Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread

Here is my message from Sunday. The scripture passages were Isaiah 55:1-12 and Matthew 6:5-13:

Bread is not as much of a staple in our diets as it used to be, especially if you, like me, have a doctor who is constantly telling you to cut out the cards, or perhaps you’ve even eliminated bread altogether from your diet, either because of allergies or for dieting reasons. And so for us, asking for our daily bread, which is the petition we move onto today in our look at the Lord’s Prayer, might seem just a little out of touch, not part of our daily reality. Although when you go to a restaurant and they bring good bread to the table, and I’m not talking about the artisanal stuff or those that are so hard on the outside that a turtle could use it as a shell. I’m talking soft, warm bread, melting with butter, and if it has pasta accompanying it, which my doctor also says I should be avoiding, that can be like heaven. And since I see some of you shaking your heads and salivating like Pavlov has just rung his famous bell, I know that you know what I’m talking about. But, that’s more often the exception to the rule these days.

It’s not like we don’t consider bread important, after all when we are talking about amazing inventions, we don’t compare it to the invention of fire or the wheel or even the printing press. Instead what do we say? It’s the greatest thing since? Sliced bread. Apparently sliced bread is the high point of human existence. But, unlike today, bread was a staple in the ancient world. It would have been found in every meal, and it wasn’t just a side, it would have been the main course. It would have been accompanied by fruits and vegetables, and occasionally, but rarely, especially for the poor, meat would have been present. In fact, because of its ubiquity the word bread could be used for food in general, not just bread. But, bread was also more than just about bread, because it also represented hospitality. When strangers or friends appear, bread is brought out as part of the table. We even still say the same thing, as we talk about breaking bread together. Which means sharing a meal, and there’s something special that happens over a meal. When we share a meal together, or with someone else, there’s a bond that comes into place that few other things can do, and I think that’s a portion of what Jesus is talking about here. And yet, of course there is so much more to it as well, because there is a direct practicality to it.