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Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, the text comes from the Old Testament reading this morning. You may be seated. One of Jesus’ more famous miracles, the feeding of the 5,000. And Matthew’s Gospel has it recorded in a very specific place, not near towns. It was out in a desolate place. A desolate place that we typically call a wilderness. Same kind of a place that the people of Israel were fed while they were wandering for 40 years. So that they would know that bread comes from God’s hands. No different than here. Nowhere near villages that they would be fed by God and God alone. It is John’s account. Of the feeding of the 5,000. In the sixth chapter, that Jesus makes this very interesting commentary. Jesus said, Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life. And the reason he said that was because the whole bunch of people that were following him were following him for no other reason than he was their bread king. He gave them food, their belly food. So they viewed him totally as a materialistic kind of provider and not as a provider who gives their souls food that endures to eternal life. So Jesus was very pointed when He said to them in John’s Gospel, work for the food that does endure to eternal life. And then He adds this, which the Son of Man will give you. Meaning, you don’t get it by what you do. You don’t get it by looking woefully needy. You don’t get it by saying the right words to me. You get it because I give it to you. Which is exactly what Isaiah is saying this morning, doesn’t he? Come, eat, drink, and I will give it to you. I will give you the spiritual things your soul needs, and you shall be satisfied. You shall not hunger or thirst. You shall be filled. But that’s interesting, because that’s what we struggle with. Keeping what Christ gives, and what He is as our God, satisfied. Out of the material realm and totally centered on the spiritual realm. Why does God love you? And how do you know He loves you? Because things work out well for your life materially? Your health is good? It’s not been cursed or difficult? Arthritis doesn’t gnarle your fingers and toes? Is that what makes you loved by God to prove it? Or are you loved by God because He says, I feed you, eat it, I give you drink, drink it. This fills your soul. Is that why? Because when he is saying come and eat and come and drink and come and buy, he is saying buy without what? Without money and without price. Meaning what I give to you, you can’t earn. You can’t pay for. What I give to you has been paid for. It’s not cheap money. Holy precious blood and innocent suffering and death did I give you this gift of bread that endures to eternal life. Food that fills your soul. I will give it to you, but it did come at a great cost. Now what the world values is different from what God values. And we still cling to this world. That’s why Isaiah asked this question. He invites the people to come as he invites you to come. But then he adds this so that we kind of have a moment to examine ourselves, to see us as we really are, when Isaiah says what God said, “‘Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread?’ Meaning, why do you spend your money on things that don’t fill your soul, but fill your body instead?’ And why do you labor for that which does not satisfy rather than for that which does satisfy the empty part of you that only God can fill? Because your and my struggles, we try to replace God with a whole host of other things. You remember last Sunday we talked about the two parables? There were three, of course, in last Sunday’s reading, but the two that we focused on last Sunday was the treasure in the field, sold everything to buy that field, the pearl of great value, the man sold everything for that one pearl. Jesus is saying the same thing here through Isaiah the prophet. Why do you labor for that which does not satisfy? Why do you spend your money on what is not true bread? Because you and I are constantly struggling with the things of this world and the things of God. Remember what Jesus said, If anyone thirsts, let him come unto me and drink. Drink me, he said. So he’s not talking about water like the woman at the well thought he was talking about in John chapter 4. He’s talking about the water of the Holy Spirit, faith, which wells up to eternal life, which is nothing more than Jesus. At the sermon on the mount, Jesus says, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst. Not hunger for meat to fill their belly. Not hunger for water to quench their thirst. But hunger for righteousness. Hunger and thirst for righteousness. Not what they have, but what you and I don’t have, which is only found in Him. And He will give it to us. As He said in John 6 to the people. Work for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. On Him the Father has set His seal. Jesus reveals to you and to me, it’s here in His Word. It’s here in His Supper where you have been brought as a baptized child of God that you are fed, nursed, and nourished. But it is your and my flesh that sees a whole bunch of other things out there and inside of us other than Him that we want it to fill us. Notice all of the words in Isaiah’s text. Come, buy and eat. Hearken unto Me. Listen to My words. Eat the food that endures to eternal life. Or eat the food, fat, rich food. Delight yourselves in this food. Incline your ear to Me. All in Isaiah’s words. Because you and I still have the flesh that clings to us. It’s why we wake up and see wrinkles we didn’t see before. It’s why we bury loved ones in the grave because everyone inherits death as sinners. It’s because we feel pain and heartache that sin brought into this world in broken relationships, broken desires and wishes. Jesus is saying, stay and remain a pupil or a learner. You haven’t graduated. You’ll never graduate until you die. Then you graduate. But until then, you and I are to remain a pupil because a pupil says, I know I have not learned at all and I still need to grow in the grace and knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ. As the Apostle Peter said, be a learner of what He brings. But that means that we have to be dependant. And we’re not self-sufficient. And we’re not all that. That we’re still a learner and a pupil. Whenever you and I talk with people that we don’t know, we may approach it with humility, but we’re sizing them up as we size ourselves up to figure out if we’re better or worse. If we know more than they or not. That’s just how we are. Because we are sinners. Jesus is proclaiming to us to remain learners and pupils, one who does not know, one who has not arrived, one who is still in the midst of struggle. And what does Satan want you to do but be content with where you are, fat, dumb, and happy in your ignorance? And it’s your Holy Spirit that is continually trying to keep you He says, Because he doesn’t break his covenant like we break covenants. But he adds a special caveat to this so that we get how important he is not going to break his covenant. Because he talks about it being like the one of all the Old Testament prophets and kings. Who does he pick? David. Oh, we can say, yes, David’s the one who slew Goliath. Yes, he was the king. David. He also was an adulterer and a murderer, just like you and just like me. And he’s making this clear that he didn’t break covenant with David, even though David’s life didn’t deserve God’s covenant. So you, the adulterer, and you, the murderer, and I, the murderer and the adulterer, he will not break covenant with us unless, of course, we don’t think we are. Then he has nothing to offer us, does he? You’ve also heard of that saying, you are what you eat. Well, you are spiritually what you eat spiritually. And He wishes to give you the finest here. And He wishes to fill you with His best here so that you have confidence, comfort, fullness, satisfaction on the inside and the emptiness that we all carry around with us is truly filled once and for all. So keep coming, keep listening. Keep inclining your ears. Keep eating and drinking Him. Keep delighting yourselves in Him alone. Nothing else and no one else. And you shall be satisfied. In the name of Jesus, Amen. The peace of God which passes all understanding. Keep your hearts and your minds on Christ Jesus to life everlasting. Amen.
