52The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" 53So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven, not as the fathers ate and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever." 59Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum.
From the time we are small children, we are taught, “You are what you eat.” Hamburgers and French fries are very tasty. But if those were all you ate, sooner or later your heart would struggle to pump blood through your plugged up arteries. If you follow your mother’s advice to “Eat your veggies!” you will be much happier and healthier in the long run.
We come to find this true of our faith, too. If we fill ourselves up with spiritual junk food, we will be spiritually sick and weak. If we eat “heart healthy” spiritual food, we will be strong.
Spiritual junk food is feel-good food. We can consume the marshmallow fluff of some worship services and leave feeling an awesome sugar rush. But just like a sugar rush, the feel quickly fades, and you need more.
Then there are the things we consume that are really bad for us. These are things that give us a great rush. Premarital sex, shoplifting, and gossip are just the tip of this destructive iceberg. While you are in the middle of them, they seem great. But there are consequences to our thoughts, words, and deeds.
St. Mark 7:21-23 tells us,
“For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man unclean.”
“Heart healthy” spiritual foods make you strong. These are the Word and Sacraments. Our Father teaches us that if we want to be strong in our faith, consuming the Word and Sacrament will sustain us in our daily walk. We find them in the Divine Service, Bible Studies, daily devotions, and even discussing our faith with fellow Christians.
We are made strong, not because of anything within us, but because of what God places within our hearts and minds. At your baptism, the pastor said, “Receive the sign of the cross both upon your forehead and upon your heart to mark you as one redeemed by Christ the crucified.” God has filled you with His Spirit and His Word. It is for this reason God tells you to “guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” Trash in, trash out. Treasure in, treasure out.
“When your words came, I ate them, they were the joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O Lord Almighty.” (Jeremiah 15:16)
I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. Philippians 4:11b
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