Come and Eat!

Sunday, August 3, 2008
Lectionary 18 / Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost

Isaiah 55:1-5
Psalm 145:8-9, 14-21 (Ps. 145:16)
Romans 9:1-5
Matthew 14:13-21

Sermon:
Come and eat! It’s free! How often do you hear that? Free food and drink? This is something that is almost unheard of in our society. There is plenty of food and drink, but there are also plenty of people who are trying to make money off of our need for food and drink. For the owners of restaurants or grocery stores, our need for food is their livelihood. We even pay for bottled water – which we can get out of the tap for almost free.

No – the offer of free food and drink in the Isaiah text is not something that we would expect to come across today. There is no free lunch, as the saying goes. In the business world, you pretty much know that when you are invited for a “free meal,” there are strings attached – something to buy and a sales pitch for desert. Even in some homeless shelters, the “free meal” is tied to certain rules – good behavior, attending Bible study or worship service, or giving up personal possessions, space, and sometimes – dignity. In our society today, there is rarely a “free lunch.”

Yet – God says – “come and eat; come and buy without money and without price.” Not only is this banquet free, but it cannot be bought. You cannot buy it – your money is no good - but you can have it. For those in our society that believe that anything is for sale – for the right price - this would come as a shock! You cannot buy this! But - - you can have it – for free – from your loving God.

God, through his prophet, offers – out of his abundant grace – food and drink – without cost. For the exiles that Isaiah is written for, this is like the manna sent from heaven to the Hebrews as they wandered in the wilderness after leaving Egypt. Israel is living in exile because they did not head God’s warning. Now, his prophets bring this offer – come – come and eat – come and eat without cost. God offers the gift of salvation to his chosen people – at no cost. They cannot buy it, they cannot work for it, and they cannot earn it. It is freely offered – to all.

This theme continues in our Gospel text. Jesus had just heard of the death of John the Baptist. On hearing this news, Jesus decided to get away for a little quiet time. Instead of finding a quiet place across the lake, he is faced with a crowd that has followed him from the towns. Jesus really just wants some time alone – a chance, maybe, to grieve for his cousin John. After all, John was there at the beginning of his ministry; John baptized Jesus! Hearing that John was dead had to painful - just as it would be to us to receive a phone call that a close friend - or a cousin that we had grown up with - had died. Jesus just wanted to be by himself; to grieve, to pray, and to rest. But that was not to be.

Here was this crowd – there were sick people among them, wanting to be healed. There were so many, all wanting to be near Jesus, to hear him speak, to be healed by his touch, to be comforted by his words. And Jesus had compassion on them. He healed and taught and comforted – even in the midst of his own sorrow. Instead of telling them to go away, he went among them and consoled them, touched them, offered whatever they needed.

Not only did Jesus heal, teach, and comfort them, he also fed them. Can you imagine 10,000 or so people showing up at your door and wanting dinner? That is what happened here. There were 5,000 men, plus women and children. It could have been closer to 20,000 people - we just don’t know, because they only report how many men were present. However many there were, they were all fed from a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish.

In our modern era, our society tends to believe in a theology of scarcity. We cannot imagine feeding 5,000 people; much less the 10,000 or more that were really there. We look at what we have, and think that we need more. We look at what is available, and are afraid there is not enough. We look at our cupboards and think we need more, so we rush out to the store to buy more. We look at our paycheck and think it is too small, so we fight our way up the ladder to a higher paid job where we can work longer hours and be more miserable – for the sake of a larger paycheck. We look at the oil situation and wonder how long it will last, but as long as we get ours, we don’t get too concerned. We believe that whoever has the most – and biggest – toys wins.

We live in a society where we are afraid to share what we have, out of fear of not having enough for ourselves. We do this when a homeless person knocks on our door looking for food. We do this when a panhandler on the street ask for some change. We do this when someone ask us at the gas station if we can help them buy enough gas to get to the next town. We do this in the grocery store when the person in front of us does not have enough money to buy the bread and milk they need for their family. We believe in scarcity – of money, of food, of time. Sharing is hard.

For many of us, just paying this months bills seems like enough of a challenge. Trying to pay someone else’s bills, or even part of it, just does not seem possible. Much less write a check to the church! We are afraid that if we give to someone else out of meager possessions or income, there won’t be enough left when we need it. If we have lunch for one, and someone else has nothing, we are afraid to share ours out of fear that we might go hungry.

But Jesus is giving us a very different message here. It is not about us – it is not about our grief, our desires, our hunger, what we think we need to make our lives better. It is not about scarcity. NO – it is about compassion; it is about doing for others – even when we are empty, and don’t feel that we have anything left to give. It is about abundance – the abundance that God provides to each one of us. Jesus completely disproves the theology of scarcity that motivates our society. He takes some bread and fish, he blesses them, he breaks them, and he gives them for all to eat. And all those people – however many there are – are filled. Not just fed – but filled! And – get this – there are leftovers!

Rather than listening to the disciples, who believed there could never be enough food out there in the middle of nowhere to feed this crowd, Jesus simply takes what they have, gives thanks, and feeds them. We, too, are like the disciples. We never think there is enough money, enough food, enough time. We spend our lives trying to overcome the fear that we might not have enough. And yet – God provides. God says, “come and eat – buy without money, without cost.” Jesus feeds the crowds with a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish. We come to the table, and we are fed with bread and wine – the body and blood of Christ. There is no shortage, there is no cost. Come – and eat – and be filled with the assurance that Christ died for your sins, and that you will be healed, and that you will be filled and sustained. We are fed; we are given in abundance; so that we too may be compassionate to others who are hungry, in need of healing, who need to be filled with the same love of God which has filled us. Come to the table and be filled. Come and partake of Gods abundant grace. Come – taste and see that the Lord is good.
Amen.