Israelites…2) God provides us with our daily bread…And 3) God provides everyone
with the eternal, life-giving bread, Jesus Christ.
1)
God provides manna for the Israelites…It
almost caused me to start writing a song, “It’s raining bread, hallelujah”…The
Israelites are released from slavery in Egypt. Freedom! But, instead of
rejoicing, we hear complaining in the Exodus text. This food crisis becomes a
faith crisis…They would rather be in slavery, because there they at least had
food to eat. In their hungriness, they forget about how God saved them from
slavery! But, guess what? God still provides them their needs.
The
Lord gives the Israelites what they don’t deserve…How often does God do that
for us? We deserve death for our sins, but He sent Jesus to take that burden
off of us. We are not saved by anything we do, but as gratitude, we need to
help alleviate the burden off of Jesus, by being his hands and feet here today.
Since we are the body of Christ, we help alleviate the burden off of one
another, helping to carry one another’s burdens. What happens when your foot
starts hurting? You tend to put more weight on the other foot, to alleviate the
pressure. When one of us is hurting, we can help alleviate the pressure.
And, each time they complained,
God still provided for them. When God sent the manna, this daily bread from
heaven, they didn’t even recognize what it was! In fact, the English words, “what
is it,” can
be retranslated back into Hebrew as the word “manna.” How often do we
receive such bread, but we don’t recognize it? Do we give thanks for it? Did
the Israelites? They asked, “What is it?”
How soon do people forget when you do
something good for them? Or how soon do we forget when someone does something
good for us? Are we like the Israelites and ask, “What is it?”
And, this bread appeared every day, as the
people were to only gather enough for the day, trusting God for that provision,
not relying on themselves.
Do we trust God, or do we
rely on ourselves? So, as I was sitting down to work on
this sermon, I was thinking, “What in the world does the Spirit want said about
bread? What am I going to say?” I don’t have time for a mental block, because
then I began thinking about all of the things that await me this week, which I
won’t go into detail about. I
started to stress a little bit, feeling tension in my right shoulder
specifically. How am I going to get everything done? BOOM! The minute I thought
about me, thinking it depends on me and what I do, the focus was taken off the
Holy Spirit. It’s not about me; I needed to and put trust back where it
belonged: with and in the Holy Spirit. I needed to relax and trust God for that
daily bread. God provides. I give thanks for that.
2)
God provides us with our daily bread…
What is daily bread? We pray it every week in the Lord’s Prayer. “Give us this
day our daily bread”…What does it mean?
Martin Luther explains in both the Small and
Large Catechisms that “daily bread” is everything that is needed for this life,
like food, clothing, home, work, but also peace in our daily activities and
associations, with people we live with and interact with. It also includes
favorable weather and the lands that produce the crops, for if God didn’t cause
them to grow and preserve it, we wouldn’t have food to eat. It includes
orderliness in our communities and government. As Luther states, “Although we
have received from God all good things in abundance, we cannot retain any of
them or enjoy them in security and happiness were he not to give us a stable,
peaceful government” (The Book of Concord,
p. 450). God is faithful and provides our daily needs, even the
needs for those who reject Him. We need to remember God’s goodness and
continually give Him thanks for that.
Receiving our daily bread with thanks…How are you showing thanks for your daily
bread? How are you pointing others to the life-giving bread, which is Christ?
3) God provides everyone with the eternal,
life-giving bread, Jesus Christ…After the feeding
miracle, many continue to follow Jesus. Are
they physically still hungry, or are they hungry for something more? Jesus
urges them to seek the food that endures forever.
The people ask for a sign in verse 30, in
order to believe…And, as is a common occurrence in John’s Gospel, when people
want a sign, Jesus gives himself. He takes a belief or ritual from Judaism,
like manna in the wilderness, and reinterprets it to refer to himself. HE is
the manna, the bread from heaven, sent by God that they have been waiting for,
not some flaky bread.
With the feeding of the five thousand last
week, sometimes the physical need of the body has to be met before the soul can
be nurtured. Jesus certainly gained their attention!
But, with
the people seeking Jesus, at what point does fulfilling the need become greed?
When do needs turn into wants? Instead
of bread, what if the crowd has asked for ice cream instead? Or coffee? J
We live in a consumer society, being offered many different types of bread. If
I buy this car or wear this outfit, I will feel better about myself, bettering
my self-image.
One of the toughest phases of life has to be
middle school. At least it was for me. If you didn’t wear Guess? jeans and
safety pin them at the ankles, and if you didn’t carry an Esprit bag, you were
a nobody. You wanted those things, just so you could fit in. So you could
survive the terrors of middle school. Twenty years later, it doesn’t make a
difference. It doesn’t define who I am. It doesn’t define who you are, either. I
might have a Hypercolor T-shirt hiding somewhere yet…Anybody have Zubaz pants? But,
guess what? Once we have that item, it loses its luster, and so we move on to
the next bigger and better thing that will gratify us.
So, I ask: “Where are you going to be fed?” “Which bread do you seek for
fulfillment?”
Two
words: God provides. God provides manna, daily bread, and Jesus…In John
6:35, Jesus says, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be
hungry.” We are called to come,
believe, and through that relationship, we know the One Who sent him. And, when
we have that relationship, we also acquire a relationship with our fellow
brothers and sisters.
Relationship is so very
important…We hear about it in the Ephesians text, unity in diversity, everyone
having gifts, all parts making the whole. How many of you watch
the Olympics? Okay, sing the theme with me…[Sing Olympic theme]. If I could, I
would stay in front of my TV, 24/7, ingesting the coverage. Unfortunately, one
has to do things such as work, if one wants daily bread. Anyways, Tuesday
night’s coverage was wonderful, with the U.S. Women’s Gymnastics Team winning
gold for the first time since 1996.
Prior to Tuesday’s event, reigning world champion
Jordyn Wieber was last seen sobbing Sunday night, as she failed to qualify for
the all-around singles final. She finished third among the Americans, but only
the top-two from each team get to compete. It would’ve been easy for her to
throw in the towel and sulk, missing her moment to shine, which would’ve hurt
her team.
But, she overcame her disappointment and
came back strong. With her strong vault, it motivated her teammates to also go
big. After taking the time to grieve her loss and by shaking off her
disappointment, taking the focus off herself and putting it on her team, she
helped motivate them to a first-place finish. She wanted to be a part of
something bigger than herself. She needed her teammates, and they needed her. We need Christ, and we need each other.
Exercise is important for Olympians, and for
us, too…I want to show a slide that demonstrates a good form of exercise.
May we exercise our
hearts today in such a way and ask ourselves, “Who can I reach down to and lift up
today?” Christ has come to us and continues to come to us in the faces of our
neighbors.
We can meet people where they are…With
Jesus, it’s all about an encounter. We can be as Christ to our neighbors. Maybe
God is working through us to supply their daily bread. I have a challenge for
you today…Take something for a day that you would spend on yourself and give it
to someone else. For example, if you buy coffee for yourself, instead of buying
one for yourself, buy one for the next person in line. That one fits me to a T.
J
Or the money you would spend on going out to dinner, buy school supplies to
donate towards the supply drive that we’re having here at Holy Cross. Instead
of getting dessert with that dinner at the restaurant, add the amount you
would’ve paid for it to the tip for that waiter or waitress. These are real ways
that we can all share in daily bread, pointing to that true bread of life,
which is Christ Jesus our Lord.
If you’re interested in taking the
challenge, please let me know after church. And, I want to hear about your
experience. You can e-mail me at caroline.harthun@hotmail.com
or you can message me on Facebook—look for Caroline Harthun, I’m not too hard
to find. J
I love hearing people’s stories. In a sense, Jesus is ringing that dinner bell
today [ring bell], saying, “Come and get it!” to us, in offering himself as the
bread of life. And, in response, are you going to ask, “What is it?” like the
Israelites did, or will you give thanks and ask, “Who can I share this with
today?”
And now may the peace of God that surpasses
all understanding guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Caroline Harthun
Holy Cross Lutheran Church
8:30am and 10:30am
Sunday, August 5, 2012
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Children’s
Message (Revised from Sermons4Kids) - Our Daily Bread
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I have something under this cover this
morning that I think you are going to like. When I take the cover off and you
see it, some of you may ask, "What is it?" It might be something
you have never seen before. Are you ready to see it? Okay, here it is.
(Remove the cover.)
Yum, yum. That sure looks good, but what
is it? It's called Monkey Bread. I'm not really sure why it is called Monkey
Bread, but I have heard some people say that it is called Monkey Bread
because when you eat it, you pull it off and eat it one piece at a time, much
the same way that a monkey eats his food. I will put this in the back, so
after church, make sure to try some, okay? Because if we eat it now, I will
most certainly make a mess, and we don’t want to do that when the pastor is
away. J
When I said that some of you might ask,
"What is it?" when you saw the Monkey Bread, it reminded me of a
story in the Bible about Moses and the Israelites. The Israelites had been
held captive in Egypt, and God had chosen Moses to free the people and lead
them to a land that he had promised them. The journey to the promised land
was not an easy one. The Israelites had been wandering around in the desert
for a long time. Often, they had little to eat or drink. The people began to
grumble and complain to Moses. "When we were in Egypt, we sat around
pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out here
into the desert to starve us to death." God heard the people complaining
and told Moses that he would rain down bread from heaven for them, and each
day the people could go out and gather enough bread for that day. The next
morning when the people went outside their tents, the ground was covered with
a fine, flaky substance. It was unlike anything they had ever seen. When they
saw it, they asked, "What is it?" Moses answered, "It is the
bread that the LORD has given you to eat."
Moses told them that God had said that
they were to gather only enough bread for one day. Why do you think he told
them that? It is because he wanted to see if the people would obey him and
trust him to send the bread that they needed each and every day. God still
provides what we need for each and every day, doesn't he? That is why Jesus
taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” Jesus is the one who
points us to God. Jesus says in our reading from John, “I am the bread of
life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry.” May we remember that God
provides all of our needs, most importantly Jesus, and let’s share that
goodness and good news with others today.
Let us pray: Dear Heavenly Father, just as
you provided daily bread for your children in the time of Moses, you provide
all our needs each and every day. For all of our goodness, we give thanks. We
thank you for your Son, the Bread of Life. Help us to help others to this
bread. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Monkey Bread
INGREDIENTS:
4 ten count tubes of canned biscuits 1 Cup Granulated Sugar 1 Stick Butter/Margarine 3 Tablespoons of Cinnamon
DIRECTIONS:
1) Mix sugar and cinnamon 2) Quarter biscuits and roll each in the above mixture until coated 3) Put all the coated quartered biscuits in a greased bunt pan - just pile them in there. 4) Melt the butter and mix it with the extra cinnamon and sugar mixture 5) Pour the mixture from #4 over the biscuits in the bunt pan 6) Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. |
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