Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“But Jesus answered, ‘It is written, “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” ’”
NL Daily Devotion for Thursday, September 3, 2020
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Jesus, of course, doesn’t say that one doesn’t need regular old bread to live. You don’t eat, you die. The persistence of widespread hunger across the globe when there are more than ample resources to feed everyone is a sin of the highest order. It’s just a fact.
But no amount of human “bread” is sufficient for a flourishing life. Witness the multitudes of people who hoard money (slang: bread) in fear of scarcity and at the expense of the aforementioned hungry. No amount of human “bread” can fill the deep spiritual hunger for connection with God.
God’s word satisfies, not by giving us a false sense of contentment or by taking away pain. God’s word satisfies by energizing us to do the hard work of loving the other: work that requires sacrifice, work that requires courage in the face of fear, work that connects us to God in powerful, transformative ways. As the crowds said to Jesus in the Gospel of John: “Give us this bread always!” (Jn 6:34)
Nourishing God, fill me with your power that I might do you work and will in the world. Amen.
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