My husband, a pastor, has been teaching a Bible study on the “I am” statements of Jesus. In the first lesson, we read chapter 6 in the gospel of John. In this section, Jesus call himself “the bread of life”, a statement that can easily be seen as metaphorical.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and give life to the world.” John 6:32-33
The manna received by the Israelites in the desert was a shadow or prefiguring of what was to come. Those who received the manna eventually died, but those who receive Christ, the bread of life, will live forever. The manna provided physical nourishment — Jesus gives us spiritual nourishment.
Jesus follows this up with an announcement that is startlingly literal and difficult to understand.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life within you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.” John 6:53-55
When I read this, my thoughts immediately go to the sacrament of Holy Communion, but those listening to Jesus had no knowledge of that ritual. What did it mean to them? It sounded crazy! Indeed, many of them went away saying, “…who can listen to it?” John 6:60.
Jesus asked his twelve disciples if they would also leave, and Peter answered
“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. and we have believed and have come to know that you are the Holy One of God.” John 6:68
My point is this — sometimes the path Jesus is calling us to take requires a decision that doesn’t make sense by worldly standards. We may feel puzzled and lack understanding. When that happens, like Peter, we must simply trust in the One who called us, the Bread of Life.
For more posts about the Bible study see:
Behold & Believe by Courtney Doctor and Joanna Kimbrel — Bible Study Review
Lutheran Ladies Connection 
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