Shippensburg First Church Of God Blog Site: Please pass the bread

Sunday is Coming!

This email is coming a day early, since tomorrow we may all be gathering around tables with some family and friends where there will certainly be a variety of food. One item that is probably going to be included in some form is bread. Whether rolls, loaves, sliced, or ripped up into stuffing, bread is a humble addition to any meal.

Bread itself is nothing flashy or special. Even though in our day and age, bread can be all fancy and artisan, in the time of the Bible and in many places throughout the world still, bread is simple and cheap and easy for people to make. It is the food of the common people… not exactly kingly.

Bread itself has a long Biblical history as well:

-Unleavened Bread was associated with the Passover and bread is prominent in other feasts in the Hebrew calendar.

-The miraculous Manna bread was a part of the wilderness wanderings after the Exodus.

-Famine--the lack of bread--was a frequent threat throughout the ages for the people of God, and often the cause of migrations and in the background driving the events of the stories of people like Abram and Sarai, or Ruth and Naomi.

-And for many of the Prophets, Bread became a symbol of life that is freely given without exploitation:

Isaiah 55:1-2 “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!

Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. 2 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.”

As we turn our attention from Thanksgiving to Christmas this weekend, consider the setting for the Nativity: Bethlehem.

Bethlehem is at the heart of the Christmas Story, but do you know the name “Bethlehem” means? It means “House of Bread.”

This Advent season, we will “journey to Bethlehem” as we consider several beautiful stories that have connections to that “Little Town,” and we will consider how the Good News of Jesus is transforming our own “little town” of Shippensburg as well!

“The House of Bread” was not just the location of Jesus’ Birth, but also the historical setting for a few other significant events in the Bible which we will study together. And hundreds of years before Jesus and that First Christmas, the prophet Micah said, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” --Micah 5:2

In Matthew’s Gospel, this is the passage of Scripture referenced when the Magi came looking for a newborn king. They expected to find the King born in Jerusalem, the famous capital city, but the scriptures directed them to a tiny little town about 5 miles south, out in the countryside. Other than the tomb of Rachel, a revered matriarch from the days of Genesis, there wasn’t much there.

This reminds me of an important Biblical Truth—God has always displayed His own Greatness by including the weak and the small things of this world to fulfill His Great purposes! (1 Corinthians 1:26-31)

It is so fitting that Jesus, the little baby born in a humble stable in “Breadtown,” grew to become the teacher and savior who says, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” --John 6:35

Are you hungry or thirsting for something today? Jesus is the bread of life that satisfies!

As we partake of our meals tomorrow in whatever form they take, let us remember that the true source of sustenance for which we all give thanks is Jesus, the Bread of Life!

Upcoming Events & Opportunities

There will be no Community Night events tonight Wednesday, November 22.
GriefShare’s “Surviving the Holidays” will be held in the Annex on Monday, December 4 at 6:00-8:00
On Wednesday December 6th we will have our annual “Service from the Heart” during Community Night. This is a fun night of testimonies & talents. Our children and youth will share some things that they have learned, and we would like to invite people of all ages to consider participating on this evening as well.

àIf you have a story, a song, or something else that you would like to share, please contact Pastor Rodney by November 26.

Christmas Celebrations and Giving Opportunities

Our annual Christmas Market will be held on December 2 from 4:00-9:00 in connection with the Shippensburg Christmas Parade. The Christmas Market will happen at the Annex before and after the Shippensburg Christmas Parade. Stop by for cookies, craft vendors, food trucks, and fellowship with our church family and community neighbors!

We will be in need of people willing to donate cookies to share with our neighbors at the Christmas Market! There will be signup sheets in Sunday School classrooms and around the building. More details regarding when and where to deliver them and how they need to be packaged will be forthcoming.

The Circle of Love ministry will be collecting some special items for families with needs this holiday season, including Giving Tree items and certain Paper Products. See the Gathering Place for more information.