THE BREAD OF LIFE

You have fed me from the banquet of Your love

With bread everlasting…….

 

With the exception of the Atonement, there is no sadder time of Jesus’ mortal life than the time He declared Himself to be The Bread of Life. Up to that moment, the Saviour’s popularity amongst the common people was immense and people thronged Him everywhere He went (Matthew 8:1,15:30; Mark 3:8,7:24,8:1; Luke 6:17,12:1) but finding this doctrine too hard to ‘bear’, many of His disciples ‘walked no more with him’ (John 6:66). From the time of this sermon, He was headed for the cross.

 

The sermon of The Bread of Life came on the heels of five loaves and two fishes. By this extraordinary miracle the Saviour ignited the fire of the Messianic prophecy. Hungry for freedom from bondage and oppression suffered for over 700 years, the Jewish nation was ready for deliverance. Having been fed so miraculously, they knew just who would deliver them as they sat on Bethsaida’s hill feasting on the miracle of ‘manna from heaven’. He had to be the one to break the bands of bondage and if He refused to do so they would take Him by force to make Him king (John 6:14,15). They did not expect to be told to ‘eat’ His flesh and ‘drink’ His blood instead (John 6:32-35; 51-58), even if by metaphor. Instead of being miraculously fed from heaven continuously, which would guarantee a life of luxury and ease they expected, they presumed they would be saddled with more laws, forgetting so conveniently the familiar Jewish metaphor of eating for spiritual benefit, to which Christ really referred through His sermon.  And so even the baptised and most converted to the Saviour abandoned Him and thus began the rejection of the common people easily manipulated by the leadership to propel Him to the cross. 

 

Eating the body of Christ as the bread of life extends beyond the sacramental table. It means feasting upon the words of Christ for they will tell us all things what we should do to obtain eternal life (2 Nephi 32:3). We must not only eat but feast, feast with hunger and gladness and eagerness and joy. We must revel and delight in the body that was offered on the altar of sacrifice so that we will never be in bondage to the enemy of all righteousness and we will be able to say, like Peter of old: “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life….” (John 6:67,68)…….to whom indeed???

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art by Eva Koleva Timothy)

 

THE HIGH MOUNTAINS OF ISRAEL

 

People flocked to Him wherever He went. Whether they recognised in Him the healer or the Messiah, one thing they knew for sure is that He would not turn them away. Following a  rigorous interrogation by Pharisees, Mark records that Jesus retreated into a house near Tyre seeking solitude but He could not deny anyone seeking Him ‘for He had compassion on all men’ (JST Mark 7:22-23).

 

This compassionate heart of Jesus led to feeding immense crowds of people on two separate occasions. When the apostles returned from their first  mission they presented themselves to Jesus to account for all their labours (Mark 6:30). Mark notes that the crowds thronged them so much that they could not find time or place to eat (v31). For this reason Jesus invited them to retreat with Him by ship to a solitary place. When they arrived and Jesus came out of the ship he saw a multitude of people who had run on foot out of all the cities to see Him (v33). Mark records that He was moved with compassion when He saw them ‘because they were as sheep not having a shepherd and He began to teach them…’ (v34). And when the day was far spent He would not send them away hungry but fed 5,000 men plus women and children with five loaves of bread and two fishes (Matthew 14:21). As with the first, so the second occasion of feeding 4,000 men beside women and children, who were with Him for three days, with seven loaves and a few little fishes, all because: “I have compassion on the multitude….” (Matthew 15:30-38)

 

In my favourite chapter of Ezekiel,  Jehovah speaks extensively about the shepherds of Israel who had scattered His sheep through neglect and then promises He would find them and feed them upon the high mountains of Israel (Ezekiel 34:2,4,11-16,25,31). Was He cognisant of the promise He made through Ezekiel when the physically and spiritually lame flocked to Him, like sheep seeking their Shepherd, feeding upon the compassion spilling from His soul and turning the high mountains of Israel into pasture hereto before unknown??

 

Compassion rent His godly heart

When He saw His scattered sheep,

Upon the high mountains of Israel

Running to His shelter, for His promise to keep.

A promise He would honour

That His lost sheep He would find,

Upon the high mountains of Israel

That heartless shepherds left behind. 

So His promise He valiantly fulfilled

As His sheep sat hungry on Bethsaida’s hill,

And fed upon the loaves and fishes

That multiplied upon His will. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: I Have Compassion by Greg Collins)

BE STILL MY SOUL

 

 

Matthew tells us that He, who would die for the sake of His sheep, was greatly pained by the spiritual state of the House of Israel during His earthly ministry regarding them ‘scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd’ (Matthew 9:36), but He, the greatest Shepherd of all made a promise by the mouth of Ezekiel some 500 years before: “Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out….I will feed my flock….I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick…..And I will make with them a covenant of peace….for ye are my flock, the flock of my pasture,  and I am your God…...” (Ezekiel 34:2,4,11,15-16,25,31).

 

And further by the mouth of Jeremiah, a promise more pertinent to us, modern day Israel: “….I will gather the remnant of my flock…and I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord….” (Jeremiah 23:1-6). Today the Master Shepherd watches over His sheep under the watchful eye of the shepherds of His Church. As General Conference draws near, may we, the sheep of His flock, thirst for the green pastures enriched by the words of the shepherds…..

 

Be still my soul

And know that He leads you

By the voice of His heart.

He beckons and He calls

Your spirit to ignite

To truth and godly path.

His love will find you,

He will lead you and save your soul,

He is the Shepherd

Who will answer your call.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Love Everlasting by Yongsung Kim)

ODE TO THE TEN VIRGINS

 

I would gladly give you some oil

Your empty lamp to fill,

If you could glean the sweat

From my furrowed brow

As I worked on the oil press

So diligently until now.

It is no coincidence that the Saviour's relationship with His Church is symbolic of marriage. He is the Bridegroom whose love for His Bride exceeds all other loves because it was sealed with His blood. The question begs to be asked: which one of us does not yearn for the greatest love there is? Which one of us does not want to attend the greatest wedding there will ever be? The time is drawing near and we will not be able to live on borrowed light. 

• CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: The Five Wise Virgins by Greg Collins)

THE COST OF A YOKE

 

When Jesus said those famous words: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matthew 11:28,29), He was in actuality directing this invitation to the Jewish people of His day who were labouring under the heavy yoke of convoluted law of Moses which had morphed into 613 laws of strict observance (See Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p 258-9; Jewish Virtual Library, Judaism:The 613 Mitzvot (Commandments)).

 

So what was the ‘easy’ yoke that Jesus offered to the oppressed who laboured under these overwhelming laws? Quite simply, it was His gospel; the new, easier doctrine fulfilling the law of Moses. Admittedly, it was the higher ground of morality and honest living yet still it offered more spiritual and mental freedom and rest to one’s soul than the yoke that came with 613 burdensome laws. 

 

We, modern day Israel, have two yokes to choose from: the yoke of Christ or the yoke of the world. One is light and easy and comes with restful respite while the other is a relentless yoke of bondage and misery born from sin, worldly pursuits and world’s crippling ideologies. The yoke that the world would put upon our shoulders offers false freedom which lasts

 but a moment and becomes heavier and heavier to bear. It would make of us beasts of burden that the yoke is in reality meant for. It’s a yoke that costs dearly with an ever increasing price. Contrast that with Christ’s invitation to come unto Him and ‘buy milk and honey without money and without price’ (2 Nephi 26:25)……because the price has been paid, the burden made light, the freedom assured. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: The Divine Gardener by Greg Collins)

NURTURED BY HIS WORD

 

Daily I stand in my holy place

As I feast upon Thy holy word,

Ever hopeful I will meet You there;

Thy Spirit to embrace

And the cares of this world to arrest.

I reach for You in darkness

And step up to heaven’s door;

I am bathed in light

And am granted entrance to Your heart.

In studying the New Testament this year, I have become enthralled with Jesus’ fame among the common people during his earthly ministry. His popularity became so great  that wherever He went great multitudes followed and at times so thronged that they impeded  the Saviour’s movements. It often made it impossible for Him to effectively deliver a discourse. Such was their desire to hear the new doctrine and words of eternal life He could give them. The multitudes that pressed upon Him so eagerly made it necessary for the Saviour to preach to them from a ‘small ship’ which was kept in readiness on the beach in Galilee (Mark 3:8,9). 

 

This has made me see how eager we should be to hear the Saviour’s words so readily available to us through the scriptures that sit on our shelves and do not necessitate that we even leave our house let alone sit on the shore of some sea. Yes, listening to the Saviour in person would be the next level of spiritual feasting, as Nephites of old could attest, and this is something to look forward to. However, we are not there yet. When Christ travelled on the road to Emmaus post resurrection, He simply expounded the scriptures which testified of Him (Luke 24:13-32) to two of His travelling companions, after which the two men proclaimed: “Did not our hearts burn within us while he opened to us the scriptures?” (Luke 24:32). As much as it would be wonderful to have Him with us, this for now is the next best thing. 

 

I testify to you that our hearts can burn within us as we study the scriptures.  I testify that He lives and He is all that the scriptures claim Him to be. I pay homage to the Holy Ghost who enlightens my mind and who increases my capacity to understand the words of eternal life and who brings me to the throne of God to reverence Him now and forever. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Nurtured by the Word by Greg Olsen)#

THE LORD'S PRAYER

 

“Our Father who art in heaven. God is our Father, the father of our spirits, we are his children, his offspring, literally. We lived in his presence, dwelt in his courts, and have seen his face. We were as well acquainted with him then as we are with our mortal fathers now. He is a holy man, has a body of flesh and bones, and dwells in a heavenly abode. When we approach his throne in prayer, we think not only that he is the Almighty, by whose word the earth, the sidereal heavens, and the universe came into being, but that he is a gracious and loving Father whose chief interest and concern is his family, and that he wants all his children to love and serve him and to become like him. Perfect prayer manifests our personal relationship to him who hears and answers the petitions of the faithful. 

 

Hallowed be thy name. ‘We approach thee in awe – reverentially – in the spirit of worship and thanksgiving, and we praise thy holy name. Thou art glorious beyond anything we can envision; all that is good we ascribe unto thee, and we desire to consecrate our life and being unto thee, for thou hast made us, and we are thine’.”

(Bruce R McConkie, The Mortal Messiah Book 2, p 148-9)

 

You see me Father, 

Despite heaven’s vast expanse,

You hear the burning beat of my heart

Amidst the numberless host of heaven.

You cherish me, 

More than the stars that encircle Thy throne;

Thy greatness is endless,

Thy power sublime.

In my appointed hour,

Carry me home

In the strength of Thy loving arms.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: The Lord's Prayer by Liz Lemon Swindle)