In this second insight around the theme of practising the presence of God, we find ourselves thinking about bread that is housed in a physical building and represents a place where the awareness of God can be experienced. Within the sanctuary a priest acts on behalf of God and offers up bread as a symbol of His presence and provision for all peoples who trust in him.
In Exodus 25: 23-30 we read about the tabernacle (tent of meeting) as a place that represented the presence of God here on earth. Moses received guidelines on how to build the tabernacle that included a low table for loaves of unleavened bread to be placed on. The bread can be described in various ways such as the bread of faces, shewbread, showbread, cakes or rolls.
Showbread
In Leviticus 24: 5-9 particular instructions are given. ’Take fine flour and bake twelve loaves of bread.’ ‘Set them in two rows, six in each row, on a table of pure gold before the Lord.’ ‘This bread is to be set out before the Lord (face) regularly, Sabbath after Sabbath, on behalf of the Israelites, as a lasting covenant.’ The bread ‘belongs to Aaron and his sons, who are to eat it in a holy place,’ because it represents a very ‘holy part of their regular share of the offerings made to the lord.’
In 1 Samuel 21:1 – 6 we find that David was travelling on a special mission and in approaching the priest Ahimelech asks for five loaves of bread to eat. The priest was afraid and trembled in his presence. Ahimelech told David that there was no ordinary bread to share, he only had the consecrated bread and to partake of that bread the soldiers had to be pure. David reassured the priest that the men had consecrated themselves and on that basis Ahimelech shared the bread of presence that had been removed from the table.
Bread Maker
Last Christmas I was gifted a bread maker and have enjoyed making many different types of bread since. In the study at our home I have, for a while, placed some freshly made bread on a table to represent God’s presence. One day a close family member passed through the study and noted the bread and asked in a very surprised tone, ‘What is that doing there?’ I briefly explained why but they were not fully convinced!
Sabbath
In Mark 2:23 -28 Jesus refers to the Sabbath and mentions David’s experience with the priest. He reminded the Pharisees that David entered the temple in a distressed state and required food for himself and his soldiers. Jesus’s point was that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. The presence of God in all its forms has a very practical purpose for everyday use and appreciation and should not be restricted in any way from those in need and requiring help.
The awareness of God can be experienced in modern church buildings just as His presence has been witnessed in older ones, cultures and settings. Each place seeks to represent the glory of God and act as a resting place where believers may spiritually partake and be fed. The bread of heaven is there to nourish all people in their service to and for the Lord.
Presence
There is a worship song entitled ‘To be in your presence’ by Noel Richards which portrays a believer sitting at God’s feet in awe and thanksgiving. A personal sense of God’s presence makes any religious pursuit and practise personal and meaningful. It cuts above all the rules and regulations that are often associated with spiritual devotion and practise.
The followers of Jesus sat at his feet and learnt and applied their faith from the master himself. Today in accepting Jesus as our Rabbi, Saviour and example we also have the Holy Spirit within us to guide and make real the realities of the Sermon on the Mount, the Ten Commandments and many of Jesus’s parables.
Relevant or irrelevant?
Remember that remark about the bread roll in the study. I think it was quite apt, as many people today think and feel that the presence of God is irrelevant to modern living and only serves to bring confusion and division. Any person or place that seeks to represent the presence of God is not perfect and will always disappoint. However, the bread set before the face of God, is an indicator of a divine, not human presence, which can nourish and change people’s lives in simple and miraculous ways.
The next time you participate in Holy Communion, receive the bread/wafer in faith with thanksgiving for the generous love of God. When you make or buy bread for physical nourishment remember that we have a mind and spirit that requires feeding as well.
Let’s bring back the question, ‘What is that doing there?’ As an answer may we recall and believe in the words of the great hymn writer William Williams (1717-91). ‘Bread of heaven, feed me now and evermore.’
Selah (pause to think calmly on what has just been read)
Graham
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