Breaking the Word

 …Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever." These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. (Jn 6:52-59)

It is shocking to hear from a Jew (Jesus) talking about drinking blood. One of the rules about food and drink is that blood should be absolutely avoided. (Lev 17, 10-14) This was very strictly followed.

We read in 2 Sam 23, 17 as follows: "The LORD forbid that I do this! Can I drink the blood of these men who went at the risk of their lives?" This means that David did not want to profit from their readiness to put their lives on the line for him. This could give us a clue to understand the meaning of ‘drinking blood’. It is to profit from what one is doing.

So Jesus says that if you want to profit from what I am doing by saying you must eat ‘my flesh’ and ‘drink my blood’. So those who eat and drink the body and blood of Jesus are not cannibals or they break the Jewish law on food. In stead, as in the story of David, Jesus will put his own life at risk, indeed, he will lose his life and his followers will profit from his death.

One can spiritualize the language of eating and drinking as to mean a non-physical event, of meditation, celebration. These are important. All what we say should be understood in line with that of Paul in 1 Cor 10 &11. It should include actual physical eating and drinking. In verses 54-58 the word for ‘eat’ is a very solidly physical one. It means to ‘munch’ or ‘chew’. Those who eat and drink the body and blood of Jesus are the people of true exodus. They benefit eternal life in the present and the future and are raised up on the last day. 

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets: 'They shall all be taught by God.' Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world."  (Jn 6:44-51)

‘They shall all be taught by God’ seems to be a very strong statement made by Jesus. But it is a sure statement. God does not use any human means to teach the people. God enters into the people directly.

The teaching of the Father has only one goal. It leads the people to Jesus. All the scriptures and teachings are pointing to Jesus. Jesus is the  revelation of the Father.  Since people cannot have a direct access to the Father they have to go through Jesus because Jesus has come down from the Father.

Again Jesus speaks about eternal life and this life is a gift given to the people who have faith in Jesus. Jesus affirms that he is the bread of life that sustains the people for eternal life.

So the Father leads people to the son (Jesus) and the son offers eternal life to the believers and this is done through his body which is the bread of life.