Eating the Flesh and Blood of the Son of Man

Jesus had a great way of separating true followers from those who would follow for the sake of their own personal gain. He used vivid images that tested ones open mindedness before he took any as a disciple. To follow Christ was not an easy task for his mission on earth was a struggle.

Here we will look at the brilliant way he separated the wheat from the chaff of the crowds that gathered round him...

26Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. 27Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.

Here Jesus has attracted thousands of followers because he offered limitless amounts of food to those who had none. These men and women gathered round him after the miracle of the loves and fishes, they came to be fed, not to be followers. So, Christ sets the stage. He points out the flaws in them gathering for food, when the real gift he was offering was for the spirit. Those who would follow him he expected to labour not for their flesh, but for their spirit, the flesh which has everlasting life.

28Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 29Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. 30They said therefore unto him, What sign shewest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work? 31Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat. 32Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 34Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.

The Jews at this time were proud to have eaten manna in the desert, which they attributed to a wonder performed by Moses. Christ corrects them and teaches them that Moses did not give them manna, but rather God gave the manna that they ate. This is a forewarning to his followers not to attribute great works to Man, but to the father who gives life to all. It is always him working through man that accomplishes great and wonderful things. Here he gives the first slice of bread to the eternal soul within us, and they beg for more.

35And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. 36But I said unto you, That ye also have seen me, and believe not. 37All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 38For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 39And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. 40And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

Christ points to himself and says "I am the bread of life!" He is not talking about himself, Jesus, but the spirit within him. He is speaking for that eternal spirit within us all. So to will that spirit within us decide who will follow Christ and who will reject him. It is that internal spirit of life that guides us and moves us through this world in all that we do. Thus, Christ accepts who will come, rejecting none. Those who believe what Christ says have everlasting life, for they are taught of the spirit within us all which is eternal.

41The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am the bread which came down from heaven. 42And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?

Some of the Jews gathered there could not understand the message because they were judging with their eyes, not the spirit within them. They knew this Jesus all his life, how can he now say he came down from heaven? They are not catching that he is talking about that eternal spirit that animates us all, that divine consciousness, God.

43Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, Murmur not among yourselves. 44No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. 45It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God.

Christ tells them to not murmur about the issue. Those who are meant to understand, will, and will come to Jesus to learn the ways of the spirit within. This is how the prophets wrote about it. It is a necessary step of fulfilling prophecy. So don't discuss the matter, just listen. Those who are meant to follow, will. Those who are not, won't. Everything is in divine order.

Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me. 46Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.

If you know what God is, you would not question what Christ is saying. It is only logical. If you know God is the Omnibenevolent, Omnipotent, Omnipresent, Omnipotent spirit of all, then logically that spirit is within us all. If one speaks of love and claims to speak as God, then they are speaking of God within themselves. If you know this, then you see God in all others. Namaste?

47Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. 48I am that bread of life. 49Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. 51I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.

So, if you believe what Christ is saying, then you know you have everlasting life. You know you are at your very being, that same spirit that is within all. You KNOW. If you do not know, well Christ is teaching you here, he is speaking to that divine within you. If you hear it and understand, now you KNOW.

52The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? 53Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 54Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. 57As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. 58This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

Here Christ really gets into seperating those who know God, from those who are still lost. If you KNOW God, you will EAT Christ's flesh and DRINK his blood. Is this literal? Nope. It is a fine test of faith though.

59These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum. 60Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?

And those who have no understanding of God reveal themselves. Can you believe this mad man actually wants us to eat and drink his blood?

61When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you? 62What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before? 63It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. 64But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. 65And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

So Jesus calls the unbelievers on it. Would you believe me if I performed a miracle? Would you believe me if I went up to Heaven right now? Look, it is the SPIRIT I am talking about, not the flesh.

Oh well, if the father wanted you to believe, you would. No worries. Those who are MEANT to know and believe WILL. For the father is within us all and it is HIS will we perform.

66From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. 67Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? 68Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. 69And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God. 70Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? 71He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.

So out of the thousands that gathered before Christ, twelve remained to be his disciples. Twelve were lead by the spirit within them to follow him. Of that twelve, one he knew would betray him. Christ accepted them all.

How many today are true followers of Christ? How many judge none for they know all do and act according to the divine spirit within them? How many have such trust in God that all is according to his divine order? How many believe in the spirit and not concern themselves with the issues of the flesh?

Would you follow a Man who asked you to eat his flesh and drink his blood?
Do you see God within all?

With Love,

Your Brother

Bravo my friend...

Blessed are those that understand wtf you're trying to say.... haha!!

*applauds*

Originally posted by Akragon
Bravo my friend...

Blessed are those that understand wtf you're trying to say.... haha!!

*applauds*

edit on 23-4-2011 by Akragon because: Pardon my crudeness but it had to be said...

Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto this page and understand, except it were given unto him of my Father.

No worries my friend. Those who are meant to understand, will. Blessed are you for your understanding!



With Love,

Your Brother

Why would I have to go through Jesus to get this info? I found out through other things and meditation.

I must say to you, that I have seen some of your threads and posts in the past, and I have even had direct post to posts with you. There are many that misuse the words of the bible, or just quote scripture without having the ability to take it to the heart, and to have a good understanding of what was written.

Though I am agnostic, you are an extraordinary person when it comes to what you speak of. When I read your threads/posts, I dont feel preached to, but I see you trying to share your understanding. and I feel you speak from the heart. I could have sent this in a U2U, but I feel that sharing my thoughts on someone that I clearly disagree with on some matters, and my appreciation for the time they take to put out a thread like this, is worth many to see.

I respect everyone's beliefs, and I appreciate the time that you take for other christians, or even none to see that not everyone that reads the bible, is just repeating what they read, and have no mind of their own, but that some out there have a genuine connection to what they see as the word of god.

Peace, NRE.

Originally posted by TraptInTheSystem
Why would I have to go through Jesus to get this info? I found out through other things and meditation.

Jesus did not come for you my friend. He came for the Jews. They were the lost people.

But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

If you found this out through other means, that only confirms what Jesus is saying here. That that eternal spirit is within us ALL.



With Love,

Your Brother

reply to post by IAMIAM


Excellent post my friend. Your interpretation of these verses is at some points very different from what the church teaches us, but I can see you know what you're talking about. It goes right to my heart!

Thanks for this, especially in these easter days!

Originally posted by NoRegretsEver
I must say to you, that I have seen some of your threads and posts in the past, and I have even had direct post to posts with you. There are many that misuse the words of the bible, or just quote scripture without having the ability to take it to the heart, and to have a good understanding of what was written.

Though I am agnostic, you are an extraordinary person when it comes to what you speak of. When I read your threads/posts, I dont feel preached to, but I see you trying to share your understanding. and I feel you speak from the heart. I could have sent this in a U2U, but I feel that sharing my thoughts on someone that I clearly disagree with on some matters, and my appreciation for the time they take to put out a thread like this, is worth many to see.

I respect everyone's beliefs, and I appreciate the time that you take for other christians, or even none to see that not everyone that reads the bible, is just repeating what they read, and have no mind of their own, but that some out there have a genuine connection to what they see as the word of god.

Peace, NRE.

What you have written above my friend, is as much the word of God to me as the Bible or Quran or John Lennon's "Imagine". Thank you for sharing your thoughts!



With Love,

Your Brother

Originally posted by WeZet
reply to post by IAMIAM

 

Excellent post my friend. Your interpretation of these verses is at some points very different from what the church teaches us, but I can see you know what you're talking about. It goes right to my heart!

Thanks for this, especially in these easter days!

You are most welcome my friend. Easter was my motivation, and your heart was my target.

Thank you for taking the time to read my interpretation.

With Love,

Your Brother

Originally posted by WeZet
reply to post by IAMIAM

 

Excellent post my friend. Your interpretation of these verses is at some points very different from what the church teaches us, but I can see you know what you're talking about. It goes right to my heart!

Thanks for this, especially in these easter days!

Yes i agree, excellent timing for this thread...

My take on the whole thing:

There is spiritual flesh and physical flesh. They are NOT the same, yet are bound together. Kind of like, you are you, you are NOT your shadow. They are though, bound together (as above so below....)

You can kill your shadow by eliminating all source of light, but you are still there. That, in itself, to me is a "shadow" of the spirit reality, and how things work.

So when talking to someone, you address the person, not their shadow. That would be ridiculous.

Same thing with eating of his FLESH. You eat the real flesh (spirit), not the shadow (physical).

The spirit, is the real reality, most people just won't realize that until their shadow is gone and they realize, hey, i still exist. Happy Easter.

reply to post by elcapitano75


I'll take a page out of charlies book...

Winning duh!!

Good post man

Originally posted by elcapitano75
My take on the whole thing:

There is spiritual flesh and physical flesh. They are NOT the same, yet are bound together. Kind of like, you are you, you are NOT your shadow. They are though, bound together (as above so below....)

You can kill your shadow by eliminating all source of light, but you are still there. That, in itself, to me is a "shadow" of the spirit reality, and how things work.

So when talking to someone, you address the person, not their shadow. That would be ridiculous.

Same thing with eating of his FLESH. You eat the real flesh (spirit), not the shadow (physical).

The spirit, is the real reality, most people just won't realize that until their shadow is gone and they realize, hey, i still exist. Happy Easter.

You got it my friend. As we are all of that spirit, we should treat each other like that spirit.

With Love,

Your Brother

As usual a fantastic post

You have a better grasp of the word than most preachers my friend

Originally posted by lastrebel
As usual a fantastic post

You have a better grasp of the word than most preachers my friend

Thank you my friend. I do not know if I have a better grasp of the word, I merely have the grasp that I am supposed to have. Opening the book of the lamb is fascinating to me. All kinds of wonders fall out each time I do.

Thank you for joining me here and sharing in the wonder that is Christ.

With Love,

Your Brother

Originally posted by NoRegretsEver
I must say to you, that I have seen some of your threads and posts in the past, and I have even had direct post to posts with you. There are many that misuse the words of the bible, or just quote scripture without having the ability to take it to the heart, and to have a good understanding of what was written.

Though I am agnostic, you are an extraordinary person when it comes to what you speak of. When I read your threads/posts, I dont feel preached to, but I see you trying to share your understanding. and I feel you speak from the heart. I could have sent this in a U2U, but I feel that sharing my thoughts on someone that I clearly disagree with on some matters, and my appreciation for the time they take to put out a thread like this, is worth many to see.

Couldn't agree more. Flagged and starred this thread cause I feel the same way. I think there are many of us out there that believe in god but remain skeptical about religion because of the way its taught. I've attended many different churches, mainly baptist but one thing that has always turned me off in regards to the teachings is the way a preacher use his selected scriptures to back his doctrine. Virtually when you take one scripture out of each book here and there you can virtually make anything you want out of the bible.

Originally posted by Smurfwicked
Couldn't agree more. Flagged and starred this thread cause I feel the same way. I think there are many of us out there that believe in god but remain skeptical about religion because of the way its taught. I've attended many different churches, mainly baptist but one thing that has always turned me off in regards to the teachings is the way a preacher use his selected scriptures to back his doctrine. Virtually when you take one scripture out of each book here and there you can virtually make anything you want out of the bible.

You are absolutely correct my friend. When you take the scripture in pieces, you can wreak absolute havoc on what Christ actually taught. Which is what happened.

Look at the whole teachings, and you get one helluva tale about a man who was teaching people to be free.

I read them first as one of his disciples sitting there listening to him speak. Then I read it again, this time as Christ in my mind, talking to the disciples.

What I share is what I learned from this method.

With Love,

Your Brother

well if I was from the middle east ill unserdstand this riddle but since im not ,dont see the use.

excellent post

and very well written thank you

for your insight in these verses

of Gods holly word

reply to post by IAMIAM


Thank you for that great thought inspiring post.

God is the unseen, the seer and the seen.
God is the sender of all that can be seen and this is Christ (consciousness).
God can only be seen in the reflection, no one can ever see gods face.
One can turn and face god directly and know him, feel him and be held.
When held, time does not exist, eternity is known.

God is here now always.
Eternally now.
When now is the time and here is the place, the location is god.
No-where and no one particular.
No parts, all.

Rub out the lines that separate. They don't exist.
This moment comes whole and complete.
The presence that is always present is god.
Know this and that is the gift.

Namaste.