From bread and wine to faith and giving: Abiding at the table with Jesus

Exodus 33:12-23; John 6:53-59

Moses is having a crisis of confidence. He has led the Israelites out of Egypt, he has argued with God at least twice, received the tablets of the 10 Words, twice, and now they are ready to leave the mountain and move on toward the land promised long ago to Abram and Sarai.

Moses struggled to do this mission in the first place, and now he wonders if he is still the right guy. He and God have a conversation.  Yes, you’re the guy. … I’m still not sure.  I need more assurance. Can I see your presence? … Well, OK. Let’s do this. I’ll hide you in a rock where you can see my glory as I pass by you. You will see my back, not my face, because those who see the face of God will die. So they do this, and Moses is able to continue the mission with his confidence restored.

Interestingly, a chapter or so later, Moses talks face to face with God and he doesn’t die! The writers chose to include both traditions in the whole story of the Bible. Both can be true in scripture. You don’t always die if you see the face of God.

… About 1,500 years later, Jesus lets everyone see his face. It takes a while in Matthew, Mark and Luke for folks to understand that Jesus is the Son of God. But in John’s Gospel, it is clear from the first word that Jesus is one with God. You remember… “In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God.” Jesus is the Word of God, and God made visible. Anyone who wants to can see the face of God.

In the Gospel reading, Jesus is in a synagogue in Capernaum, talking about eating and drinking himself. It sounds gross when we take his words out of context. He is referring, of course, to holy communion, in which we eat the bread which is also Jesus’ body, and drink the wine which is also his blood.

Lutherans believe that Jesus is present in the bread and wine, while the bread and wine are also just bread and wine. We talk about both/and. Luther said, Jesus is present in, with, and under the bread and wine.  In the elements of holy communion, we can see the face of God.

As we consume the bread and wine, we are nourished physically and spiritually. The tiny bites and sips of bread and wine physically nourish our bodies all the way to our finger tips. … Jesus uses the word “abide”. To abide in John’s gospel means to dwell among or within us, to set up a tent – or maybe a camper! – and stay a while. So we could imagine that Jesus is here in worship, on our Zoom meetings, enjoying snacks together, joking with the students, and so forth.

I imagine he would also spend some time outside with the hungry and unsheltered folks. Most likely he would make a trip to Baker Detention Center, check in on some city meetings, and tell some stories at the local schools. 

Barring some sort of miracle, it’s not likely that Jesus will show up in the flesh and do all those things. But if we remember that Jesus abides in us, he can do all those things through us.

We have seen Jesus, we see him every week in the bread and wine of holy communion, and we have the opportunity to make Jesus visible to those we meet because he shines through us. We can see him every day, all day, if we remember that he abides in all of us, and in our neighbors.

Many pastors have a note card placed where they can see it as they prepare for worship. Many pastors tape it on the pulpit. The card says, “Sir, we want to see Jesus.” It is the goal of most pastors to help congregations see Jesus.

It can be our goal at ULC to help our neighbors see Jesus. Perhaps we could put such a note on our refrigerators, to remind ourselves that Jesus abides within us and it is through us that others will see him.

… Yesterday I attended a meeting of Women of the ELCA at Our Saviour in Ocala. Recently the local shelter for abused women closed, so the women are having to go to a laundromat, which costs money they don’t have. The women of Our Saviour are collecting quarters and detergent for the women so they have clean clothes. It’s a small thing,  but it helps these women see the face of God in a very tangible way.

The coins and detergent are all donated. But at some point it could be part of the congregational budget. Projects like this one at Our Saviour are one way that we make the connection between being fed at the table and making Jesus visible to others.

As he abides within us, he also abides within the women of the shelter, in the hearts of “our” students,  in the families we house and feed and care for, in the children of Village of Hope in Haiti.

Today you are invited to let us know that you plan to support the ministries of UELC financially by filling out an estimate of giving. The figures will be tallied and reported out next week at a dinner following worship.

I invite you also to spend some time pondering how Jesus abides within you and within those around you. Amen