Introduction
All physical life needs food to sustain it.
Without food we die. We take food by eating and drinking. Only
living people want food. The dead can neither eat nor drink. Thus in
the physical realm, eating and drinking are identified with life. We
do not learn to eat and drink. These actions are inherent in us and
continue as long as we are alive. A person who does not want to eat
or drink is ill and will eventually die. Eating and drinking are a
key test of life. They are a persistent, life–long urge. But
physical life eventually ends in death. Likewise the food that
sustains this life also perishes—it does not last. It may be
artificially preserved for a time just as physical life may be
artificially prolonged by medical means, but left to itself food
perishes.
The great
discourse on life in the Scriptures was opened by the Lord Jesus
Christ with these words: “Work not [for] the food which perishes,
but [for] the food which abides unto life eternal…” (John 6: 27).
What a word to heed, then as now—for there is a life that does not
end and a corresponding food that alone sustains it! Is that life
yours, dear reader—a life that death cannot touch? If so, are you
going in for that which alone maintains it, for that which lasts? Or
are you, sadly, labouring in the fields of this world for the food
that perishes?
The Food that Perishes
The way that God has created us means that we must
eat and drink to sustain our natural lives. Leave a man without food
for several days and he will crave sustenance. But the Lord Jesus
said “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which
goes out through God’s mouth” (Matt. 4: 4). If there is a natural
sphere, then there is a spiritual sphere. We all understand the need
of food in the natural world, but many fail to carry the concept
across to the spiritual realm. If a believer does not partake of the
food that God has provided, then Satan will step in with his
substitutes. In the spiritual realm you will either partake of God’s
food or Satan’s.
In the West the
supermarkets dominate the food and drink supply. The devil runs the
spiritual supermarkets of this world. Their shelves are packed.
There is always something new on offer. He will see to it that you
never run out of junk food. He has an abundant supply. He is never
short of offers. Something to meet every taste, satisfy every
palate. Items that sell cheap. But there is nothing really cheap. It
may appear to be so but it will have a future cost. Feed on what
Satan offers and it will cost you dearly in your spiritual life, for
you will never grow. You will be a spiritual dwarf. Sadly, today,
especially in the West, many believers are walking spiritual
skeletons! At best they are like Pharaoh’s lean cattle (see Gen. 41:
19). Many a believer spends hours watching TV, surfing the Internet,
playing computer games etc., while seconds, comparatively speaking,
are spent with the Scriptures. Even things that seem innocuous like
music, reading, gardening, housework, careers, family etc. can be
taken up by Satan and used to dominate your life, weighing you down
(see Heb. 12: 1). Be assured he has something to meet every taste.
His supermarkets are open all hours—24 hours a day, seven days a
week—they never close.
What then is
this food that “abides unto life eternal” and thus lasts? To answer
this question we must ask further questions. Why is this discourse
on life recorded in the Bible? Why is it that of the four
Evangelists it is John alone that records it?
John and his Gospel
John is the last of the NT writers and the general
consensus is that he penned his writings long after Peter and Paul
had left this scene. The nature of each of the apostolic writings
was determined by the way each apostle initially met the Lord. John
was apprehended by the Lord when he was mending nets (see Matt. 4:
21). As one of the Twelve, he was there at the beginning but he was
also left by the Lord to not only witness the initial rapid
numerical spread of Christianity but also its subsequent equally
swift spiritual decline. In keeping with his call, John’s ministry
in general, and his Gospel in particular, is on the line of
recovery. He was God’s man in reserve.
The words
faith and
believe are used by every
NT writer. In his Gospel John uses the word
believe 85 times but the
word faith does not occur
at all. Has this no voice to us?
Faith, as a noun, is just the thing in itself, in this case an
abstract concept; believe,
being a verb is a
doing word—what the
noun
actively expresses as
carried out by persons. Now John lived to see many making claims to
the Christian faith yet with little or no evidence of that faith
having an ongoing and continuous activity in their lives. Hence at
the end of his Gospel John records, “Many other signs therefore also
Jesus did before his disciples, which are not written this book; but
these are written that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the
Son of God, and
that believing ye might have
life in his name” (John 20: 30, 31, my emphasis). It is not
‘having believed …’ as if the matter is a finished past event, but
the present participle “believing” indicating
continuity. Many
appear to think that having believed on conversion, then that is it.
It is not. Believing is to be the dominant characteristic of us here
for the rest of our days—we are to be believing believers! Time and
again John uses the present tense in his Gospel in connection with
life. For example we read “He that believes on the Son has life
eternal” (John 3: 36). This is not the future tense of
consequence—of how to obtain it— for that would be ‘he that shall
believe shall have life eternal’, but the present tense of
identification, marking out the one who has it. Hence the purpose of
such verses is not to show how life may be obtained
but to identify those who
have it. Many were claiming to have eternal life. John is
saying here that only those who have an active faith have it.
John 6: the Great Life
Chapter of the NT
The feeding of the five
thousand is the only miracle recorded by all four evangelists.
However, although Matthew, Mark and Luke wrote earlier than John,
they do not record the associated teaching given by the Lord. They
were prevented from giving that teaching by the Holy Spirit, who
held it back until John wrote. Why was this? Because the general
conditions that existed among the Jews when the Lord was here would
soon be mirrored in Christianity. Thus the initial freshness of the
early years of Christianity would be rapidly replaced by a spiritual
deadness. At the time the Lord spoke there was plenty in Judaism
that was external but hollow having no inner vitality. Claims in
abundance, but little reality. Plenty of reversion to the past (such
as the manna and Moses in John 6) but
no present spirituality.
Hence the Lord’s teaching
then for the Jews
based on the feeding of the five thousand; hence the record and
revelation of that teaching
now for Christians.
And if it was needed in the closing days of the last apostle, how
much greater the need now, in the closing days of Christianity!
The Teaching on Life
The teaching on life is given
in the discourse of John 6: 26–59 and consists of six verbal
exchanges between the Lord and the Jews. In studying this teaching
we must ever remember that
those addressed were Jews and not Christians. What we apply
to ourselves must not in any way negate or weaken the interpretation
which belonged to those in Judaism. The food the Lord spoke of was
“unto life eternal” (v27) and hence this blessing was
then future and
needed resurrection to enter into it (see v40). To the Jew there
were just two periods of time: the present one of law and the future
one of the Kingdom under the Messiah. The latter is the “age to
come” (Heb. 6: 5), the millennium which the Lord in this chapter in
John calls “the last day”—a term familiar in Judaism (see John 11:
24). The Jews also knew about eternal life (see Luke 10: 25–37; 18:
18–30 etc.) for it was referred to in the OT (see Ps. 133: 3; Dan
12: 2).
For them this
blessing will be realised
on earth and is
future. Thus when we
read that “He that believes [on me] has life eternal” (John 6: 47),
this is not present possession (for it could not be possessed
then), but
entitlement—identification of the one who has title to it.
In this chapter
the threads of “life” and “life eternal” (or eternal life) are woven
together but are still distinguishable. Essentially, there is no
separation between the two—only distinction. In these verses, “life”
is given to the world (see vs 33, 51), but not “life eternal” while
“life eternal”, but not “life”, is identified with “the last day”
(see vs 40, 54). Eternal life is
always
objective—something outside of ourselves which we enter into; life
however, is both objective and subjective.
The great
stumbling block for the Jews was that
all rested on Christ with no thought
whatever of national privilege, for He speaks of Himself here as
elsewhere as Son of Man, that is, in relation to all men, rather
than as Son of David, which puts Him distinctly in relation to
Israel. Throughout the discourse the thoughts of believing on Him (vs
29, 35, 40, 47) and coming to Him (vs 35, 37, 44, 45) are mingled
together. As the Jews were in the Lord’s presence, that coming was
not a physical one but a spiritual movement of the heart to Himself.
But as He had said on a previous occasion “ye will not come to me
that ye might have life” (John 5: 40) and in this chapter “ye have
also seen me and do not believe” (John 6: 36). Four times (see vs
39, 40, 44, 54) He told them that He would be the One who would
raise the individual to enter into the blessing of eternal life at
the last day.
The food that “abides unto
life eternal” (v27) is expressed in several ways (see vs 27, 32, 33,
35, 41, 48) as the discourse proceeds but it is always Christ
Himself. Finally it is expressed in words that can only involve His
death (see vs 50, 51) and then accordingly for the first time the
Lord speaks of eating. This caused contention among His hearers and
opened the way for the final response from the Lord in the chapter—a
response that carries great importance for us, as for them.
The Final Exchange
“How can he give us this
flesh to eat?” (v52) was the last query from the Jews in the passage
and occasioned the Lord’s final response: “Verily, verily, I say
unto you, Unless ye shall have eaten the flesh of the Son of man,
and drunk his blood, ye have no life in yourselves” (v53). This is a
crucial verse and represents the pivotal point in the teaching. It
is introduced as ever in John by the double verily indicating its
importance. The fact that the language is figurative only serves to
intensify the truth conveyed, for figures are always used in
language to create emphasis. To literally eat the flesh of a man
would be cannibalism, and to drink the blood of anything was
strictly prohibited for the Jew (see Lev. 7: 26, 27 etc.). The
distinctive separation of the flesh and blood in the figure makes it
clearly expressive of the Lord’s death in the most vivid way
possible. The solemnity of the words is clear. It is imperative that
their meaning be equally plain. It is not now a question of coming
to Him or believing on Him, as expressed previously in the
discourse, but of eating. The Lord did not say ‘Unless ye shall have
come to me or believed … ye have no life’ for every believer now has
life in Christ (see Col. 3: 4; 2 Tim. 1: 1). It is “Unless ye shall
have eaten … ye have no life in yourselves”, the key words being “in
yourselves”. (Note carefully, it is “life” and not “life eternal”,
for, as previously mentioned, eternal life is never said to be in
us. Yes, in the following verse the word is “He that eats my flesh
and drinks my blood has life eternal, and I will raise him up at the
last day” (v54), for he that partakes of Christ in eating must have
previously come to Him (see v45) and believed on Him (see v47). Thus
the title to eternal life in the
future is reiterated
in v54 for the one who thus eats, but he has life in himself
now.)
When Paul wrote
to the Galatians, he could say “Christ lives in me” (2: 20)—he had
life
in himself. While he
acknowledged the faith of the Galatians (see Gal. 3: 2 and compare
with Eph. 1: 13), he had to address them as a mother saying “of whom
I again travail in birth until Christ shall have been formed in you”
(Gal. 4: 19). They had believed but Christ was apparently not formed
in them—while they had life in Christ, the apostle was not prepared
to acknowledge that they had life
in themselves—he
could not say ‘Christ lives in you’. By way of contrast, the
Colossians were told “Christ in you the hope of glory”. (Col. 1:
27). How is Christ formed in us? By feeding on His death, not just
by believing in it. It has been well said that
a man is what he eats.
Thus in John 6 the Lord goes on to say “He that eats my flesh and
drinks my blood dwells in me and I in him” (v56). Every believer is
in Christ but Christ only dwells in us as a result of feeding on His
death.
Spiritual Food
The repository of all
spiritual food is the Scriptures—the Bible. Thus “Man shall not live
by bread alone, but by every word which goes out through God’s
mouth” (Matt. 4: 4). This food is available to the believer
irrespective of the day in which his lot is cast. Theologians study
the Scriptures, but often that is all. Spiritual food is the
realisation in my soul that God Himself is speaking to me
personally. The Lord said to the Jews “Ye search the scriptures, for
ye think that in them ye have life eternal,” but He added “and they
it is which bear witness concerning me” (John 5: 39). Someone wrote
a book once entitled Christ
in all the Scriptures. How true! I may know the Bible from cover
to cover, yet be a stranger to the One of whom it speaks. The Bible
is a means to an end, not the end in itself. You can be occupied
with the Bible’s teachings and know the prophetic calendar
accurately but be a stranger to Christ. You can become obsessed with
the beauty of the Scriptures, and yet be oblivious to the One who is
altogether lovely. You can marvel at the accuracy of its language,
and yet be foreign to the One who is its central theme. You may be
able to teach its doctrines without a flaw, but never know the One
on whom those doctrines rest. You may be able to, as sadly few today
can, rightly divide the word of truth, distinguishing the
dispensations, differentiating between the ways of God and His
eternal purpose, and yet …! Spiritual food is in the Scriptures and
for the Christian that food is Christ. In John 6 the Jews spoke of
the manna. The food that lasts is not the manna nor of what the
manna speaks in type. Yes, I need to take in daily all the grace of
Christ in His life here—for that is what the manna speaks of—in
order to fit me for the problems and difficulties I face every day
on my wilderness journey. But that is not the food of John 6, which
is set so clearly in contrast to the manna. It is not just the life
of Christ in itself, precious though that is to ponder, but rather
what ever lay behind it.
The Food that Lasts
Christ in His death is the
food that lasts. That death infuses the Scriptures from beginning to
end. Even the life of Jesus is permeated by His death for He who
said “thy sins are forgiven thee” (Luke 5: 20) would bear those sins
on the cross. This food is available to the believer now. For
example, John 3: 16 is probably the Scripture most quoted by
believers, sometimes rather glibly. But how many have feasted on its
wondrous truths? How much has been taken in, even in a tiny measure,
what it meant for God to
give His
only–begotten Son? For what is given is lost for ever. Something of
the tremendous cost to God that was involved may be seen in the
shadow when Abraham offered Isaac in Gen. 22, but, as ever, the type
falls short, for in the event Isaac did not die and Abraham never
lost him. Yes, the Lord was raised from the dead but the condition
of “blood and flesh” (Heb. 2: 14) in which He entered this scene
terminated in His death, for the blood was shed, and
that life that was a
delight to God (see Matt. 3: 17) was forever ended. Hence in
resurrection, the Lord says that “a spirit has not flesh and bones
as ye see me having” (Luke 24: 39), there being no reference to His
blood.
Again, every
believer can say with Paul “the Son of God, who has loved me and
given Himself for me” (Gal. 2: 20). But how much of that wondrous
truth has been digested? What did He
give? He gave
Himself and that for
me! The very words
used show that the apostle had digested this immense truth. What was
involved for the Lord Jesus? What was the cost to my Saviour? If
there was a cost to God, there was a corresponding cost to Him.
Perhaps that questioning cry on the cross given in Matt. 27: 46 is
the answer in a divinely condensed form. The awfulness of those
three hours of darkness are touched on anticipatively in Luke 22:
39–48 and prophetically in Psalms 22 and 69—may we feed on it!
This alone is
the food that lasts and carries through to the eternal day. I may
read the facts of that death in the Gospels, read of all that rests
on it in the Epistles and see something of the detail in the types
of the OT but I must ingest that truth for myself. What more could
be said of that death as securing the Assembly (see Eph. 5: 25), the
defeat of Satan (see Heb. 2: 14, 15), and ultimately the reconciling
of all things to the Godhead (see Col. 1: 20)? But time and space
demand that I leave the matter now with the reader.
Conclusions
Every believer has life in Christ (see Col. 3: 4),
but God wants Christ to be formed in each one as well. That
formation is only effected by feeding on Christ in His death so that
the life of Christ comes out in testimony here. When the Lord was on
this earth, what was a delight to God came out in a single Person,
because the Lord entered into the limited conditions of man. Now, in
the time of His absence, that same life can be multiplied by being
seen in every believer who feeds on His death. There is no other
way: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Unless ye shall have eaten the
flesh of the Son of man, and drunk his blood, ye have no life in
yourselves” (John 6: 53).
