Let’s go on
a hike together! It’s a hike that we will take in our imagination, so don’t
worry about the mosquitoes or the heat. We’re going to hike on a long trail
that heads into the distance. We know what we’ll find at the end of our hike: a
landscape of lush green meadows, ancient trees that invite us to sit in their
shade, and a lazy river of crustal-clear water that is just waiting for us to
take our shoes off and dabble our toes in its cooling water. But we have to get
there first; and we have to be prepared for the difficulties that the trail
might present to us along the way. Maybe we should make a list of what we need
to take with us. We need sturdy hiking shoes. Check! We need a hiking stick to
help us keep going when the trail goes uphill. Check! We need a canteen of
water to quench our thirst. Check! And we need some food. But what should we
take along? Sandwiches? No, the meat will go bad quickly in the heat. Bananas?
No, they get all black and squishy. Doritos? Heavens, no; they’ll just make us
thirsty and then we’ll run out of water. What we want is something that will
not only keep, but will be good for us as we journey. The food that fits that
description is trail mix!
Trail mix used
to be called GORP, which stands for “good old raisins and peanuts,” It’s a
great food to take on a hike because the peanuts have protein to keep you going
over the long haul, and the raisins provide sugar for a quick energy boost.
Nowadays, that blend of “good old raisins and peanuts” has been improved in all
kinds of ways! You can find trail mix with not only peanuts, but cashews,
almonds, and walnuts. Raisins are still there, but they now keep company with
dried cranberries, dried apricots, and even dried cherries. And we can’t forget
M&Ms! Every trail mix today includes M&Ms, that unmeltable chocolate
that helps the dried fruit give you a quick punch of energy. Something to give
you quick energy, and something to help keep you going over the long haul.
That’s the kind of food that we need on our hike! Wouldn’t it be great if there
were a food like that that would help us as we journey through our lives?
This
morning’s scripture from the gospel of John is about just that (John 6:24-35,
49-51)! Crowds of people were following Jesus because they had stuffed
themselves on the bread and fish that Jesus had miraculously provided for them,
and they wanted to eat some more! Jesus knew that they were only worried about
their empty stomachs, so he reminded them that their souls were empty, too. “One
of these days, the bread you eat will have worms in it,” he told them, “so you
should focus on getting the food that will never spoil.” They didn’t have a
clue as to what Jesus was talking about; and when he told them that this eternal
food would be his own body, they got even more confused. They couldn’t see what
we can now see perfectly well: that the food we need to get us through life is
Jesus himself. That’s what Christ offers us here at this table: his own
presence. The little cubes of bread and the little glasses of grape juice
aren’t enough to fill even a corner of our stomachs; but they are symbols of
the presence of Christ that promises to fill our souls. Not trail mix, but the
presence of Christ gets us through this hike called life, wherever the road
might take us.
This
morning, we will gather around the Lord’s Table to get some of the food that
Jesus offers us. But even as we approach the Communion table this morning,
we’ll be distracted by other options. Even as we reach our out hands to receive
the bread of life that Jesus offers us, we’ll glimpse, out of the corner of our
eye, what the world has to offer; and it is very appealing! The table right here
has “stuff” on it: an expensive car, fancy clothes, and a big house. Madison
Avenue sponsors that table. On the other side is a table with a whole array of
credit cards. Money, money, money; do whatever you want with it. There are some
preachers that say that God wants us to be rich; although Jesus says that too
much money gets in the way of the Kingdom of God. And over there is a table
with weapons on it: clubs, knives, and all kinds of firearms. Violence can get
us anything that we want! That’s what some people say – the people who don’t
like folks who aren’t just like they are or who believe differently than they
do. But none of those options will sustain us all the way to the end of our
journey through life. No, the only food that will do that is the food that
Jesus has to offer us – himself. Nothing else will carry us through whatever
circumstances life may throw at us, despite what the world may say.
Down through
the ages, Christians have witnessed to the power of the presence of Christ. They
have testified that in the most difficult situations of life, the nurture of
Christ himself has helped them to carry on. Dietrich Bonhoeffer is one of those
Christians. Back in the 1930s, Bonhoeffer shared this thought about the power
of the presence of Christ: “If Christ has
been given to us,... we are given all things,
literally all things. He will see to it that they are added unto us. If we
follow Jesus..., we are in his hands and under
the protection of Him and His Father. And if we are in communion with the
Father, nothing can harm us. God will help us in the hour of need, and He knows
our needs.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer knew something about difficult situations. He was a
Lutheran pastor in Germany during the Nazi era; and he resisted Hitler with
every bone in his body. He was eventually arrested, confined to a concentration
camp, and executed. Only the presence of Christ saw him through all of that.
That is the
power of the food that Jesus offers us! Christ has given us himself, nourishing
us with his own presence, so that we can walk with courage through this journey
called life towards the green meadows and clear river that God has promised to
us. As we receive Holy Communion, we are embraced in the love and grace of
Jesus Christ that will nourish us forever. As we journey towards the green
pastures and still waters that lie somewhere in the future, grace and love is
the food that Jesus Christ offers us. It gives us a boost when we need it, and
continuing energy for the long haul. And it is available to anyone who wants
it! The Lord’s Table is the only table that offers us food that will never
spoil. And we are all invited to share its bounty! We don’t have to pay anything
for it, or climb over any obstacles to get to it. We don’t even have to take a
quiz in order to receive it. It is free to us, right now, wherever we are on
life’s journey. What a gift! Thanks be to God!
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