Sermon Title: A Life that Welcomes Jesus – What does it mean to receive Christ?
“Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35)
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”
Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.
Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.
This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” (John 6:51-58)
Dearly Beloved,
Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
In a world inundated with the profusion of types of diets that all purport to be beneficial for our health and well-being (i.e. the Paleo-Diet, Vegan Diet, Blood-type Diet, Raw-food Diet, or even the Carnivore Diet) , Christians bear well to always remember that we must be nourished solely on the Eternal Life Diet.
To truly welcome Christ is to radically and transcendently receive Him in our lives.
In this passage, our Lord Jesus gets visceral with us – on what it accurately means to receive Him; to welcome Him.
It is to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” (John 6:52); in order that we may have life today, and be resurrected unto life forever in His Eternal Kingdom.
To receive Christ in our lives is to be nourished solely through the ETERNAL LIFE DIET - to radically feed on Jesus, and live for all eternity.
To understand the radical nature of feeding on Christ is to acknowledge the radical nature that our lives:
(i) Comprise not only the body but the spirit – the component of our existence that outlives our physical bodies; and
(ii) Are destined to live beyond this broken world – redeemed and restored to be part of God’s Eternal and Perfect Kingdom.
Just as the main purpose that we eat and drink is for the nourishment and sustenance of our bodies – to keep us alive and healthy in this world; to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” is to nourish and sustain our spirits - to keep us spiritually alive and healthy, that we may be resurrected and live for all eternity with Christ in His Coming Kingdom.
Do you nourish your spirit?
Do you care about your spirit?
We must; for only in receiving Jesus and born-again in the spirit – can we see the Kingdom of God.
“Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked.
“Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”
5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.
6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” (John 3:3-6)
To be born of the Holy Spirit, is to be “born of water” – to a lifetime of repentance through the sacrament of Water Baptism, “and the Spirit” - a lifetime of restoration unto God’s Holiness and Kingdom purposes through the sacrament of Spirit Baptism.
This is the radical nature of nourishing and eternally sustaining our spirits through profoundly believing and depending entirely on our Lord Jesus Christ for His Salvation and His Kingdom Promises for those who believe.
This reality and worldview of Man’s salvation and restoration unto God’s Kingdom only through Him is the reason why Christ reveals the fundamental truth of how we can receive Him utterly in our lives.
In John 6, our Lord Jesus was met with so much disdain and frustration when the multitude of ‘so-called’ disciples realized that He was not the kind of king that they wanted Him to be.
At this point, Jesus had fed the 5000 men; and he had crossed many miles on the waters of the Sea of Galilee. His ability to heal the sick, cast out demons and even raise the dead was unquestioned; and in those days, it was still a strongly held ideology that when wars were fought, it was not only one army fighting against another army - it was a question of whose god was stronger, more powerful.
Jesus was not only the perfect candidate to be king of Israel; in their minds, Jesus could certainly be king of the known world.
They had imagined the hordes of soldiers He could feed and sustain throughout their campaigns by creating food out of thin air; and His supernatural abilities - along with His power to heal and cast out evil spirits - would guarantee that Israel would throw off the chains of Roman oppression and become the dominant country and culture in the world.
That was what they thought.
But now He was talking about His flesh as bread that His followers must eat – in order to have life and be raised from the dead.
Now they thought that He was completely crazy.
This reality of eating His flesh and drinking His blood was too much for them, to which, they grumbled, then argued sharply with one another, and then, “many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.” (John 6:66)
All because our Lord Jesus revealed, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.” (John 6:63)
“The flesh counts for nothing… …”
“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4 cf Deuteronomy 8:3)
The remaining, true disciples had but one response to the words of Jesus Christ, and the Apostle Peter reveals to us what our response to Christ ought to be,
“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68-69)
So, what does it really mean to receive Christ?
It is to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man” – which is, to have simple and utter faith in Christ’s Salvation; and “drink His Blood” – which is, to have simple and utter hope in Christ’s Kingdom.
Where our earthly bodies eat for nourishment and sustenance; our spiritual bodies “believe” for eternal nourishment and sustenance.
To believe in God’s Salvation - in simple and utter faith
To eat the flesh of the Son of Man – and only the flesh of the Son of Man - an imagery so vivid that it simply cannot be duplicated or replaced; in the marked allusion that there is only one way to enter the Kingdom of God – is to utterly believe that only through our Lord Jesus Christ are we saved (there is no other way to be saved) from eternal death (the wages of our sins) unto eternal life (the Promised Grace of God).
To “eat the flesh of the Son of Man” is to absolutely and unwaveringly believe that Christ took our place on the Cross; His body broken for us and that His death on the Cross completely atoned for our sins – that “if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9)
Through Christ, we are forgiven and saved from death unto eternal life.
“He has saved us and called us to a holy life” – a life of repentance, and a life constantly lived in the holy presence of our Saviour. (Ref: 2 Timothy 1:9)
To be daily nourished by “the flesh of the Son of Man” is to cultivate a life of simple and utter faith in His Salvation.
To believe in God’s Kingdom - in simple and utter hope
To “drink His Blood” - and only His Blood – again, an imagery so vivid that it simply cannot be duplicated or replaced; in the marked allusion that there is only one coming Kingdom – is to utterly believe that only in the blood of Jesus Christ is the New Covenant of God established in us.
To “drink His Blood” is to absolutely and unwaveringly believe that only in the blood of Jesus Christ is the New Covenant of God established in us.
The Apostle Paul reveals to us in 2 Corinthians 5:21:
”God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” in order that we might forever be part of His Perfect Kingdom.
The blood of Jesus upon our lives assures us of our destiny in God’s Kingdom through the New Covenant wrought by the Lamb of God.
To be daily nourished by “His blood” is to cultivate a life of simple and utter Hope in His Coming Kingdom.
The Lord’s Supper – the Eternal Life Diet
To be truly nourished is to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” – to cultivate a life of simple and utter faith in God’s Salvation and hope in God’s Kingdom.
It is as instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Sacrament known as the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion.
“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking (Pastor’s Note: it is neither physical nor worldly), but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17) - to be born-again by the Holy Spirit; and sustained through consuming Christ – the living Bread; in (i) living in the reality that our Salvation comes only through Christ, and (ii) living in the worldview that Christ is returning soon to usher in His Perfect, and eternal Kingdom (Ref: Revelation 21-22).
Our physical act of partaking of the bread that represents the body of Christ is our spiritual act of cultivating the simple and utter faith that Christ alone is our Saviour – and that only through Him are we saved from the wages of sin, which is death; and redeemed unto eternal life through Him - to be with Him.
Our physical act of partaking the cup that represents the blood of Jesus Christ is our spiritual act of cultivating the simple and utter hope in the Kingdom of God where we truly belong; and where Christ is the King Eternal.
Brethren, we are not merely earthly beings; we are spiritual beings.
We do not belong in this broken world, we belong in the Kingdom of God.
This world is not our home; and Christ has saved us that we may live for all eternity in His Kingdom; in His New Creation.
As we remember that we belong wholly to Christ – let us boldly break the chains of the reality of this world, and put on our garments of righteousness wrought for us by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ – whose body was broken and whose blood was shed for us.
Let us truly be saved in always remembering that we are recipients of God’s Salvation and recipients of God’s New Creation Covenant through Christ.
Let us daily cultivate a simple, utter faith in Christ’s Salvation and a simple, utter hope for His Coming Kingdom.
How might you cultivate a life of faith in God’s Salvation?
How might you cultivate a life of hope in God’s Coming Kingdom?
Simply Believe in Jesus; simply live for Jesus; and simply live in Jesus.
Have faith in His Salvation; have hope in His Coming Kingdom
Shalom.
Let us pray.
Our Father in Heaven,
Hallowed be Your Name.
Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done; on earth, as it is in heaven.
Lord Jesus, help me live a life that fully and truly welcomes You.
I acknowledge that You are my King, my Saviour and my Shepherd; You are our only Way, Truth and Life; and You are our only Salvation and Strength;
Grant that I would open my life wholly to You and receive more of You!
And grant me courage, strength, resolve and wisdom to follow You all the days of my life!
May my daily response to You be as the Apostle Peter’s who said, “Lord, to whom shall we go…You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God.”
Lord Jesus, I believe in Your Salvation and Your Kingdom; I believe in You.
I declare that there is only one reality of salvation – and Your Name is Jesus!
Holy Spirit, fill my life with the diligence and seriousness required to cultivate a life of simple and utter faith in God’s Salvation through Jesus Christ.
I declare that there is only one worldview for what’s to come – and that is, Your Kingdom, O Lord!
Holy Spirit, fill my life with the diligence and seriousness required to cultivate a life of simple and utter hope for Your Coming Kingdom.
I acknowledge that the bread of Holy Communion represents the body of Christ; and the cup represents the New Creation Covenant established in us through Christ; and that these sacred emblems point to the reality of God’s Salvation and His Coming Kingdom – which has become my reality. Thank You, Holy Spirit!
Lord Jesus, I welcome You into all of my life. I receive You fully and utterly.
May I daily be nourished in my spirit – as I daily “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood” in daily embrace of Your Salvation and Your Coming Kingdom; and daily cultivate within me the simple, utter and unshakable faith in Your Salvation; and the simple, utter and unshakable hope in Your Kingdom.
Come, Lord Jesus! (Revelation 22:20)
I thank You and pray all these in the Name of our King, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
“Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35)
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”
Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.
Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.
This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” (John 6:51-58)
Dearly Beloved,
Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
In a world inundated with the profusion of types of diets that all purport to be beneficial for our health and well-being (i.e. the Paleo-Diet, Vegan Diet, Blood-type Diet, Raw-food Diet, or even the Carnivore Diet) , Christians bear well to always remember that we must be nourished solely on the Eternal Life Diet.
To truly welcome Christ is to radically and transcendently receive Him in our lives.
In this passage, our Lord Jesus gets visceral with us – on what it accurately means to receive Him; to welcome Him.
It is to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” (John 6:52); in order that we may have life today, and be resurrected unto life forever in His Eternal Kingdom.
To receive Christ in our lives is to be nourished solely through the ETERNAL LIFE DIET - to radically feed on Jesus, and live for all eternity.
To understand the radical nature of feeding on Christ is to acknowledge the radical nature that our lives:
(i) Comprise not only the body but the spirit – the component of our existence that outlives our physical bodies; and
(ii) Are destined to live beyond this broken world – redeemed and restored to be part of God’s Eternal and Perfect Kingdom.
Just as the main purpose that we eat and drink is for the nourishment and sustenance of our bodies – to keep us alive and healthy in this world; to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” is to nourish and sustain our spirits - to keep us spiritually alive and healthy, that we may be resurrected and live for all eternity with Christ in His Coming Kingdom.
Do you nourish your spirit?
Do you care about your spirit?
We must; for only in receiving Jesus and born-again in the spirit – can we see the Kingdom of God.
“Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked.
“Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”
5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.
6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” (John 3:3-6)
To be born of the Holy Spirit, is to be “born of water” – to a lifetime of repentance through the sacrament of Water Baptism, “and the Spirit” - a lifetime of restoration unto God’s Holiness and Kingdom purposes through the sacrament of Spirit Baptism.
This is the radical nature of nourishing and eternally sustaining our spirits through profoundly believing and depending entirely on our Lord Jesus Christ for His Salvation and His Kingdom Promises for those who believe.
This reality and worldview of Man’s salvation and restoration unto God’s Kingdom only through Him is the reason why Christ reveals the fundamental truth of how we can receive Him utterly in our lives.
In John 6, our Lord Jesus was met with so much disdain and frustration when the multitude of ‘so-called’ disciples realized that He was not the kind of king that they wanted Him to be.
At this point, Jesus had fed the 5000 men; and he had crossed many miles on the waters of the Sea of Galilee. His ability to heal the sick, cast out demons and even raise the dead was unquestioned; and in those days, it was still a strongly held ideology that when wars were fought, it was not only one army fighting against another army - it was a question of whose god was stronger, more powerful.
Jesus was not only the perfect candidate to be king of Israel; in their minds, Jesus could certainly be king of the known world.
They had imagined the hordes of soldiers He could feed and sustain throughout their campaigns by creating food out of thin air; and His supernatural abilities - along with His power to heal and cast out evil spirits - would guarantee that Israel would throw off the chains of Roman oppression and become the dominant country and culture in the world.
That was what they thought.
But now He was talking about His flesh as bread that His followers must eat – in order to have life and be raised from the dead.
Now they thought that He was completely crazy.
This reality of eating His flesh and drinking His blood was too much for them, to which, they grumbled, then argued sharply with one another, and then, “many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.” (John 6:66)
All because our Lord Jesus revealed, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.” (John 6:63)
“The flesh counts for nothing… …”
“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4 cf Deuteronomy 8:3)
The remaining, true disciples had but one response to the words of Jesus Christ, and the Apostle Peter reveals to us what our response to Christ ought to be,
“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68-69)
So, what does it really mean to receive Christ?
It is to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man” – which is, to have simple and utter faith in Christ’s Salvation; and “drink His Blood” – which is, to have simple and utter hope in Christ’s Kingdom.
Where our earthly bodies eat for nourishment and sustenance; our spiritual bodies “believe” for eternal nourishment and sustenance.
To believe in God’s Salvation - in simple and utter faith
To eat the flesh of the Son of Man – and only the flesh of the Son of Man - an imagery so vivid that it simply cannot be duplicated or replaced; in the marked allusion that there is only one way to enter the Kingdom of God – is to utterly believe that only through our Lord Jesus Christ are we saved (there is no other way to be saved) from eternal death (the wages of our sins) unto eternal life (the Promised Grace of God).
To “eat the flesh of the Son of Man” is to absolutely and unwaveringly believe that Christ took our place on the Cross; His body broken for us and that His death on the Cross completely atoned for our sins – that “if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9)
Through Christ, we are forgiven and saved from death unto eternal life.
“He has saved us and called us to a holy life” – a life of repentance, and a life constantly lived in the holy presence of our Saviour. (Ref: 2 Timothy 1:9)
To be daily nourished by “the flesh of the Son of Man” is to cultivate a life of simple and utter faith in His Salvation.
To believe in God’s Kingdom - in simple and utter hope
To “drink His Blood” - and only His Blood – again, an imagery so vivid that it simply cannot be duplicated or replaced; in the marked allusion that there is only one coming Kingdom – is to utterly believe that only in the blood of Jesus Christ is the New Covenant of God established in us.
To “drink His Blood” is to absolutely and unwaveringly believe that only in the blood of Jesus Christ is the New Covenant of God established in us.
The Apostle Paul reveals to us in 2 Corinthians 5:21:
”God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” in order that we might forever be part of His Perfect Kingdom.
The blood of Jesus upon our lives assures us of our destiny in God’s Kingdom through the New Covenant wrought by the Lamb of God.
To be daily nourished by “His blood” is to cultivate a life of simple and utter Hope in His Coming Kingdom.
The Lord’s Supper – the Eternal Life Diet
To be truly nourished is to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” – to cultivate a life of simple and utter faith in God’s Salvation and hope in God’s Kingdom.
It is as instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Sacrament known as the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion.
“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking (Pastor’s Note: it is neither physical nor worldly), but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17) - to be born-again by the Holy Spirit; and sustained through consuming Christ – the living Bread; in (i) living in the reality that our Salvation comes only through Christ, and (ii) living in the worldview that Christ is returning soon to usher in His Perfect, and eternal Kingdom (Ref: Revelation 21-22).
Our physical act of partaking of the bread that represents the body of Christ is our spiritual act of cultivating the simple and utter faith that Christ alone is our Saviour – and that only through Him are we saved from the wages of sin, which is death; and redeemed unto eternal life through Him - to be with Him.
Our physical act of partaking the cup that represents the blood of Jesus Christ is our spiritual act of cultivating the simple and utter hope in the Kingdom of God where we truly belong; and where Christ is the King Eternal.
Brethren, we are not merely earthly beings; we are spiritual beings.
We do not belong in this broken world, we belong in the Kingdom of God.
This world is not our home; and Christ has saved us that we may live for all eternity in His Kingdom; in His New Creation.
As we remember that we belong wholly to Christ – let us boldly break the chains of the reality of this world, and put on our garments of righteousness wrought for us by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ – whose body was broken and whose blood was shed for us.
Let us truly be saved in always remembering that we are recipients of God’s Salvation and recipients of God’s New Creation Covenant through Christ.
Let us daily cultivate a simple, utter faith in Christ’s Salvation and a simple, utter hope for His Coming Kingdom.
How might you cultivate a life of faith in God’s Salvation?
How might you cultivate a life of hope in God’s Coming Kingdom?
Simply Believe in Jesus; simply live for Jesus; and simply live in Jesus.
Have faith in His Salvation; have hope in His Coming Kingdom
Shalom.
Let us pray.
Our Father in Heaven,
Hallowed be Your Name.
Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done; on earth, as it is in heaven.
Lord Jesus, help me live a life that fully and truly welcomes You.
I acknowledge that You are my King, my Saviour and my Shepherd; You are our only Way, Truth and Life; and You are our only Salvation and Strength;
Grant that I would open my life wholly to You and receive more of You!
And grant me courage, strength, resolve and wisdom to follow You all the days of my life!
May my daily response to You be as the Apostle Peter’s who said, “Lord, to whom shall we go…You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God.”
Lord Jesus, I believe in Your Salvation and Your Kingdom; I believe in You.
I declare that there is only one reality of salvation – and Your Name is Jesus!
Holy Spirit, fill my life with the diligence and seriousness required to cultivate a life of simple and utter faith in God’s Salvation through Jesus Christ.
I declare that there is only one worldview for what’s to come – and that is, Your Kingdom, O Lord!
Holy Spirit, fill my life with the diligence and seriousness required to cultivate a life of simple and utter hope for Your Coming Kingdom.
I acknowledge that the bread of Holy Communion represents the body of Christ; and the cup represents the New Creation Covenant established in us through Christ; and that these sacred emblems point to the reality of God’s Salvation and His Coming Kingdom – which has become my reality. Thank You, Holy Spirit!
Lord Jesus, I welcome You into all of my life. I receive You fully and utterly.
May I daily be nourished in my spirit – as I daily “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood” in daily embrace of Your Salvation and Your Coming Kingdom; and daily cultivate within me the simple, utter and unshakable faith in Your Salvation; and the simple, utter and unshakable hope in Your Kingdom.
Come, Lord Jesus! (Revelation 22:20)
I thank You and pray all these in the Name of our King, Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.