Thoughts on...
August 16: 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
New Testament Lesson: John 6:51-58

Pondering food...

We've all heard the saying, "You are what you eat." So, what are you?

Why is it when we get together with family and friends we eat too much of all the wrong foods?

Why do we use food to comfort us? What is your favorite comfort food?

If you were on a deserted island with only one food to keep you alive, what food would you want?

Food is needed for life, some foods are better than others. Some have anti-oxidants and vitamins that our bodies need for fuel and to fight off disease, others have fat and sodium that make them taste better and tell our bodies we want more. I wonder if there is a food that packs a strong nutritional punch and a craving for more?

Jesus said, "I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh." Jesus throughout John chapter 6 is trying to draw the crowd to a new understanding of the work of Jesus in the world. The crowd loved the miracles and the fact that Jesus provided them food to eat that filled their bellies and brought them comfort.

But Jesus wanted them to know that he was more than just physical food. He was a food that could fill their souls. To offer them a sense of purpose and hope in their everyday life. A non-food that could offer them comfort when life got hard.

Jesus said, "Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life." This is a hard concept to get our minds around. John Calvin wrote, "Eat my flesh and drink my blood - better to experience than to understand."

Jesus came to minister to our whole person: body, mind and soul. Jesus provides physical food, he teaches us through parables and lessons, ministering to our intellect, and also Jesus touches our soul and offers us hope. Through the meal at the Lord's Table, Communion, we experience first hand how Jesus comes to us as a whole person: Body, Mind and Soul.

You are what you eat.