Yes, we left off reading in the middle of a paragraph a couple weeks ago. Jesus said so many profound things in this teaching, we can’t comprehend all at once, no matter where we start or stop reading. As Jesus said earlier in his ministry, every word [sentence, verse] that comes from the mouth of God is life sustaining (Matthew 4:4). 
Read John 6:47-51.
- Jesus, the Amen, Truth itself, said those who believe have eternal life.
- Jesus’ next words describe how to receive this everlasting life.
- He himself is the bread of life.
- “Jesus Himself is the principle of life and nutrition to the regenerated soul.”1
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26).
- As God’s manna in the desert kept the Israelites alive, so the Father’s bread from heaven provides eternal life.
- This bread from heaven is “divine, spiritual nourishment presented as the life and soul of Christians in the person of the Son of God.”2
- Jesus offers this bread, his life, for all of us.
- He chose to give up his life and deliver it to another.3
- The image that comes to mind is a reversal of the scapegoat who took away the Israelites’ sin.
“But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat” (Leviticus 16:10).
*What is the connection between Jesus as the bread of life and the new heart God has promised his people?
Read John 6:52-59.
- And the Jews questioned him, based on a literal interpretation of flesh as the physical part of man.
- How can we eat his flesh? They knew God’s law was against human sacrifice.
“You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods” (Deuteronomy 12:31).
- Jesus said we must partake of his sacrifice (flesh) and life (blood) to truly receive life.
- Zodhiates said this means to “spiritually … feed by faith and be sustained in a spiritual and eternal life.”4
“Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:12).
- The blood shed from the wound in Jesus’ side proved his death, and we must accept Christ’s blood for our atonement.5
“For the wages of sin is death,” (Romans 6:23) and “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22).
- This is not merely passive, it is an act of drinking.6
“… The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
- Here, those who abide in Jesus “remain united with him, one with him in heart, mind, and will.”7
- Jesus taught his disciples about remaining in him in more detail before his crucifixion, perhaps to feed, water, and nourish their souls before the pruning that would soon take place.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned” (John 15:5-6).
- Those who receive spiritual nourishment from Jesus will live with
- Jesus is the true bread that came down from heaven.
- He is food for our soul.8
*What does it mean to partake of Jesus’ flesh and drink his blood?
*What is the relationship between eating the bread of life and remaining in Jesus?
*How have you experienced Jesus as nourishment for your soul?
As we’ve spent more than one week pondering Jesus’ teaching, so too those who heard Jesus in person struggled. Next week we’ll read more about how the disciples responded.
- Spiros Zodhiates Th.D., The Complete Word Study Dictionary New Testament (AMG Publishers, 1992), 1280.
- Zodhiates, 259.
- Zodhiates, 453.
- Zodhiates, 1434.
- Zodhiates, 92.
- Zodhiates, 1203.
- Zodhiates, 960.
- Zodhiates, 350.
Even being a serious student of the word for all these years, I have still been “stopped” by Jesus’s words in this chapter. He insisted we must “eat” his flesh, “drink” his blood. This literal interpretation is, I assume, where Catholics get their view of transubstantiation in communion. I appreciate your pointing out that the Jews would have known He couldn’t possibly have meant a literal eating of his flesh, due to God’s forbidding such things in the OT. Thanks!
Thanks for reading, pondering, and commenting!