They Grumbled
6:41-42
Upon hearing Jesus say he came down from heaven, the Jews in the synagogue at Capernaum began to grumble. They knew his family. They had evidently moved from Nazareth to Capernaum. (Matthew 9:1) They knew his father and mother and assumed he was conceived in the normal way, so how could he claim to come down from heaven.
This is an interesting observation, placed after a dialogue where the Jews compared Jesus to Moses, and found Moses superior because he gave them bread from heaven. It is interesting because, if we go back to the Old Testament narrative, we see that the Jews grumbled against Moses and the manna also.
First, they grumbled that they did not have enough food. So, God provided manna from heaven. (Exodus 16:8) Then, after they had manna for a while, they complained about the manna and the lack of meat. (Numbers 11)
The Jews grumbled against Moses, the mediator of the Old Covenant. And they grumbled against the mediator of the New Covenant. In a sense, nothing has changed. They are a people who rebel against God’s provision for sustaining physical life and the rebelled against God’s provision of eternal life.
In addition, there was plenty of Old Testament prophecy that the Messiah would be born of a woman, but also be divine. Isaiah 7:14 says: “…the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Immanual”. And “Immanual” means “God with us”. This verse tells us that the Messiah would be born of a woman and yet would be God.
Isaiah 9:6 says:
“For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Again, the picture is of a child, a son, being born of a woman, yet being God.
Jesus Explains Their Problem
6:43-47
Jesus told them not to grumble. They could not solve this problem by discussion among themselves. They could only come to Christ if the Father drew them. Jesus said “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” (44) This is the counterpoint to Jesus saying earlier that all the Father gives to him will come to him.
Jesus emphasized the sovereignty of God in salvation. The Father takes the initiative: he draws men and women to himself. He does this by an illumination of the mind, revealing Jesus to the person. Jesus referenced Isaiah 54:13, saying they will all be taught by God. Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Jesus for salvation.
For example, remember Peter’s confession of Christ in Matthew 16:16. He said “You are the Christ, the son of the living God”. Jesus responded by saying blessed are you Simon. Why was Simon blessed? Not because he was smart enough to figure this out on his own, but because the Father revealed it to him. Jesus said “For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven”. (Matthew 16:17)
Jesus is the object of the Father’s teaching, but he is also both mediator of it. He is the only one who has seen the Father. (46) Therefore, he is the only one who can relate the Father’s teaching.
So, God illumines our mind to the truth of Jesus, he draws us through the work of the Spirit to Jesus. And we respond with belief. Upon believing, Jesus gives us eternal life and raises us on the last day.
Eating the Flesh of Jesus
6:48-58
In verse 48, Jesus again distinguishes the effect of eating manna and the effect of eating the bread of life. It was a hard truth to swallow, if you can pardon the pun.
Jesus said the Jews ate manna in the wilderness, but they ultimately died. (49) But, those who eat the bread of heaven, the living bread, do not die. In other words, they have eternal life. Jesus is again speaking in the metaphor of bread.
As Jesus speaks in this metaphor, he also spoke of his death. He said the bread he gives for the life of the world is his flesh. (51) His death is necessary for our salvation. His death is to pay the penalty for our sins.
The Jews, though, continued to focus on the physical rather than the spiritual. They did not understand the metaphor. They asked how Jesus could possibly give them his flesh to eat. (52) They argued about it
Instead of backing away from this metaphor when it caused problems, Jesus doubled down. He said you have to eat his flesh and drink his blood to have eternal life, adding his blood to the mix.
Those that do this have eternal life and are raised on the last day. The one who became flesh and dwelt among us (1:14) gives that flesh sacrificially to save us. Those who do not eat his flesh and drink his blood do not have eternal life.
We can understand a bit of why the Jews found this statement offensive. The law of Moses forbade the drinking of blood or even eating meat with blood in it. So, if they focused on the literal statement, they would have difficulty accepting it.
But, if they understood it in terms of Jesus giving his life for us, it would make sense. The primary symbolic references to blood in the Old Testament refer to death, particularly violent death, and sacrificial death. The shedding of the blood of animals brought atonement in the Old Testament.
The book of Leviticus describes many sacrifices of animals. The wage of sin is death (Romans 6:23), but God graciously allowed the Israelites to substitute animals for themselves. In Leviticus 17:11, the Lord told them that he gave that blood to them to put on the altar and make atonement for their souls.
The shedding of blood, of course, represents death. The animal’s blood was shed, meaning it was killed in the act of sacrifice. Similarly, Jesus shed his blood, died, to pay the penalty of our sins.
To eat the flesh of Jesus and to drink his blood is to totally identify ourselves with Jesus and his death. We believe in him and we live in him, with him, and through him. Augustine wrote “believe, and you have eaten”. We abide in him and he abides in us. He gives us eternal life and helps us live our lives to his glory.
The Reaction of the Disciples
6:60-71
Even many of the disciples had problems with this teaching. These were not the 12, but part of the larger group that followed Jesus. They said it is a hard saying. They seem to be referring to Jesus’ statement that he came down from heaven.
So, Jesus replied with a question: will you take offense if you see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before. (61) He was saying that you will see proof that I am from heaven when I ascend back to heaven, but, if you do not believe now, you may not believe even then.
We, of course, know Jesus did ascend to heaven because we have read it in Scripture. Luke recorded it in the first chapter of Acts. But, there are those who do not believe the account. They say the disciples suffered a delusion or that they lied about it.
Jesus then reiterated the work of God in salvation. He said it is the Spirit who gives life. The Holy Spirit, third person of the Trinity, works to bring us to salvation, opening our minds to understand the gospel and our hearts to receive it. This is what Jesus referred to when talking to Nicodemus in chapter 3. He said that which is born of Spirit is spirit. And he emphasized that the Spirit moves where he will. (3:68).
It is also what Paul meant when he wrote:
“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)
I think, at this point, Jesus looked over at the 12 when he said that he spoke the words of life, but some of them did not believe. (63-64) John added an explanation that Jesus knew from the beginning who would not believe in him and who would betray him.
As many of the disciples began to leave, Jesus asked the Twelve if they wanted to go away as well. Of course, Peter answered for them. He said there was no one else to go to, because Jesus had the words of eternal life. They believed and knew that Jesus was the Holy One of God. (69)
This was a great confession of faith by Peter and Jesus acknowledged it by saying “did not choose you, the Twelve”? He chose them to follow him because he knew the Father had given them to him and the Spirit worked in them to believe and follow.
Sadly, the passage ends with an ominous note. Jesus said one of you is a devil, even though I chose him, and John explained that he referred to Judas Iscariot.
There will always be those among us who are not really part of us and not really part of Christ. The proof of conversion is endurance to the end in faith.
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