I love food!  Especially when it’s prepared with some kind of international flare.  Korean Barbeque, Sushi, Chilean Sea Bass, any kind of Indian food, any kind of Caribbean food, and Lamb – don’t even get me started on lamb.  Whenever lamb is on the menu, I always order it – I just can’t help myself.  I absolutely love it!

There’s a Lebanese restaurant that I like – they serve a Lamb Shank that’s just bursting with all kinds of Mediterranean flavors, the succulent meat just falls right off the bone onto a saucy plate of Lebanese delight. 

Food at its best is delectable artistry – an aesthetically pleasing array of nutritious fare that lures you in by its smell, and its appearance, and entertains your palate with a celebration of flavor and texture. We enjoy it thoroughly, indeed, we crave it, and thrive on it.  It is our source of life, and when it is in short supply we become emaciated and appalling to look it.  Without it, we die.

When I think of food in this way, it gives me a special appreciation for what Jesus says in John 4:31-34 where Jesus speaks of a special kind of food – a food that many of his disciples know nothing about:  Jesus Food – to do the will of God and to complete his work.

Those of us who would be His followers must feast on this food.  We must drink deeply from this wellspring of living water, and sink our teeth into this hearty, flavorful bread of life!  Apart from this water, and this bread, there is no nourishment.  

Unfortunately, many of us often find that Jesus food is at best plain and flavorless, and at worst bitter and intolerable. So we keep it in short supply, and partake sparingly.  As a result we become spiritually emaciated and appalling to look at.  So what exactly is Jesus Food, and how do we develop a taste for it?  

 

---

 

What exactly is Jesus food, and how do we develop a taste for it?

The food that Jesus craves in John 4:34 is the will of God – to do the will of God and to accomplish His work.  Specifically, to cross over into the land of Samaria, rub shoulders with the “filthy gentile dogs,” seek out one of their loose women, and gently usher her (along with the local townspeople) into the Kingdom of God.  Jesus has the eyes to see that many of these precious people are like perfectly ripened fruit, ready to be harvested with joy so that they too can worship the Father in spirit and truth.  For He reveals in John 4:23 that the Father seeks such people to be His worshipers. To our Lord, this kind of food was worth every moment of self-denial, every bit of ridicule, every ounce of mental anguish, every jolt of excruciating pain.  To our Lord the food of doing the Father’s will was literally “to die for.”  For the son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost, giving His life as a ransom for many.

When God grants us the grace to see things from His perspective – to smell what He smells, and taste what He tastes, we quickly realize that His will is the tastiest thing on the menu, and we long for Him to serve us up a great big helping of it.  We realize that we were created and marked out for such lofty purposes before the earth was even formed (Eph 2:10).  Imagine that – God has ordained for us to walk into people’s lives with a word of truth here – a message of encouragement there, a simple smile, a hug,  a rebuke.  Sometimes it means leading someone to salvation, other times it means helping someone who already knows Christ to get back on track. 

Everyday is filled with divinely inspired encounters just waiting to happen.  All that’s required of you is to look up and see that the field is white for harvest, and to remember that you are not here for yourself, but rather, as His disciple, you are here to deny yourself take up your cross and follow Him (Luke 9:23).  The cost of relinquishing your will and living for His glory so that others may know Him is high.  But it’s the kind of fine dining that will nourish you abundantly, and give you eternal life.