Ephesians 6:10-20.                  The war is on!!!!                                              26/8/12

 ¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

 Today we are reminded here, that we are to be ready for battle, because there is a war going on. Now I am sure that most of us don’t want to know about it. We would like to pretend that life is all pretty good and peaceful and that we can quietly go about our life with ease. After all, life doesn’t look too bad, when we look around us.

 Is that so? Again, we don’t need to look very hard at all to see the growing devastation in our society, with all of the corruption, violence, abuse and addictions that are about. They are all symptomatic of a very destructive battle that is going on in the hearts and lives of us all. And it all stems back to our not taking God seriously in our lives. Spiritually our nation is being destroyed, and we are not even blinking an eye.

 Then to bring it in even closer to home, think about what is going in our church and our families. We only have to look around us to see all the empty pews that were once filled thirty and forty years ago. The casualty rate in our churches puts the last world war to shame. So surely that should be a serious warning to us to take seriously what God has to say to us here this morning.

 Along with that there is the need to recognise the conflict and difficulties that we have with one another in our churches and families. They too are reminders that there is a battle going on in our midst that can also cause significant casualties.

 Then to add even more to this, there is, in the church, the constant demands and insinuations that we need to change and take on board all kinds of different thinking. This too is taking its toll on many in the church as they are dragged this way and that. The centrality of Jesus and the cross is hidden under all kinds of other things that are not so essential.

  So all of this, and more, are reminders of a great war going on, that pale the two great wars of the last century into insignificance. The casualty rate is enormous in the western world, and we are hardly blinking an eye.

 Here let us remember that the enemy has only one goal in mind; and that is the total annihilation of all Christians. It is not that he wants to just cause a few disruptions here and there, and give us a hard time; but he is out to destroy us all.

 Here in this reading along with many other places in God’s Word we hear things like this: For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. This war is not about our little squabbles and differences; our stupidity and failings. These are only the results of the devil’s schemes. Sure, he is using us human beings, big time; but it is ultimately his war against Jesus Christ and us. He is out to destroy us.

 All of this being the case, Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Since the day of evil has come we need to prepare ourselves for this onslaught that is going on all around us. We can’t leave it all ‘up to chance’, to battle this out with our own strength. We need all the help that God can give us, so that we do not get caught up in the devils schemes and become his agents.

 Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. The only way we are able to continue to stand and to remain firm to the ends, will be to use everything that God himself has made available to us.

 With this in mind we look at the various pieces of the armour that are mentioned here and the important role they play in our lives. The first mentioned is, the belt of truth buckled around your waist. It doesn’t seem to be much, but how often are we not caught out at the most inopportune time, because our pants have fallen down around our ankles. Both the lack of truth in our actions and the disregard for God’s truth leaves us horribly embarrassed and facing the danger of not being able to stay out of trouble.

 Holding firm to the truth of God’s Word is vital for us today if we don’t want to become a casualty of this war. To do this then we need to spend as much time as we can hearing, reading and meditating on what God tell us in the Bible. At a time when ‘whatever we think is true’ is the truth, we need to remember there is only one real truth; and that is the truth that God himself gives to us.  That truth alone will help us to stand in the midst of this battle.

 The next piece of armour mentioned is the breastplate of righteousness in place. This breastplate protects our vital organs so that we are not mortally wounded. Sadly today as many try to stand in their own self-righteousness they find themselves seriously hurt when they are caught out.

 However, as we are spiritually attacked when we have Christ’s righteousness in our lives we are safe and protected. As we daily stand in the certainty that we are right with God because we are baptised into Jesus death and resurrection and we trust in what he has done for us, we are protected. We know that no one or nothing can take that salvation and eternal life away from us: come what may, we are right with God.

 Then we are reminded of the need for us to have our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. We need a good pair of boots on so that we can stand firm and sure footed. That comes from having the certainty that we have peace with God through the Good News of Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection for us. That being the case we need to constantly be surrounded by the preaching and teaching of Jesus Christ and the importance of his death on the cross for us.

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. As Christians we need a good ‘flack-jacket’ in order to deflect all the bullets that the enemy sends our way. So we need a strong faith that trusts solely in God and who he is and what he has done for us through Jesus Christ. Again then, we need his Holy Spirit to be at work in our lives at all times.

  The helmet of salvation is another important component of our Christian warfare. The sure knowledge that we are saved by Jesus Christ alone is what will protect our heads from being confounded, led astray and seriously damaged.

 Then as we also take up the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, we can defend ourselves from the attacks that come our way, as well as going on the attack ourselves. However to do this we need to know and be well grounded in God’s Word. We need more than just a basic understanding if we are going to stand in the face of the barrage of knowledge that is sent our way these days.

 Finally and probably most importantly we need to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. We need good communications with our commanding officer if we are to be able to stand firm. We need his help when we are under attack, and so prayer is an important part of our daily life.

Then with all of this armour in place when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
The battle is on, the casualties are great and so the conflict is serious. Let us take God’s warning here seriously and bravely seek to stand firm. With God’s armour on we will survive and at the same time be a great witness to those around us. Hold firmly to Jesus Christ and what he has won for you and you will stand. Then again, may all glory and honour go to our great God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, for to him alone it belongs. Amen.

Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

John 6:51-58.              Eat the Lord Jesus and live????          19/8/12

 ⁵¹I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

⁵² Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
⁵³ Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. ⁵⁶ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. ⁵⁷ Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”

 Here we are again reminded of that which is absolutely extraordinary for us as Christians. We eat Jesus’ flesh and drink his blood and this maintains our life as his people; because, as a result he lives in us and we in him. We live as Christians because we feed on his flesh and drink his blood. Amazing! Absolutely amazing!

 Now it is interesting, that as much as this caused many people in Jesus day great concern, so also it does today. There are many today who want to have Jesus as a part of their life, but again it is on their terms. They want the benefits that he has to offer, but not Jesus himself and what he stands for. So they question and argue over what Jesus says to us here, rather than take Jesus at his word. They try to twist and change it to suit their own reasoning. Preferring to place greater importance on what we do or have to do, rather than on Jesus and what he tells us, and what he wants to give and do for us; and what is absolutely necessary for us.

 However, Jesus is here again making it very clear that we cannot have life apart from having Jesus Christ himself as the very essence of our life. Jesus is not just our motivation for living or our example of how to live. He is not some optional extra that we can have; like a handbag which we can take out when we need him.

Without Jesus Christ, we are dead: you have no life in you. That is what Jesus himself says. So yes many people may still be walking around as large as life, but they don’t have the essence of life in them; their life is futile. Beyond this life they have nothing. Even this life becomes one that is constantly lived with a feeling that there is something missing: there is something more needed.

 This we even find to be the case in our own lives to some degree: when we live our life without Jesus there at the centre of our life and we try to do things on our own, it’s not quite right; there is an emptiness to some degree; and life is a struggle. Because we try to work this on our own, we mess it up, and we are left wondering and doubting.

 However, here Jesus tells us quite clearly that in and with him we have that which will enable us to live; and even to live forever. We will be raised up at the last day. In Jesus we have that which will satisfy us to the full, here and now, as well as into eternity.

 Here Jesus uses the analogy of eating bread to our need to look to and trust in him. Without constant nourishment we would not survive. So we need to constantly feed on him. We need that which only he can give; and that is himself.

 Jesus says here in this chapter, ‘unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink of his blood, you have no life in you.’ They are big words from Jesus. He goes on to say, ‘this is real food’ - lasting food - life-giving food. So take in Jesus and everything he stands for: His word - his life, his death, his forgiveness, his resurrection, and his eternal life. Eat it - digest it - let it affect every part of your life. Eat the Lord Jesus Christ and you will live.

 Yes it is a hard teaching. But here we have that which is the very best. Now even though Jesus is not talking directly about Holy Communion, but of faith and sole trust in him, there is no doubt it is alluded to. It certainly goes hand in hand with it. For the Lord’s Supper is for our constant reassurance that we are forgiven and connected to Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection for us. For there we receive his very body and blood which he shed on the cross for us, and so have him live in us.

So in Holy Communion we have a great gift extended to us by God Almighty himself. Here we have not just the greatest assurance of God's love, forgiveness and life, but Jesus Christ himself. Here at the Altar rail Jesus himself comes to you and joins himself to you. There you are connected with the Lord’s death on the cross and his resurrection. Then because he is in you and you in him you can be absolutely sure that forgiveness and eternal life is yours. Yes here in bread and wine is Jesus Christ himself – really and truly present. Here is his flesh and blood - his very being: his living, loving and all powerful presence here for you and me.

 So then we don't need to say if only we lived back then and saw and heard Jesus. If only we saw him dying there on the cross, and the empty tomb, then we can be sure. Then we could have the confidence and willingness to live as a Christian every day. If only we could look forward and know for sure that we were in heaven for ever. If only we were taught all the right things, given the right experiences in life, and our church service was more uplifting and life-related, then we would be right.

 Well here it all is; because here is the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Eat him, drink his blood, and live. This is what Jesus himself tells us. Eat him and we can know for sure that we have God himself in us. Here then is not just assurance of forgiveness and a reminder of Jesus and his death and resurrection: no - here he is; truly present for us.

 This then would have to be the most important thing that we can do as Christians. Here in the Lord’s Supper we have the greatest and most significant event that we could ever be a part of. Here God himself comes to us and gives himself to us. With that he gives us everything he is and everything he stands for: his glory; his life; his word; his love; his power and directions for living; and so much more. It all there for us - within us; as a result of our eating the bread which is his flesh, and drinking the wine which is his blood. This is just the greatest.

 This is why our liturgy is structured the way it is. This is why we place so much importance on what God does for us in this service and not on entertainment. That is why we have a sense of reverence and decorum to our Services, and why I robe up for services. We are dealing with holy things: our Lord Jesus Christ himself. We recognise that Jesus has set apart something infinitely special for us; and that he has called and ordained pastors to administer carefully that which he has for us. We understand how great and special this gift is that he has for us, and how important it is for our lives. Here he gives himself to us.

 Then having eaten his body and drunk his blood, we now have him in here as we go out from here and as live out our life every day. As we live in the rough and tumble of life we now have the greatest assurance that everything is going to work out OK. We have Jesus within us so that we can then go out and love, care, be honest and all the rest; because Jesus is right here within us giving us all that we need to enable us to do so.

 So every time that Holy Communion is celebrated, come forward and eat and drink Jesus’ body and blood, and then go forward confidently knowing that no matter what you face in life, you have one within you who has been through it all and come out the other side as victor: You have God himself with you. You have him who is the bread of life. So you now lack nothing - nothing that is of any importance; and you know that everything will all work out for the best.

What great encouragement this is for us here today. To be reminded again that the Lord Jesus Christ is the bread of life that came down from heaven, and that all who eat this bread will live forever. This is his great gift to you - to us. Eat it; drink it - digest it – and live each day knowing that there within you, you have that something that you will never find anywhere else. You have God almighty himself; And that with him you have real life, here and in eternity. So eat this bread of life and live. Amen.

 Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

John 6:35, 41-51.                    Jesus comes to give life!!!                   12/8/12           

³⁵ Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. ⁴¹ At this the Jews there began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” ⁴² They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”

⁴³ “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. ⁴⁴ “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. ⁴⁵ It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. ⁴⁶ No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. ⁴⁷ Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. ⁴⁸ I am the bread of life. ⁴⁹ Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. ⁵⁰ But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

 Here today in this reading we have another very real and important challenge placed before our present day church; and you and I. We want everything to be simple and uncomplicated; down to earth. Easy to accept and which makes us feel good; and which doesn’t put us too far out of step with our society around us and its thinking. On top of that we want it all to revolve around us and our ease and importance. So we are placing ourselves in a very dangerous position and are here challenged to rethink our present position.

 We are living at a time when there is a lot of grumbling about, with regard to biblical positions that have been readily accepted since the foundations of the Church: homosexuality and homosexual marriage, women’s role in the church, our understanding of worship or Divine Service, to just name a few. So there is a growing unwillingness to take God at his Word, and a growing readiness to listen to Satan’s lie; ‘Did God really say?’ Together with this we also a much heavier emphasis placed on ourselves and the importance of what we do, think and feel.

We are the centre of our world and we view everything from our own viewpoint. This is a deadly, dangerous position that we have placed ourselves into.

 We don’t need to scratch very far beneath the surface of our present day society and even the church to see the results of this thinking. The loneliness and futility of life; the lack of meaning and purpose to one’s existence; and more, all is compounding at an ever increasing rate. This emptiness is exhibited by the ever increasing alcohol, drug and sex addictions. The violence against one another; and high rates of suicide, all are indications that our current thinking on life is disastrous. This self-centred view of life and our world is having a terrible effect on life today.

 Now, during a Bible Study this last week I came across this little statement that we need to consider very carefully. It said: ‘This life is not about you. This life is about God, not about us. God made this universe, he created life, he brought everything into being. And when we sinned, he provided the only sacrifice that would satisfy his own righteous anger: the blood of his only Son.’ Now this is a radically different perspective with which we as Christians are to approach life. And it is one that actually ensures us a life that his filled with peace, hope and the assurance of eternal life.

 In many ways this is the very point that Jesus himself is making here in this reading this morning. We need God and what comes from him if we are to have that which we all, deep down, know that we need for this life and the next. He is the one who is all important in life, not we and the world around us. He says: “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” “I am the bread that came down from heaven.”

 Because of the sinfulness and selfishness of humanity, we do not have and will never be able to achieve for ourselves, that which makes for a good life. Sadly, of course, those who choose to reject God and his ultimate authority, will fight ‘tooth and nail’ to try to convince themselves and others that this is not the case. Sinful humanity will always look for human means to improve our lot here in this world.

 Consequently sinful humanity cannot and does not want to believe that God in Jesus came down from heaven. Our selfish pride wants the focus to be on us and what we can do, so only wants to look at Jesus in terms of him being a good man, a great teacher, rather than God himself come to help us out of our hopelessness.

 Most significantly we need to recognize that none of us can make ourselves and our life good and great and to then be acceptable to God. Now this is a bitter pill for humanity to accept, but that is the reality of the situation. Jesus himself says here: No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. It is only through him that we can have any real hope of coming into God’s presence when we die, which we all surely will; unless we happen to be alive when the end comes.

Jesus goes on to say: They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. No one then has an excuse! We all have had written in our hearts the knowledge that there is a supreme God who is over all and in who we alone can have any hope of coming into God’s presence. So we all know this truth that our only real hope can come from him. So we need to look to him and trust what he has to say in this regard.

Our assurance that all of this is case is none other than Jesus Christ himself. No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. Jesus is God’s Son come to us from God himself, so that we can know that this is all for real. His life, death and resurrection is our assurance that all of this is true. This is not just some ‘fairy story’ made up by some fanciful story-teller; but finds its reality in the one that history itself has recorded as having died on the cross and come to life again three days later. It is in him alone that we can be certain that our real hope and life comes from heaven above.

 This life therefore is all about God. He is the centre and the hope of our existence. We can and are to believe in him. In this regard Jesus himself says: Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. We can trust that it is in him alone that we can truly live and move and have our being.

 Jesus then goes on to say: I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever.

 So as we look to and trust in Jesus we have the assurance that we have that which will give us life in all of its fullness. Because he comes from heaven and gives himself to us we can know that we have that which ensures that we will not die but live forever. And with that he will also give us all we need on order for this life, here and now, to be full of hope and meaning. All this will be the case because God Almighty himself will be allowed to be Lord of our life; the centre of our existence   

 Even when he tells us things that seem ridiculous and goes against the grain of our thinking we accept what he says; and receive it as that which obviously God deems as good for us: Whether that has to do with homosexuality or women in the ministry and the like, or Jesus real presence in the Lord’s Supper. We trust him when he says the bread and wine is his body and blood, through which he assures us of the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life. So even those these words: This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world, were not spoken in connection with Holy Communion, they remind us that it is in Jesus alone that we can trust, with regard to the important things that we need in life.

So let us take to heart the point that: ‘This life is not about you. This life is about God, not about us. God made this universe, he created life, he brought everything into being. And when we sinned, he provided the only sacrifice that would satisfy his own righteous anger: the blood of his only Son.’ Along with that, it is he who gives us all that we need in order to satisfy our life here on earth and get us into eternity with himself in heaven. So again to him then be all glory and honour, now and always. Amen.

 Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

Exodus 16:2-4;9-15.               Survival in the desert of life!!                     5/8/12

 (2)  In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. {3} The Israelites said to them, "If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death." {4} Then the LORD said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions.

(10)  While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the LORD appearing in the cloud. {11} The LORD said to Moses, {12} "I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, 'At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.'" {13} That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. {14} When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. {15} When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, "It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat.

 Why God? Why have you allowed this thing to happen to me? [Whatever it may be] Life never used to be this tough. In fact way back then, we had so much good going for us; and now you are making life a real struggle. As life goes on this seems to be more and more the case for many of us; life seems harder and tougher. So on go the grizzles and grumbles.

 Here we need to recognise and say, yes, life is tough as we face a far from perfect world. It can at times seem as if life is a real desert; a desert where it can be hard to survive. Particularly as we try to live as Christians in an unchristian world. But that is life; and we as sinful human beings have made it that way.

 Now in our text we see that the Israelites had their desert experiences also. There between Egypt and the Promised Land they had many a struggle; many a difficulty. Just as we have in our lives between our baptism and our promised eternal home. For them and for us there is that constant reality of sin and grace at work in our lives.

 For the Israelites we can see that quite clearly. God rescued them from a hopeless situation in Egypt and led them toward the Promised Land. But to get there they had to pass through the desert region. There we see that many times they failed to look to God and his grace, but turned away from him, and grizzled and grumbled. They wanted what they wanted, and when things didn’t go the way they thought it should they quickly turned against God. We see it come out here in this reading; when things got a little difficult they straight away got things out of proportion. Their problems, though small, were blown up in their minds to be so big and tragic. They had difficulty finding food and water, so that straight away they started complaining.

 It was there that they began to idolize the past. They forgot the slavery and how they were on the road to extinction as a result of Pharoah’s hardness against them. In its place they started to think of those as the good old days; the good old days where they sat around the campfire, and enjoying the best of life. Why couldn’t they still be living back there, instead of slowly and painfully suffering out here in the wilderness? So in their minds things became distorted; and they forgot how terrible things really were and how God had miraculously set them free from the powerful Egyptians, and how time and again he had provided for them in the desert.

 Now if we think about that, this sounds an all too familiar tale, doesn’t it. So often this could be written about our own lives today. We are as bad at forgetting and complaining as the Israelites were; and maybe we are even worse. In our journey through life we find much to grizzle and complain about. We too forget the realities of the past and idolize its good points, and fail to remember all that our great God has and continues to do for us. We also want what we want and grizzle when we can’t have it.

 Let us here now for a few moments get to thinking beyond ourselves and our wants and listen to the real point of our text. God here instead of turning his back on the grizzling and grumbling of an unthankful people, he helps them even more. He continues to show his power, love and mercy, and at the same time seeks to train them to look to him a little more: he ensures that they get enough food for each day. So he rains down a bread-like substance called manna. Manna that would only keep for one day, except for their day of rest; there he provides a way for it to last for two days. What a grand display of God’s provision. He gives them enough each day for what they need and no more. [I wonder how we would handle that.]

 Their journey through the wilderness was supplied with enough bread and quail for the whole time. Their clothes and shoes did not wear out. For forty years they were amazingly provided for by this great God who had rescued them from extinction. There surely was no need for them to grizzle and grumble any longer. Now their God had given them a constant reminder of his wonderful provision.

 Here the Lord their God continues to fulfil his promise to his people even though they were wayward. Throughout their history we see how he continued to give to them the necessities of life, and he provided through miraculous means and the not so miraculous. But at the same time he does not give them too much so that they forget him and his goodness toward them. Many times however, because they forgot and took it all for granted, and looked again elsewhere, he had to bring hard times on them so that they could again remember who is of central importance in life.

 Here today we need to recognise also that our Lord is here for our good, and that he seeks to provide us with our needs and not necessarily our wants. He gives to us what we require in order for us his people to survive our journey from our baptisms to our eternal home. Not too much that we forget him, [although I wonder if that is not what is happening to us here in this country] and not too little that we fail to get through.

 Through his provision, both physically and spiritually, he wants us to know that he is loving and gracious toward us: he seeks to train us to look to him and trust him, rather than ourselves: to follow his instructions as we find it in God’s Word, the Bible: To seek his care and will rather than look to the things of this world: To seek first his kingdom and his righteousness rather than our self-righteousness.

He wants us not to work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. Time and again throughout the Scriptures he reminds us not to place too much emphasis on the physical aspects of life, but to see that the spiritual life is of utmost importance. We need to lift our eyes beyond what we see around us and recognise that the Lord our God has and continues to provide us with all that we need in order to survive the journey through this life to our Promised Land.

But most importantly he went even further, in giving us the greatest provision of all; “the bread of life.” The true bread from heaven that gives full satisfaction. Not bread that will go stale and mouldy, but that which continues to be vital and invaluable throughout our years. In fact, bread that enables us to live forever: to live forever with our great and loving God.

 In the gift of this “bread of life” our greatest need has been taken care of: we are now free from slavery to sin, death and the devil: free from the burden that guilt places on us, and the barrier that it puts between us and God. We are forgiven fully and freely by this ‘bread from heaven.’ As we receive this bread at the Communion Table that pronouncement of forgiveness is made, and so we have been filled with that food that satisfies to the full.

 Then as we continue to look to him, we are filled with his goodness and are strengthened and preserved for the journey ahead. Then we are encouraged to go forward confidently knowing that we have with us the one who truly is the Lord our God. Who assures us again and again that no matter what happens to us along the way he has provided us with that which gives eternal life. So we can confidently know that our salvation has been taken care of: the Promised Land is there for us, and in particular for the glory of the one who has done so much for us: the One who is all important; the Lord our God.

 What a great God we have! What joy it is to again hear how he loves, cares and provides for us throughout life. Let us then go from here today trusting in him alone; looking to his Son Jesus Christ at all times. And let us be satisfied with his life-giving provision as he gives us all we need in order to survive in the desert of life; for our journey to the Promised Land. Let us not look beyond that which our Lord would have for us, for our wants rather than our needs; but always look to Jesus Christ and there in him find our provision and our joy. Again, to him be glory and honour now and always. AMEN.

 Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish