Pentecost 11
Jesu Juva
“Wonder Bread”
Text: John 6:24-35 (Exodus
16:2-15; Ephesians
Grace, mercy, and peace to
you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
The people saw the wonders, but they did not see the
signs. That is to say, they saw Jesus
heal the sick and drive out demons; they saw Him multiply the loaves and fishes;
they heard Him teach with an authority not of this world – but they could not see beyond these wonders. They could not see what these things pointed
to. They saw the things of this world, but not of the next. They saw a man, but they could not believe
that this man was God.
But that was the point of the wonders that Jesus
performed – that they would not be
just wonders, but signs pointing to a
greater reality. That the people would
not just marvel, but believe in the One that the Father
had sent. The One sent to be the
Saviour. But with eyes firmly focused on
the wants and needs of this world, a Saviour is not what they wanted, nor what
they thought they needed. They wanted
the wonder bread Jesus had set before
them, but not the wonder bread that
God had set before them! But the first
could only sustain the life they already had; the second could give them a life
they did not have. And so this greater
bread, this greater life, Jesus now sets before the people. And before us. Directing our eyes to
things above. Do
not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal
life.
The question is: do we have eyes to see? Or are our
eyes too firmly focused on the things of this world and life? Even as Christians.
Sadly, we too miss the signs. For we tend to think, do we not, that if only
Jesus were here today! If only He were
here today multiplying a few loaves of bread and fish, and healing, and
teaching, and raising the dead – then our church would be so full there
wouldn’t be room enough for all the people who would come! Wouldn’t that be great! . . .
But thinking in that way, we are just like the crowds who chased down
Jesus that day, focusing on the wonders but missing the signs.
For the truth is that Jesus is here, and He is
performing wonders and signs. We pray in
the Lord’s Prayer Give us this day our
daily bread, and every day our Lord is doing just that – and for many more
than the 5,000 gathered that day on the hillside! But do we realize it? That day by day, God is providing us not only food
and drink, but also clothing, shoes,
house, home, land, animals, money, goods, a devout husband or wife, devout
children, devout workers, devout and faithful rulers, good government, good
weather, peace, health, self-control, good reputation, good friends, faithful
neighbors, and the like? (Small Catechism, explanation of the 4th
petition) Or do we take these things for granted, or
worse, thank ourselves for them? Our health and healing?
Our jobs and advancement? Everything that we have and
are? The work
of men, of us? Or
the work of God, for us?
And then what of the signs and wonders that God is
working in His Church each day? Maybe
we’ll do a little test here!
#1: When’s the last time you saw someone raised from
the dead? The answer is the last time
you witnessed a baptism. (Rom 6)
#2: When’s the last time you heard God speak to
you? Just a moment ago when you heard
the very Word of God read to you here. (2
Tim 3)
#3: How about the last day, the final judgment;
when’s the last time you practiced for that?
Answer: this morning, when in confession and absolution you heard the
verdict that will be pronounced upon you that day, namely that in Christ you
are forgiven, not guilty. For what you
heard here is just as valid and certain .
. . as if Christ our dear Lord, dealt with us Himself. (Mt 18; Jn 20; Small Catechism, explanation to the
Office of the Keys)
#4: And then what about the wonder bread? That’s an easy
one, and by now you’re catching on! It’s
here, on this altar, every week. Not
just bread, but the body and blood of Jesus Himself. Not just food, but forgiveness. Not just bread, but the bread of life. (Mt 26)
Do we fail to see these signs because these wonders
come to us in such ordinary ways, through such ordinary means, and by such
ordinary men? It has been that way since
the beginning, when satan blinded the eyes of Adam and
Eve and focused them on something more, something bigger, something better,
something a bit more exciting. And we
are following in their steps – the folks in the wilderness, grumbling against
Moses and Aaron . . . and God! The folks on the hillside that day with ordinary-looking Jesus,
asking for another sign. And still also us today. Taking for granted and
taking advantage. Being, as
Dear saints, direct your eyes to things above. Put off your old self, and put on the new.
(Eph 4) Do
not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal
life. And let us ask with the
crowd that day: what must we do, then, to be doing this? To be doing the works of
God?
The answer to that question is both easy and
hard. It is something you do and at the
same time something you cannot do. Believe. See behind the wonders and see the signs –
the hand of God at work in your life.
The free gifts of this life that God by grace gives now that signify the
even greater gift of eternal life that God gives by grace through faith. For that is the work of God, and why Jesus
lived and died and lives again – that you believe, and by believing have life
in His Name. (Jn 20:31)
As I said, that is both easy and hard. It’s easy when life is easy, but hard when
life gets rough. It’s easy because it’s
so simple, and yet hard because we think the work of God has to be difficult
and complicated. We see this in our
evangelism and outreach, when, like the folks asked of Jesus that day, folks
ask us: What do I have to do to be saved? When we say believe, the reaction is
often times disappointment. Oh. Yes, well, what else? Nothing else. Now that doesn’t
mean that there is nothing that we do as Christians! There is much to do! And much that God is doing through you. But it does mean that when it comes to your
salvation, there is nothing you can do to make God love you more, and there is
nothing you can do to make God love you less.
The cross shows us that. God
cannot love you more than that . . . or less than that. For there, your sins have been atoned for, you
are forgiven, it is done. The work of God, for you.
And though this believing is something that we do,
it is at the same time something that we cannot do – it is the gift of God. (Eph 2; 1 Cor 12) As Luther
wrote in the explanation to the Third Article of the Creed: I believe that I
cannot believe! I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus
Christ my Lord, or come to Him. It
is the work of God. And so Jesus says to
the crowd: You want to work the works of God? This is the work of God,
that you believe in Him whom He has sent. And toward this end our Lord is always working
– at all times, in all places, and in all things. To one end: that we believe in Him and His
work of salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life.
And so to this end the Father sent His Son, to work
the work of God on the cross. To take our sin away from us and put it on Himself, that we might
be set free. And to this end the
Son sends the Spirit, to work the work of God in us. To give us the gifts and
grace of God, that we might believe.
And the highest worship of God,
the best and most important thing we can do, is to believe in Him and desire to
receive His gifts. (Ap
IV.310) And that is what the Divine Service is all
about. We gather here and worship how? By receiving the service of
God. We sing of this, too, in the
offertory that we sing in some of our Divine Services, when we ask (quoting
Psalm 116): What shall I render to the
Lord for all His benefits to me? Remember that? Remember the answer? #1: offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving, for
all that God has done for us; #2:
call upon the name of the Lord, for all that He will do for us; and #3: I will take the cup of salvation, or what
God is doing for us now, here. I
will take the cup that He gives me.
The cup that is the New Testament in His blood, shed for me for the
forgiveness of my sins. My work that is not my work at all, but His, for me.
And so still today Jesus is directing our minds to
things above. And it is an ongoing
task! To shift our minds from sin to
salvation; from what I want to what He wants; from the things of this world to
the next; from what we do to what Christ has done for us. To see in our food and work and parents and
spouses; to see in water, words, and bread and wine; to see in a dying, bleeding
man on a cross – the work of God for us.
So that we believe. That as we
eat our wonder bread now, so too will we eat it forever, at the banquet feast
of Heaven that shall never end.
Lord, give us this bread always!
In the Name of the Father, and of the (+) Son, and
of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Now the peace of God which passes all understanding,
keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.