God and the wonderful gift of food

Like many, this time of year is often accompanied by baked goods, tasty treats, and wonderful meals with family and friends. It is truly a wonderful time of the year. But have you ever considered the relationship between food and God himself? Food is a wonderful gift from God, a part of his created order. One of the first things that God told Adam and Eve to enjoy in the Garden of Eden was everything He had given them for food (Gen 1:29). Food has always been intended to be more than simply a consummation of calories though. Food was intended to be a conduit of God’s provision in our lives. Food was designed to be a reminder of our dependence on and provision in God himself. Food has always been a signpost pointing us to something far greater than a temporary meal. During the earthly ministry of Jesus, Jesus would regularly use the table of food to teach about these realities. One scholar even highlights in the Gospel of Luke that “Jesus is either going to a meal, at a meal or coming from a meal.”  One of the most famous miracles of Jesus is the feeding of five thousand (John 6:1-15), where Jesus feeds a large crowd of men, women, and children with only a few loaves of bread and two fish. When the crowd wanted more, he instructed them that the physical food was to point them to something greater: Himself. Jesus would say to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.” “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” (John 6:26,35). Jesus was using the gift of food to point people to Himself. This Advent season, God is doing the same with the meals that he provides commonly to us. Although gifts from above they are intended to draw you into worship of Him and Him alone. It is only Jesus who came and lived the life that you and I couldn’t live; it is only Jesus who willingly laid down his life to atone for the penalty of our sins; it is only Jesus who can satisfy our greatest desires; it is only Jesus who is worthy of our worship this Advent season. I pray that you would delight in all the foods, but I pray that those foods would point you to worship, trust, and rejoice in the bread of life, the Christ of Christmas.

Luke Wartgow is lead pastor at Carson Valley Bible Church.