Nougat 19

Sometime ago, I came to the conclusion that much of what the enemy of our souls does is counterfeit. That is, whatever God has established is copied by the enemy, and used against us in one way or another. In today’s Holy Nougat, we see one of God’s original offers for all humanity.

“For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.” John‬ ‭6:55-56‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Several times when I read this I smile to myself. For eating flesh and drinking blood seems more like a scene from a horror movie than words of Jesus. But it is. Having fed the multitude, Jesus offered them food for the soul.

Like many of us, they didn’t ‘get it’; partly because they had witnessed the miracle of multiplication. Some had returned for more free food, I’m sure; whereas there would have been those who having heard about the miracle; wanted to see for themselves How Jesus did it.

Jesus, being God, knew and understood their motives. And Jesus, in His inimitable way, gave them what they needed; not what they came for. He took them to the True Source of bread; just as He did for the Woman at Sychar when she sought water.

In the Sychar context, we will recall that Jesus sought the woman out, as He detoured to the well in the middle of the day, engaged the outcast woman in a conversation about Living Water that led to her conversion and the salvation of an entire town (see John 4). And in His conversation with Nicodemus, a leader in the synagogue, Jesus introduced the man to the necessity of rebirth and humility for salvation (see John 3).

Talking about flesh-eating and blood drinking was not entirely outside of the realm of possibility for Jesus. What made it stranger for them was that He (Jesus) spike of His own flesh and His own blood as the source of salvation. Within the context of their culture and even in our own cultural contexts, that doesn’t seem to be truly of God. (Remember that the Israelites had been commanded to avoid eating meat with blood remaining (sorry, no British black pudding) as per Genesis 9. This was connected to the concept of accounting for life and protection, even the preservation of life – human or animal.

And it is an a sense that same rule which brings us to Jesus’ seemingly cryptic comment. It does however, demand that we return to Genesis 3; where humanity sinned and the first mention of death occurs. Animal’s blood was required then to substitute for the death penalty imposed by humanity’s disobedience. For leaves did not adequately cover the nakedness exposed by sin, nor the shame experienced in due course. Gen 9:4-6 thus adds perspective; making the link between our creation in God’s likeness and the sanctity of life.

The sentence passed to the deceiver in Genesis 3 further notes that it is a human who would conquer the deceiver, which would also attempt to hurt the one to destroy it. I believe that Jesus’ comment sought to affirm that He was/is the God-man Whose life would be the reckoning for the blood shed at the Fall. By using bread, a universal staple in all cultures, as the metaphor of a Life for a life; Jesus underscored how essential His death is for our collective albeit individual salvation. It was thus not a literal ‘eating’ of human flesh that Jesus alluded to, rather the dependence on the salvific act at Calvary AND His subsequent resurrection.

But the deceiver would not have us understand that. Rather, it was/is hoped that we would each be caught up with false understandings of salvation and immortality (access to eternal life) by spilling and drinking of another’s life blood.

Only by one Man can salvation be attained through death; and it is He Who offered His life – body AND Life-blood – for all. If it all ended with Jesus’ death; His would be just another death. But it is in his act of self-resurrection that Jesus completely overthrew and exposed the lies of the deceiver!

In Jesus’ comment therefore, we see the beginnings of the sacrament of rebirth into the Future Perfection of Abundant and Everlasting Life. We die in and with Him, and in the eating and drinking acts of commemoration, we look anew at our Redemption.

So, no vampires or voodoo; rather the love of God poured out as the Ultimate Sacrifice for a broken, dying world.

Shall we eat!

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May all we seek be found in Christ