Posted on 09/17/2013 8:25:21 PM PDT by jodyel
"Unless You Eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and Drink His Blood You Have No Life In You"
Are these words of Jesus from John 6:53 to be taken literally or figuratively? The Roman Catholic Church teaches the context of John chapter six and the above headlined verse 53 are literal. Thus Jesus is giving absolute and unconditional requirements for eternal life. In fact, this literal interpretation forms the foundation for Rome's doctrine of transubstantiation -- the miraculous changing of bread and wine into the living Christ, His body and blood, soul and divinity. Each Catholic priest is said to have the power to call Jesus down from the right hand of the Father when he elevates the wafer and whispers the words "Hoc corpus meus est." Catholics believe as they consume the lifeless wafer they are actually eating and drinking the living body and blood of Jesus Christ. This is a vital and important step in their salvation and a doctrine they must believe and accept to become a Catholic.
If priests indeed have the exclusive power to change finite bread and wine into the body and blood of the infinite Christ, and if indeed consuming His body and blood is necessary for salvation, then the whole world must become Catholic to escape the wrath of God. On the other hand, if Jesus was speaking in figurative language then this teaching becomes the most blasphemous and deceptive hoax any religion could impose on its people. There is no middle ground. Therefore the question of utmost importance is -- Was the message Jesus conveyed to the Jewish multitude to be understood as literal or figurative? Rome has never presented a good argument for defending its literal interpretation. Yet there are at least seven convincing reasons why this passage must be taken figuratively.
Counterfeit Miracle
There is no Biblical precedent where something supernatural occurred where the outward evidence indicated no miracle had taken place. (The wafer and wine look, taste and feel the same before and after the supposed miracle of transubstantion). When Jesus changed water into wine, all the elements of water changed into the actual elements of wine.
Drinking Blood Forbidden
The Law of Moses strictly forbade Jews from drinking blood (Leviticus 17:10-14) A literal interpretation would have Jesus teaching the Jews to disobey the Mosaic Law. This would have been enough cause to persecute Jesus. (See John 5:16)
Biblical Disharmony
When John 6:53 is interpreted literally it is in disharmony with the rest of the Bible. "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you," gives no hope of eternal life to any Christian who has not consumed the literal body and blood of Christ. It opposes hundreds of Scriptures that declare justification and salvation are by faith alone in Christ.
Produces Dilemma
It appears that the "eating and drinking" in verse 6:54 and the "believing" in verse 6:40 produce the same result - eternal life. If both are literal we have a dilemma. What if a person "believes" but does not "eat or drink"? Or what if a person "eats and drinks" but does not "believe?" This could happen any time a non-believer walked into a Catholic Church and received the Eucharist. Does this person have eternal life because he met one of the requirements but not the other? The only possible way to harmonize these two verses is to accept one verse as figurative and one as literal.
Figurative In Old Testament
The Jews were familiar with "eating and drinking" being used figuratively in the Old Testament to describe the appropriation of divine blessings to one's innermost being. It was God's way of providing spiritual nourishment for the soul. (See Jeremiah 15:16; Isaiah 55:1-3; and Ezekiel 2:8, 3:1)
Jesus Confirmed
Jesus informed His disciples there were times when He spoke figuratively (John 16:25) and often used that type of language to describe Himself. The Gospel of John records seven figurative declarations Jesus made of Himself -- "the bread of life" (6:48), "the light of the world" (8:12), "the door" (10:9), "the good shepherd" (10:11), "the resurrection and the life" (11:25), "the way, the truth and the life" (14:6), and "the true vine" (15:1). He also referred to His body as the temple (2:19).
Words Were Spiritual
Jesus ended this teaching by revealing "the words I have spoken to you are spirit" (6:63). As with each of the seven miracles in John's Gospel, Jesus uses the miracle to convey a spiritual truth. Here Jesus has just multiplied the loaves and fish and uses a human analogy to teach the necessity of spiritual nourishment. This is consistent with His teaching on how we are to worship God. "God is Spirit and His worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth" (John 4:24). As we worship Christ He is present spiritually, not physically. In fact, Jesus can only be bodily present at one place at one time. His omnipresence refers only to His spirit. It is impossible for Christ to be bodily present in thousands of Catholic Churches around the world.
When Jesus is received spiritually, one time in the heart, there is no need to receive him physically,
>> “A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head.” <<
.
That is the sign that the Jewish astronimers from Babylon saw at the birth of Yeshua.
It is the constellation Bethula with the moon at her feet, and the arc of 12 stars from the constellation Ariel.
That is what Daniel had told their ancestors to watch for centuries earlier.
Where would you get that idea?
“...and to the minutest detail they are the beliefs of the false cult of Replacement Theology.”
Did the New Covenant replace the Old?
Yes or no.
If yes, then your assertions amount to little more than personal attacks.
If no, then why aren’t you sacrificing animals to atone for your sins?
>> “Josephus confirms the truth of Jesus’s words” <<
A man that swears falsely and shirks his sworn alliances can confirm nothing.
He was a grand opportunist, and a story teller, but who knows what else.
>> “Did the New Covenant replace the Old?” <<
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Gross misreading on your part!
Yeshua RENEWED the covenant with his blood.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, and Nero is the anti-Christ even though he died two years before the destruction of Jerusalem and the seven year peace treaty was when? You can better take your preterist nonsense to those who don’t know scripture and aren’t guided by the Holy Spirit. Your beliefs will get excoriated here.
Oh yeah, and Satan is in chains now and has no influence in the world today right?
The Ark only represents Israel, or the Church, in a secondary sense. Obviously, Mary gave birth to Jesus, the child who would rule with an iron rod, in the primary sense.
And Mary fulfills the typology of the Ark of the Covenant. She is the Ark that appeared in Heaven (Rev 11:19). Remember that chapters were added to the Bible by the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1207-1228, and verses in the fifteenth century. This is why the Ark verse appears right before "the woman" in Revelation.
The Ark contained:
--Aaron's staff, representing the priesthood.
--Manna, the bread from heaven.
--The Decalogue or Divine Law or Word of God.
Mary contained Jesus within her womb, Who is:
--The eternal high priest
--The Bread of Life that came down from heaven to bring eternal life.
--The Word of God made flesh.
The Holy Spirit overshadowed the Ark, and the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary.
“Oh yeah, and Satan is in chains now and has no influence in the world today right?”
He has no power over those who have put their faith in Christ. Unless, that is, you want to argue that Christ’s death was meaningless.
Is that what you want to claim: that Christ didn’t defeat Satan at the cross???
“...and Nero is the anti-Christ even though he died two years before the destruction of Jerusalem and the seven year peace treaty was when?”
What an absolutely muddled mess your theology is!
Well she doesn’t any more does she. That make believe view is false. And Mary doesn’t return to earth to be persecuted by Satan.
You swallow that RCC swill all you want but it don’t make it so according to scripture.
“Yeshua RENEWED the covenant with his blood.”
I think you need to go back and read Paul’s writings, especially to the Galatians. What your preaching is a far, far different gospel than the one Jesus and Paul taught.
>> “Is that what you want to claim: that Christ didn’t defeat Satan at the cross?” <<
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Yeshua defeated satan’s attempt to prevent his sacrifice. That didn’t eliminate satan’s position over the Earth.
It hasn’t prevented vile satanic theology like replacementarianism.
And there is no persecution by Christians initiated by Satan since 70AD and continuing today is there. The idea that Satan is chained today is absolutely ludicrous.
Forget Galatians, and read the epistle to the Romans. That is what completely describes how the covenant with Israel is renewed and Israel is “blinded in part” until the fullness of the gentiles is grafted in to that renewed covenant.
So explain to me how Nero was the anti-Christ as preterists believe. Oh, and don’t forget to point out the time of the seven year treaty.
“He was a grand opportunist, and a story teller, but who knows what else.”
You’re an example of a “low information Christian.”
A Valuable Eyewitness
While every historian is fallible and must be read with care, historians can be very helpful, especially when they report firsthand knowledge. As a teenager, Josephus spent time with various Jewish sects and knew them well. He later observed the Jewish revolt from the front lines. When he was captured, he got to see the other side. In fact, he won the favor of the general, Vespasian, by accurately predicting his rise to the throne of the empire. Josephus ultimately switched sides and received Roman citizenship, even adopting Vespasian’s imperial family name, Flavius. He now had access to the emperor’s libraries, military reports, and court records from Herod and other rulers in Palestine.
The principal value of Josephus’s work lies in his discussion of Jewish history from 100 BC through AD 100. His narrative of this era is strongly supported by numerous authentic sources he gathered and interpreted with skill.
Josephus’s works provide us with valuable details that do not survive in any other records. In fact, he provides the most important extrabiblical information on many key political figures, such as Herod the Great, Felix, and Pilate. For instance, most of our knowledge of Herod’s extensive building projects, such as the temple that Christ often visited, comes from Josephus.
His works also provide insight into the inner workings of first-century Jewish sects such as the Pharisees and Sadducees. His description of another sect, the Essenes, helped confirm that they were the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls. He also provides gripping details about other first-century events, such as the destruction of the temple (prophesied by Christ in Matthew 24:2) and the Jews’ last-ditch resistance atop Masada.
http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/am/v8/n1/is-josephus-reliable
“And there is no persecution by Christians initiated by Satan since 70AD and continuing today is there. The idea that Satan is chained today is absolutely ludicrous.”
You don’t understand spiritual things because you only see the world through eyes of flesh. That’s precisely how the leaders of Jesus’ day missed the truth.
Now read your own post and see how you have described the traitor Josephus, your idea of a reliable witness.
The world loves to rely on Josephusn because he validates the worldly way of life.
“Forget Galatians...”
No thanks. I read the whole Bible, not just the parts I like or that agree with my “religion.”
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