The Bread Of Life Part 2
Eternity Online: John Edmiston (Editor)
(John 6:41-52 NKJV) The Jews then complained about Him, because He
said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven." {42} And they
said, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother
we know? How is it then that He says, 'I have come down from heaven'?"
{43} Jesus therefore answered and said to them, "Do not murmur among
yourselves. {44} "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me
draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. {45} "It is
written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.'
Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to
Me. {46} "Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from
God; He has seen the Father. {47} "Most assuredly, I say to you, he
who believes in Me has everlasting life. {48} "I am the bread of life.
{49} "Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. {50}
"This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of
it and not die. {51} "I am the living bread which came down from
heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the
bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life
of the world." {52} The Jews therefore quarrelled among themselves,
saying, "How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?"
Literal minded people have always had trouble with the sayings of
Jesus. This is no exception. At this distance Jesus seems quite
obvious - He is stating that: "{47} "Most assuredly, I say to you,
he who believes in Me has everlasting life.". The bread analogy says
that the way we believe is to be a partaking - an "eating" , a
taking within and making part of us , a nourishing of ourselves on
Christ. The Jews saw Him as saying that they had to literally had to
eat his body and drink His blood. They were searching for an
argument so Jesus obliged them! He does not bother to clarify the
situation but makes it worse in the following verses...(John 6:54-56
NKJV) "Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life,
and I will raise him up at the last day. {55} "For My flesh is food
indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. {56} "He who eats My flesh and
drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.
These verses have been taken by some to imply that unless people
participate in the Lord's Supper/Communion/Mass they cannot be saved.
There is no implication of this elsewhere in Scripture. To see these
verses as referring to a practice that was not yet established (and
would not be established for another year or so it seems - this
passage is generally assigned to the middle of Jesus ministry) is
erroneous and falls into the trap of literalism that the Jews fell
into. Lets try and sort this out.
There are two "pathways" to eternal life mentioned here....
1. (John 6:54 NKJV) "Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has
eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
2. {John 6:47 NKJV} "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes
in Me has everlasting life.
These are to my mind parallel statements. Throughout the rest of
Scripture faith leads to salvation. This is the main statement. It
is confirmed and clear. It is generally best to interpret unclear
statements in the light of clear statements. Therefore what Jesus is
saying is that we must believe in Him for eternal life - the whole
message of John's gospel. What then has the unclear, mysterious
"eating" and "drinking" got to do with it? It is showing that a
different style of faith is needed in the Kingdom. The Jews were
used to creedal faith and reciting the "Shema" "Hear O Israel the
Lord your God is one God..etc". It was a participation in a revelation
carved on stone and contained in books and scrolls. For most Jews it
was faith in history, tradition, laws and a system that came down
from God. It left the worshipper empty and unfulfilled and did not
deal with the consciousness of sin. (Hebrews 10:1,2) It was not a
personal participation in the life of Christ. Christian faith is
different - Jesus is living and our faith is a living faith not a
creedal faith. Our faith is a participation in His life not the
recitation of a creed. Our faith "fills us up" with the love and life
of Christ so that we hunger and thirst no more. Christian faith is
analogous to "eating" and "drinking" the life of Christ poured out
for us - by faith, not literally in a ceremony but by relationship
with Him as born again children of God. (John 3:1-18)
Have you grasped this born again faith so that you can say that you
hunger and thirst no more and that Christ abides in you? Can you say
that the love of God has been poured out in your heart? (Romans
5:1-5). If not I ask you to pray the following prayer and to ask
Jesus - in the fulness of His life, to come and dwell in you.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, I want to stop hungering and thirsting and instead I want
to be filled - filled with You and Your life. I want to have a living
faith and to be born again to a living hope. I want to rejoice in
You and know Your love poured out in my heart each day. I want to
have a participating faith not just a creedal faith, a faith of my
whole life and heart and not just my head. I put aside my pride, my
doubt and my unbelief and ask for Your forgiveness. O Lord help me to
believe in You and know Your life in me. Amen.
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John Edmiston ([email protected])
Editor - Eternity Online Magazine http://www.eternity-magazine.org/
Cults, exegesis, bible teaching, Christian life and leadership.
For the thinking Christian!