A former Baptist's musings on yesterday's Gospel reading (1 yr lectionary)

The confusing thing about growing up Baptist is that you're taught - simultaneously - that Scripture is the ultimate authority, the inerrant Word of God, that it says what it means and it means what it says, and that we should use Scripture to interpret Scripture...
AND
That Baptism is an act of obedience, the water is just a symbol, Jesus drank/turned water into Welch's grape juice, and communion is also just a symbol taken as an act of obedience(I guess?) to remember Jesus' death.

So at some point you find yourself either realizing that it's all true and that Baptism isn't just an act of obedience, the water does what God says it does, that Jesus really did turn water into wine(the devil's juice!!), and He really did give us His body and His blood. Or you decide that none of it is true, because why would it be?

But even if you do realize that it's all true, "the moral of the stories" you learned as a kid on a felt board in summertime VBS still kinda linger in the background. Such was the case of John 6, for this former Baptist.

The One-Year Lectionary calls for the OT reading of Exodus 16:2 - 21 (God feeds the Israelites with manna from heaven) and the Gospel reading of John 6:1 - 15 (Jesus feeds the multitude with five loaves and two fish).

John 6:11 says,

"Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted."

Ah, wait. Those words sound familiar.

"And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, 'This is my body, which is given for you...'"

Ah ha! It dawned on me. This account in John 6 wasn't just a random miracle Jesus performed for funsies. I know I was taught that there were "multiple lessons" we can take from this account... that the little boy was selfless and obedient so we should be like the little boy with his lunch and give me, that Philip was skeptical and lacking in faith so we should believe God more, that the crowd wanted to make Jesus King only because He gave them stuff so we shouldn't be like the crowd and we should love Jesus even when He doesn't give us stuff... blah blah blah.

But I was never told that it was as simple as:

God fed the Israelites with manna. He gave them as much as they needed; they ate their fill.

Jesus fed the crowd with bread and fish. He gave them as much as they needed; they ate their fill.

Jesus told us that "this [bread] is my body, this cup my blood," and that He gives us as much as we need so that we are filled.

Instead of a sermon filled with "need to do's" I heard a sermon filled with "what God has done."
(Yet, according to my Baptist mother, Lutherans rely on their works to get to heaven... 💁🏼‍♀️)