ELEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOSt
Bread of Life
August 8, 2021

Most food we make, purchase, and use has a shelf life. Some longer, some shorter, but at some point, we know goods expire. This is especially true with bread. When not used in a timely manner, bread dries out, hardens, and even molds. How different is the bread Jesus teaches of, the bread that is Himself. In John 6, He teaches the people what He came to provide, which is Himself from heaven. In our worship, in our reception of His Means of Grace, in our prayers and praise, and in our daily lives, let us rejoice in the Bread that lasts for our needs of faith and forgiveness, that we, too, may continually “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Psalm 34:8).

“Lord Jesus Christ, Life-Giving Bread” [LSB 625]
1 Lord Jesus Christ, life-giving Bread, May I in grace possess You.
Let me with holy food be fed, In hunger I address You.
Prepare me well for You, O Lord, And, humbly by my prayer implored,
Give me Your grace and mercy.

2 To pastures green, Lord, safely guide, To restful waters lead me
Your table well for me provide, Your wounded hand now feed me.
Though weary, sinful, sick, and weak, Refuge in You alone I seek,
To share Your cup of healing.

3 O bread of heav'n, my soul's delight, For full and free remission
I come with prayer before Your sight, In sorrow and contrition.
Your righteousness, Lord, cover me, That I receive You worthily,
Assured of Your full pardon.

4 I do not merit favor, Lord, My weight of sin would break me
In all my guilty heart's discord, O Lord, do not forsake me.
In my distress this comforts me, That You receive me graciously,
O Christ, my Lord of mercy!

PRAYER
Lord God, defend Your Church from false teaching and error that we may continually trust in Your providential care. In all life’s challenges, help us to keep firm faith as we are fed Your good gifts of life and salvation through Jesus, the bread of life, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

EPISTLE Ephesians 4:17–5:2 17
Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20 But that is not the way you learned Christ!— 21 assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, 22 to put off your old self,[a] which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. 25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. 26 Be angry and do not sin do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil. 28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. 29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. 5 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

HOLY GOSPEL John 6:35–51 35
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” 41 So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43 Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— 46 not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God he has seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The concept of shelf life is important because it tells us when something might spoil and no longer be of use. This is indicated by an item’s used by date. Baked goods may last only two weeks while canned goods my last over two years. While such limitations as a shelf life may take care of our immediate needs, there is something we must have a more long-term solution too. We have a need that cannot be taken care of on a temporary basis and that is our need for forgiveness. We are imperfect and we sin daily and need a source of forgiveness that has no use by date or it will expire. That source of forgiveness is Jesus and as long as we believe in Him, we are forgiven all our sins and have the promise of eternal life. Jesus’ death and resurrection is the proof that this is true. God’s forgiveness will always be there for those who believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

LORD’S PRAYER Matthew 6:9–13
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

BENEDICTION Numbers 6:24–26
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.
The Lord look upon you with favor and give you peace. Amen.