 |
 |
||||
Did they ask themselves how Jesus would be able to raise them on the last day if they killed Him by eating His flesh and drinking His
blood? They should have understood that Jesus was not speaking literally. He was offering them eternal life - a spiritual relationship unlike anything they understood, Jesus
still offers the same today.
Some have misunderstood Jesus’ words. Some teach that Jesus was talking
about actually eating His flesh and drinking His blood. Those who believe
that Jesus is talking about eating His flesh and drinking His blood use the
following passage of Matt. 26:26.
While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Matt 26:26 (NAS95S) They claim that during the Lord’s Supper or communion, the bread
and wine become Jesus’ flesh and blood after they enter their stomach.
Unfortunately, John 6:52 is not talking about communion. Jesus did not
institute the Lord’s Supper or communion until the last week of
His life. Also, the Greek word that Jesus used for “flesh” here
in John 6 is SARX and the Greek word SOMA is used for “body” in
Matt. 26:26. SOMA means “body” and SARX refers to flesh.
That means that Matt. 26:26 is dealing with a different issue. So Jesus
was not teaching the religious leaders about communion. Why would He
anyway? They were not His followers.
Bread From Heaven. Next, Jesus must have pointed to Himself when He said,
This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever. John 6:58 (NAS95S) The Israelites who lived and walked in the desert had desperately wanted the manna that God dropped from the sky in the wilderness day after day. It temporarily
satisfied. It was life. Some of them even tried to horde it. The manna was essential for earthly, physical life and God provided fresh manna every day. It was God’s gift.
It was bland, unappealing bread, but it was their bread for daily life. When Jesus pointed to Himself and declared that He had come down from heaven, He was making an awesome
statement.
These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum. John 6:59 (NAS95S) Conclusion. Jesus was the real spiritual bread. He was and is better than ciabatta, challah, cranberry, focaccia, french, multi-grain, parisienne, oatmeal, rosemary, rye, or
walnut bread! Jesus is the best bread. When you trust Him to forgive your sins, you will spiritually “eat” Him, or take Him into your life and you will have eternal
life forever. You will not want to spread butter, honey, jam, jelly, or peanut butter on this bread.
Is there is an empty feeling inside? I do not mean that your stomach
is hungry. I am talking about spiritual emptiness. No one will eat
this bread unless he or she is spiritually hungry. Jesus said that
He is the Bread of Life. He will satisfy you completely. This bread
is symbolic of believing, trusting, relying, and depending on Jesus
to forgive your sins. We eat this bread when we repent of our sins
and trust God to forgive our sins. Then we gain eternal life. That
was Jesus’ promise.
For God so loved the world, that He gave His conly begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16 (NAS95S) For a discussion about man’s choice and God’s choice in salvation, please read “Predestination and Free Will.”
Sign-up to be notified about future studies?
|
|||||
|
|||||
| Life & Heart of Jesus | |||||
