John 6.35, 41-51 (NRSV)
Read John 6.35, 41-51 on biblegateway.com
Verse 35Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. Verse 41Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven." Verse 42They were saying, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" Verse 43Jesus answered them, "Do not complain among yourselves. Verse 44No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. Verse 45It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Verse 46Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Verse 47Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. Verse 48I am the bread of life. Verse 49Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. Verse 50This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. Verse 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh."
Devotion
It starts as just a question of authority. Who does he think he is? Someone better than us? By the end it is past being a question and well into being a scandal. Eating the bread that is his flesh? For this religious community so concerned with food preparation and food ritual, Jesus’ words start to be over the top. They heard offense. We hear promise. Bread and wine, his body and blood, make Jesus present to us even when his story is hard to grasp, even when the work of His Spirit in the world is hard to see. Then we eat and drink together, and Sacrifice turns into Sacrament. How does that gift inform our living with one another and with God? Does it affect our tone, our words, our deeds, or our praise? What would holy scandal be in our culture? Where does Jesus offend or bring comfort?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, gracious word of God, we pray to delight in this world and to see you in its holy gifts. Amen.