Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1882-10-26
&eaaiua Tor the gabbath.
CONDUCTED By
REV. ROBERT LATHAM.
{ (Orisinal,
THE FLESH OF JESUS.


drink his blood, We have no life in you Jno $685.
In the gospel by John there are some very re-
markable passages. In fact, it is full OF things
hard to he understood" The passage which
stands at the head of this article may be classed
as one of those hard sayings, which hasty in
terpreters are apt to wrest and make teach
either nothing or nonsense.
In the exposition of Scripture, strict atten-
tion must be paid to the context. From the
context we are, generally, able to learn What
nearly every passage in the Bible means Inns
is especially the case, when what is taught IN
the passage itself is something which is essen
tial to salvation.
Tn the exposition of the passage under pres
ent consideration, we may inquire lst, what 1t
does not mean, and then 2nd, proceed to In
ouire what it does mean. 1t Is most manifest
that a literal eating and drinking is not meant.
This is so obvious, that no one is likely to
come to the conclusion that our Saviour meant
that, in order that we may have life, we must
literally eat his flesh and drink his blood. It
may be that some of the Jews took the words
in their literal sIgnitication. This Is inferred
from the fact that they strOve among them
selves. Probably some of the Jews thought
the Saviour meant one thing, and others
thought he meant something else. Such being
the case, they grew angry and began to Wrangle
among themselves. Many reasons might be
given to show that the words are not to be
taken in 4 literal sense, Among these, it may
be mentioned that, In literal sense, the flesh
of the Son of Man never WAS eaten by any one:
Neither did any one ever, In literal sense,
drink his blood. Farther, since the ascension
of the Saviour, it has been physically lmpossl-
ble for any one literally, either to eat his flesh
or to drink his blood.
If the words are not to receive literal in
terpretation, what, it may be inquired, DO they
mean ?
A few commentators, and perhaps the null
titude of those who read the Scriptures, hastily
think that our Saviour meant by eating his
flesh and drinking his blood, eating and drink
ing the bread and wine used in celebrating the
Sacrament Nf the sppRer: Fhis We regard as
an unwarranted conclusion. We are unable
to see that there iseyen the slightest reference
to the SACRAMENT Of the Supper, either in the
passage itself, or in the preceding or sue
ceeding context. 1t is true that, In the Saora-
ment of the Supper, bread symbolizes the body
of Christ, and wine symbolizes the blood of
Christ, which was shed for sinners ; but this
fact of itself, is no proof that when our Saviour
said, ''except we eat the flesh of the Son of
Man and drink his blood ye have no life in YOU"
The reasons for concluding that our Saviour
did not have any reference to the Ordinance
which he afterward established in the Church
for commemorating his death, are many and
potent
There is nothing in all that precedes the pas
sage that would even suggest this to any one,
neither is it snsgssted by anything that fol-
lows. There is, it Is admitted, q kind Of sim
ilarity of expression, but nothing more.
From the 59th verse We learn that these
words were spoken by Jesus in the Synagogue
at Capernaum. On the preceding day our Sa-
viour had performed a miracle in that with five
barley loaves and two small fishes he had fed
five thousand individuals. A part of those
who had been thus miracqlously fed, followed
Jesus to Capernaum. not that they might he
taught by him, but that they might be fed.
For this they were sharply rebuked, and their
duty clearly pointed out. Work not, says our
Saviour to those carnally minded Jews, for the
food which perisheth, but for the food which
endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son
of Man shall give unto you. The reason as
signed by the Saviour for giving this whole.
some instruction is that God, the Father, hath
sealed him, the Son of Man, for this special
purpose. In other words, our SAVIOUR declares
that God, the Father, had sealed, that is ap-
pointed and commissioned, him to give ever
lasting life The Jews inquired what they
must do that they may work the works of God.
They were aroused. Convictions flash upon
them, and, in a spirit Of self-righteousness,
they think they must do something, but they
were ignorant of what that something was.
The Saviour replied, ''This is the work of God,
that ye believe on him whom he hath sent"
This sddn not satisfy them, and they ask, "What
sign shewest thou, then, that we may see and
believe thee" The idea of believing on Jesus
never entered their minds, nor did they con-
template doing this. All they desired was
some sign that would justify them in believ-
ing him. Notwithstanding the fact that some
of them, perhaps many of them, had witnessed
the miracle of the previous day, they impu-
IDENTIFY say, ''Our fathers did eat the mamma in
the desert" By this they meant tosay, '!you
are no greater than Moses, and your miracle of
feeding five thousand with five barley loaves
and two small fishes, will not compare with
that performed by Moses" Our Saviour re-
piled to this, in substance, by declaring that
whatever might have been Moses connection
with the feeding of the Children of Israel in
the desert on manna he did not give them the
mamma 1t was God that gave it, and the
mamma was not the bread to which he referred,
because those who eat the mamma were all dead.
In all this, there is no allusion whatever to
the Sacrament of the Lords Supper. The ex-
pressions 1.-THE true hread,' "the bread OF
life, ;" ''the living Bread" and s'the flesh and
blood of the Son of Man." all mean the same
thing, and none of them have any reference
to the Lords Supper.
That no reference is had, in the passage. to
the Lords Supper will appear, If we examine
the text itself in connection with the follow.
ing context In the text it is declared that
those who do not eat the flesh of the Son of
Man and drink his blood have no life in them.
1t must be clear that the life here spoken of is
not natural but spiritual life. Such being the !
case, if none except those who observe the
Sacrament of the Lords Supper have eternal
life all from Adam to Christ were destitute of
eternal life for none of them ever observed
this ordinance. Such conclusion would cut |
off the whole of the Old Testament Church. !
1t would simply be saying that all that host of !: