Death

John 6:35, 41-51

Here we are again, three weeks into this chapter of John and still talking about how Jesus is the true bread. Are you still abiding in this though, because there are a couple of changes. The crowd has all of the sudden become the Jews by the writer, Jesus is known by them as a hometown boy, so what can he possibly mean, and everything is up for question again. See in John we have to wade deeper into the Spirit talk and deeper into meaning. This is why the first was called abide. It does bring us a new question, how does Jesus death become the bread that feeds us?

This questions answer is as different and varied for everyone who answers it, who truly wrestles with it. There is a beautiful meditation in the New Zealand Book of Prayer that says "...it was no perishable stuff, like gold or silver, that bought our freedom. The price was paid in precious blood...." this has always stirred my soul. Freedom in all cases is hard won. It means sacrifice, being scared, thinking you may lose your life, and yet somehow you come out on the other end. Being united with Christ in those dark times brings us to the table to be fed, to sustain us on the journey.

In July I received an email from a friend dealing with his war torn country. Embedded within this is the deep belief that even in bad times, even when facing death, God is there for us. It is gospel good news.

Even when we are going through the deepest of grief, whether it is loss of a job, loss of a friend or family member, loss of a marriage we are still sustained by Jesus through this time. We are fed by him because he has known what it is like to have all your friends run from you and be left alone. We are fed by him because he has known great pain and suffered. We are fed by him because he has faced death and somehow couldn't be defeated by that, but made all things new. Isn't this good news worth sharing?

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