Who are these people who come to Jesus in today’s Gospel? (August 2, 2009)
By Rev. Steve Bagnall

Who are these people who come to Jesus in today’s Gospel? They were among the crowd who received Jesus’ miraculous feeding in the wilderness. They followed Him; where Jesus was, they wanted to be. At first glance we’d say the miracle worked. The church was growing, people were happy. But we’d be wrong.

Jesus diagnoses the problem right away – “You seek Me not because of the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.” These people weren’t there because they believed Jesus was God in flesh come to save them from their sins – they weren’t thinking beyond their own bellies. We see people like this all the time. They come to St. Luke for food, but don’t want to hear about the Jesus Who’s giving the food. The largest and most successful churches in the United States preach that if you give yourself to Jesus He will give you a life of prosperity and health. In fact, the vast majority of books in the Christian bookstore claim to teach you how to order your life in order to receive earthly blessings. There’s no end of belly-preachers in our world, and Jesus is not pleased with them.

But is Jesus pleased with you? Why do you come to Him? Of course there may be some among us who come just to get a tuition break at our school, or they think that by coming to church they can con God into answering their prayers the way they want – more money, better health, whatever. Of course God cares about our physical needs – He did, after all, feed these people and He does, after all, feed and care for us. But if our hope is only for this life then we have no hope at all.

Jesus has a food, a blessing that lasts forever, that doesn’t rot, like Manna, or leave us in need again, like the bread and fish of the miracle and that’s why most of you are here – because of this – the cross of Christ. You are here because God has given you faith, because you know your sin. You know you’ve broken God’s Law, contradicted His will. You know all this, and yet you don’t hide from God, you run to Him, you cling to Him. You come because you know that the death of Jesus has great purpose and benefit for you. Christ’s death – His suffering of hell’s pains – this was done for you, to pay for your sins. You come to Jesus because He has died for you and yet He is alive again, raised from the dead. He has taken your sins to hell and left them there, returning with life and forgiveness for you.

You’re here because you know your sin and you know that God forgives you. But even then there can be a problem. Listen to Saint Paul in our Epistle, “I, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you.” Paul writes these words from prison where he is suffering for the sake of the gospel and He “beseeches,” that is he pleads with the Ephesians, and with us, “walk worthy of the calling to which you were called.”

You and I are called out of the muck and sin of the world. Jesus finds us coated in the guilt and filth of our own sin and He washes us clean. He makes us God’s children who will inherit a place in God’s eternal heaven. You and I are called out of darkness and made citizens of the realm of light. “Please,” says, Paul; “Please,” says Jesus, “walk worthy of that calling.”

Live as children of Light. Leave your sins at the cross and move forward in the blessed and contented and joyous life of following Jesus in the way of righteousness. But we don’t; we return to the way of darkness and sin. Instead of leaving our sin with Jesus, we carry it back with us. That is, we go right back to our anger and greed and lust and selfishness; our cursing and drunkenness and hatred and racism. We don’t treat the gospel as a lifeline out of our sinful life, but more like a “Get out of Jail Free Card,” allowing us to sin as much as we want without worry. And in that we are no different from those who wanted a full belly. “We want sin with no guilt, Jesus.”

Well Jesus doesn’t give you a license to sin. But He also doesn’t send you away in anger, either. He’s speaking to you: “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life.” But what is this “labor” we must do to get eternal life? With the people in our text we ask Jesus, “What shall we do that we may work the works of God?” And His answer’s the same for you as for them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

Just trust Jesus and you are forgiven. Jesus tells us that He gives the Bread of Life. In fact, He is the Bread of Life. Your forgiveness is won in Christ already. It is yours through faith already. So why don’t we walk in God’s ways? Fear. We’re afraid that the only place to find pleasure and fulfillment is in the things of this world. We’ve looked for fulfillment in the opinions of others and the ways of this earth for so long that we don’t know another way. Well, Jesus calls you to another way. A way of true fulfillment and joy, not the kind that this world gives; the kind that comes and goes. He says, “He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.

Brothers and sisters, we’re here because we have already learned that this world’s pleasures are temporary and that sin is no relief. Let us not return to what we already know is empty. Instead, let us trust in the promise of Jesus, the Bread that comes down from Heaven, the Son of God, our Savior and King. He wants to feed you the Bread that will fill all your needs of body and soul. He wants to give you far more than you seek; He gives you eternal life.
Amen.