Eucharistic Meditation, Feb 1:

Luke 17:26-29

Jesus describes the coming of the Son of Man by comparing it to the coming of the flood in the days of Noah and the rain of fire and brimstone on Sodom in the days of Lot. One of the main points of the comparison, as we’ve seen, is that in all these cases, many are unprepared for the judgment that falls on them. They are going about their regular business, eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, buying and selling, building and planting, and never give a thought to the danger that they are in.

All of the activities that Jesus describes are good in themselves. God created us to eat and drink, marry and be given in marriage, and all the rest. The problem is not the activities as such; the problem is that some are so devoted to these activities that they are unprepared when God begins to judge. The problem arises when eating and drinking and all the daily round of normal life becomes an idol.

How do we stay prepared? How can we both go about our daily lives ?Eeating and drinking, buying and selling, and so on ?Eand at the same time be ready to drop it all if God’s calls us to that? There is no simple solution to this problem, but this meal, this eating and drinking, are certainly PART of the solution. As we are disciplined and discipled by this meal, we learn to eat and drink, buy and sell, without idolatry.

How does this work? We should remember that this is the Christian Passover, and that Jews ate the first Passover with their traveling clothes on, ready to depart Egypt. We should remember that this is the Christian manna, a demonstration that the Lord can provide food and drink even in the midst of the howling wilderness. Above all, this meal demonstrates what is true of all meals: That we don’t live by bread but by the word of God and the power of the Spirit. By repeated participation in this table, we are leaning NOT to detach ourselves from our other eating and drinking, but to eat and drink, marry and give in marriage, buy and sell, plant and build RIGHTLY.

The Supper disciples us so that we are trained more and more to do all these things in faith, with our faith not directed to our bread but to the God who gives it.