6:51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats
of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for
the life of the world is my flesh."
6:52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, "How can this
man give us his flesh to eat?"
6:53 So 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.
6:54 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life,
and I will raise them up on the last day;
6:55 for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.
6:56 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in
them.
6:57 Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the
Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me.
6:58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that
which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this
bread will live forever."
Comments:
Thank God for the RCL which is the Word of God presented to us in
scripture. Every once in awhile I wonder why we who pick and choose
our text select the ones we do and ignore the ones we don't touch.
Perhaps John's gospel is the one God wants us to hear. After all, it
is God's Word and the RCL is just presenting it to us.....May this
Word find a welcome place in our hearts. Peace, old priest in Iowa
Remember the recent comercials about the people lining up for their
breakfast pastry and as their receive their breakfast, someone
places a larger pastry over their waste, you see all these people
walking around with giant donunt and the sort.
It is kind of humorous to me. I like the thought as the old addage
goes, You are what you eat. What does it mean to consume Christ.
While at first glance it sound gorey, the deeper meaning is filled
with so much power.
How do we consume Christ today?
Just my early thoughts for the week.
Michael in Texas
Michael in Texas wrote, "It is kind of humorous to me. I like the
thought as the old addage goes, You are what you eat."
Blessings, Eric in OH
Pardon the interruption. I am looking for a good book on The Jacob
Saga in Genesis. Any suggestions? jrbnrnc
I don't recall where I found this story (I used it several years ago
at a different church)so I am free to use it again, but unable to
cite my source.
Psychologist Robert B. Cialdini once told about a German soldier
during World War I whose job was to capture enemy soldiers for
interrogation. Because of the nature of trench warfare at that time,
it was extremely difficult for armies to cross the no-man's land
between opposing front lines; but it was not so difficult for a
single soldier to crawl across and slip into an enemy trench
position.
The armies of the Great war had experts who regularly did so to
capture an enemy soldier, who would then be brought back for
questioning. This particular German expert had successfully
completed such missions in the past and was sent on another.
Once again, he skillfully negotiated the area between fronts and
surprised a lone enemy soldier in his trench. The unsuspecting
soldier, who had been eating at the time, was easily disarmed. The
frightened captive with only a piece of bread in his hand then
performed what may have been the most important act of his life. He
gave his enemy some of the bread.
So affected was the German by this gift that he could not complete
his mission. He turned from his benefactor and re-crossed the
no-man's land empty-handed to face the wrath of his superiors.
There is a message here for us. The bread of Christ is not to be
hoarded but to be shared with the world. Just as God has shared the
"Living Bread" with us.
Pr.del in Ia
I'm thinking, at first glance, of borrowing from a sermon I preached
before i was ordained. Its title is "Flesh and Blood." We are the
flesh and blood children of God through the very flesh and blood of
Christ.
Since I wasn't ordained, I couldn't serve communion and instead told
the story of Bonhoeffer (was that who it was?) in prison pantomiming
breaking and distributing the elements of communion and then ended
it with my own pantomime.
I don't know whether I want to focus on "how do we consume Christ
today," as one post-er is pondering (and provoking thought) or
whether I'm more inclined to use this as a sermon of assurance of
inheritance - and life!
Sally in GA
OK I will Jump in here. Verse 56, says "Those who eat my flesh and
drink my blood abide in me, and I in them." Were there not gentile
groups during the first century that actually acted this out in
rituals? And was not that the reason that some fell away from
following "The Way", because they thought this was what the Johanine
Community was advocating? Is this the reason some pastors would
rather this pericope not have been included in the lectionary?
Rather than sugar coat this with elaborate theological words, in the
21st Century what does this mean for us as pastors?
Shalom
Bammamma (formerly pasthersyl)
Whoever the first poster is on Ephesians, John, Kings pages, can you
please identify yourself? I have noticed there is often someone who
posts first each week but never identifies who is posting. We won't
bite you if you let us know who you are!!
Susan in Wa.
What I find of interest is the change in verbs meaning "eat".... in
the first few verses, John has Jesus use "phage" which means
"eat"... but then in the later verses the verb is "trogan" which is
better translated as "munch" or "gnaw".
Perhaps Jesus is saying that we really have to "get our teeth into"
his life!
Blessings, Eric in OH
I think I will preach on the 1 Kings passage. Theme: the things we
pray for? I posted a story that I found in researching last week's
sermon from a web site called "Torah Productions." The story is an
Aghanistani folktale about bread and prayer. It ties in the two
passages together quite nicely...It's on the other discussion page
if you'd like to read it. Roberta
Just some beginning thoughts. It appears that Jesus is talking about
his future suffering and death. His disciples must be willing to
accept and embrace this fact. How often, are folks uncomfortable
with Good Friday, but overjoyed with Easter. We want the joy without
the walk into the valley of the shadow of death. Jesus also talks
about truly indwelling in the believer. He becomes a part of us and
we of him. CL in OH
Thank you for the folktale last week, Roberta, I used it as a sermon
illustration. Thank you all for your postings. I have found them
most informative. The comaraderie on the site is great, too. Today,
is the three year anniversary of my ordination to the ministry of
Word and Sacrament. It's hard to believe. God is ever faithful in
the mountaintop times as well as the valleys. I experienced the
valley for about two and a half years, and now am slowly
experiencing some of the mountain. Thank you all. Also am expecting
a grandson (so we think) in September. CL in OH
I'm thinking of combining this, the Proverbs, and the Epistle
lessons this week - and thanks, Eric, for giving me a working title
- "Something to Sink Your Teeth Into."
The dilemma on how to be wise, and put away foolishness, and what
have you really lies in the body of Christ. It's plain and simple,
"unless you eat my bread - gnaw on it, chew on it a bit - and drink
my blood, you have no life."
How can we know how, unless we keep ourselves alive, whether the
"maturity" we believe we have is really "foolishness?" Why all this
human interpretation. The Scripture is plain: "Unless you eat my
body and drink my blood ..." Can we trust it above interpreting it?
I've been almost harping on the theme of the need to study, worship,
attend the sacraments, pray, fast, (Wesley's means of grace), etc.
and I get the sense that my congregation thinks they're too old or
too busy or fulfilled enough in life. Any ideas how I can keep up
this encouragement without harping?
Trying to catch flies with honey ... but confessing to a good deal
of vinegar sometimes ...
Sally in GA
It's difficult to inspire excitement in people about something as
"everyday" as church. So many of us have been hearing the story for
as long as we can remember. We've constructed projects in VBS, and
served in community activities since we've been large enough to hold
a rake. For so many people, the "good news" has become "old news."
Now we have the third Sunday in a row with a "bread of life" gospel
text. There is a risk here that the good news will become old news,
that the gospel may become law, if our focus is on how a person
"must chew" or "must eat" the flesh of our Savior.
We continually struggle with grace, and with law. We want to be
assured of our salvation by what we have done, like we can point to
a report card at the end and say, "See what I've earned?"
But it's not that easy. Nor is it that hard. Salvation is a free
gift... it's that easy. What's hard is trusting the Giver, believing
that such wondrous goodness can come without strings attached.
If by grace we can be instruments to revive the understanding of
God's good news FOR TODAY, if we can declare the goodness of God's
promises for TODAY'S sin, and disappointments, and depressions, and
fears, etc., then maybe we won't need to harp on people to chew, to
taste, to do...
(I am reminded that nine of the ten cleansed lepers, even though
fully cognizant of the gift they had received, did not respond in
this way. But one of them did! Oh, for that one!!!)
Michelle
Does eating and gnawing Christ mean that we need to become Christ
like? Bless those who curse us, Support those who are unwanted by
society.....listen to the downtrodden........etc. etc......God
that's difficult!!!
Yet when one gives of oneself........one receives abundantly from
places one never dreamed of receiving!
The focus needs to be on giving........without expecting something
in return. We get disaapointed when our expectations are not met! So
to be Christ like and to be in Christ means that one's focus is
always on Agape.........where we give and give.
When I focus on giving........I find that my life is more happy than
when I focus on what I have not received. I think we have problem
churches cause they are full of people who are tired of living
(mainly elderly) and since they have given all their life........
"now it's time for me to receive." Hogwash! That's why we can't
grow......we are stuck and we preachers are afraid to upset the
wagon........but I think we need to call a spade a spade and
encourage people to give and give.......and share examples of those
times when you go the hospital out of duty and you really don't have
all that much umffff to get there......and you find that the sick
patient is the one who ministers to you and gives you more energy to
keep going........
cs
Please be very careful with the analogy that we are what we eat. I
know too many that struggle with being overweight or underweight or
think they are either. Sometimes despite what we eat, health
problems and dysfunctional eating disorders occur. Nancy-Wi
What would happen if all the persons who needed, suddenly didn't
need anymore? I think then we who feel good because we can give to
them, would have to deal with why we feel bad about receiving what
God wants to give us. Could that be part of eating the flesh and
drinking the blood. There is a lot of person who must accept the job
of needing, so that givers can have someone to give to. I want them
to be able to receive directly from Christ also.
Shalom
Bammamma
I agree with CL in OH. Jesus was probably not giving doctrine about
the frequency which we should have eucharist. The "giving of the
flesh and blood" is his upcoming passion. The imperative to "eat of
that flesh and blood" is to also give of ourselves in sacrifice for
others. Ironically that death for others is what gives us life.
It gives a bit of a different image for eucharist too. j in tx
I have been watching the posts for several weeks now as the story in
John progressed, enjoying the discussions but holding my comments
because I wanted to wait until the lectionary reached the verses
that are discussed in these next two weeks. All of my life, I have
heard a certain phrase repeated over and over by different people
about different pastors: “I’m just not being fed by his preaching.”
I found an answer for that in this text and I used it a few weeks
ago, starting in verse 24 and going all the way to verse 69. It goes
something like this:
1. Jesus begins to teach the crowds about eternal food. The people
ask for signs, recalling the manna God had given the Israelites, an
interesting comparison, since their fathers had complained before
they received it, didn’t like it when they got it (manna means “what
is it,” the question of any child first encountering fried liver or
brussel sprouts), and complained just as loud after they had
received it. Jesus starts teaching about the “bread of life.”
2. The crowd grumbled because this was just “good old Jesus” and it
wasn’t what they wanted to hear. Jesus gets more outrageous by
talking about eating his flesh and drinking his blood. The crowd
gets really upset.
3. Jesus brings it together. The food you eat becomes part of you.
That’s the same way that the relationship Christ has with God works:
he looks to God, the One who sent him, for his sustenance. If we
“feed” on this “living bread,” if our relationship with Christ is
such that we look to him for our spiritual sustenance, then he will
be part of us and we will be part of him. We can live forever
because we are feeding on him; that is, looking to him for our
spiritual nourishment and growth. Even some of the disciples didn’t
like what he was saying and turned away. Jesus asked if they were
offended because it was a “hard teaching.”
4. Believers are fed through their relationship with Christ. That
relationship is formed through salvation and maintained through
prayer and the study of the scriptures, which hopefully includes the
sermon. When believers place their primary dependency on the
pastor’s sermon on Sunday morning, they are leaning on the wrong
relationship, eating the wrong bread again. If they are maintaining
their relationship with Christ, what the pastor says should be the
appetizer, not the main course (sorry, guys and gals but the Spirit
gives us the gift of being the messenger, not the message). Christ
has the words of eternal life, not the pastor. If the people sit on
their pews and look to us for their nourishment, they’re wrong. If
we let them, so are we.
Sorry for the long post. Mike in Soddy Daisy, TN
As a licensed local pastor in the UMC, I have been preparing for my
course on worship and sacraments. One of the books was William
Willimon's "Sunday Dinner." With that in mind, and the Johanan
Scriptures, I decided to take a theme of Sunday Dinner and tie it to
Communion, celebrating the Lord's Supper four weeks in a row. We
normally celebrate it on the first Sunday of the month. This will be
the final week and I plan on moving the congregation to the
fellowship hall following the sermon, where my wife has prepared a
meal for 30-plus people. (We have a small church.) For some, the
meal will be something of a surprise. Either before dinner, or at
the end of dinner, we will celebrate Communion. I know there is a
"Love Feast" celebration in the Book of Worship. I have never
participated, but I really want this to be Communion so as to
continue with the theme of Christ's flesh and blood given "For The
Life of the World." Any thoughts? Blessings, Buzz
A good book on the Jacob saga? Try 'IN THE BEGINNING' - A new
reading of the Book of Genesis - by Karen Armstrong. Published 1997
in Great Britain by Harper Collins. First published in USA by Alfred
A Knopf, Inc, New York, and in Canada by Random House of Canada
Limited, Toronto in 1996.
JOHN in Bristol, England
Buzz, You must be in the TN-Holston COS. I took that course about a
year ago. The Willimon book had some really good insights for me
regarding the Lord's Supper. I have used the Love Feast at my church
on one occasion but it's not the same emphasis as communion. As a
suggestion for your dinner, instead of trying to work the ritual
into your dinner, just tell the story of the Last Supper as your
ritual. In a sense, that was what the Seder meal celebration is at
Passover, a re-telling of the story of the first Passover meal. Let
your communion be a re-telling of what happened at the end of that
meal in the upper room. I think they'll probably love it. Good luck.
Mike in Soddy Daisy, TN
Mike in Soddy Daisy, TN I think this comment of yours bears
repeating... "When believers place their primary dependency on the
pastor’s sermon on Sunday morning, they are leaning on the wrong
relationship, eating the wrong bread again. If they are maintaining
their relationship with Christ, what the pastor says should be the
appetizer, not the main course (sorry, guys and gals but the Spirit
gives us the gift of being the messenger, not the message). Christ
has the words of eternal life, not the pastor. If the people sit on
their pews and look to us for their nourishment, they’re wrong. If
we let them, so are we."
We should be starting points, not ending points. If we raise
questions all the better. I am a firm believer that when a person
connects by the process of discernment the lesson becomes faith and
not froth. I think of a dog and a bone. The the dog gnaws on a bone
until they consume it. They sometimes leave it alone and come back.
Sometimes they chew all day. still gnawing-Nancy-Wi
Nancy-Wi
In that sermon, I told the people that the Good News of the Kingdom,
the Gospel, isn't baby food to be spoonfed to them but instead it is
a barbecued rib dinner on the bone. You have to grab hold of it with
both hands and bite in and chew on it a while and you're liable to
get messy in the process. If you think of the analogy of the
shepherd and his flock, the shepherd can only guide his flock to
where the best grass and water can be found. He can't put it into
their mouths and chew it for them. Mike in Soddy Daisy, TN
I was just thinking of how, as pastors, our job is like those women
or men who stand at the end of the aisles in the grocery stores
offering samples of what's on the shelves. We hold out just a small
bit of what we know Christ has made available, expounding upon its
goodness and its "nutritional" value, and encouraging everyone to
digest this sample morsel... in the hope of their choosing to take
the whole package home for themselves, and to share with others.
Just another Tom
How disturbing this passage is for the Jews. They were forbidden the
blood for it contained the life of the animal. Now they/we have
access to the blood and we are given life.
tom in ga
"But the one who eats this bread will live forever."
I have been praying/reflecting on something John Paul II either
wrote or said. I don't know his exact words but he in essence said
that when we eat and drink the bread and drink the wine that is
Jesus we "digest the mystery of the Resurrection."
I was thinking about starting with Jesus' Resurrection morning joy.
Surely He must have felt indescribably happy and joyful that
morning. And then ask the question what would we have to do to
experience that same joy? Answer: Die to self. "This is my body
which has been given up for you." To have Jesus' Easter joy, to live
forever we must first die to self.
To show how married and single people live those words of Jesus and
in essence become the Bread of life for their spouse, their parent,
their neighbor would really make this message connect to this truth
of Christian sacrifice. I have been praying for a good story to
unforgettably make this point. I'm stumped. Could someone with a
story along this line please post it? TiminOH
Sally in GA - Your comment on trying to catch flies with honey but
confessing to a bit too much vinegar struck a chord in me. I just
came off vacation and have had a chance to reflect on the past year
and came to much the same conclusion as you seem to have made. How
do we lead a congregation to the many benefits that lie on the other
side of spiritual disciplines and active participation in Christ's
mission? Sometimes it seems so tangible for us who are immersed in
this sort of a life 24/7 and we want to say, "hurry up, can't you
see what you're missing?"
I'm not sure if I have any answers to give for this dilemma (still
way too new to pastoral ministry) but I think that the comment by
Just Another Tom holds some merit: "We hold out just a small bit of
what we know Christ has made available, expounding upon its goodness
and its "nutritional" value, and encouraging everyone to digest this
sample morsel... in the hope of their choosing to take the whole
package home for themselves, and to share with others."
Perhaps if we just hold the sample out for people, let them get a
good whiff of it by living it out ourselves as best we can then
people will be enticed and encouraged to pick up some of those
things for themselves.
I don’t know if that helps, but I just wanted you to know that
you’re not alone in your temptation to harp on the congregation.
Amittai Dominic
"What's for supper?"
"Bread."
"Oh... What kind?"
"Just bread."
"Not dumplings, or biscuits, or...?"
"Just bread. Isn't that enough?"
"Not ANYthing else?
"Nope."
"Not even butter, or balogna, or Jelly?"
"Bread's boring. I think I'll go out."
.
Just a little note of humor.
Michelle
Michelle,
Keith Green, in his song "So You Want to Go Back to Egypt," had the
following culinary suggestions from the Israelites' journey to the
Promised Land:
"And in the morning it's manna hotcakes. We snack on manna all day.
And they sure had a winner last night for dinner, Flaming manna
soufflé.
Oh, manna waffles….manna burgers, Manna bagels, Fillet of manna,
Manna-cotti?….bamanna bread!"
Just a look from a more humorous perspective, Mike in Soddy Daisy
Jesus begins off with the image of bread. I am the living bread, he
says. Super! We all say. I even preached a hum-dinger of a sermon on
that on a couple of weeks ago.
Today he says the bread is actually flesh. His flesh.
Say what? Ask the people who represent me in the story. You gotta be
kidding!
No kidding, says Jesus. I ask you to not only eat, but munch on it.
Yikes.
It has made some “sense” to me only because I am remembering John’s
introduction that the Word became flesh. I want to challenge my
people to find ways of “munching” the word in some serious bible
studies. Some serious “munching” of the Word by living it out in
their daily discipleship.
GK
To GK,
I'm not really sure what you were trying to get at with that last
comment but keep trying. I'm sure there has to be at least one
person in your congregation who will get it.
Blessings, Eric in OH
I don't know who wrote this ...
<<To GK,
I'm not really sure what you were trying to get at with that last
comment but keep trying. I'm sure there has to be at least one
person in your congregation who will get it.
Blessings, Eric in OH>>
...
But it wasn't me, despite the "signature"!
Blessings, Eric in OH (really from me!)
By the way, I just noticed that that message that wasn't from me
(but signed with my name) was posted at a time when neither I nor my
ISP had electrical power due to the Niagara-Mohawk grid failure and
blackout.
I'm not sure I want to be a part of a community where some "forges"
posts ... whoever is responsible - Shame on you!
Blessings, Eric in OH
To Eric in Ohio I too am sorry someone misused your name. I
understand your anger, but I do hope you will not stop writing in. I
personally respect this site, and find it most useful not only for
sermon writing, but as a devotional appendage. I am grateful to God
for this cyberspace and those who are sincere in what they write. I
wouldn't want one "tare" to disturb the "wheat" such as you as we
grow under God's grace as in pastoral ministry. Please don't stop
participating.
Shalom
bammamma (formerly pasthersyl)
oops I made a mistake, I assumed the Ohio. Your signature is really
Eric in OH.
Shalom
Bammamma
Maybe there are two Erik's in OH, and the new one didn't realize
there is another?
Trying to put the best construction on everything!
Michelle
Michelle wrote:
"Maybe there are two Erik's in OH, and the new one didn't realize
there is another?
"Trying to put the best construction on everything!"
As we always should, you are correct about that... and there may be
two Eriks somewhere in this state -- but I'm not one of them (I
spell it correctly! ;->)
Blessings, Eric in OH
I guess we're all working on a Saturday morning. Hardly got the post
in and there was an answer.
Sorry, Eric. I've done that before to you. I claim a Norwegian
cousin-in-law for whom the correct spelling is with a K.
Mea Culpa.
Michelle
Michelle dixit: "Mea Culpa."
Misereatur nostri omnipotens Deus et, dimissis peccatis nostris,
perducat nos ad vitam aeternam. Amen.
Blessings, Eric in OH
To GK,
Thanks for pulling this passage back in the context of the metaphor
that John starts this gospel with. I found it helpful.
Amittai Dominic
Amittai Dominic -
Thank you for your words of encouragement. It's good to know I'm not
alone.
And thank you to "Just another Tom" for the Pope John Paul II quote!
unless we digest God's actions in our lives (especially the supreme
action of salvation by Jesus' atoning sacrifice), we really can't
have any wisdom. It's merely head-knowledge which anyone with an
average IQ can grasp. However, digestion, or heart-knowledge
transcends IQ. As does wisdom.
Another desperate preacher working on a Saturday,
Sally in GA
From here in New York State, it seems impossible to avoid mentioning
the recent blackout.
6:53 So 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.
Imagine the many things in our day-to-day living, which "have no
life in" them without the power that comes from the electric
utility...
Tom
(My apologies to any other Toms in the group. I promise, I am not
attempting to steal their name, I received mine as a gift from my
parents.) ;-)
Thanks to one of the Toms who wrote: "(My apologies to any other
Toms in the group. I promise, I am not attempting to steal their
name, I received mine as a gift from my parents.) ;-)"
Thanks for the chuckle.
Blessings, Eric in OH
Regarding "gnawing": I've been picturing dogs I have known who carry
around their bone with them. They lie in the sun and gnaw on it.
They set it down by their head when they fall asleep. They carry it
over to their water bowl and set it down until they finish drinking.
Then they pick it up and gnaw some more.
Jesus talks about "abiding" in us--that's a constant presence. Isn't
something to be sought after, like the dog with a bone. We can't
possibly get enough. We carry him with us. We lay down with him to
sleep. We "gnaw" on him over and over again.
If you're working this sermon into something about communion, this
desire for constant gnawing is what brings us back to the table,
week after week (I'm a Disciple)--desiring to maintain that
closeness with our Lord.
IT's still Saturday, and I'm still working on it!!
Pam in San Bernardino
Well, I'm still working on a sermon for Sunday, too. For all of the
reading I've done, there haven't been any real illustrations. Help,
Anyone!!
Thanks.
I value you all. CL in OH
I am truly excited about the sermon for tomorrow! I am pursuing the
following outline 1) Food is "identity making" 2) Scan Kashrut laws
and Deuteronomy 14 3) John means to "shock" and get his audience's
attention when he talks of the kind of "food" that will define the
Jesus community 4) The Jesus community is totally dependant on Jesus
(the word made flesh) for their life. They chew on the words both in
bible study and in their daily life of christian discipleship.
GK
Sounds to me like verse 55 explains it all very nicely and remains
faithful to the rest of the Scripture. The ones who say that in the
Eucharist we eat the real flesh and drink the real blood of Jesus
are correct. Concider the Old Covenant: established in blood around
a meal where the sacrifice is eaten and the blood sprinkled on the
people as atonement. Here is the final and real atonement, Jesus,
sacrificed to establish the new covenant IN HIS BLOOD and that
covenant is entered into by us as we gather around to EAT the
Sacrifice. Consistency is not one of the hallmarks of modern
protestantism. BTW, I am NOT a Papist.
Mike, International Falls, MN
He got their attention, all right. The one they knew as the kid down
the block calls himself the Son of Man and says they have to eat his
flesh and drink his blood. Put yourself into their shoes. Madness!
Total gross out! Even the disciples couldn't handle it (v. 60).
Imagine yourself as one of the crowd or even one of the disciples.
How would you react if you were hearing these words without the
theological sugarcoating we've put on them? Thank God Jesus didn't
stop there and we have vs. 60-65 -- but even then some of his
followers couldn't handle it and withdrew from him (v. 66). The core
group (the 12) undoubtedly didn't grasp it but were willing to hang
with him because he had the words of eternal life (v. 68). Even so,
I'm sure they were still upset. Apologize for peeking ahead. But we
need to let the raw force of his words hit us and make our stomach's
churn.
revhen in NY
Absolutely, revhen in NY! Sometimes the teachings of scripture are
hard and there is no way to make them soft. In this text, I don't
see Jesus trying to soften them. When the others left, Jesus didn't
start a telephone campaign to bring them back, saying that they must
have misunderstood. Instead, Jesus ask the twelve if they were going
to leave as well. This week, there is a lot of discussion in the
other studies on wisdom. I once heard that the difference between
intellegence and wisdom is in the resulting actions. An intelligent
person knows all of the reasons for not smoking. A wise person
doesn't smoke. Next week, John will tell us of a lot of intelligent
people that walked away and also about twelve wise ones who didn't.
The twelve didn't understand the teaching and they probably didn't
feel very good about it but they knew who had the words of life.
Mike in Soddy Daisy, TN
Interesting ... one last late post - won't be in the sermon, b/c
everyone will know who I'm talking about.
But, when I came to this appointment, I started "serving" communion
(they used to pinch it off themselves, or take a wafer from a
plate). They asked me, "how do you want to do communion" and I told
them, and I explained why. So, that's what they went along with. A
woman has left the church over it.
So, since I'd heard a grumble or two about it (mostly about germs),
I developed a Bible study of worship, with a concentration on the
Sacraments. I explained different ways of "doing" the sacraments and
their different symbolisms. I took a long time to go through some
basic structures of worship. What the word "sacrament" means, vs.
"ordinance." 4 - yes, 4 - people came to that Bible study (on a good
day) and 0 - you guessed it - zero - of the "grumblers" came.
Truth is, some folks just don't want to hear it.
Sally in GA
