| A Message from the Interim Pastor…
When we encounter miracle stories in the Bible, we often go to great lengths to try to explain how the miracle happened. But perhaps a better question might be: Why? Why were these stories told in the early church? To what real end?
Jesus joined a wedding party and the wine ran out (John 2:3). Then, 180 gallons soon appeared. After the crucifixion, the disciples fished all night and caught nothing. Zilch – not even a guppy. The next morning, Jesus appeared on the beach and told them try the other side of the boat. They hauled in 153 large whoppers of every variety (John 21:11). Five thousand people sat on a grassy bank and Jesus fed them all with just five loaves and two fish. They didn’t just nibble on fish and chips. They were stuffed to the gills.
That’s 180 gallons of wine; 153 large fish; baskets and baskets of leftovers. Jesus brings abundance. He brings fullness and lavish plenty. The early church wasn’t interested in explaining how these miracles happened. They only knew that Jesus brought to their lives a measure of joy that wasn’t there before.
What’s life with Jesus like? Life with Jesus is like a joyous wedding reception where everyone laughs, full of new wine. It’s like breakfast on the beach after striking out all night. It’s like a huge picnic where everybody is fed so full that you can only lean back on the grass and watch the clouds go by, gratefully.
The early church had no other way to talk about this abundant life other than to tell the stories over and over again whenever they gathered, remembering the man who brings abundance. These stories won’t stand up to scientific scrutiny. Did the stories really happen this way? For me, this is the wrong question. The stories are meant to illumine the abundant life right here, right now. So perhaps the right question becomes: Are these stories really happening now?
Don’t try too hard to figure out how in the world Jesus possibly fed 5,000 people with a boy’s little lunch, or turned 180 gallons of water into fine wine, or showed the disciples where to find 153 fish. Look instead for signs of how Jesus is now filling us – spiritually starved people who live in a land offering a diet of grand but often empty promises that never seem to satisfy.
Peace and blessing,
Pastor Michael
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