Food, Life and Resurrection

Life is consumption. Think about that for a second. To stay alive, you have to eat. And everything you eat was alive before it became your food. Beef comes from cow. Pork comes from pig. Every vegetable had its own life cycle before it ended up on your plate. We live today because something died yesterday. This is the final sermon in the Lord's Prayer series, landing on the last line: Deliver us from evil. And it falls on Easter Sunday, the day we celebrate the one death that changes everything.

Death Gives Life

We used to have a pet chicken. We named it Eddie. That was the biggest mistake. Once they have a name, it's not food anymore. What's the difference between Eddie and the chicken in the Coles fridge? One is naked, one is not. And if you think going vegetarian gets you off the hook, my wife is a gardener and she'll tell you — even plants have emotions.

But here's the serious point. We handle death every single day. We celebrate it at dinner time. Nobody sits there praying, "God, thank you, poor cow died for me." We just eat. We just live. Behind every meal is something that gave its life so we could keep going. And no matter how much you eat, how well you look after yourself. The day will come when nothing you consume can give you life back. From the moment you're born, you're heading towards death. There's a timeline and you will have to face it.

I believe this pattern is not an accident. The way the world operates, the way you and I were made. It's a hint. A hint for who God is and who we are to God. Death gives life. Something has to keep dying to keep you alive. God wove that into creation, pointing us towards one death that would matter more than all the others combined.

The Bread of Life

John 6:35: "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger. And whoever believes in me shall never thirst."

Jesus is saying: you already understand how this works. Each day depends on something else dying for you. Your eternal life depends on one death that happened 2,000 years ago. And you need to consume it. You need to have it. That's how you were made.

So why did Jesus die? Not because we deserve it. Not because we're good people. Not because we loved him first. He died for us because he loves us. That's it.

I've been sitting with friends lately, parents with grown-up kids, driver's licences, their own lives. You'd think at some point you'd say, "Right, I've done my job. You're on your own. Goodbye." It doesn't work that way. Every time the four of us sit down together, all we talk about are our grown children. Are they okay? How's the marriage? What do they need? We cannot stop loving these guys. I don't know why. That is something that is in us.

I tell Nathan, one mistake and you're gone. Scary tactic. But deep down? I got you. I got your life. Try me. See how far you can fall. See how I will run towards you and pick you up. If that instinct is in an imperfect human father, imagine the God who sent His Son to die before you were even born, already knowing everything you'd go through. He loves you to the point of death. And you think he'll desert you because you lied? Because you got a $200 fine and decided God hates you? That's the enemy talking. The cross already happened. It is finished.

The Religion of the Empty Tomb

The death of Jesus is the beginning of salvation. But resurrection is the conclusion. 1 Corinthians 15 says it:

"When the perishable puts on the imperishable and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying: Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? But thanks be to God who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

When Jesus rose again, He said: you joined me in my death. Your penalty is paid. Now join me in my life. Forever. And this life won't leave you hungry again in eight hours. No more wars. No more fuel crises. No more food shortages. The day will come when all of it is finally conquered.

The problem is we don't appreciate this enough day to day. We sing about it. We nod along. Then we go home and worry about petrol prices. The enemy knows exactly how we're made, so the strategy is to fill our spiritual stomach with junk food. Keep us satisfied with cheap substitutes. The worst time to eat the best food? When you're already full of rubbish.

Christianity is not the religion of the cross anymore. It's the religion of the empty tomb. Last night, during sermon prep, I actually tried to doubt the resurrection. I sat there in my North Sydney dungeon and thought, can I come up with a reason to deny this? And the funny thing was, I couldn't. If I deny this, if I say there's no resurrection, no Jesus' death for me, then what am I living for? It is impossible for me to deny this hope in my life.

Deliver Us From Evil

So we arrive at the last line of the Lord's Prayer: Deliver us from evil.

If death is already conquered, if we already have victory in Christ, why do we still need to pray this? Because the devil never stops trying to steal the joy of salvation out of you. Not with big catastrophes. Just small things. Your husband says one wrong thing. You get a parking fine. You hear about food prices going up in May. And just like that, you lose the joy of salvation you were singing about five minutes ago.

The world will keep coming at us with new information, new ways to drag us into sin. It's nothing new under the sun. But today we abide in the truth of Jesus Christ, what He's done on the cross and the empty tomb. We live by that. We pray because we need God the way we need food and water. Daily. You don't eat once and expect it to last your whole life. You don't pray once either.

This World Is Airbnb

My son always says "I want to go home" whenever we travel. That word, "home," is engraved in him. A place where he's accepted and received. I've been living in North Sydney for a week and my undies are scattered across the whole of Australia. Some in Melbourne, some at a mate's house, some in North Sydney. I know it's too much information, but you're going to remember this sermon.

There's only one home though. My sofa, the spot I always sit in, with the little dent from years of use. That's home. But this world is not that home. No matter how much you like it here, it's Airbnb. You don't invest in decorating an Airbnb. You invest in your actual home. The resurrection is Jesus saying: you have one. You have a home in eternal life. This short life? You're just passing through.

On Your Way Home, Make Disciples

The last words Jesus said after the resurrection. Matthew 28:

"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

How do we live a resurrected life? Don't create a home in this world. It's going away. Don't fill your stomach too easily with the things of this world so that you're never hungry for the real bread and real water. Every time you eat tonight, something died for that meal. Let that be the reminder. The same God who built that pattern into creation sent His Son to be the one sacrifice that satisfies forever. We need Him the way we need food. Every single day. So keep praying. Keep eating the bread of life. And on your way home, make disciples.