Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, in continuation from the last Sunday’s readings, we heard about how the people of Israel grumbled and complained about the food which they have received from God Himself. God fed them with manna in the desert, so that in a place where no life could have existed, they would still be well fed and be filled in their stomachs and be satisfied in all things.
And God also gave them large birds and other good things to eat, and provide them with sweet and crystal clear water to drink, from the rocks themselves. This is such that even though the whole multitudes of Israel is so huge, but they could be sustained and were provided for as they made their journey through the desert on the way to the Promised Land.
But yet, the people did not feel grateful to the Lord for whatever He had done. They complained that the manna does not taste good and is bland, although it was truly bread from heaven, that the angels ate and partake together, it is a great privilege for them to have a share in that heavenly sustenance. And as described in the Scriptures, the manna actually has a good taste, like honey, sweet and fulfilling.
It was because they have been so blinded and thus unable to see or witness the love which God had given all of them. They succumbed to the temptations of their bodies and their flesh, and as we all should know, it is very difficult to satisfy our own desires. If we have more things and more goods with us, then all the more we want to have even more of what we already had.
For example, if we have plenty of food and good things, the tendency is for us to want and desire even more of them. We are very difficult to satisfy, as our greed and desires always tend to get the better of us. This is also exactly why the people of Israel had acted the way they did. This is because they were so accustomed to the pleasures of the flesh, the temptations of this world, that when they encountered difficulties of life and the disciplined way of the Lord, they rebelled and made a lot of complaints.
In the Gospel today, we also heard how Jesus fed the multitudes of five thousand people, with only five loaves and two fishes to feed them. And yet, by the power that is in Him, He made all the things possible, and He fed all the people until they were all satisfied and yet with twelve baskets worth of leftovers. He showed the eminent and great love of God, which He had freely given to all of us.
What does this show us, brethren? It shows us that even though we have sinned and rebelled against God again and again, but He continued to show us an undying love that goes even beyond our wickedness and sins. God continues to give us chance after chance, and opportunity after opportunity. Of course this does not mean that we can just take advantage of this and take it for granted.
For God had given none other than His own Son, a part of Himself so that by His suffering on the cross, for the sake and atonement of our sins, He may gather us all, a people to be consecrated in holiness to God. Through the giving of His Body and by the outpouring of His Blood, which He accomplished perfectly on the cross, He had done even more than what we witnessed in the Gospel today.
This is because while those who received the bread from heaven or manna were dead because of their sinfulness, and those who ate from the bread and fishes multiplied by Jesus were not guaranteed salvation and life in what they received, those who truly accepted the Lord and received Him with honour and proper worthiness, all of them received the fullness of God’s promise through Jesus.
And what is this promise? That death will no longer have any more power or dominion over any of us, and that we may have eternal life, true life that comes from the Lord. Yes, one that has no end or limits, because we would draw life and grace from God Himself, who will dwell with us and enjoy forever the eternal bliss of the world that He has prepared for us.
He is the Bread of Life who had come from heaven, in His own words, which He made clear to His disciples. Whoever takes his or her share in Him, they will not be disappointed, for God will be with them, and if they are faithful to the end, then God too will not abandon them. This is what all of us ought to realise, and what we have to look up to, and strive for in our own lives.
May Almighty God bless and guide us in our path, so that we may walk righteously in His ways, and seek to always find Him in our daily lives, and live according to His commandments, that by worthily sharing in His Body and Blood in the Eucharist, and by our faith made concrete through action, we may be justified and glorified in God. God bless us all. Amen.