Jesus as the bread of life

"This is my body, broken for you. Do this, in remembrance of me" (Mark 14)

It's a statement that I've always looked at specifically in the context of communion. Jesus was stating to his followers that the passover meal they were about to share was symbolic of his sacrifice. But that was where it ended, with the cross, the grave, the resurrection, and the ascension. Jesus, & the gospel writers, had let us in on an incredibly intimate moment with Jesus & His disciples, that was about to become relevant for all of mankind. But Jesus, as the Bread of Life changes everything.

A friend of mine told me in discussion of this topic, "Jesus doesn't do anything by accident." With that in mind, there are connections between this feast of the passover and other moments in Christ's life that scream out to be recognized.

Jesus feeds the 5000. Here again, Jesus is the one who breaks the bread. He's the one that distributes it, and His distribution..... is abundant. It never runs out and in fact is excess of what is required. It's more than enough. Fastforward to the passover feast. Jesus is breaking the bread, He is distributing the bread and the message from the past is added to the symbolism of the moment. Jesus, never runs out. His body, is not only sufficient, it is abundant. It never runs out, and like the physical abundance of bread, Jesus' life points to the abundance of His body being broken. It's what leads Paul to write that Jesus' sacrifice was "once for all" (Hebrews). The grace that covers a multitude of sins is figurative in the bread. It covers a multitude of sins because the point was never that 5000 got fed. The point was that there was abundance. Jesus provision didn't scrape by and tide people over until they got home to have a snack. It provided a filling, and then some. 12 basketfuls were left over. It's a declaration that He is greater than what is about to come and given the connection between these moments, it's a subtly prophetic act that He is greater than the breaking of His body. He not only will overcome sin with His sacrifice, but He will also overcome the physical and spiritual death associated with His sacrifice. He is abundant, more than enough and in this moment, it's a promise to His disciples.

Jesus as the affirmer. It's one of the last recorded Biblical events that we have of Christ on earth in the Gospels. Peter and the boys are out fishing, trying to forget what happened, their dreams crushed, shattered. They are fishing and Jesus shows up in the shore. They race to Jesus, peter swims, to find him with fish and some bread. It's the encompassing of these moments again. Jesus is restoring Peter, but He's also affirming the promise. He's tying the pieces together and bringing revelation to His disciples. The bread and the fish, a common meal with dramatic ties to a highlight in the disciples lives with Christ. If we had witnessed the feeding of the 5000, no doubt it would be the same for us. Christ is assuring Peter and the disciples before there is ever the reinstatement of Peter that His body is still enough. It hasn't run out and it won't run out. Again, Jesus is in control. It's a reconnection to the moment of their deepest intimacy with Christ. The time when everything seemed poised to explode into glory and Christ is taking them there again with a shifted perspective. It's no longer about Israel's return to empirical glory. It's about the return of God's creation to Himself. Again the disciples find themselves picked up from their dejection, reminded of the past and are placed into the present. Jesus has become far greater than the earthly King they had hoped for. He has become the savior, the provider of forgiveness and grace, abundant life. He has become exactly what they need.

So, in my remembrance of Christ, when I take part of His body and His bread, my perspective has, like the disciples', forever been altered. No more is it just a moment of intimacy with my God. It's a promise, a declaration, a reinstatement, an affirmation, abundance and the glory of Christ's return and His creation's return to Him. It's new meaning to the Bread of Life.