How Do We Eat And Drink the Body and Blood of Jesus?

How Do We Eat And Drink The Body And Blood Of Jesus?

Dear Mr. John:
Coming from a Catholic background, I still have trouble understanding Jesus' words about eating his flesh and drinking his blood. Can you explain this for me?
-Cyrus

Dear Cyrus:
Just as our bodies need physical nourishment, so our inner man needs nourishment suitable for its health and growth.

The God of all provisions supplies this need for us. Jesus told his disciples, "Very, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of th Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in yourselves. ...For my flesh is meat (food) indeed, and my blood is drink indeed." (John 6:53-54). These mysterious words are commonly misunderstood. But the Lord himself explains his meaning later in verse 63. "It is the spirit that gives life: the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." It is the teaching of the Master that nourishes our souls. To grow strong in the faith we must "long for the spiritual milk which is without guile, that (we) may grow thereby unto salvation." When we assemble for worship, we feed on the teaching of Christ. Failure to note verse 63 leads folks to confusion as to the meaning of the verse, or worse into the error of Catholicism which claims they actually eat the flesh and blood of Jesus in their mass.

Sincerely,

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