Wrestling with Bread
Can be listened to hear
Gate Pa – 23 August 2015
Pentecost 13 or 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
Readings:
Psalm
Psalm 84
First
Reading: 1
Kings 8:22-30, 41-43
Second
Reading: Ephesians
6:10-20
Gospel:
John
6:56-69
What I want to say:
When
we eat and drink God meets our deepest dears and we learn to live in, abide in
life of God
What I want to
happen:
people to let go of their fear, and
embrace freedom and life of God
The Sermon
1. Introduction:
56Those
who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. 57Just
as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats
me will live because of me.”
eat my flesh
drink my blood
What on earth is that about?
How do you respond to this?
How do you make sense of this?
what does it mean for your lives?
invite you to talk to your neighbour – or yourself
about that
How do you respond to this?
How do you make sense of this?
what does it mean for your lives?
2. Audiences
-
so for the last 5 weeks we have been weaving
our way through John 6
-
delving deeper into story around great
I am statement “I am bread of Life” –
-
beginning comments:
-
need remember 2 audiences
-
a. Johns community – people wrote gospel
for
o
long after events
o
fall of temple
o
expulsion from synagogue
o
persecution
o
too tough
§
some left
§
just as significant number of Jesus followers
leave in todays story
o
world become really dark place
o
some wondering whether what future held
§
faith community
§
world
ð
kind of reminds of today really
o
John was old
o
help his church community know Christ
in the midst of all this
o
encourage them to hang in there
§
help them know that it was all worth
it
§
help them trust in God’s goodness, generosity
and love
·
despite all evidence to contrary
§
help them continue centre their lives
on the Christ
§
continue to trust, be loyal, believe
into,
o
encourage us to hang in there
§
help us know that it was all worth it
§
help us trust in God’s goodness, generosity
and love
·
despite all evidence to contrary
o
over-riding question though whole
gospel - who is Christ?
o
why should I believe into him
o
overriding question of this chapter
3. The Bread of life
began 5 weeks ago with …. who can remember
(feeding of 5000 and Jesus walking on water)
these stories were set at….
(Passover)
conversation – once people catch up with him
back on the other side
revolves
around Moses
mana
in the wilderness – bread that God gave there
read
somewhere – bread also metaphor for law
John presenting Jesus as greater than Moses
greater spirits stir depths
greater than Law or Moses
In Jesus we live in presence of God the Father
– the one who abides in Jesus
so what then do we do with this eat and drink
stuff
4. Eat and Drink
think
first thing John would say is don’t get stuck on the details
look
to see where this is pointing
if
you take this too literally you will miss the point
so
where is this pointing?
Bread
and wine were the food of peasant
of poor
was their staple
one level clear message that even in this food of
poorest – God is found
when
we eat and drink even this humble common food of the poorest
we meet God
invited to draw God’s life into us
prayer
pray when pour water into wine at communion is
as this water mingles with this wine
so may your divinity mingle with our
humanity
and your humanity draw us into the
life of the Trinity
when
come to communion
when
pay attention when eating ordinary meals
invited
to pay attention
God
mingling with our humanity
through
Jesus our being drawn into the heart of God
life of God
abundance God
geneoristy of God
love that is God.
5. Fear
Which
brings us back to those first hearers
wondering what future held
§ faith community
§ world
I often say
often heard it say
in Jesus
God meets is in our deepest longings and desires
Suggest that John saying
in Jesus
– God meets us in our deepest fears
things
we dread most
our
lives
our
community
our
world
so often driven by what fear,
not what we hope for
Media is built around that
politicians feed off it
creating
things to fear
trying
to convince us that they are ones who can fix it
whether crime
people smugglers
economy
trouble is that the fear
continues
John is saying
when we pay attention
when eat bread and drink cup
when mingle with God
then those fears are met
able start living anew – born again
abiding in
life of God
abundance God
generosity of God
love that is God.
what are your deepest fears?
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