By Derek Maul
Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven. The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every day.” John 6:32-35.
For the record, I love food. I love the prep; I love the cooking; I love eating good food. Most of all, I love sharing good food with good people.
This week Rebekah and I have been entertaining our foodie children, along with their foodie spouses, and it’s been so, so good. We also met with our church “koinonia” dinner group, hosted by some serious foodie friends. More fellowship; more yum; more good; more better.
I could write about the conversation, the friendship, the joy of sharing goodness, and the amazing meals we enjoyed. But I won’t.
Instead I’ll skip to my men’s Bible study, where we talked about the Bible passage above. God set me up with great food and then sent me into a conversation about spiritual nourishment, and how critical it is if we’re going to live at all.
So I’m thinking about what Jesus said, and I can’t help but realize that everything, even dinner with family and friends, even foodie-quality food, is more satisfying in the context of understanding that Jesus is the bread of life, that Jesus is my essential nourishment, and that – because of Jesus – I never have to be empty ever again, and that Jesus offers a spring of living water, overflowing with real life.
We shake hands at the door, we hug necks, and we kiss cheeks, and we are so grateful for the good food, and so filled up with the sense of community. I could be talking about our home… or the koinonia dinner… or I could be talking about the experience of community, and nourishment, and refreshment when we come together to worship God with our community of faith.
“Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every day!”
