Jesus is speaking to a rather large group of people that have once more “sought him out.”
They actually trudged miles into the wilderness just to find him.
The interesting thing is that they made a pilgrimage to find him – instead of going to the city of Jerusalem for the Passover celebration. This was something “almost unheard of…”
Some of them – were fed by him from only five fish and two loaves of bread – others had heard the stories about it and joined in the pursuit.
They wanted to hear more, see more and obviously to be fed more – physically.
Jesus had other ideas.
Jesus had switched into the mode of “spiritually feeding folks” while they still wanted “a free fish fry and rye bread.”
They were complaining plenty. They did not like his words at all.
John’s Jesus uses “incredibly incendiary language.” “So incendiary” – that some people stopped following after him – because of it.
Jesus never was known for mincing his words. He doesn’t soften them or temper his language one bit. He speaks his mind – and lets the chips fall where they may. He drives home his points with clarity and with repetition.
For us, for people who are “churched” his words have lost their “offensiveness and divisiveness.” His words are rather ho-hum-yawn-expected and anticipated.
He did not launch these “rhetorical bombshells” so that they would “fizzle with time.” But unfortunately “fizzle” – they have.
We need to hear his words in the context of being his first century Jewish audience…at Passover time. That’s the context. In the wilderness. Hungry. Thirsty. Expecting “great things.”
There is a lot of Jewish tradition, Jewish scripture and Jewish thinking and Jewish thought that lies behind these texts and behind his words.
Jesus was not speaking to Christians – 2000 years later…that…would be “our context today!”
He was speaking to his fellow Jews. The crowd listening to him and hearing him speak – would have heard “blasphemy” – “abomination” and a “violation” of all things sacred and holy.
Every good Jew – knew the words of Leviticus 17 – which forbids the eating of blood or flesh containing blood; blood must be spilled out on the altar as a sacrifice to God.
The life of an animal or the life of a person was in the blood. Blood had to be offered to God.
You don’t eat flesh or drink blood ever – it is an abomination to the Lord…so take that – you Biblical literalists who enjoy your meat medium rare or rare. It is an abomination.
So much for those cannibal sandwiches!
Drinking the blood of Jesus would be totally and completely offensive to the Jews. To eat flesh and drink blood reeks of cannibalism. Genesis 9.4 says, “You shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.”
Deuteronomy 15.23 says, “You shall not eat its blood.”
These words were nasty. The language of eating flesh and drinking blood was incendiary and enormously offensive. It was a heinous offense. It was a crime against Moses, tradition, the law and all the people of Israel.
Hear Jesus’ words NOW for the first time – and with A JEWISH FIRST CENTURY MINDSET:
“Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.” “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day, for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.”
Whoa…just saying…
Is it any wonder the crowds started thinning out?
Here is something not a great many people are aware of.
One of the earliest references to Holy Communion is found in the ancient book called the Didache. It was written during Paul’s life time and Peter’s life time. It precedes the Gospel of Mark and is meant for instruction in the early church.
It says in Didache 9.5 “But let no one “eat or drink” in this Eucharistic thanksgiving, but they have been baptized into the name of the Lord.”
In other words, the language of “eating and drinking” was a part of the earliest Christian communities way of life…an abomination or not!
It was one of those things that aided in setting apart Christians from Jews…we were an abomination in God’s sight.
And that was ok. Because in our eating and drinking – there is life. And that life – was eternal!