[Jesus said] Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live for ever.’ He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum. When many of his disciples heard it, they said, ‘This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?’ ... Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. So Jesus asked the twelve, ‘Do you also wish to go away?’ Simon Peter answered him, ‘Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.’ (John 6:56-69)
With this Sunday’s Gospel reading we come to the end of the “Bread of Life discourses.” We find that even for Jesus, things got tough and people left. He’s just fed a crowd in the wilderness and spoken of himself as the living bread that came down from heaven, but some folk refused to believe in him and turned away.
The crowd around Jesus was initially enthusiastic about the idea of him as one like Moses who could provide miraculous bread, like the manna in the wilderness, but they had trouble with the idea of Jesus as the manna itself, the living bread from heaven. And when many of Jesus’ disciples heard what he was saying they said “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” Maybe that’s a question we’ve asked ourselves, because living as a Christian isn’t always easy. But it is worth doing.
Eating the bread of life, partaking in Jesus as manna, involves relying on God. John’s Gospel talks about it in terms of “abiding,” or “remaining” in God, in Christ: “those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me and I in them.” Like a lot in John’s Gospel, this is symbolic: it’s about a deep relationship with Jesus. Feeding on Jesus as manna means abiding with him and receiving his life. We do this through prayer, through Scripture, through gathering to worship, and through communion.
But sometimes “abiding” with Jesus is difficult. Staying with Jesus and learning from him is a long process – and our society so often encourages us to look for the quick fix, the instant solution. That was part of the problem with the crowd: at the beginning they were attracted to Jesus, seeing him as a new Moses figure, working miracles, providing victories. When they’d travelled around with him for a bit they learned that Jesus is actually offering the long road of discipleship: not a quick fix at all, but something much more satisfying. Think of the difference between a loaf of bread that’s taken time to rise compared to a packet of two-minute noodles.
We’re invited to follow the example of the twelve, who stayed with Jesus when many turned away. They knew it wasn’t always going to be easy, they knew there were no instant solutions – but they also knew that with Jesus was where life was to be found. “Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”
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