41 At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, I am the bread that came down from heaven.
42 They said, Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, 'I came down from heaven'?
43 Stop grumbling among yourselves, Jesus answered.
44 No-one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.
45 It is written in the Prophets: 'They will all be taught by God.' Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me.
46 No-one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father.
47 I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life.
48 I am the bread of life.
49 Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died.
50 But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die.
51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live for ever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
52 Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
53 Jesus said to them, I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.
57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.
58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live for ever.
59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
- Content：
1>（v41-42）The crowd disputed Jesus’ self-proclamation as the Bread of Life because they knew his earthly family.
2>（v43-
3>（v48-51a）Once again, Jesus claimed that he was the Bread of Life.
4>（v51b）Through the topic of “the Bread of Life”, Jesus foretold His impending crucifixion and the meaning of the final supper (eating His flesh).
5>（v52）The Jews were all the more perplexed after listening to Jesus talk about “eating His flesh” and argued among themselves.
6>（v51b-59）Jesus expounded the meaning of His impending crucifixion and the final supper.
Whoever eats Jesus’ flesh and drinks his blood has eternal life, and Jesus will raise him up at the last day. (See v51b-59)
Subject
：
1>Jesus is the Bread of Life.
2>Eat of Jesus’ flesh and drink of His blood.
二、Who is God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit?
01>（v41-42）Jesus Christ who descended from heaven.
02>（v42）Jesus Christ who is the Son of Man (son of Joseph).
03>（v44）God sent Jesus Christ to the world.
04>（v44）Jesus Christ who was sent by God.
05>（v44、v54）
06>
07>（v46）Jesus Christ who has seen the Father.
08>（v47）Jesus Christ who gives eternal life.
09>（v48-51）Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life.
10>（v53-55）J
11>
三、What did I learn from the lesson (command, promise, example, blame, and warning)?
1> Prophets were rejected in their hometown.
41 At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, I am the bread that came down from heaven. 42 They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, 'I came down from heaven'?” (v41-42）
There is a Taiwanese saying, “People who live close to the shrine show no respect for it.” In Luke 4:24, Jesus said, 24 “I tell you the truth,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his home town.”
Another account in John 1:45-46 is: 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote— Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. Thus, no prophets were respected in their hometown, they were rejected.
Reflection: Do I always judge people by their qualifications, their background and their appearance? Do I treat them with disrespect?
2>Only Christ has seen the Father
Because the heavenly Father is a Spirit without physical form, therefore no one has ever seen Him. Since Jesus Christ is the Son of God and sent by God, only He has seen God. He descends from heaven to become human and only through Him can God be fully revealed.
Thus, whoever sees Jesus Christ sees God; whoever knows Jesus Christ knows God. Whoever receives Jesus Christ receives God; whoever is in Jesus Christ is also in God.
Reflection: How do I get to know God? Is it through Jesus Christ? How do I get to know Jesus Christ? How much do I know about Jesus Christ?
3> The declaration of the Holy Communion
53 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.” (v53-55)
1Corinthians 11:23-26, on the Holy Communion set by Jesus, Paul wrote, 23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread,24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me. 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.” (1Corinthians 11:23-26)
It was an opportunity for Jesus to foretell his death and to clarify the significance of the Holy Communion.
Reflection: Do I comprehend the redemptive work that Jesus has done by dying for us? Do I understand the significance of the Holy Communion and do I treasure the opportunity to partake in it?
4> An inseparable relationship
Jesus said, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.” (v56) It was a description of a life relationship. To those who eat of his flesh and drink of his blood and whose life is in him through the Holy Communion, Jesus says that they are in Him and Him in them. It is an intimate relationship, like the mixture of water and milk, inseparable. This is the kind of life relationship that a vivacious Christian should have with Jesus Christ.
Reflection: What is my life relationship with Jesus? Is it beyond reach? Is it stable (is it kind of close yet so far away?)? Or is it intimate, inseparable like that of water and milk?
5> Victory over the power of death v5
57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live for ever.
Jesus emphasizes that whoever eats His flesh will live because of Him and will live forever. They will not die like their ancestors despite of the fact that they ate manna in the wilderness. He stresses that whoever builds a life relationship with him will have eternal life.
Jesus’ proclamation reminds me of Paul’s teaching on this subject in 1Corinthians 15, 55Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? 56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.57 All thanks be to God! He gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, through Jesus Christ we shall have victory over the power of death!
Reflection: Do I know the significance of life? What is my perspective on my life? Am I wandering about in life? Do I have the wisdom to count my days, especially in terms of living my life to the fullest, relying on Jesus and letting my life be driven by eternity?
Translated by 曾秀娟
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