Food and Water for the Soul John 6:22-35

Grace, mercy, and peace …

Today we’re going to talk about food and water for the soul, based on our Gospel. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

1. What are your favorite foods?

- Steak dinner?

- Seafood? 

- Pasta? 

- Chinese?

- Mexican? 

- Any others?

- How about St. John’s world famous grilled pork chops and potatoes?

2. Favorite drinks… cold water when you're hot and thirsty?

3. Favorite things to feed the soul…

A. Favorite Bible verse?

- John 3:16…

- John 14:1 Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in Me.

- John 16:33 in this world you will have troubles, but take heart, I have overcome the world.

- Psalm 23:1…

- Many others…

B. Favorite hymn?

C. Favorite pew to sit in?

4. We’re creatures of habit in many ways... some bad, some good, some neutral…

5. Good habits of the soul…

- Prayer and Devotion…

- Worship and praise…

6. Habits of love and service… to help, to encourage, to pray for, to correct, to witness the faith.

7. These godly habits are learned by the Holy Spirit, from the Word; and they’re kept by the Word and Sacraments. The Gospel is food and water for our souls, to keep our habits godly, and to keep our spirits from becoming malnourished.

8. When your spirit becomes malnourished or dehydrated, the result is less love and goodness, and more sin and selfishness. A malnourished soul becomes a more selfish soul. So feed and hydrate your soul with the Word and Sacraments of God.

9. God’s Word for us from the Old Testament today takes place in the wilderness between Egypt and the Promised Land. Food and water were scarce and the people were afraid. When we’re afraid we can become aggressive, so the people started to turn on Moses, but really, to turn on God.

But God didn’t turn on them. He promised them bread in the morning and meat at night. They went to sleep later that night, and when they woke up, many quail were scattered about, and dew covered the ground. When the dew dissipated, bread from heaven, manna, covered the ground.

God gave this to them to care for their bodies, but also their souls, so they would look to Him every day for their help. Not because God is needy, and needs us to need Him, but because we need him. So he invites us to look up to Him. 

10. God’s Word for us today in our Epistle teaches us about the unity we have with God and one another in the gifts of the Gospel: one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all… with grace given to each of us through the ministry of the gospel.

And he gave us apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, to equip the saints (God’s people) for the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ, so that we no longer fall prey to every false or popular teaching, but rather believe and speak the truth, grow in faith, and work together in love.

Or, as we put it earlier, to have these good habits of the soul. God gives us the ministry of the Word and Sacraments so our souls are fed, and may produce abundant love.

The corn is looking good this year, like it may be an abundant crop. But it took rain and nutrition for it to look this way. It takes nutrition for your soul to look like Christ, abundant with love.

11. In our Gospel today, Jesus tells us that we need food and water for our souls, and where that nourishment comes from.

After miraculously feeding the five thousand, Jesus said, “Do not work for the food that perishes but for the food that gives eternal life.”

After that miracle, some were misunderstanding the reason the Messiah had come to them. They were thinking he had come to improve their standard of living. In a sense he had, to improve their spiritual standard of living, to bring grace and salvation to them, and to us.

Just as in the desert God was feeding the Israelite’s souls, even more than their bodies, so Jesus give us food and water for the soul, as well as taking care of our physical needs.

Jesus says, “It was not Moses who gave bread from heaven, but my Father who gives the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.  I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

He’s food and water for the soul; he died and rose that our souls would live, and he feeds our souls with His Word and Sacraments that they might thrive; that we might grow and ne built up in love, as our Epistle says.

God feeds and hydrates your soul with His Word and Sacraments. Keep your soul well nourished with His Word.

How long can your body go without food and water? A few days? Maybe. A few weeks? No

How long can your soul go without the food and water of God’s Word? A week? Two weeks? A  month? 6 months? 12 months? Even longer?

The longer your soul goes without God’s Word the weaker it becomes, just as the body grows weaker day by day without food and water.

A poorly fed soul is a weak soul, a soul that much more easily gives in to sin; a soul that meekly follows the crowd, and the culture.

A well fed, well hydrated soul, is much stronger to love, and serve; stronger to insist on good, and stand against evil in this world; stronger to rejoice in godliness, and to embrace holiness; stronger to forgive an enemy, and to befriend a stranger; stronger to expose worldly lies, and stronger to proclaim to life-giving truth of the gospel.

 It takes a well nourished, daily fed soul to do this. So every day hear the Gospel in your heart, and to think on God’s Word with your mind.

Every Sunday let us gather and grow, as the unified body in Christ; to confess our sins together, and hear again in unison, those reassuring words that all our sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Let us often receive the body and blood of our Lord from heaven, and leave with his blessing and peace.

God would have us to be a well fed fellowship. We do eat well here, and we fellowship well, let us also love well, and serve well, and rejoice well.

Together let us sing well: “It is well with my soul.”

Finally, together let us share well, the peace that passes understanding. May it feed our souls, guard our hearts, and keep our minds, in Christ Jesus our Lord, our Bread from Heaven. Amen.