Readings:
Isaiah 7:10-25; 2
Thessalonians 2:13-3:5; Luke
22:14-30
The
marvelous always happened around food when Jesus was in the company of others.
Limited fare—be it bread, wine or fish—became abundant, and more so. At Cana,
the wedding host ran out of wine; so Jesus turned water into wine for the
guests. At the seashore a few loaves of
bread and a couple of Tiliapia fed the five thousand who had heard Jesus preach
and it was suppertime.
But in the
passage in Luke, there is plenty of food during the Passover meal to feed the
disciples. (Interestingly, Jesus refuses to partake in the meal until the
coming of the Kingdom of God.) The miracle in this case is not increasing the
amount of food, but transforming the physical Passover meal to spiritual
nourishment.
This is
the ultimate gift from God through Jesus to the disciples—representing a new
Covenant that will bring them the Kingdom of God.
At the
end of the passage in Luke, not only has the food been transformed, but the
disciples’ very beings are charged to be transformed by Jesus from guests
around a table to servants, providing others with spiritual food.
With all
the food we consume at Christmas parties during this time of year, I think it
behooves us to consider those who have little to eat and ponder how we can
savor the blessings of God on our Advent table where less can be more.
(Deborah
Johansen Harris)
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