9B Pentecost                                    John 6:24-36                                    August 2, 2009

I want to start with a little congregational participation, chime in if you know the words…
“Pat a cake; pat a cake, baker’s man.
Bake me a cake as fast as you can.”

This familiar nursery rhyme from centuries ago hints at the desire, even then, for fast food.
And yet, this yearning can already be seen in the crowds from the gospel reading this morning.
The text begins with the crowds searching out and wanting more from Jesus.
If you were to look this story up in your Bible (or the one conveniently placed in the pew rack in front of you) you would note that at the beginning of chapter six the crowds had just eaten their fill as Jesus had transformed five loaves of bread and two fish into an abundant feast, but now the crowds want more from this baker man.
What is it they are wanting?
Well, they are looking for another free lunch.
They are looking for what will satisfy them next.
They want that which quickly satisfies—that which calms the cravings—if only for the moment.

I dare say we, too, are part of that crowd.
We too want the quick fixes.
From fast food to weight loss to immediate news to toys and possessions: what we want we want it now.
And the cravings never stop.
First it’s a T.V., then it’s a VCR, then it’s a stereo, then its surround sound, then it’s a DVD player, then its Tivo followed by the big plasma hi def TV screen…our cravings never end.
And in our consumer-driven culture, there will always be more to crave.

Jesus, however, is offering something different, something more.
Jesus does not ignore our physical needs.
He provides the crowds with the food they need.
In fact, there is food left over after all have been satisfied, but Jesus tells them that he can offer the bread that does not perish.
This kind of bread, he says, “Endures for eternal life.”

As you might imagine, Jesus now has the crowds full attention—bread for eternal life—what’s not to like about that.
And yet, we know from experience that when Jesus says one thing, he is often saying so much more and this is no exception.

So is Jesus simply talking about an endless supply of bread?
I don’t think so, instead, Jesus uses bread as a metaphor for many things, three things in particular in light of today’s gospel reading.

First, bread is a metaphor for the most basic source of food.
In most cultures, bread is an appropriate metaphor, but in Asia, that is not the case.
A while back I heard about a missionary who was at the Lutheran seminary in Hong Kong and he spoke about the many ways in which themes and words in the Bible had to be explained or rephrased to make sense in the Asian context.
One of the examples was that Jesus being the “Bread of life” and how that did not make sense in their culture because bread is not a basic food.
Instead, to make the connection, they often substituted the phrase “Jesus is the Bread of Life” with “Jesus is the Rice of Life”.
Since rice is the main food staple, this opened up the meaning of the gospel to them in many new ways.

Secondly, bread is also a metaphor for all that God has given us.
In the forth petition of the Lord’s Prayer, we ask that God give us this day our daily bread.
In this petition, we are not simply asking God for a loaf of bread, but we are acknowledging that it is indeed God who gives us all that we need to survive: breath, life, food, shelter, all our possessions, health, our family and friends.
Everything we need, every blessing comes from the hand of God.

To illustrate this thought, there is a Jewish folktale entitled “The King’s Loaves” that tells of two beggars who went daily to the palace to beg at the kings gate for bread.

Every day the king gave each of them a loaf of bread.
One of the beggars would always thank the king for his generosity.
But the other thanked God for giving the king sufficient wealth to give charity.
The second beggar’s words always hurt the king.
So the king decided to teach him a lesson.
The king ordered his baker to bake two identical loaves, but in one he had him conceal precious jewels.
Then he instructed the baker to give the loaf with the hidden jewels to the beggar who always thanks the king for his charity.

The next day the baker went to the king’s gate and handed the two loaves to the beggars.
He took great care not to confuse the two, for he feared the king’s wrath.
When the beggar with the special loaf felt how heavy and hard it was, he concluded that it was poorly made and asked the other beggar to exchange loaves with him.
The second beggar, always eager to help a friend, agreed.
Then they went their separate ways.
When the second man bit into the loaf, he discovered that it was filled with jewels.
He thanks God for his good fortune, grateful that he would no longer have to beg for his bread.

The next morning the king was surprised to find only the first beggar at the palace gate.
He had the baker brought before him and asked him, “Did you mix up the two loaves I had you bake?”

“No your majesty,’ answered the baker. “I did exactly as you asked.”
Then the king turned to the beggar and asked, “What did you do with the loaf you received yesterday?”
The man replied, “It was hard and poorly baked, so I gave it to my friend in exchange for his.”

Then the king understood that all his riches had indeed come form God, and that only the Holy One can make a poor man rich—or a rich man poor.

I like this folktale because it reminds us that God is the giver of all bread and all possessions.

And lastly, there is another meaning for bread.
Bread is a metaphor for our deepest need—the need for which we hunger and yearn without knowing it.
We cannot satisfy this need by ourselves.
God through Christ has experienced our hungers and cravings.
It is only because Jesus understands our deepest hungers that he can satisfy and feed us.
Jesus Christ is that bread which fulfils and satisfies. Christ is the bread, which fulfills and satisfies.
Christ is this bread, which does not perish.
Christ is this bread, which gives everlasting life.
This is the bread tht gives “life to the world”.

God gives us this costly bread in his Son.
The God that continued to feed the Israelites in the wilderness is the one who continues to feed us and cook up new life in us today and each and every day.
Jesus Christ is the bread that continues to nourish us even beyond the grave.
Jesus is our Almighty Baker’s Son who gives us food at the greatest cost—the cost of the cross.  
Although costly and precious, the meal is free and open to all.

In the Eucharist, Holy Communion, we remember Jesus’ death and resurrection, and, like beggars before God, we receive nourishment for our journey.
The meaning of Eucharist is thanksgiving.
We share this meal of thanksgiving with all those gathered here today, and all those gathered in every time and every place.
As we are fed, we give thanks for the new life we have received.
And after receiving this food, we are called to be a part of God’s greater purpose: we are called to be bread for one another.

We are bread for one another when we welcome a stranger and when we walk with someone through an illness.
We are bread for one another when we love those who are most difficult to love and when we defend the defenseless.
We are bread for one another when we teach and when we forgive.
And finally, we are bread for one another when we share the bread we have been given.

Although the cravings and the desires never cease, the nourishment that comes from Jesus strengthens us is our faith and enables us to be released for our dependence on that which does not give life.
The true Bread of life is at work in us transforming us, granting us healing and wholeness and freeing us from that, which is perishing and freeing us for sharing our loaves of bread, our sacks of rice, our every possession and our faith in the Baker’s Son, Jesus Christ.
So come my friends, my fellow beggars, come join the feast, gather at the table and celebrate, as this bread is broken for you! Amen.

Pastor Stephen Blenkush

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