Exodus 16:2-21/Galatians 4:21-31/St John 6:1-15
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
It is now the fourth Sunday in Lent. For seven weeks we have laid aside our Alleluias. For a month the Gloria in excelsis has been silenced. Next week the Gloria Patri will be removed. Finally the crucifies will be veiled. And as perpetual catechumens, always and ever in need of hearing the Word of Christ by which your faith in Him is strengthened and your love toward your neighbor increased, you journey with Him this Lententide toward Jerusalem, as St Thomas once wisely remarked, in order that you may die with Him.
And so it is that today you are confronted with another wilderness - as on the First Sunday in Lent - another barren place, hungry and alone, in need of bread. This time Jesus does not go for you, in your place; engaging your adversary.
But fear not, for He goes with you. That is, He takes you along with Him; not driving you as the Holy Spirit did unto Him after His Baptism for the purpose of fasting and temptation. Neither is He your adversary in the desert; treating you harshly; afflicting you. Today is Laetare, that is, “respite Sunday.” And Jesus leads you as your Good Shepherd out into the wilderness in order that He may tenderly care for you, nurture and provide for you, His new Israel, His beloved Church, His dear, little flock.
Thus does He call you to Himself and His holy mountain, where He sits among you, in order that He may renew His covenant with you, that He may teach and instruct you on the Way. For freedom He has set you free. You belong to Him in love. And He, the Shepherd of Israel, leads you out in the time of Pascha, while the Passover is near at hand, to prepare you for that which lies ahead.
When Jesus raised His eyes and saw that a large crowd was going to Him, He said to Philip, “From where are we to buy bread so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for He knew what He was going to do.
From where. It really is a question of location; of origin and source. Remember the prayer of the Psalmist: I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth (Ps 121:1-2). From where. From where shall bread enough to feed this hungry mass come? From where can one supply enough to provide out here in the wilderness? From where?
Our Lord Jesus Christ initiates these great signs, first of the feeding and then of the gathering of the remainder, by the question of location; of source. And in so doing He establishes the key for the rest of the chapter and His later discourse concerning the Bread of Life that came down - from where? - from heaven. Thus He already knew what He would do, for He had already done it for the hungry mass of Israelites in the wilderness. He had already provided bread, from where, from heaven, that is, from Himself, for the people that they may go out and gather a day’s portion every day, in order that He may test them, whether they will walk in His Torah or not.
So now, He who is the very Bread of Life come down from heaven, shall, according to His Word and will, and in perfect fulfillment of His merciful and compassionate character, supply more than enough to feed these people, that is, to feed you, the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand, here in the wilderness. From where shall such bread come?
Even if Philip were ignorant of Jesus’ Gospel use of the adverb where, he ought to have remembered the words of the prophet Isaiah: Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food (Is 55:1, 2). Hunger is said be the best chef, but it is also meant to be a stern catechist. You already know that you do not live on bread alone. Why do you work and behave as though you do? Why do you fill your bellies with that which perishes? And work and scrap for that which does not satisfy? From where does your help come? From where does your daily bread come? Your grumbling over that which is daily bread is against the Lord and against His wise provision.
Wait upon the Lord, dear children. Taste and see that He is good. For our Lord Jesus Christ, who had sat down on the mountain with His disciples to instruct them in His Word, is about to take the five coarse barley loaves of His Torah, the five books of Moses, along with the two fish of His Law and His Gospel, and multiply His Word in abundance for all not merely to eat, but to feast. For Christ the enfleshed Torah, is about to wrap the manna in the wilderness, Elijah’s ravens, Elisha’s widow, David’s Twenty-Third Psalm, and the Passover all into one; into one new and reconstituted Israel, fulfilled and focused in the Himself, the Passover Lamb who takes away the sin of the world.
He bids His disciples, Have the people recline in the green grass. Not merely sit, but recline; lie down. As in the Lord is my Shepherd, He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. Lie down. The posture of the Passover; of feasting. For that is what Christ is about to do. He who came not to be served, but to serve, is going to serve up a feast from right out of the Old Testament, for He is the fulfillment of Moses and the Prophets.
Jesus then took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed them to those who were seated. So also with the fish, as much as they wanted.
And your catechumen ears are twitching with Eucharistic allusions. For that which Christ, the Passover Lamb, is enacting here, is symbolic of that which He shall enact at another Passover, His Last, on the night on which He was betrayed, where He shall take bread, give thanks, break it and distribute it to His disciples saying, This is My Body. So also with the cup, His Blood of the New Covenant.
To be sure, this here, the feeding of the five thousand, is not the Eucharist. It is not the Lord’s Supper that Christ gives them on the hillside as they recline in the grass, fed and nourished by their Good Shepherd, who once carried for wandering Israel by the similar means of the heavenly manna. It is not that, but it is close. It is allusion and foreshadowing. It is type of what is to come. So much so, in fact, that other catechumens, the earliest of which, the very Apostolic Church saw in the feeding of the five thousand such rich sacramental imagery that the earliest symbols of the Lord’s Supper were not Bread and Wine, but Bread and Fish.
The bread seems pretty obvious. And the fish you already know what an early symbol of Christ Jesus Himself, the icthus, which became an acronym for, Iesou Cristi Theos Uios Soter, “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.” There was even a prayer from the first catechism utilizing this symbolism: “Even as this broken bread was scattered over the hills and then, when gathered became one, so may Thy Church be gathered from the ends of the earth into Thy kingdom” (Didache 9:4).
Therefore He who feeds you from and with Himself, for He is both your Host and Meal, so too does He unit you in and with Himself as the only Son from heaven, adopting you by His free grace and Spirit as co-heirs, with God as your Father and the Church, the heavenly Jerusalem, your beloved Mother. Thus are you seated at the Table and given the children’s bread, for you are dear children of your Father who is in heaven.
It is not manna as your fathers ate in the wilderness and perished; but the very Bread of Life, Jesus Christ Himself in His flesh and blood, that you are given to participate in and never perish, but remain with Him forever.
Therefore the broken pieces were to be gathered, in order that none may perish. Twelve baskets full, signifying the fullness of the Twelve Apostles. Such is the contrast between the old and new covenants, between the flesh and the spirit. For the Prophet who does as Moses did, only greater, shall in-gather His Israel unto Himself, surrounding His people as the mountains surround Jerusalem, and cannot be moved. And He shall bestow His peace upon them, from where?, from He Himself who is their Peace and Rest, their Passover Lamb who takes away the sin of the world and gives His Flesh for her life.
For He will not be made a King by force, but shall do so in love for you and in filial obedience to His Father’s will. And the sign of the feeding and the sign of the twelve baskets remaining, point forward to the ultimate sign of Jesus’ identity as YHWH enfleshed: His Cross and Passion which shall take place not only at the time of the Passover, but at the very hour of the sacrifice of the lambs. For He shall withdraw to Mount Golgotha by Himself and from there be lifted up for the life of the world, thereby drawing all to Himself. Then, in the location of His crucifixion, you shall know that He is the Lord your God. For that is where the source of your life and love in Him lies and from where you shall be satisfied.
Do not be dismayed, dear children. The journey of Lent is nearly complete. Likewise your sojourn here in this wilderness is almost over. Then your Alleluias shall return never to be set aside again. Then you shall see face to face and know fully, even as you are fully known. For then you shall share in a resurrection like His even as you share in a death like His.
Until then, beloved, here is food for the journey. Here is where Christ, your Passover Lamb, beckons you to Himself, and - from where? - from His Table, He feeds you with the Bread that is His Body and the Cup that is His Blood, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This is the location, the source, of your life and light in Him.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
It is now the fourth Sunday in Lent. For seven weeks we have laid aside our Alleluias. For a month the Gloria in excelsis has been silenced. Next week the Gloria Patri will be removed. Finally the crucifies will be veiled. And as perpetual catechumens, always and ever in need of hearing the Word of Christ by which your faith in Him is strengthened and your love toward your neighbor increased, you journey with Him this Lententide toward Jerusalem, as St Thomas once wisely remarked, in order that you may die with Him.
And so it is that today you are confronted with another wilderness - as on the First Sunday in Lent - another barren place, hungry and alone, in need of bread. This time Jesus does not go for you, in your place; engaging your adversary.
But fear not, for He goes with you. That is, He takes you along with Him; not driving you as the Holy Spirit did unto Him after His Baptism for the purpose of fasting and temptation. Neither is He your adversary in the desert; treating you harshly; afflicting you. Today is Laetare, that is, “respite Sunday.” And Jesus leads you as your Good Shepherd out into the wilderness in order that He may tenderly care for you, nurture and provide for you, His new Israel, His beloved Church, His dear, little flock.
Thus does He call you to Himself and His holy mountain, where He sits among you, in order that He may renew His covenant with you, that He may teach and instruct you on the Way. For freedom He has set you free. You belong to Him in love. And He, the Shepherd of Israel, leads you out in the time of Pascha, while the Passover is near at hand, to prepare you for that which lies ahead.
When Jesus raised His eyes and saw that a large crowd was going to Him, He said to Philip, “From where are we to buy bread so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for He knew what He was going to do.
From where. It really is a question of location; of origin and source. Remember the prayer of the Psalmist: I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth (Ps 121:1-2). From where. From where shall bread enough to feed this hungry mass come? From where can one supply enough to provide out here in the wilderness? From where?
Our Lord Jesus Christ initiates these great signs, first of the feeding and then of the gathering of the remainder, by the question of location; of source. And in so doing He establishes the key for the rest of the chapter and His later discourse concerning the Bread of Life that came down - from where? - from heaven. Thus He already knew what He would do, for He had already done it for the hungry mass of Israelites in the wilderness. He had already provided bread, from where, from heaven, that is, from Himself, for the people that they may go out and gather a day’s portion every day, in order that He may test them, whether they will walk in His Torah or not.
So now, He who is the very Bread of Life come down from heaven, shall, according to His Word and will, and in perfect fulfillment of His merciful and compassionate character, supply more than enough to feed these people, that is, to feed you, the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand, here in the wilderness. From where shall such bread come?
Even if Philip were ignorant of Jesus’ Gospel use of the adverb where, he ought to have remembered the words of the prophet Isaiah: Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food (Is 55:1, 2). Hunger is said be the best chef, but it is also meant to be a stern catechist. You already know that you do not live on bread alone. Why do you work and behave as though you do? Why do you fill your bellies with that which perishes? And work and scrap for that which does not satisfy? From where does your help come? From where does your daily bread come? Your grumbling over that which is daily bread is against the Lord and against His wise provision.
Wait upon the Lord, dear children. Taste and see that He is good. For our Lord Jesus Christ, who had sat down on the mountain with His disciples to instruct them in His Word, is about to take the five coarse barley loaves of His Torah, the five books of Moses, along with the two fish of His Law and His Gospel, and multiply His Word in abundance for all not merely to eat, but to feast. For Christ the enfleshed Torah, is about to wrap the manna in the wilderness, Elijah’s ravens, Elisha’s widow, David’s Twenty-Third Psalm, and the Passover all into one; into one new and reconstituted Israel, fulfilled and focused in the Himself, the Passover Lamb who takes away the sin of the world.
He bids His disciples, Have the people recline in the green grass. Not merely sit, but recline; lie down. As in the Lord is my Shepherd, He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. Lie down. The posture of the Passover; of feasting. For that is what Christ is about to do. He who came not to be served, but to serve, is going to serve up a feast from right out of the Old Testament, for He is the fulfillment of Moses and the Prophets.
Jesus then took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed them to those who were seated. So also with the fish, as much as they wanted.
And your catechumen ears are twitching with Eucharistic allusions. For that which Christ, the Passover Lamb, is enacting here, is symbolic of that which He shall enact at another Passover, His Last, on the night on which He was betrayed, where He shall take bread, give thanks, break it and distribute it to His disciples saying, This is My Body. So also with the cup, His Blood of the New Covenant.
To be sure, this here, the feeding of the five thousand, is not the Eucharist. It is not the Lord’s Supper that Christ gives them on the hillside as they recline in the grass, fed and nourished by their Good Shepherd, who once carried for wandering Israel by the similar means of the heavenly manna. It is not that, but it is close. It is allusion and foreshadowing. It is type of what is to come. So much so, in fact, that other catechumens, the earliest of which, the very Apostolic Church saw in the feeding of the five thousand such rich sacramental imagery that the earliest symbols of the Lord’s Supper were not Bread and Wine, but Bread and Fish.
The bread seems pretty obvious. And the fish you already know what an early symbol of Christ Jesus Himself, the icthus, which became an acronym for, Iesou Cristi Theos Uios Soter, “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.” There was even a prayer from the first catechism utilizing this symbolism: “Even as this broken bread was scattered over the hills and then, when gathered became one, so may Thy Church be gathered from the ends of the earth into Thy kingdom” (Didache 9:4).
Therefore He who feeds you from and with Himself, for He is both your Host and Meal, so too does He unit you in and with Himself as the only Son from heaven, adopting you by His free grace and Spirit as co-heirs, with God as your Father and the Church, the heavenly Jerusalem, your beloved Mother. Thus are you seated at the Table and given the children’s bread, for you are dear children of your Father who is in heaven.
It is not manna as your fathers ate in the wilderness and perished; but the very Bread of Life, Jesus Christ Himself in His flesh and blood, that you are given to participate in and never perish, but remain with Him forever.
Therefore the broken pieces were to be gathered, in order that none may perish. Twelve baskets full, signifying the fullness of the Twelve Apostles. Such is the contrast between the old and new covenants, between the flesh and the spirit. For the Prophet who does as Moses did, only greater, shall in-gather His Israel unto Himself, surrounding His people as the mountains surround Jerusalem, and cannot be moved. And He shall bestow His peace upon them, from where?, from He Himself who is their Peace and Rest, their Passover Lamb who takes away the sin of the world and gives His Flesh for her life.
For He will not be made a King by force, but shall do so in love for you and in filial obedience to His Father’s will. And the sign of the feeding and the sign of the twelve baskets remaining, point forward to the ultimate sign of Jesus’ identity as YHWH enfleshed: His Cross and Passion which shall take place not only at the time of the Passover, but at the very hour of the sacrifice of the lambs. For He shall withdraw to Mount Golgotha by Himself and from there be lifted up for the life of the world, thereby drawing all to Himself. Then, in the location of His crucifixion, you shall know that He is the Lord your God. For that is where the source of your life and love in Him lies and from where you shall be satisfied.
Do not be dismayed, dear children. The journey of Lent is nearly complete. Likewise your sojourn here in this wilderness is almost over. Then your Alleluias shall return never to be set aside again. Then you shall see face to face and know fully, even as you are fully known. For then you shall share in a resurrection like His even as you share in a death like His.
Until then, beloved, here is food for the journey. Here is where Christ, your Passover Lamb, beckons you to Himself, and - from where? - from His Table, He feeds you with the Bread that is His Body and the Cup that is His Blood, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This is the location, the source, of your life and light in Him.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
RSS Feed