It is significant that we come here for bread and wine, and not for the raw products that are used in the production of bread and wine. We eat the bread and drink the wine, and we do not eat a handful of raw grain as the disciples did once, and we do not eat grapes.
In both cases, we are consuming the product of labor. We do not consume the product of nature, straight from nature. Man’s industry is involved in the processing of this food—in the grinding, kneading, baking, crushing, fermenting, and so forth.
This provides us with a wonderful picture of the entire life of Jesus Christ. We are not simply saved on the basis of His sinless death, but His entire obedience is imputed to us. More than the end result of a crucified and resurrected Lord is imputed to us. We don’t eat bread that just mysteriously appears, and we don’t drink wine that is sent to us directly from Heaven.
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In Jesus, mankind finally did it right. In Jesus, Israel obeyed the way Israel was called to obey. In our participation here, we are participating with the entire process that brought it here. So as you eat this bread, you are resisting the temptation to turn the stones to bread in the wilderness. When you eat the bread and drink the wine, you are eating and drinking its entire history. In the same way, when you eat and drink here, you are eating and drinking all four gospels. You are eating and drinking the Lord’s biography. It is all yours. So come, and welcome.