So, 

Have you seen the new show with Andrew Zimmerman on the Magnolia Network called Family Dinner? It’s kind of a cool show, where Andrew goes and has dinner with families that continue the tradition of at least a weekly family dinner.

In one show he has dinner with the von Trapp family, yes that family, the Sound of Music folks, that escaped Austria during World War II. 

After they escaped, they emigrated to the US, first to Philadelphia where they began touring as the von Trapp family singers, and then moved to Stowe Vermont, a place that must have reminded them of the Austrian Alps.

There on the TV show, Andrew got to cook with them and have dinner at their chalet. They cooked a traditional dinner, and Andrew added his special dish, and can you guess what happened at dinner? 

They talked!

In fact, that is always what happens when friends and family get together around a meal. 

Even when folks who may not agree on too much sit down at a meal, they often talk, share, learn, and often in the process decide to care. 

It is called table fellowship, at least in church circles.

It is in fact one of the things many of us miss most during these days of Covid!

We so much want to sit, and eat, and most importantly share the stories of what is happening in our lives, telling about what we see God doing in our world.

Table fellowship draws together folks from all different walks of life, or at least it should in the church, to talk about our faith, our joys, our concerns, our hopes and dreams for the kingdom of God as we see it right here in this community and in this church.

So, imagine if you will, what would have happened around those clusters of people initially gathered to get their family members or friends healed by Jesus!

Healing was exciting enough. Now Jesus and his disciples were feeding them!

What do you think they would have been talking about? 

The scripture in John’s gospel says that “When Jesus saw the large crowd coming toward him, he asked Philip, ‘Where will we get enough food to feed all these people?’ He said this to test Philip, since he already knew what he was going to do.”

Jesus was planning to feed them. God’s plan has always been to feed us, all of us, and all of them. It is the calling of God’s people to feed anyone in need, or anyone who desires to come, and then to talk.

We don’t have a record of the conversations of those some 5,000 people, though the scriptures say “5,000 men” so maybe there were even more people. But the conversations must have been amazing!

People had to be talking about this Jesus, about his crazy disciples carrying around basket after basket of tuna fish sandwiches, and most importantly I think from Jesus’ point of view, about God’s wonderful provision for his people.

When we choose to feed people, when we choose to talk to people, we create an opening for the Kingdom of God to show through!

Those folks must have talked about faith, about this amazing act of love, about the overwhelming abundance! 

They must have smiled, danced a little, and celebrated the fact that on this day, they had seen God once again in their midst. 

Think about it. 

God had provided not too little, not just enough, but so much that there was twelve baskets of leftovers!

Enough to feed a second whole crowd! A tuna sandwich for you and you and you and everyone, Oprah would have declared. 

Twelve, enough for a basket for each of the tribes of Israel. 

Twelve, so many leftovers that one has to see that God’s provision is always way more than we could ever dream of or ask for!

What do you suppose the disciples would have done with twelve baskets of tuna sandwiches!

Hear the good news: God provides our daily bread.

And that’s what happens when God’s people not only gather to eat, but also to share together, to pray together, to be in community together.

And out of it came a revelation.

“After the people had seen Jesus work this miracle, they began saying, ‘This must be the Prophet who is to come into the world!’”

They, sitting at dinner, had met the Messiah, the Savior of all.

We as God’s people have an opportunity to meet that same Messiah, have that same conversation happen, not only when we meet to eat, as soon as we can safely, but when we feed each person who comes to our food pantry and who receive our backpacks.

I cannot tell you how many people who have receive food from the food pantry have told us how grateful they are and how many see in this church the evidence of God’s love that sustains them in their time of need.

It is the least we can do, we who have been given the responsibility of the twelve full baskets! We are called to feed the world, so that the world can see Jesus.

Come have a seat at the table and let’s talk.

Amen!