Chosen, Blessed, Broken

 

The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

—1 Corinthians 11:23-24

Usually, we throw things away that get broken. A broken pitcher doesn’t seem much use to us. Yet, in Scripture, we find examples of the way God breaks things in order to use them.

Jesus praised Mary of Bethany, who just before the Romans arrested Him, anointed Him with perfume. Previous to this, Mary had known His blessing and we read about this response in Mark 14:3-9:

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head… Jesus said, “Leave her alone… she did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.

Then, at the Last Supper, Jesus gave a powerful illustration of His coming sacrifice when He chose the bread, broke it, blessed it and gave it to His disciples. Henri J. M. Nouwen writes:¹

He summarized in these gestures his own life. Jesus is chosen from all eternity, blessed at his baptism in the Jordan River, broken on the cross, and given as bread to the world. Being chosen, blessed, broken, and given is the sacred journey of the Son of God, Jesus the Christ.

When we take bread, bless it, break it, and give it with the words, “This is the Body of Christ,” we express our commitment to make our lives conform to the life of Christ. We too want to live as people chosen, blessed, and broken and thus become food for the world.

We must realize that to be truly used by God, we must, like He did, go through the breaking process. He will bless us and give us to others, expanding our small supply like He did the bread in the boy’s lunch (John 6: 1-15).

During this Lenten season, may the bread and cup taken during our Holy Communion services remind us not only of Christ’s sacrifice for us, but for His intention for us to be given to others in His name.

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1 Quotation by Henri J. M. Nouwen from Bread for the Journey appearing in Rueben P. Job and Norman Shawchuck. A Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God. Nashville: Upper Room Books, 2003. p. 294.