Thursday, November 11, 2010
As with previous posts, we can first look to the Old Testament for a prefiguring of the Eucharist.
Let's begin with the very first Passover meal. This meal was the key to the deliverance of the chosen people from their bondage. As the story goes, an un-blemished male lamb was chosen to be slaughtered for the Passover meal. The blood of the lamb was applied to the doorpost. All who participated in the Passover meal were required to eat the flesh of the lamb. Only this way would the firstborn of the family be spared from the angel of death.Now we come to the New Testament. The key reference we want to start with begins at John 6:48. Before He is done at verse 71, Christ mentions not once but four times that we must eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to obtain eternal life. Many disciples decide to leave Christ at this point because they could not accept His teaching. Does our Lord call them all back and say to them that He really didn't mean what He said? No! He lets them go their way.
Jesus then goes on to challenge the Apostles. Simon Peter is the only one to speak saying "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God." Did the Apostles understand the discourse that Jesus just finished giving? Probably not; but they accepted the teaching and believed in Him.
The fulfillment of Christ's command in John 6 to eat His body and drink His blood comes at the last supper (Passover) when He institutes the Eucharist with the words "this IS my body ..." and "this IS my blood ...". Here is where the first imperfect Passover from the Old Testament is perfectly fulfilled in the New Testament. The spotless male lamb is to be offered as a sacrifice to obtain our redemption from the bondage of sin. The flesh and blood of the lamb is consumed.
The words of our Lord are clear and the parallels with the Old Testament are undeniable. The Eucharist is truly the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Don't make the mistake of walking away from this teaching as many did in John's Gospel.
