John vi. 48, we find the words of the Lord, “I am the bread of life.”
The Lord adds the remark to the Jews, “Your fathers did eat manna in
the wilderness, and are dead.” It had no power to perpetuate life
only for a short time; but he continues, verse 50, “This is the bread
which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof and not die.”
It will be noticed that _his flesh_ did not come down from heaven,
and that bread which came down from heaven is that of which if a man
shall eat he shall not die. Then he follows with the remark, “I am the
living bread which came down from heaven. If any man eat of this bread”
(which came down from heaven) “he shall live forever; and the bread
that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the
world.” Here he uses the _flesh_, as that which they saw and dealt with
in crucifying him metonymically, or a part for the whole. The Jews,
however, understood him to mean his flesh literally, and so does the
Romish church, and the Jews inquired, “How can this man give us his
flesh to eat?” The Lord did not explain the matter to them, but added,
verse 56, “Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his
blood, you have no life in you.”
They were looking at it in the literal sense, and did not see how they
could eat his flesh, or how the eating of it could give life. The
doctrine of transubstantiation had not yet been born, and the idea of
the bread and wine being changed, in the ceremony of consecration,
into the _real flesh_ and _blood_, so that they could eat the flesh
and drink his blood in the communion, had not yet entered into the
minds of men. Nor did our Lord mean any such thing, but _he himself_,
who came down from heaven, is that bread of life which if a man shall
eat he shall never die. But the _eating_ is not literal, any more than
the _bread_ is literal or the flesh. We partake of that bread, or of
him who came down from heaven by hearing of him, believing on him, and
being united with him. In becoming his disciples, learning of him and
following him in all things, we eat or partake of that bread, or of him
who is the way, and the truth and the life.
He proceeds, “He who eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, has eternal
life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” See verse 54. He who
believes on him, receives him, follows him, loves him and obeys him,
in the sense he intended, eats his flesh and drinks his blood; but not
in the communion any more than in the other parts of his teaching, or
other appointments. In coming to Christ, and becoming his disciples, we
are made partakers of him, of “the divine nature,” and our salvation
is in him. “My flesh is food indeed,” says he, “and my blood is drink
indeed. He who eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, dwells in me, and I
in him.” Following him a little further on, verse 57, he says, “As the
living Father has sent me, and I live by the Father, so he that eats
_me_, even he shall live by me. This is the bread that came down from
heaven; not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead; he who eats
this bread shall live forever.” See verse 58. The eating is partaking
of Christ, the bread that came down from heaven; this is done by faith,
in receiving, following and obeying him; doing his commandments, that
we may enter by the gates into the city, and have a right to the tree
of life.