But immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’ Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. (Mark 6: 50-52)
He had taught and none of the disciples had been sufficiently impressed to later recall what he said.
So Jesus responded to their need with a dramatic - truly miraculous - example. Still, they did not understand.
The gospel of Mark moves on without further explanation. But the gospel of John suggests Jesus made a third consecutive attempt to explain.
"Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh... Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. " (John 6: 47-51, 53)
According to the fourth gospel this teaching was at least partially understood. It was also so offensive that many of those who had followed Jesus left him.
In order to live fully - to live as God intended - we must embrace, engage, and entwine our lives with the identity of Jesus. Just as we need daily bread to sustain our physical existence, we must partake of the identity of Jesus to sustain our spiritual existence.
The identity of Jesus - his spiritual flesh and blood - is of the same essence as God. With Jesus we encounter God and reclaim the spirit of God that is also our essential identity.
In John we have translated as life what in Greek is the feminine noun zoe. This is derived from a primary verb zao. For the Greeks this is already more than mere survival, it is a genuine, vigorous, abundant life. The verb is to be strong, efficient, effective, and endless.
He had taught and none of the disciples had been sufficiently impressed to later recall what he said.
So Jesus responded to their need with a dramatic - truly miraculous - example. Still, they did not understand.
The gospel of Mark moves on without further explanation. But the gospel of John suggests Jesus made a third consecutive attempt to explain.
"Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh... Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. " (John 6: 47-51, 53)
According to the fourth gospel this teaching was at least partially understood. It was also so offensive that many of those who had followed Jesus left him.
In order to live fully - to live as God intended - we must embrace, engage, and entwine our lives with the identity of Jesus. Just as we need daily bread to sustain our physical existence, we must partake of the identity of Jesus to sustain our spiritual existence.
The identity of Jesus - his spiritual flesh and blood - is of the same essence as God. With Jesus we encounter God and reclaim the spirit of God that is also our essential identity.
In John we have translated as life what in Greek is the feminine noun zoe. This is derived from a primary verb zao. For the Greeks this is already more than mere survival, it is a genuine, vigorous, abundant life. The verb is to be strong, efficient, effective, and endless.
posted by Didymus | 3:43 AM
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