"Whoever Feeds On My Flesh" — John 6:50-56
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Eating the body and drinking the blood of Christ is a powerful image we find in Scripture. In John 6:50-56, Jesus proclaims:
“This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in 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. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.”
We know that Jesus’ body is no longer physically on this earth; he is in heaven, with a real glorified human body. Is Jesus referring to the Lord’s Supper here? How do we make sense of this statement?
What does it mean to eat the crucified body of Christ and to drink his shed blood?
The Heidelberg Catechism, first published in 1563, is a highly regarded summary of the Christian faith and has the following to say about Jesus’ words in John 6:
Q. What does it mean to eat the crucified body of Christ and to drink his shed blood?
A. First, to accept with a believing heart all the suffering and the death of Christ, and so receive forgiveness of sins and life eternal. Second, to be united more and more to his sacred body through the Holy Spirit, who lives both in Christ and in us. Therefore, although Christ is in heaven and we are on earth, yet we are flesh of his flesh and bone of his bones, and we forever live and are governed by one Spirit, as the members of our body are by one soul. (Heidelberg Catechism, Q & A 76)
Believers are connected to Christ by the Holy Spirit in a real, spiritual way.
This eating and drinking to which Jesus is referring in the above Bible passage have to do with spiritual realities in a believer’s life. These verses are about having faith in Christ, believing that he suffered and died for you for the forgiveness of your sins. They are about how the Holy Spirit brings you into a closer relationship with Christ and his people. Believers are connected to Christ by the Holy Spirit in a real, spiritual way, so much so that we are called Christ’s very own body and we are governed by the Spirit.
We look to Christ by faith as we partake of the Lord’s Supper.
Jesus has left us tangible, visible, and real means of growing closer to himself and to each other. The Lord’s Supper is not magical—simply eating it does not make one closer to God. Rather, it is a means of grace from which we benefit as we look to Christ by faith, and the Holy Spirit applies to us the blessings of this Supper as we trust Jesus. Rejoice that Christ himself invites you to feast upon himself—the only source of our eternal life and joy.
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