John 6:53 (The Message)
53-58But Jesus didn't give an inch. "Only insofar as you eat and drink flesh and blood, the flesh and blood of the Son of Man, do you have life within you. The one who brings a hearty appetite to this eating and drinking has eternal life and will be fit and ready for the Final Day. My flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. By eating my flesh and drinking my blood you enter into me and I into you. In the same way that the fully alive Father sent me here and I live because of him, so the one who makes a meal of me lives because of me. This is the Bread from heaven. Your ancestors ate bread and later died. Whoever eats this Bread will live always."
Jesus does not speak of eating bread as was done by the Israelites in the wilderness. Though it fell from heaven, the bread that was picked up off the ground offered only temporary life. He likens the acceptance of Who He is and His Words to eating and drinking, fully ingesting into our lives His life and the life of the Father. This Bread fell to earth, but rose by the power of God. He is poured out for us. Come eat and drink.
2 comments:
This passage would seem to say that Communion/the Eucharist is a necessary condition for salvation. But you say it's figurative of accepting Jesus' message--sort of like ingesting the Word. The statement was made long before the Last Supper, of course. Wonder how often it's been used to prove the necessity of having clergy and going to church?
I think clergy is a tradition of men. I see no reason why you or I can't serve communion. God dwells within each believer and as such we all serve the Lord. Church is for me the body of Christ, the fellowship of believers. That is manifest wherever two or more gather. It can even happen in a church building, just as it is possible for it not to happen in a church building.
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