I Am the Bread of Life
The True Presence is the Bread of Life
The miracle in last week’s Gospel garnered Jesus fame; the crowds were growing with followers. Some of them were just happy to be fed by someone. Others thought He would be a military leader who would overthrow the Romans.
Jesus is teaching the disciples that he is more than a prophet; but the disciples do not always “get it.”
We don’t always get it, either. The Pew research survey taken in 2019 shows this. The alarming trend of Catholics not believing in the True Presence of the Eucharist was the impetus for the whole Eucharistic revival.
John chapter 6:35 is very plain and direct in its language: “I am the bread of life.” He is not mincing words. The strength of the language here emphasizes what Jesus is teaching us. The whole of the Bread of Life Discourse is Eucharistic.
Is it a Metaphor?
Jesus answered and said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.”
Nicodemus said to him, “How can a person once grown old be born again? Surely he cannot reenter his mother’s womb and be born again, can he?”
Jesus answered, “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.
When Nicodemus misunderstands, Jesus clarifies his teaching in order for Nicodemus to understand because He is speaking metaphorically. There are many places in all the Gospels when He does this. However, it is not so in the Bread of Life discourse. When Jesus is questioned, he doubles down on this teaching, showing us He is not speaking metaphorically. In the next few weeks in the Gospel, we will see this and we will see the effect Jesus’s plain language has on His ministry.