with pie both shepherd's and apple. Perhaps we should also consider Pi - just why did God not make it an exact number like 3. Why is it such an odd thing? This may lead us to consider just why the world seems such an odd place and yet at the same time just right for us.
One of the most memorable occasions concerning food contained in the Old Testament is that of Belshazzar's feast recorded in the book of Daniel. Here is a meal that is completely earth bound. The company praise the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, whilst ignoring the creator who had provided all that they were sharing. God intervenes with the message that their days and the days of their kingdom are numbered. The connection between God and the table are literally writ large in this event. The table is the Lord's and he expects a place to kept for him.
Moses could in some way be regarded as the provider of fast food. The passover meal was cooked and served with the people standing and in their outdoor clothes because they had to be ready to leave as soon as God gave the word. Obviously the the golden arches originally stood for Moses not McDonald's.
"There is something fundamentally religious in celebrating a festival, because it gives an opportunity to rejoice in the bountiful gifts of God, which we find not only in food but also in relationships, leisure, games and relaxation. These pleasures are also fundamentally human, so it is no surprise that festivals involve eating and drinking. We are built to want to give thanks and we are built to socialize of course, we need to eat. So whether we are feasting at God in the presence of Christ or simply dining at home, let us remember God's gifts, his generosity to us, not only in food and drink but in Jesus Christ."
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.'
This passage (Genesis 2) is not only about sin it about food. The question of choice - what to eat or what not to eat arises. In many ways we have taken for granted that God has the right to decide this issue for us. However in this supermarket age it has become more difficult for people to accept. Today we have so much choice that we over eat. Overeating is a form of disobedience and a rejection of our natural limitations - a form of slow suicide which rejects our accountability to God.
The link between Adam, Jesus and food is quite strong. Adam gives in to the eating of an apple, whereas Jesus resists the offer of bread making. Jesus says that he is the 'Bread of Life' and when Satan tempts him, it is to externalise that which he in his very being. It is almost a caricature of himself.
