The Center of
Our Worship Space
But why
is that? Why are these things the center
of our worship space? Why don’t we have
the bulletin board and mailboxes from the fellowship area up here on the wall
instead of the cross? Isn’t the work we
do together as a congregation communicated through that bulletin board and
those mailboxes a blessing from the Lord and pleasing to him? Why don’t we have the kitchen serving counter
up here instead of the altar or the coffee pot and a tray full of mugs there in
place of the baptismal font? Aren’t the
food and drinks that supply our physical needs blessings from the Lord
too? Why don’t we put a couple tables
and chairs up here where the pulpit is?
Isn’t the fellowship we have with brothers and sisters in Christ a
blessing from the Lord worth celebrating?
I think that all of us here would admit that the fellowship we share and
the physical sustenance we receive and the work we do together are all blessings
from the Lord. But I think we would also
agree that they aren’t the most important blessings. The most important gifts from our God have a
special spot reserved right up here, in front of our eyes, at the center of
attention: the gospel in word and sacrament.
These are the basics of our existence, the Bread and Water of our salvation. And we don’t really need anything else to survive.
They Wanted
More Than the True Bread
This has
always been true ever since the first promise of a Savior was given. Jesus and what he would do (or for us now:
what he has done) is the center of our faith and the only thing that is
necessary. And so when Jesus himself was
physically and visibly on this earth, that truth should have been more evident
than ever! Unfortunately, the people of
Jesus’ time were just as sinfully inclined as we are today. And so even though they had the Bread of Life
(=Jesus) at their fingertips and the Water of Life (= the words of Scripture
about Jesus) flowing into their ears, they were looking beyond what was right
in front of their faces. This is obvious
in the story that happens in John 6 right after Jesus’ miraculously fed those
thousands of people with five loaves of bread and two fish. And if it weren’t so pitiful, it would almost
be humorous how the people in this story wanted so many things from Jesus except
for Jesus himself, and how Jesus kept trying to pull their attention back to
the only thing they needed.
Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus
nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in
search of Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the lake, they
asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” Jesus answered, “I tell you the
truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because
you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but
for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On
him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” Then they asked him,
“What must we do to do the works God requires?” Jesus answered, “The work of
God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” So they asked him, “What
miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What
will you do? Our forefathers ate the
manna in the desert; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to
eat.’” Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has
given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true
bread from heaven. For the bread of God
is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “from now on give us this
bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the
bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in
me will never be thirsty.”
So the
people find Jesus on the other side of the lake. And, in Jesus’ own words, they are looking
for him not because he is the Savior but because they want him to miraculously
produce more food that they could eat.
And after Jesus points out that earthly food will not last, the people
want to know what kind of works they have to perform to gain God’s
approval. And when Jesus tells them that
there are no “works” they can actually perform to get to heaven, then they want
to know what “work” Jesus is going to perform so that they might believe his
words! It is only then, after Jesus once
again steers them back to himself, that they finally focus on the basics of
their salvation: the Bread and the Water.
“Sir,” they said, “from now on
give us this bread.” Yes! Finally!
They’re getting it! They were no
longer worried about what physical blessings they could get from Jesus; they
were no longer worried about what they had to do to gain Paradise; they were no
longer concerned about what outward sign Jesus would show them to verify his
claims. All they wanted now was the only
thing that mattered: the Bread of Life. “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the Bread of
Life. He who comes to me will never go
hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” The people had wanted so many other things
from him. And it wasn’t until Jesus hit
them over the head three consecutive times that they wanted nothing more than
their Savior, the Bread of Life.
Don’t Forget
about the Bread You Already Have!
How many
times do we have to get hit over the head?
Because when we aren’t in here, when we’re “out there” in the real world
living real lives, dealing with real people and experiencing real problems, the
cross and the altar, the pulpit and font aren’t always front and center, are
they? We ask and we worry; we beg and we
plead and we get stressed about so many little different things. We get so concerned about the physical
blessings that we do not yet have, we get so frustrated with all of things that
we try to accomplish but can’t, we get so wound up with what might happen in
the future (or what might not), that we look past what the Lord is already
giving us right now. And the Lord has to
keep hitting us over the head again and again to re-focus our attention. “Stop wondering about what things you can get
next,” he says. “Stop being overwhelmed
by all of the things you think you need to accomplish. Stop being anxious about what’s around the
corner. I’m right here. And I am all you need for the rest of
eternity.”
But I,
for one, don’t always pay attention to those words of wisdom. I look right and then I look left. I glance up and down and sometimes I even
seem to push Jesus out of the way (because he’s standing right in front of me)
so that I can see around him and look at something else! If
Jesus gets frustrated he’s got to be frustrated with me because he’s constantly
holding out the Bread of Life and the Water of Life, but I seem to be looking at
something else far more interesting. The
attitude is almost, “Thanks for the salvation, Lord, I appreciate it - don’t
get me wrong! - but I don’t have this little thing that I’d really like to have
and I haven’t been able to accomplish this little thing over here that would
make my life a lot easier and I don’t know what will happen with this little
thing in the near future so I’m not really content yet…” As if I’m not satisfied with the biggest and
greatest blessings that the Lord has given; I want all those little things
too. And so the Lord continues to hit me
over my ungrateful head over and over again with the words of the Bible: “You
don’t need to be concerned about those kinds of things; you’ve got everything
you need right here. You’ve got me and
the words about me. You’re set for
eternity. What do you have to complain
about?”
You Will Never Be Hungry or Thirsty Again
Thankfully
the Lord is ever patient with me - just as he is with you. And no matter how many times we look past him
or over him or around him, he gently reminds us about the Bread of Life we
already have on our plate and the Water of Life we already hold in our cup, the
basics of our salvation that we have been given and that will never be taken
away. “I am the Bread of Life,” Jesus says. “He who comes to me will never go hungry, and
he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” And when we actually listen to his words and
take a step back and assess the situation we are in, we can confidently say: We
believe in Jesus, the one who sacrificed himself for us, and our hunger is
forever satisfied; we believe in his words found in the Bible and our thirst is
forever quenched. Because those basics:
the Bread of Life and the Water of Life supply us with everything we will ever
need: forgiveness in a world that doesn’t deserve it, fulfillment in a world
that is next to empty, peace in world that is filled with war, joy in a world
that is riddled with sorrow, comfort in a world that offers nothing of the
sort, hope in world that can only breed fear, life in a world that is headed
for death. You have the Bread of Life:
Jesus himself. You have the Water of
Life: the words about Jesus and by Jesus and from Jesus. Your heart is filled and your soul is
satisfied. And one day your body too
will enjoy all of the benefits of this simple meal: a life of perfection in the
home where this feast is from.
Eat and Drink
Your Fill
So eat
and drink your fill. It’s right here in
front of you! Free of charge. Always available. Never out of date. And the nutrients that these basics supply
are irreplaceable. You can’t find them
anywhere else. You can try, and people
have, but nowhere else is the surety and guarantee of your salvation found than
in the ingredients of this bread and the makeup of this water. They are all you need. Because what you need is your Savior. Jesus, the one who thought so much of you
that he decided to become just like you.
Jesus, the one who longed so badly for you that he experienced every
evil. Jesus, the one who fought so hard
for you that he actually died. Jesus,
the one who wanted you to win so much that he rose from the dead. Jesus, the one who cares so much about your
everyday life that he now reigns over your everyday life. He is the Bread of Life. The Bread that gives you life. The Bread that saves your life. The Bread that secures your life forever with
him. And this Bread is all yours.
Enjoy
this unsophisticated, uncomplicated, unpretentious meal this morning. Enjoy the Bread and the Water. Enjoy the energy that they supply and the
strength that they give. But don’t just
make it a once-a-week meal. In fact,
these basics need to be consumed even more than once a day. Go back to your Savior time and time again
throughout the hours of your life. Think
about your Savior, revel in your Savior, rest in your Savior. And make the interior design of this room the
interior design of your life: with the cross at the center and the “means”
through which you receive God’s grace from that cross, the word and sacraments,
close at hand. They are the basics of
your existence, the Bread and Water of your salvation. And they are yours. There is nothing else you’ll ever need.
Amen.
“Praise be to the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly
realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” - Eph. 1:3
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