The Results of Partaking of the Bread of Life

Introduction

A man must receive and partake of the Bread of Life. When he does, he receives six wonderful things.

I.   Result 1: Life ­ abundance of life (vv. 52­53).

II.   Result 2: eternal life ­ conquering death and being resurrected (v. 54).

III.   Result 3: true, not false satisfaction (v. 55).

IV.   Result 4: supernatural companionship and fellowship (v. 56).

V.   Result 5: a life that is full of purpose and meaning (v. 57).

VI.   Result 6: incorruptible food received within the heart ­ energizing life forever (v. 58).

I.   John 6: 52–53   Abundance of Life

The religionists were perplexed and argued among themselves. The word argue (emachonto) means to fuss, debate. They were debating what Jesus meant. He had just said:

John 6:51  “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

1.   The Jews (religionists) began to argue over the meaning of the words. “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?”

=>   Some interpreted His words as a parable, in a figurative and symbolic way. They knew He often spoke in parables.

=>   Others had no idea what He meant, but they did see that He was claiming to be the most important person in the world, the very Saviour of men. This, of course, bothered them beyond reason. How could any man claim to be so important to the world? As materialists and humanists they asked, “How can this be? He is but a man. How can He give His flesh for the world and the world receive eternal life?”

=>   A few disciples, genuine followers of the Lord, perhaps understood.

The point is that the religionists were disturbed. The message had been going on for a long time, and Jesus had made claim after claim ­ all most unusual. Moreover, what He was saying was not clear, and some of it was offensive. Therefore, they were angry and perplexed and began to argue among themselves about what He meant and how they should respond to Him.

2.   Jesus responded by proclaiming a much more shocking thing: unless a man partake, that is, receive Him, that man has no life dwelling within him.

The words “eat” and “drink” are in the Greek aorist tense which means a once-for-all act. Jesus was not speaking of partaking time and again. He was not speaking of feasting upon Him day by day through prayer and Bible study. He was speaking of a one-time event. A person is to eat and drink of Christ, that is, receive Him once for all. (See Eat, Drink Salvation, Jn. 6:53.)

Thought 1.  Unless a man receives (eats and drinks) Christ, he has no life within him. He is a dead man spiritually and eternally. He is walking around as a dead man.

=>   Physically he is in the process of aging and dying, of living in the realm of death and being doomed to die.

=>   Spiritually he is already dead, having no life with God. He has no life, no real and true relationship with the true and living God. He is doomed to eternal death and separation from God.

Partaking, eating and drinking, of Christ is absolutely essential in order to truly live ­ in order to possess real life that lasts now and forever.

Eph 2:1  As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins.

Eph 5:14  For it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

Col 2:13  When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins.

1 Tim 5:6  But the widow who lives for pleasure is dead even while she lives.

Rev 3:1  “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.”

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John 6: 53   Eat, Drink, Salvation

Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.” John 6: 53–55

To receive, accept, partake, appropriate, assimilate, absorb and to make part of oneself. A person can actually receive and partake of Christ in the most intimate and nourishing sense of his being (flesh and blood). The receiving and partaking can be just as intimate and nourishing as eating and drinking.

The point is this: a man must receive Christ into his heart, into his innermost being if he wishes to live. In fact, he is dead spiritually and eternally unless he so receives Christ.  ♠

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II.   John 6: 54   Promise of Eternal Life

The first result of receiving Christ, the Bread of Life, is eternal life. Note three things.

1.   The word for “eat” (trogon) is different. It means to eat eagerly, to grasp at chunks, to eat with pleasure. It is the picture of hungering after Christ and eagerly wanting to feed and feast on Him.

2.  The tense is also different. It is present tense, which means continuous action. A person must continue to eat and to develop and grow into the habit of feasting upon Christ. Christian growth day by day is the picture.

Now note the point. A genuine believer, a man who really receives Christ, is a man who partakes of Him continually. Day by day the man will feast upon Christ. It is this man who has the promise of eternal life, and eternal life includes three great things.

a.   Abundant and eternal life. (See Life in Jesus Christ, Jn. l:4; Life in Jesus Christ, Jn. 10:10; and Eternal Life, Jn. 17:2-3.)

b.   The conquest of death. Jesus conquered death and secured new life (new birth) by two acts (Jn. 3:14-15.)

1)   The first act is Jesus’ death. Jesus illustrated His point by using the Old Testament story of Moses lifting up the bronze snake in the wilderness (Num. 21:4-9). The children of Israel had begun to murmur and grumble about the trials of the wilderness, wishing they had never left Egypt. God disciplined them by sending snakes to plague them. The discipline worked; the people repented and begged for mercy. God met the people’s need by telling Moses to make a bronze image of a snake and to hold it up upon a pole in the midst of the people. The person who looked upon the lifted up snake was healed.

Jesus said that He must be lifted up just as the snake was lifted up. What did He mean? There are several pictures here.

a)   The people of Israel had great need, for they were dying from the poison of the snakes. Men today are dying from the poison of the snake, the deadly poison of sin.

b)   The snake is a symbol of the evil one, Satan (Gen. 3:lf; Rev. 12:9; 20:2). Jesus Christ destroyed the works of the devil by being lifted up (Heb. 2:14-15); therefore the snake hanging upon the pole symbolized the defeat of Satan. By looking upon the defeated evil (the snake), Israel was healed. Today man is healed by looking upon the Son of Man who has been lifted up upon the cross.

John 12:31-32  “Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.”

Heb 2:14-15  Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death - that is, the devil - and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.

c)   The snake was a cursed creature from the very beginning (Gen. 3:14-15). Jesus became a curse for man (Gal. 3:13).

Gal 3:13  Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is evervone who is hung on a tree.”

1 Pet 2:24  He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.

2)   The second act is man’s belief in Jesus. The man who believes in the Son of Man being lifted up...

•   will not perish (See Perish Jn. 3:16)

•   but will have eternal life (See Life in Jesus Christ, Jn. l:4; Life in Jesus Christ, Jn. 10:10; and Eternal Life, Jn. 17:2-3.)

Note: if an Israelite believed God’s message (the good news of healing), he looked upon the lifted up snake, and he was healed. If a man did not believe God’s message, he did not look, and he died. Thus it is with us today: every man must believe the message of Christ in order to be healed, that is, be born again.

John 3:16  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

John 5:24  “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”

Isa 53:5  But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.
c. The resurrection.

John 6:51  “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

John 3:16  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

John 5:24  “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”

John 17:3  “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”

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John 1: 4   “In Christ was Life”

“In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.”  John 1: 4

The simple statement “in Christ was life” means at least three things.

1.   Life is the quality and essence, the energy and power, the force and principle of being. Christ is life; He is...
•   the very quality of life
•   the very essence of life
•   the very energy of life
•   the very power of life
•   the very force of life
•   the very principle of life

Without Christ, there would be no life whatsoever. Life is in Him, within His very being. All things exist and have their being (life) in Him.

2.   Life is purpose, meaning and significance of being. Christ is life; He is...
•   the very purpose of life.
•   the very meaning of life.
•   the very significance of life.

3.   Life is perfection. Life is all that a man must be and possess in order to live perfectly. This is what is meant by life. Life is completeness of being, absolute satisfaction, the fullness of all good and the possession of all good things. Life is perfect love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23).

Whatever life is and all that life is, is all in Jesus Christ. Even the legitimate cravings of man that are sometimes entangled with evil - such as power, fame and wealth - are all included in the life given by Jesus Christ. Those who partake of His life shall reign forever as kings and priests (Lk. 16:10-12). This is the very thing that is distinctive about life - it is eternal. It lasts forever and it is rewarding. It will eventually exalt the believer to the highest life and place and position. (Rev. 21:lf.)

Jesus Christ is the source of life: He is the way to life, and He is the truth of life. He is the very substance of life, its very being and energy (Jn. 5:26; 1 Jn. 1:2). ♠

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John 10: 10   Life in Jesus Christ

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”  John 10: 10

Life is one of the great words of the Scriptures. The word life (zoe) and the verb to live or to have life (zen) have a depth of meaning.

1.   Life is the energy, the force, the power of being.

2.   Life is the opposite of perishing. It is deliverance from condemnation and death. It is the stopping or cessation of deterioration, decay, and corruption (Jn. 3:16: 5:24, 29; 10:28).

3.   Life is eternal (aionios). It is forever. It is the very life of God Himself (Jn. l7:3). However, eternal life does not refer just to duration. Living forever would be a curse for some persons. The idea of eternal life is also quality, a certain kind of life, a life that consistently knows love, joy, peace, power, and responsibility .

4.  Life is satisfaction (Jn. 6:35).

5.   Life is security and enjoyment (Jn. l0:10).

6.   Life is found only in God. God is the source and author of life, and it is God who has appointed Jesus Christ to bring life to man. Jesus Christ gives the very life of God Himself (Jn. 5:26; 6:27, 40; 10:28; 17:23).

7.   Life has now been revealed. It has been unveiled and is clearly seen in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ shows man what life is (Jn. 1:4-5; 5:26; 1 Jn. l:2).

8.   Life only comes to a man by believing in Jesus Christ. A man outside Jesus Christ only exists. He merely has the existence of an animal. Real life is found only in God. This is to be expected and it is logically true, for God is the creator of life. As the creator of life, He alone knows what life really is and what it is supposed to be (Jn. 3:36; 5:24; 6:47). This is the reason He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, into the world: to show men what life is. When a person looks at Jesus Christ, he sees exactly what life is, exactly what it involves (Gal. 5:22-23):
=>   love
=>   patience
=>   faithfulness
=>   joy
=>   kindness
=>   gentleness
=>   peace
=>   goodness
=>   self-control  ♠

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John 17: 2–3   Eternal Life (Ainios)

“For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”  John 17: 2–3

Life, real life. It is the very life of God Himself. It is the very energy, force, being, essence, principle and power of life. It has more to do with quality and with what life really is than with duration. To live forever in the present world is not necessarily a good thing. The world and man’s body need changing. That changed life is found only in eternal life. The only being who can be said to be eternal is God. Therefore, life - supreme life - is found only in God. To possess eternal life is to know God. Once a person knows God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent, that person has eternal life - he shall live forever. But more essential, the person has the supreme quality of life, the very life of God Himself.

John 3:14-15  “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

John 5:24  “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”

John 6:40  “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 3:36  “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”

John 11:25-28  Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.”

John 12:25  “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”

Rom 5:21  So that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Gal 6:8  The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

2 Tim 1:10  But it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

1 John 3:14  We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.

1 John 5:11-12  And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. ♠

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III.   John 6: 55   True Satisfaction and Abundant Life

The second result of receiving Christ is true satisfaction, not false satisfaction.

1.   The word real (alethes) means true as opposed to false. The things of the world do not feed and fill men, not with a true satisfaction. Worldly pleasures and satisfactions are false; and false satisfaction does not last, not permanently, not with full assurance and confidence and security.

Worldly pleasures and satisfactions always leave men somewhat empty, dissatisfied, craving, void, unassured and wondering if this world is all there is - wondering it there is not more to life than what this world and its possessions have to offer.

2.   True satisfaction comes from receiving Christ into one’s life, and it comes only through Christ. This is the Lord’s point in this verse. Just as real life on the earth comes from eating and drinking food, so real and abundant life comes from eating and drinking Christ. One must receive Christ in the closest and most intimate and nourishing sense in order to have true life, life that is abundant and full of...
•   assurance
•   strength
•   meekness
•   goodness
•   love
•   security
•   decisiveness
•   temperance
•   patience
•   joy
•   confidence
•   courage
•   faith
•   gentleness
•   peace

Mat 5:6  “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

John 4:14  “But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

John 7:37  On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.”

Gal 5:22-23  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Rev 7:16  Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.

Psa 17:15  And I - in righteousness I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.

Psa 36:8  They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights.

Psa 107:9  For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

Isa 12:3  With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Isa 44:3  For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.

Isa 58:11  The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.

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John 3: 16   Perish, Perishing (Apoletai)

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”  John 3: 16

To be lost, to destroy utterly, to lose utterly, to lose eternal life, to be spiritually destitute, to be cut off.

1.   Perishing means to be in a lost state in this world. It means to be...

•   aging, deteriorating, decaying, dying.  (Mt. 8:17; 1 Cor. 15:50; Col. 2:13; 2 Pet. 1:4.)

•   without life (purpose, meaning, significance).  (Jn. l:4; 10:10; 17:2-3.)

•   without peace (assurance, confidence, security in God’s keeping). (Jn. 14:27)

•   without hope (of living forever). (2 Tim. 4:18.)

2. Perishing means to be in a lost state in the world to come.

It means...

•   having to die

•   facing judgment

•   being condemned

•   suffering separation from God and all loved ones

•   experiencing all that hell is (Mt. 5:22; Lk. 16:24; Heb. 9:27). ♠

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IV.   John 6: 56   Abiding Companionship and Fellowship

The third result is supernatural companionship and fellowship, care and being looked after. This is seen in the word remains (menei). It means to abide, continue, dwell, rest in or upon. It is being fixed and set and remaining there, continuing on and on. Such is the state and condition and being of the person who receives Christ. The person receives Christ into his being, and Christ enters the person’s life, remaining within him. The person is also placed into Christ, that is, placed with all other believers into the spiritual body of Christ. (1 Cor. 12:12-31; Eph.1:22-23; 2:11-22.) The person “remains” or dwells in Christ even as Christ remains in him. This, of course, means fellowship and companionship with Christ and the presence of His care and watchful eye in looking after us. (See Fruit Bearing, Jn. l5:l-8;and Fellowship, Acts 2:42.)

John 14:20  “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.”

John 15:4-5  “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

Gal 2:20  I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

1 John 3:24  Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.

Rev 3:20  “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”

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John 15: 1–8   Fruit-bearing;   Abide

There are four stages of fruit-bearing given: (1) no fruit (v. 2), (2) fruit (v. 2), (3) more fruit (v. 2), and (4) much fruit (vv. 5, 8).

What does it mean to say a Christian is to bear fruit? It means to bear converts (Rom. 1:13), to bear righteousness (Rom. 6:21-23), to bear Christian character or the fruit of the Spirit (Notes, Gal. 5:22-23). Note also the conditions for bearing fruit in life: cleansing (v. 3) and abiding or remaining in Christ (v. 5), and obedience (vs. 10, 12). A true Christian is a person who really does abide in Christ (1 Jn. 2:10). John said that to abide or remain in Christ means eight things.

1.   A person walks in open confession before God. He walks through life opening up his life to God; he confesses all known sin. He does not walk in sin, and he does not allow any sin to go unconfessed (1 Jn. 1:6-10).

2.   A person walks and fellowships with Christ. He lives and moves and has his being with Christ. He communes and lives in a consciousness of God’s presence, and from God’s presence, he learns of God and he draws the strength and authority to live victoriously day by day (1 Jn. 2:6; 2:27; see Psa. 16:11; Prov. 3:5-6).

3.   A person continues in the church; he has not gone out from the church (1 Jn. 2:19).

4.   A person possesses confidence, an unashamedness in life, that prepares him for eternity (1 Jn. 2:28).

5.   A person does not walk in continuous sin (1 Jn. 3:6). He experiences constant victory over sin.

6.   A person actively surrenders himself to obey God’s commandments (1 Jn. 3:24).

7.   A person experiences the indwelling presence and witness of the Spirit (1 Jn. 4:12-13).

8.   A person dwells in love and unity and fellowship with all other believers (Jn. 17:21-23; 1 Jn. 4:16; see 1 Jn. 4:20).  ♠

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Acts 2: 42   Fellowship

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Acts 2: 42

The fellowship wrought by the Spirit of God means more than the association existing in secular groups such as civic clubs and community bodies. There is a vast difference between community participation and spiritual participation. Community participation is based upon neighbourly association. Spiritual participation is based upon a spiritual union wrought by the Spirit of God.

The distinctiveness is this: the Holy Spirit is within the Christian believer. The Holy Spirit creates a spiritual union by melting and molding the heart of the Christian believer to the hearts of other believers. He attaches the life of one believer to the lives of other believers. Through the Spirit of God, believers become one in life and purpose. They have a joint life sharing their blessings and needs and gifts together. Note several things about fellowship that are taught by this passage.

1.   Fellowship is being experienced by the new believers because they join other Christians in learning the Scriptures (apostles’ teachings) and in worship (prayers and celebrating the Lord’s Supper, Acts 2:41-42).

2.   Fellowship forbids an unattached Christian life. Their fellowship is maintained because they “are devoted” in the Scriptures and in worship. An unattached Christian life is just impossible.

a.   Christianity is first an individual matter, but then it becomes a social matter. The Christian is attached to Christ individually, but he is also attached to other believers. He walks with other believers in the Scriptures and in worship.

b.   Christianity is first a spiritual organism, but then it becomes a spiritual organization. The Christian has an inward life, but he also takes on an outward form of life. He becomes a living organization with other Christian believers. He sits at the feet of the apostles’ teaching and joins right in with other Christians as they worship together.

c.   Christianity makes the true believer a saint (one who is set apart unto God), but Christianity is made up of saints - plural. Christianity is not just one person; Christianity is many persons - saints. The word is often used in the New Testament, but it is never used in the singular. Christianity is Christianity because the saints study the Scriptures together and worship together.

d.   Christianity demands that a believer personally live out such virtues as kindness, long-suffering, and love; but the believer can do this only in association with others.

e.   Christianity means that the Spirit of God has entered the believer’s life, but it also means that the Spirit of God has placed the believer into a corporate body (the church), into Christian society itself. The Spirit of God indwells the corporate body of believers as well as the individual (see 1 Cor. 3:16).

3.   Spiritual fellowship faces two dangers.

a.   Fellowship and society can be over-emphasized - to the point that individual salvation is missed. An individual must “accept His message” (Acts 2:41).

b.   Individual salvation and individual worship, whether through nature or by any other means, can be overly stressed - to the point that Christian fellowship and society can be missed (Acts 2:42; see Heb. 10:25).

Acts 2:42  They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

Rom 12:5  So in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

1 Cor 10:17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.

Gal 3:28  There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Eph 4:13  Until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Heb 10:25  Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

1 John 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

Psa 119:63  I am a friend to all who fear you, to all who follow your precepts.

Mal 3:16  Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord  and honoured his name. ♠

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V.   John 6: 57   A Life of Purpose and Meaning

The fourth result of receiving Christ is a life that is full of purpose, meaning, and significance.

1.   Jesus said, “I live because of the Father.” This means at least two things.

a.  He lived because of the Father, that is, of the Father, on account of the Father. His life was due to the Father.

b.   He lived for the Father; that is, He lived to do the Father’s will. The Father “sent” Him to live on earth for a specific purpose: to fulfill the Father’s will and task.

2.   The man who receives Christ (“feeds on me”) lives because of Christ. He begins to live in all the purpose, meaning, and significance of life, for apart from Christ there is no life. Note: the tense is present, continuous action. A person must continue to partake, eat, and feast upon Christ to keep his sense of purpose and meaning, to really live and live abundantly.

Gal 2:20  I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Phil 1:21  For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

2 Cor 4:11  For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.

3.   Jesus called God “the living Father.”

John 5:26  “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself.”

Mat 16:16  Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

2 Cor 6:16  What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

VI.   John 6: 58   Life – Jesus Christ, the Only Saviour

The fifth result of receiving Christ is incorruptible food within our hearts ­ energizing our lives forever. Christ made a strong, descriptive contrast.

=>   The manna eaten by Israel in the Old Testament did come from the clouds above, but it did not give life to the people. They were all dead.

=>   “This [the Lord Himself] is the Bread that came down from heaven...
he who feeds on this bread will live forever.”

The idea is striking: it is the Living Bread, Christ Himself, who energizes and quickens a man to live forever. Christ has the quality, the power, the substance to energize a man and give him eternal life. However, He and He alone has such energizing power.

John 1:4  In him was life, and that life was the light of men.

John 5:26  “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself.”

2 Tim 1:10  But it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. ♣

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