Advent Lutheran Church

"Eat Your Vegetables"

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.   He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished.  The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”  Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”  Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.  And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please.  If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.”   Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”  Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”  When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

 Jesus answered him, It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone.' Luke 4:4 
 
"Eat your vegetables," your mom may have said.  "Accept Jesus," some churches say.  As vegetables build growing bodies, so Christ grows the believer and the Body of Christ.Well, what is this?
Jesus said in today's passage that man does not live by bread alone.  We need spiritual nutrition, not just physical.  Christ is our nutrient for spiritual growth, fitness, strength, endurance, and health.
We look forward in Lent to the Resurrection.  It enabled Christ to be our supplement against sin and the devastation of the human spirit, and seperation from our Lord and Father.  If we take Him in,  He is food for our spiritual journey.  A vitamin for the soul. It is this Resurrection meal we look to in Lent; for it will arrive for us.
So, maybe , just as we reluctantly eat our vegetables, we need Christ as our food for life, even when dealing with Him seems a challenge.  We need to know in Lent that the hope-for Resurrection and Cross give us the power for life itself.
Let us pray to realize what feeding upon the Living Christ, as in communion, means this Lent.  Every meal foreshadows our King and his bread for our living.  Physical food is for the temporary, and our spiritual food is eternal.  When we receive Him in Lent, in communion and otherwise,we echo this truth.  Let us remember Him... Amen