Preached by the Right Reverend Grant Lynn Ford at the Sunshine Cathedral first on Sunday, July 24, 1988, again on Sunday, August 6, 2000 (revised) and this Sunday, August 6, 2006.
The Light of the Ages
Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15
A reading from the Light of the Ages:
2The whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron: 3“We’ll die here in the desert! We should have stayed in Egypt. At least we had food to eat, all we wanted. But, no, you had to bring us out here so we could all starve to death!”
4The Eternal said to Moses, “I’m going to rain down bread from heaven. Tell the people to gather only enough for each day’s use. Let’s see if they follow my instructions.”
9So Moses told Aaron, “Get everybody together. Tell them, ‘Assemble before the Eternal, who has heard your complaining.’”
10Even while Aaron was addressing the assembly, their attention was drawn to a brilliant glow in the desert. It was the Glory of the Eternal appearing as a bright cloud!
11The Holy One spoke to Moses: 12“I’ve heard their complaints! Tell them, ‘At twilight you’ll have meat, and in the morning you’ll have more than enough bread. Know that I am the Eternal, your God!’”
13That evening quail came flying into the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14When the dew dried up, there were flakes on the ground that looked like frost. 15“What is it?” the people wondered.
Moses told them, “It’s the bread the Almighty has given you. Eat!”
The Light of the Ages!
The Light of the Early Church
1 Corinthians 10:1-6
A reading from the light of the Apostle Paul:
1Good brothers and sisters, don’t ignore this powerful truth: Your ancestors were all under the cloud and they all passed through the sea. 2What do I mean by this? In the cloud and in the sea they were all baptized into Moses. 3-4They all ate the same meals, food and drink prepared by God. Remember the Rock from which the water sprang? That rock was Christ!
5Look at the other side of the coin as well. Many of them didn’t bring any pleasure to God, and they came to unpleasant ends in the desert. 6This should be a reminder to us never to demand our own way and seek only our own pleasure.
The Light of Truth!
The Light of the Master Teacher
John 6:24-35
24After the amazing feeding of the five thousand, Jesus and his disciples quietly got into boats and went to Capernaum. 25The crowds, however, hunted him down there on the other side of the lake. “Master, when did you get here?”
26“The truth is,” Jesus answered them, “you’re not looking for me because you saw God doing amazing things, but because you ate free until you were filled! 27Don’t waste energy on empty calories! Work for food that nourishes you now and always, throughout eternity, and which has God’s guarantee. It’s the food the Son of Humanity will provide for you.”
28What do we have to do?” they wanted to know. “What does God require?”
29Jesus answered, “It’s simple: Trust the one God has sent.”
30They persisted with their inquiry: “Do a miracle! Show us a sign! Then we’ll believe that you’re the one. 31Moses fed our ancestors with manna in the desert It says it in the Scriptures: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32But Jesus corrected them: “The truth is, it wasn’t Moses who gave you bread from heaven. It was my Heavenly Parent, who gives true bread from heaven. 33The Bread of God comes down from heaven to give life to the entire world!”
34“Yes, that’s what we want,” they cried. “Master, give us this bread!”
35“I am the Bread of Life,” Jesus declared. “The one who comes to me will never go hungry; the one who believes in me will thirst no more.”
Did you here about the new 12-step program for chocoholics? Never be more than 12 steps away from chocolate!
Linda Grayson, in The Pickwick Papers, said it best: “There’s nothing better than a good friend…except a good friend with chocolate.”
Our story today is about more than being chocolate deprived. It’s more about real hunger, as in ‘lack of food’.
The Israelites were experiencing real hunger, or so they thought. And then God came to their rescue, with manna from heaven. Of course, this miracle didn’t come about until after they’d complained a good deal, and mourned the loss of their Egyptian diet. Yet God had patience with them and said to Moses: “Get everybody together. Tell them, ‘Assemble before the Eternal, who has heard your complaining.’”
And here’s what God told them: “At twilight you’ll have meat, and in the morning you’ll have more than enough bread. Know that I am the Eternal, your God!”
Sure enough, that’s exactly what happened. Manna waffles, manna loaves, manna pasta, manna bagels. You name it, every day…manna. And every evening… quail. Broiled quail, fricasseed quail, stuffed quail, Kentucky Fried Quail. And guess what? They complained again!
It is said that manna literally means “What is it?” And scholars have been arguing ‘what that means’ ever since.
Some say it exuded at certain times of the year from the tamarisk tree. Others say it was given off by certain insects. But everyone misses the point. There was enough manna to feed every man, woman and child. Every day for forty years. That’s abundance! That’s a miracle!
The Israelites however didn’t think it was so great after awhile. They got tired of it. Manna waffles, manna loaves, manna pasta, manna bagels.
What had happened here? When people focus on the desired ‘thing’ instead of directing their attention to the Source, the emptiness is never quite filled, no matter how much one receives. Abundance will never fill the hungry heart who desires intimacy with the Divine.
Tom Sine in his book Why Settle For More and Miss the Best?[i] tells about Mill Valley, California, at the turn of the millennium. Mill Valley was nationally touted as one of the most desirable suburban communities in the United States. The prestigious residences were priced at a million dollars and up. Driveways displayed a sparkling array of Porsches, BMW’s, and Winnebagos. The schools were equipped with state-of-the-art computers, lab equipment, and video units. And every Christmas looked as if the department store blew up in the living room.
But research showed a very different side of Mill Valley. Those fabulous dream homes masked one of the highest levels of drug and alcohol abuse in the nation. Teen suicides and family breakups were also critical problems. Yet there are many of us who still think that just a few more dollars in our pocket will fill that emptiness. Not to mention winning the Lottery!
Some of you will remember Freddie Prinze Sr., star of Chico and the Man. Despite his success Freddie attempted suicide and finally was taken off life support on January 29, 1977; his fabulous acting career ended, along with his life. He left a note saying: “I must end it. There is no hope. I will be at peace. No one had anything to do with it. My decision totally.....”
Zig Ziglar in his book, Raising Positive Kids in a Negative World, tells about seeing a well-known interviewer and commentator on TV. At the time this person undoubtedly knew more celebrities in Hollywood than anyone else.
Discussing the tragic death of Freddie Prinze Sr., the commentator was asked, “Do you know of any other superstar in athletics, music, entertainment, the television industry, or movies who might also be in danger of either deliberately or accidentally taking his own life?” After a moment’s reflection, she answered, “I don’t know of anyone who is famous in these fields who is not in danger... because I don’t know a single one who is happy.”
It is true of fortune, and of fame, and even of power... none of it brings happiness. But what about religion, you ask? I’m glad you brought it up, because more people are tricked by religion than by any other false promise.
Let me show you how it works, right here in our midst. People come to this church for the first time and marvel. They feel the love, the freedom to be, the joy of liberation. And many of them stay for awhile. But sooner or later some will wander off. Why? Because they get tired of the manna. They take, but never learn to give. They enjoy the goodies, but never become committed to the Good. They eat the bread, but never enter into relationship with the One who said, “I am the bread of life.”
This church is not enough. Freedom and liberation are not enough. Being involved is not enough. Working for peace and justice is not enough. All these things are important, but they are not enough to satisfy the craving inside.
Evelyn Underhill, the famous English writer who also led spiritual retreats for the Church of England, wrote, “We mostly spend our lives conjugating three verbs: to Want, to Have, and to Do. Craving, clutching, and fussing on the material, political, social, emotional, intellectual—even on the religious plane—we are kept in perpetual unrest; forgetting that none of these verbs has any significance, except in so far as they are transcended and included in the fundamental verb to be…Being, not wanting, having, and doing, is the essence of a spiritual life.”[ii]
We search for that missing thing in our life: something or someone to fill the vacancy in our hearts. But it cannot be filled by something outside us: a lover, a fortune, fame, power, or even religion. It can only be filled by that which is already deep inside us: a transforming love for ourselves, for others, for the Divine and creation.
Hear the Truth of the Living Bread: “The one who comes to be with me will never go hungry; the one who believes in what I say will thirst no more.”
To believe in Jesus the Living Bread is to believe everything he says and to be everything he is. You are one with the Christ, you are one with God. That’s the Living Bread which fills so that we hunger and thirst no more! And that’s the Truth!
Jesus is the Bread of my life.
He feeds me and makes me strong.
He’s my best friend,
for now and for all eternity.I embody what he said…
I live as he lived…
I love as he loved…
and I like it like that!And so it is! Amen.
