The sixth chapter of the Gospel of John spends a lot of time dealing with bread and eating. But it isn't till the end of this long chapter that Jesus gets to the meat of the lesson.
Everything is going along fairly smoothly, even if not fully understood. Then Jesus announces that his flesh and blood is the main ingredients of the saving meal.
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 forever." John 6:56-59 NRSV
This is one of the most difficult text to read. It is disquieting, even gross. No wonder many of those who were following Jesus at the time walked away.
People walked away because they could not see beyond the hard words. Up to this point, they enjoyed the image of a banquet and living bread. They were not expecting the image to abruptly change to one of human blood and flesh being the main course. They didn't like this hard teaching so they left.
We are no different today. If anything we maybe quicker to give up and walk away when we hear something that upsets our politically correct sensibilities.
And we miss out on the gifts of God when we close our minds to the possibilities of letting the hard lessons bring about growth and new potential in our lives.
When did you walk away when confronted with a hard lesson?
What might be different had you listen to that lesson?
When did you listen to the hard lesson and how has it changed your life?
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