To Be Full- Homily on John 4: Robert Dixon

“Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” So the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.” - John 4: 31-38

I love food. Those of you who know me well will know that is a true statement. With that being said, it is really easy for me to relate to the disciples in this passage. I know on multiple occasions I have asked people when was the last time they had eaten with their well being in mind, and any answer other than earlier today was unacceptable. If someone were to give me the original  answer that Jesus gave his disciples: “I have food to eat that you know nothing about,”  I would think it was pretty shady or respectable depending on what food they were hiding. It reminds me of stashing the last cookie in the sugar jar or some other hiding place ensuring no one would find it. I cannot speak for the disciples, but if I had been there I would not have been prepared for Jesus’ second response. “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” One sentiment I have expressed many times in my life is that when I work or do something for someone else, such as working on a mission, it hardly feels like work. I always feel refreshed and happy afterwards. What I just now realized 22 years into my life is that in those moments, I feel that way because I am full. When I know I am serving the Lord, and I believe that I am doing what he wills for me, I am being fed. Every time I get to help with our Laid Back Lunch making food for other folks, I am eating the food that the Lord is providing me at the same time. However, I still get spiritually hungry- sometimes I am starving- and I think the reason why is found in the last part of Jesus’ sentence. Jesus was sent to finish his work. When I read “finish”, I couldn’t help but think of later in John 19 when Jesus says “It is finished.” Jesus serves the Lord and finishes the work that had been started. Jesus remains full. The reason I continue to become hungry is because the work God wants me to do is far from finished. Personally, staying hungry to do what the Lord wills is more relatable to me than staying on fire for the Lord. 

The passage then sets our eyes on the fields. Serving on this year’s Discipleship Team has been a lot of fun, and I believe it is also an experience that matches this passage well. This also reinforces the way I believe I should feel about asking folks to work for the Lord. Every time I give someone the opportunity to serve at The Wesley, I am inviting them to the table where I myself am being fed. On the flip side of that, any time I don’t ask someone to help serve because they are busy or because I don’t know them well, I am essentially stashing that cookie in the sugar jar and not giving them the chance to eat it. It's very easy to say everyone should eat everyday and that it should take priority over things such as homework or studying. As a Christian, to be faithful I should behave the same way with regards to serving the Lord. It is best for you, it will sustain you, and it should take priority in your life. I can see this in the way the interns my junior year consistently gave me opportunities to serve at The Wesley, and how taking them up on those opportunities has changed my life for the better. Despite all the effort that they put in last year, I know they were not able to see all the fruits that have come about this year as a result of their labor. Those of us on Discipleship Team have certainly been reaping what those before us have sown. The work that the people before us have done is allowing us to do the work we are today. I also assume we will not reap all that we are sowing now, and it will be the folks that come after us that will. To finish up I have a few questions for everyone: When was the last time that you had something to eat? When was the last time that you did something to serve the Lord? Are you full?

Robert Dixon (pictured here with girlfriend and former intern Bekah Beck) is a senior civil engineering student at Louisiana Tech, a member of this year’s Wesley Discipleship Team, and someone dear to our hearts. When not studying for class, you can find him listening to country music, playing guitar, fishing, hunting, and enjoying nature. He has a servant’s heart and a passion for competing with the interns and other students to take out the trash.