Bread of Life is Hard to Swallow

[socrates4jesus]

Hi, i'm hoping anyone can help me figure this out. After talking to some thoughtful and respectful Roman Catholics, i'm a bit confused. They tell me that when Jesus said

"I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty."

(John 6:35)

He was talking about the bread and wine they eat and drink at church. The bread and wine is Him!

Please help me figure out the truth. I'm not sure what to believe any more.

Edited March 29, 2009 by socrates4jesus

[RockstarNurse]

Well, there are a lot of different ways to look at this and lots of denominations have their own interpretation. If I am not mistaken, Catholics believe that the bread and wine that is consumed during communion actually becomes the blood and body of Christ after they consume it. I tend to think of it as more metephorical as Jesus taught in metaphors and parables regularly. There are lots of references in the Bible about bread and wine. My favorite to sum up what I feel this means is when the bible says "man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the Lord". (rough translation) I take it to mean that our spirit, or the part of us that hungers for a relationship with God, cannot be fed the same way we feed our earthly body, but that we must sustain in different ways through our relationship with Christ. There are lots of metaphors that are not even considered Christian that address hunger and thirst for things other than food, ie. "thirst for knowledge", etc. I participate in communion to pay glory to Christ whose death and ressurection feeds my spiritual needs.

[OneLight]

Jesus is the bread of life, meaning, without Him , you will spiritual die. Through Him, you live. "Eat" of His ways and words to find life.

[socrates4jesus]

Well, there are a lot of different ways to look at this and lots of denominations have their own interpretation. If I am not mistaken, Catholics believe that the bread and wine that is consumed during communion actually becomes the blood and body of Christ after they consume it. I tend to think of it as more metephorical as Jesus taught in metaphors and parables regularly. There are lots of references in the Bible about bread and wine. My favorite to sum up what I feel this means is when the bible says "man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the Lord". (rough translation) I take it to mean that our spirit, or the part of us that hungers for a relationship with God, cannot be fed the same way we feed our earthly body, but that we must sustain in different ways through our relationship with Christ. There are lots of metaphors that are not even considered Christian that address hunger and thirst for things other than food, ie. "thirst for knowledge", etc. I participate in communion to pay glory to Christ whose death and ressurection feeds my spiritual needs.

Thanks, Nurse! The Catholics told me they believe the bread and wine becomes the body and blood of Christ BEFORE they consume it. It looks like bread and wine, but it is really His flesh and blood. They pointed out this passage to me:

When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, "Rabbi, when did you get here?"

Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval."

Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"

Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."

(John, chapter 6)

They then told me that Jesus was saying i better believe Him when He says He is the literal bread of life, because God's will is that i believe who He says He is. It is a sin to not believe He is the bread of life, which is the Eucharist, they said.

Please tell me why you think He was speaking figuratively and was not saying He is literally the bread of life.

[socrates4jesus]

Jesus is the bread of life, meaning, without Him , you will spiritual die. Through Him, you live. "Eat" of His ways and words to find life.

So they asked him, "What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."

"Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread."

Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

(John 6)

Thanks, Light! I can see you have been posting at this forum a long time, which means you have probably learned a lot! I'm glad you are helping me out.

I'm puzzled about something, though. You seem to be saying that the bread of life if Jesus' words and Jesus' ways. But, Jesus does NOT say

My words and ways are the bread of life.

Rather, He DOES say

I am the bread of life.

So, what i am asking is this: In what way is Jesus Himself the bread of life?

[OneLight]

I'm puzzled about something, though. You seem to be saying that the bread of life if Jesus' words and Jesus' ways. But, Jesus does NOT say

My words and ways are the bread of life.

Rather, He DOES say

I am the bread of life.

So, what i am asking is this: In what way is Jesus Himself the bread of life?

Yes, you are correct in how He said it, but when Jesus states that "I am the bread of life", does He not mean that He, what He does and teaches, is the I am? Everything Jesus did and taught is the "I am" in that verse.

[OneLight]

They then told me that Jesus was saying i better believe Him when He says He is the literal bread of life, because God's will is that i believe who He says He is. It is a sin to not believe He is the bread of life, which is the Eucharist, they said.

Please tell me why you think He was speaking figuratively and was not saying He is literally the bread of life.

If I may give my 2

[socrates4jesus]

I'm puzzled about something, though. You seem to be saying that the bread of life if Jesus' words and Jesus' ways. But, Jesus does NOT say

My words and ways are the bread of life.

Rather, He DOES say

I am the bread of life.

So, what i am asking is this: In what way is Jesus Himself the bread of life?

Yes, you are correct in how He said it, but when Jesus states that "I am the bread of life", does He not mean that He, what He does and teaches, is the I am? Everything Jesus did and taught is the "I am" in that verse.

Well, at the moment what i am doing is typing. Does that mean that i am typing? Or is typing something that i do and NOT something that i am?

[OneLight]

I'm puzzled about something, though. You seem to be saying that the bread of life if Jesus' words and Jesus' ways. But, Jesus does NOT say

My words and ways are the bread of life.

Rather, He DOES say

I am the bread of life.

So, what i am asking is this: In what way is Jesus Himself the bread of life?

Yes, you are correct in how He said it, but when Jesus states that "I am the bread of life", does He not mean that He, what He does and teaches, is the I am? Everything Jesus did and taught is the "I am" in that verse.

Well, at the moment what i am doing is typing. Does that mean that i am typing? Or is typing something that i do and NOT something that i am?

LOL ... at that very moment that yo are typing, yes, you are a typist. I believe that you are thinking too hard to understand something very simple.

[socrates4jesus]

LOL ... at that very moment that yo are typing, yes, you are a typist. I believe that you are thinking too hard to understand something very simple.

LOL! Perhaps you are right! Still, i don't think it is an entirely a bad thing to try to understand what the truth is about who Jesus really is, do you?

With this goal in mind, what i think you are saying is that Jesus is what Jesus says and does. In other words, He's no hypocrite. What is more, we can never accuse Him of saying, "Do what i say, not what i do," for His actions and His words never contradict one another. And what He tells you or i to do, He never fails to do Himself.

Is this what you mean, Light?