Daily Lectionary Reading
John 6:52-59
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
52Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
53Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. 57Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
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Once again, they are thinking physically. He wants us to become cannibals! How can he let us eat his flesh!
Jesus is thinking spiritually. His body and blood are symbols of something greater that God is doing. God is offering his children a food to satisfy their spiritual hunger and desire.
As a pastor, I am keenly aware of the Communion wars that can sometimes arise within a church. Some folks wonder why we have it so often. Some folks wonders why we don’t have it more often. Some folks simply don’t attend on the Sundays that it is offered. Most folks don’t understand the sacramental nature of the meal.
I have tried to convey the sense of holiness associated with Communion. I have tried to show the importance of regularly receiving “The Body and Blood of Christ.” I sometimes wonder, though, if my words ever get past the physical sensibilities of the congregation and strike a chord with their spirits.
For me, there is nothing that equates with the taking of the communion elements and the grace that they impart to my life.
What about you? What does Holy Communion mean to you? What is it’s role in your spiritual journey?
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Prayer: Lord, help us to be nurtured through communion as we receive your grace into our lives.
Praise God for a spiritual understanding of the Lord’s Supper. Jesus said in John 6:63, “The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”
May I suggest that his disciples did not leave after he spoke of feeding on his body (Verses 53-58) it was after he spoke about the spiritual truth (Verse 63). They didn’t have a problem with the physical. They had a problem with the spiritual truth.
I have several of questions.
What spiritual meaning were you trying to expressing (I may be one of those who don’t understand)?
Since the words Jesus spoke in John 6:22-71 were spirit in what verse do we see or hear that spiritual truth?
What spiritual food satisfies our spiritual hunger?