Real Food
Scripture Reading — John 6:25-35
“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry …”
John 6:35
Today many people gather around tables filled with wonderful smells, tastes, and colors. Some have hams glazed with secret family-recipe sauces. Some are waiting for turkey with all the fixings. Some have finished off the last piece of a special Christmas dessert and have washed it down with a robust cup of coffee.
Deep inside, though, we hunger for something more nourishing than the best foods on earth. We hunger for bread from heaven, the food that truly satisfies our souls. Jesus used an everyday staple from the dinner table to show his disciples that we live by heaven’s bread alone, the true manna from God.
Jesus recalled the story of Israel when God fed his people with miracle bread in the wilderness. Jesus is the miracle bread for us.
When Christians gather at the Lord’s Supper, they celebrate the basics we need for real life—bread and wine that testify to the life-giving body and blood of our Savior. It’s the best meal we could ever have!
Christmas reminds us that God sent us a meal fit for kings, queens, beggars, and ordinary people.
Jesus declares, “Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
Jesus is the only meal that fills us completely.
Jesus, as we fill our stomachs with food today, may we also seek spiritual nourishment from you. As we open gifts, may we seek the true gift of eternal life. Amen!
About the author — Reginald Smith
Dr. Reginald Smith is senior pastor at Roosevelt Park Community Christian Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he has served for seventeen years. He has also served as a pastor in Paterson, New Jersey. He and his wife, Sharon, have three daughters, Janelle, Katrina, and Mariah.
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