BELIEF & DISCIPLESHIP
Back to John 6:
John 6:54 (LIT/UBS4) The one (ho) gnawing (trōgōn) the (tēn) flesh (sarka) of me (mou), and (kai) drinking (pinōn) the (to) blood (haima) of me (mou), holds (echei) ageless (aiōnion) life (zōēn).
And I (kagō) shall stand him up (anastēsō auton) the (tē) last (aschatē) day (hēmera).
Some believe this passage in John 6:54 is difficult to understand, or a hard saying as some call it. It may seem hard, if not impossible, to those who are not acquainted with various biblical research methods used to ferret out truths. As you can see a believer must be able to bring to the forefront of his mind other relative passages throughout God's Word to build the proper context around the difficult passage through which its meaning may come to light. The great truths hidden in passages like this one and others shall always remain hidden and out of sight to those who do not learn the scriptural methods of straightly cutting God's Word, and apply them. I call it digging in God's Word. Digging is hard work and takes time. Those who have more important things to do with their time don't dig God's Word. He knows who they are. God and his son Jesus Christ know that only those who truly love and fellowship with them would desire to put forth the effort to dig at it to get the spiritual understanding of apparent hard sayings. And only those shall be taught by God.
Throughout the passage in John 6, "gnawing the flesh of me", and "drinking the blood of me" are the two verb phrases which, perhaps more than the other peculiar phrases in this record, most challenge the readers knowledge and understanding to discern their meanings. Perhaps the most important rule those who dig God's Word must adhere to, is to pay attention exactly to;
1) What God says, Where he says it, When he says it, to Whom he says it and How he says it.
2) become thoroughly familiar with ALL of the subject. Trying to understand a verse of scripture without the knowledge of all the other subject matter-related verses throughout God's Word is reckless, and it leads to guesswork, and to the teaching of half-truths, which are lies and error.
Prior knowledge of what God and/or Jesus Christ have said can provide a framework of reference in which to try to understand what new knowledge we gain through digging in God's Word. To say it simply, knowledge of God's Word leads to understanding other knowledge in God's Word, and therefore the knowledge of God's Word builds upon itself. There are many more methodologies and rules of study and research which I'm not going to get into now, but using only these two get us digging into understanding what Jesus means when he says "gnawing the flesh of me", and "drinking the blood of me".
What Jesus says and How he says it are what I see are most important here. From reading what Jesus has said in his teachings throughout the gospel writings, it is predictable that Jesus will probably use a story telling method of either a parable, an allusion or a metaphor, or a combination of them in a string of teachings. This is How Jesus usually teaches a crowd. So I ask, is he using one of these story telling methods here in this verse in John 6:54? Absolutely. his metaphors are very obvious. A metaphor is always based upon the symbolic use of the verb. Here the two verbs are gnawing and drinking. It's obvious to me and most all mortals that Jesus doesn't literally mean gnawing and drinking physical food, but uses them to reference some other actions that he recommends mortals take to eat and drink spiritual food.
What does Jesus say? Has Jesus ever used these verbs together, before, or at any time in his ministry? Often looking in the passages where Jesus has said the same or similar things, one can find additional explanations which give the understanding or more clues to the proper understanding of a metaphor. We find that Jesus uses both of these same verbs together in another teaching, recorded in Mat. 24:38.
Mat. 24:38 (LIT/UBS4) Because (gar) as (hōs) in (en) the (tais) days (hēmerais) for those things (ekeinais), the ones (tais) before (pro) the (tou) cataclysm (kataklusmou), they were being (ēsan) ones gnawing (trōgontes) and (kai) ones drinking (pinontes), ones marrying (gamountes) and (kai) ones espousing (gamizontes), until (achri) which (hēs) day (hēmeras) Noah (nōe) entered in (eisēlthen) into (eis) the (tēn) ark (kibōton),
Here Jesus characterizes the preoccupation of the mortals upon the earth in the days of Noah, up to the day the deluge began, the cataclysm. Jesus must mean, "gnawing and drinking, marrying and espousing" in a derogatory sense, on account of what the writing in Genesis tells us, in the record about the days of Noah;
Gen. 6:5 (YLT) And Jehovah seeth that abundant is the wickedness of man in the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart only evil all the day;
Because they were so busy doing their own thing, apart from God, gnawing and drinking, marrying and espousing, they paid no attention to what God thought of the evil in their hearts. They had perhaps a few moments to reflect upon it just before they drowned.
But Jesus doesn't use the phrases "gnawing the flesh of me" and "drinking the blood of me" in John 6:54 in a derogatory sense, since those gnawing his flesh and drinking his blood are eating and drinking into themselves ageless life. This could very well mean that Jesus intentionally desires to show us an antithesis; that believing disciples who are eating his flesh and drinking his blood are the antithesis of those mortals in the days of Noah whose hearts were filled with evil, and who were only satisfying their own hedonisms. Those mortals in the days of Noah were busy "gnawing" and "drinking" evil unto death, while Jesus' Believing disciples are "gnawing" and "drinking" God's Word, the words of Spirit and life, unto ageless life. The implication is that in the days of Noah, the food which those mortals were eating wasn't good enough to keep them alive through the flood. They were busy eating all of mortalkind's empty babble, when they should have been eating God's words of life. They filled their hearts full of mortalkind's empty babble to the point that the thoughts of their hearts were continually full of evil.
In Mat. 24:38 Jesus uses the word kibōton, which literal meaning is, "a wooden box", but from the context we can see it as a reference to the ark of Noah. But if the context were about a death and a burial, a wooden box is a thing in which dead people are buried. But Noah and his family and all therein, came back out of the wooden box, a figure of the resurrection. The wooden box as Jesus says, or Noah's ark, is figuratively used to represent both a coffin to hold a dead body, and the Ark of the Covenant in God's Word, depending upon the points to be made. Apostle Peter mentions this figure of the resurrection in association with the "wooden box", or ark of Noah (1 Pet. 3:18-21). Apostle Peter uses his reference to a wooden box as an opposite type, to an ark to bring the eight souls safely through the flooding waters, as opposed to a reference to a burial coffin for a dead body.
"gnawing the flesh of me" - I believe it is important to note the verb Jesus chose to represent the process his believing disciples are to use in gnawing him, the true bread from heaven, gnawing the flesh of him. As I pointed out before, eating, and here gnawing, are both metaphors for devouring the knowledge and understanding in God's Word about the full extent of our wholeness through his sacrifice for us, and specifically about physical healing for us now before his return, and our physical bodily restoration after his return.
In Jesus' teachings, in all of his parables, allusions and metaphors, Jesus always chooses his words very carefully, because he uses them to draw correspondences between things in the physical realm to things in the spiritual realm, and things in the physical realm to other things in the physical realm. The understanding of these correspondences through understanding his use of metaphors and other figures of speech is up to the believing disciple to discern for himself, through searching (eraunōntes) the deep things (bathos) in God's Word (John 5:39; 1 Cor. 2:10), adjudicating350 (anakrinontes) the writings for himself daily (Acts 17:11), and verifying out diligently (exetasate akribōs) all the things about Christ Jesus in God's Word (Mat. 2:8), with the Spirit of God in the believing disciple teaching him (John 6:45, 14:26; 1 John 2;27 1 Cor. 2:13; Col. 1:9; 2 Tim. 2:7).
In John 6:54 and in Mat. 24:38, in his teaching, Jesus could have said eating (esthiōn, esthiontōn, root word esthiō) respectively, words most commonly used to mean eating, which words pay no regard to exactly what is ate or how it is eaten. Or Jesus could have used a word meaning to taste (geuomai). And there are several other various words Jesus could have chose to use related to dining, and feeding and pasturing of animals, etc.. But Jesus chose to use the word trōgōn and in John 6:54 and Mat. 24:38, a verb with a much more specific meaning, to draw our attention to how something is eaten.
Strong's concordance defines the meaning of trōgō as:
"probably strengthened from a collateral form of the base of (5134) and (5147) through the idea of corrosion or wear, or perhaps rather of a base of (5167) and (5149) through the idea of a crunching sound" —Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary
Vine's concordance defines the meaning of trōgō as:
"primarily, "to gnaw, to chew," stresses the slow process; it is used metaphorically of the habit of spiritually feeding upon Christ, John 6:54, 56-58 (the aorists here do not indicate a definite act, but view a series of acts seen in perspective); of the constant custom of "eating" in certain company John 13:18; of a practice unduly engrossing the world Matt. 24:38. In John 6, the change in the Lord's use from the verb esthiō (phagō) to the stronger verb trōgō, is noticeable. The more persistent the unbelief of his hearers, the more difficult his language and statements became. In verses 49-53 the verb phagō is used; in 54, 58, trōgō (in verse 58 it is put into immediate contrast with phagō)." —Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words
Therefore, in my opinion, gnawing describes a persistent intimacy with God's Word in searching for the knowledge, judging up the knowledge, and verifying out diligently the knowledge of the meaning of his broken body for us in sacrificing himself for our wholeness. "Gnawing" implies more than simply biting, but chewing it after we have bitten it off. Gnawing implies that the meat is so good we take extra time to be sure we have gnawed the meat off from every possible part of the bone, to get it all! And then, after the bone has dropped back to the plate, we look it over again to be sure we got it all.
In John 14:11 and 15:20-21, Jesus describes how the Judean religious leadership only read God's Word, but didn't search it, judge it up or verify it out diligently, because they didn't know who Jesus Christ was when he came. They absolutely did not have knowledge of the prophecies foretelling the signs, miracles and wonders the coming messiah would do, through which they would be able to identify him and his arrival. Jesus did signs miracles and wonders greater than those God did through Moses, and they couldn't come up with a clue as to who Jesus was. They couldn't recognize Jesus, who he was by what he was doing, because they were working for the devil (John 8:44)? Let us not simply read God's Word and make the same errors as those Judean religious leaders. They were practicing a whole lot of religious hoopla, but it wasn't God's Word, it was all mortal-made religious bull-pucky! It was similar to what we have today in modern "Christianity", in which mortal-made religious theological theories have replaced much of the truth of God's Word, to the point that the "church" is now virtually totally anemic of any spiritual power of God in it. What I mean is, at least "they" think they are the church, the body of Christ. But it's only denominational, sectarian show biz. It's only show biz but they like it!
"drinking the blood of me" - Jesus' blood is always and automatically a reference to the new covenant of God. The concept of drinking the blood of Jesus Christ takes us deep into the knowledge of the Great Mystery of the new covenant, the mystery of the beginning of the fulfillment of the Joel 2:28-32 prophecy. Please keep in mind that the beginning of the fulfillment of the Great Mystery of the one body of Christ, the raising up of the "tent" of David (Amos 9:11-12, Acts 15:13-18), the building of God's prophesied true "tent" of him which he builds with his own hand (Heb. 8:2) to be his permanent domicile (Exod. 15:17, 25:22; Isa. 66:1-2; Acts 7:47-50, 17:24), and the beginning of the Kingdom of the heavens, of God, which officially began being built on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), and will not be completely fulfilled and completed until the second coming of Jesus Christ. But, the Joel 2:28-32 prophecy began to become fulfilled beginning on that day of Pentecost recorded by apostle Luke in Acts 2. In John 7:37-38 Jesus again refers to the drinking of his blood, about which the writer, apostle John, says is a reference to Jesus' blood as being Spirit of God (John 7:39; 1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19; 2 Cor. 6:16; Eph. 2:21).
Again, as I have demonstrated throughout this work, straightly cutting God's Word by subject matter through the use of word studies brings together those remote relative passages into consideration with the current passage and context, John 6:54, based upon the words I've selected to track. The obvious words within this phrase to track throughout the holy scriptures is the verb participle drinking and the noun blood.
Always assuming that Jesus chose his words carefully, as do all those who truly speak for God the heavenly Father as his agent, then I look at his words carefully. The verb participle drinking in John 6:54 is in the present tense, active voice. Active voice means the subject, "The one" is the one doing the action of the verb, drinking. The subject is in the singular, addressing each one personally, to whom Jesus was teaching. Jesus is addressing each one of his hearers personally. The person morphological component of the verb is not given (restricted) and therefore I assume that The one drinking could be first, second or third person; therefore the subject, The one, could be me, you or someone else, anyone hearing Jesus' words. The one drinking (continuous action in the present, whenever the present may be) the blood of Jesus holds (within them) ageless life. Therefore, the "blood" of Jesus holds ageless life, and if The one desires to hold ageless life within him, then the one must "drink" that "blood", the Spirit of God himself, which is ageless life.
The religious leaders took Jesus as speaking literally in this passage. This seriously betrays their lackf spiritual insight and was evidence of themselves being nothing more than charlatans, actors! Anyone serious about understanding God's Word, who is only moderately familiar with the old covenant prophecies, knows that prophecies are spoken with symbolic meaning, using words and phrases which are symbolic to spiritual truths. Since the religious leaders thought Jesus spoke literally, shows they had neither familiarity nor concept of prophetic speaking, i.e., God's Word, and that they were truly very poor imposters of believers and spiritual leadership.
IDENTIFYING SOME BASIC TYPES IN GOD'S WORD
I've already explained some figures of speech and types used in the scrolls of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, John and Matthew. But to continue discovering what Jesus meant when he said "drinking the blood of me", we need to become more familiar with the usage of figurative speaking in God's Word. Through seeing how other associations are made between ideas and truths in God's Word, we shall come to discover exactly what Jesus meant by the verb "drinking" and the noun "blood".
Throughout God's Word it gives us examples of many figurative and symbolic equivalents, or types as they are called, nouns and verbs which are used to represent other nouns and verbs. The peculiar usage of nouns in place of other nouns is common in many figures of speech. Jesus Christ often taught using the figure of speech Parable, which utilizes exchange of nouns to more dramatically illustrate certain points in a story. God's Word tells us that many persons, places and/or things (nouns) are used as types (tupos), translated as ensamples and figures, to represent other persons, places and/or things (Rom. 5:14; 1 Cor. 10:6, 11).
Types are often used because they have characteristics in common with their anti-types, which usage handily points out and illustrates those characteristics in the anti-types. The figure of speech Simile almost exclusively depends upon the usage of types and their antitypes to illustrate ideas. Using a Simile, this person, place or thing is LIKE or AS that person, place or thing. For example: "All we like sheep," implies that sheep are a type to all we. So then, what is the characteristic or characteristics which sheep have which are being applied to all we? Perhaps the characteristics of wandering off, getting in trouble, and needing to be rescued.
Jesus Christ taught using the figure of speech Metaphor also, which utilizes exchange of nouns and verbs to more dramatically illustrate certain points in a story. Again, the idea is, as in many figures of speech, to borrow the characteristics of the associated person, place or thing and apply them to the subject person, place or thing. For example: While a Simile would suggest "All flesh is LIKE or AS grass", (1 Pet. 1;24), a Metaphor boldly states that "All flesh IS grass". You see how a Metaphor makes a more forceful statement than a Simile. So what is the characteristic of grass which is being applied to flesh? The weakness of grass to defend itself against the heat of the day allows it to become burned up and wither away. Similarly, flesh is weak and becomes sick and corrupted and withers away under sin.
God's Word uses Parables, Similes, Metaphors and many other figures of speech to dramatically and emphatically illustrate points and Truths. When we examine these figurative passages to understand the illustrated and associated ideas and Truths, we can learn the mind of Christ, and thusly the mind of the Father, and come to know and understand more thoroughly God's Word.
Now let's begin examining some relative figures of speech, types and associations in God's Word which will help us understand what Jesus meant when he said "drinking the blood of me".
The root word of drinking (pinōn) in John 6:54, pinō, is used in various grammatical forms about 75 times in the new covenant writings, which abundance of usages indicates we may have plenty of opportunity to discover the symbolic spiritual meaning of what Jesus meant by drinking. One doesn't need to review the usages and contexts of all 75 occurrences to begin finding great treasure.
Anyone familiar with rightly dividing the new covenant portion of God's Word has discovered that holy Spirit working with apostle Paul alludes to and enlightens us further about many of the parabolic, and in the case of the example in John 6:54, metaphoric (symbolic usage of a verb) sayings of Jesus Christ. In 1 Cor. 10:4 let us examine how apostle Paul speaks parabolically about Spirit-based drink, which understanding will help us understand exactly what Jesus mean in John 6:54 about "drinking his blood".
1 Cor. 10:1 (LIT/UBS4) Because (gar) I absolutely do not desire (ou thelō) you (humas) to be ignorant (agnoein), brothers (adelphoi), that (hoti) the (hoi) fathers (pateres) of us (hēmōn) were being (ēsan) all (pantes) under (hupo) [authority, AE] of the (tēn) cloud (nephelēn);
and (kai) all (pantes) came through (diēlthon) through (dia) the (tēs) sea (thalassēs);
1 Cor. 10:2 (LIT/UBS4) and (kai) all (pantes) into (eis) the (ton) Moses (mōsēn) were baptized (ebaptisthēsan) in (en) the (tē) cloud (nephelē) and (kai) in (en) the (tē) sea (thalassē)!
1 Cor. 10:3 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) all (pantes) ate (ephagon) it (auto), the (to) Spirit-based (pneumatikon) food (brōma);
1 Cor. 10:4 (LIT/UBS4) and (kai) all (pantes) drank (epion) the (to) same (auto) Spirit-based (pneumatikon) drink (poma), because (gar) they were drinking (epinon) out (ek) of [a] Spirit-based (pneumatikēs) Rock (petras) following (akolouthousēs) [them];
but (de) the (hē) Rock (petra) was being (ēn) the (ho) Christ (Christos).
"the Spirit-based drink" - According to Lamsa, "The reference here is to the rock which Moses struck in the desert when the people were thirsty (Exodus 17:6; Num. 20:7-21)." Yes, but the rock and the water which came out of it were both types to God's Word. The "rock" was a type to the promised coming redeemer, the Christ, who would give all those who believe the ability to enter into the Kingdom of God, of which the land of Canaan, the "Promised land" was an old covenant type. The water which came out of the rock was a type to the gift of holy Spirit which Jesus Christ shall give to all those who believe upon the name of Jesus and what his name represents. This is why the rock and the water which came out of it were Spirit-based drink, because as types they foretold of the coming messiah and the gift of holy Spirit which enable mortals to enter into the Kingdom of God.
"but the Rock was the Christ" - Christ was the Word of God made flesh, which tented among us (John 1:14).
George Lamsa was an Aramaic scholar who has given us a wonderful translation based upon the Aramaic Peshitta text of the Bible. In my opinion his work should be a part of every believing disciple's library. He was a native Assyrian, and was born and reared in that part of the ancient biblical land from which Abraham migrated to Palestine. his people, because they were isolated for many centuries, preserved the Aramaic language and the ancient biblical customs which have disappeared everywhere else. Lamsa, because of his unique background, is qualified as one of the most important, if not the most important Aramaic scholar of the 20th century. He explains this idiom for us.
"The Aramaic word kepa (cepa), "rock," is often used symbolically, suggesting protection and shelter. One often hears people say: "He has been a rock behind me," which means "he has supported me." "God is my rock" means "God is my shelter or support." Rock also means "truth." "On this rock will I build my church" means "on this truth will I build my church." During severe sandstorms and heavy rains, pastoral people take refuge under rocks and in caves. And they often find water from springs coming out of the rocks."
Now our spiritual vision may become clearer, and we can see that the "Spirit-based drink" to which Paul refers is the prophetic God's Word about the coming promised messiah (Christ), which Word came to the children of Israel through Moses while they were in the wilderness on their way to the promised land. Apostle Paul says they drank God's Word from the Rock following them, which was Christ. Christ, the Rock of Truth, who was in the cloud following them, was giving Moses the words to speak to the children of Israel. So the Spirit-based drink which the children of Israel drank, i.e., heard and believed, was God's Word, which came to them through the mouth of Moses. But the scope of what is the Spirit-based drink is yet still larger than this.
John 1:14 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) the (ho) Word (logos) caused himself to become (egeneto) flesh (sarx), and (kai) he tented (eskēnōsen) among (en) us (hēmin).
And (kai) we made ourselves spectators (etheasametha) of the (tēn) glory (doxan) of him (autou), [the] glory (doxan) as (hōs) of [an] only genus3439 (monogenous) alongside (para) of [the] Father (patros), one full (plērēs) of grace (charotis) and (kai) of Truth (alētheias).
Since the flesh referred to here is the promised messiah Jesus Christ, then the association being made is;
God's Word = Jesus Christ
Another association implied is;
Jesus Christ = God's Grace
and
Jesus Christ = Truth
Jesus Christ became the living example of God's Word. Two characteristics of God and his Word of which Jesus is a living example, is God's grace and the truthfulness of God's Word (John 1:14-17). The point here is that God's Word is Truth, and Jesus Christ is the living example of the Truth of God's Word, and we are to believe what Jesus says to us if we desire to believe and be made whole.
Jesus said:
John 6:63 (LIT/UBS4) The (to) Spirit (pneuma) is (estin) the (to) [life, v54, RE] making one alive (zōopoioun).
The (hē) flesh (sarx) absolutely does not profit (ouk ōphelei), absolutely not one (ouden) [profit, RE]!
The (ta) statements (rhēmata) which (ha) I (egō) have spoken (lelalēka) to you (humin), [each statement, RE] is (estin) Spirit (pneuma), and (kai) [each statement, RE] is (estin) life (zōe)!
Jesus Christ plainly states that the Spirit is the thing life-making, or making alive. The Spirit is God himself, because God is a Spirit (John 4:24), and the Spirit referenced is of God (Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 3:16).
Jesus Christ plainly states that the flesh absolutely does not profit absolutely not one thing! (emphatic use of double negative in the text). The flesh is emphatically absolutely not the life, but the flesh is 100% dependent upon Spirit to make it alive.
Jesus Christ plainly states that each word of God's Word which he has spoken to us, each one is Spirit and each one is life. Therefore,
God's Word = Spirit
and
God's Word = Life
therefore
Spirit = Life
So then, within a mortal's physical body where exactly does God's Spirit dwell? God tells us in his Word!
Lev. 17:10 (YLT) `And any man of the house of Israel, or of the sojourners, who is sojourning in your midst, who eateth any blood, I have even set My face against the person who is eating the blood, and have cut him off from the midst of his people;
Therefore in John 6:54, Jesus couldnot have meant for anyone to literally drink his blood.
Lev. 17:11 (YLT) for the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar, to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood which maketh atonement for the soul.
The life (as a type to Spirit) of the flesh is in the blood! Therefore the Spirit which makes the flesh alive is in the blood. The Spirit of God dwells within the blood of all flesh, which makes all flesh alive. Therefore, flesh dies when the Spirit of God is removed from the blood, or the blood is removed from the flesh. This is why drinking blood is a sin, because it is an attempt to obtain the Spirit of God without God's consent.
John 14:6 (LIT/UBS4) The (ho) Jesus (Iēsous) says (legei) to him (auto), “I (ego) am (eimi) the (hē) way (hodos), and (kai) the (hē) truth (aletheia), and (kai) the (hē) life (zoe).
Absolutely not one (oudeis) causes himself to come (erchetai) to (pros) the (ton) Father (patera), if (ei) not (mē) through (di’) me (emou)!
Using the same inductive logic we can lay out the symbolic and parabolic meaning of "Spirit-based drink" as apostle Paul referred to it in 1 Cor. 10:4. So then, from reading God's Word we can see the things which are treated as symbolically equivalent of each other:
God's Word = Spirit
and
God's Word = Spirit-based drink
and
God's Word = Way
and
God's Word = Truth
and
God's Word = Life
therefore
Spirit, Spirit-based drink, Way, Truth and Life can all be symbolic types to one another in their usages, depending upon the context of their usages.
As to when these terms are used symbolically to represent one another in God's Word is entirely up to the hearer to determine and believe for him or herself. They can literally refer to one another while emphasizing a particular aspect of the Spirit's benefits to the believer. Besides the inherent life-giving benefits, fruits of having God's Spirit within (love, joy, peace, endurance, etc.), there are external manifestations of that Spirit as well (1 Cor. 12). A believer's manifestations of the Spirit produce the fruits of the Spirit in a believer's life.
John 20:21 (LIT/UBS4) Therefore (oun), the (ho) Jesus (Iēsous) enunciated (eipen) to them (autois) again (palin), “Peace (eirēnē) to you (humin)!
Down according to as (kathōs) the (ho) Father (patēr) has sent (apestalken) me (me), I also (kagō) send (pempō) you (humas)!”
John 20:22 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) having enunciated (eipōn) this (touto), he inhaled (enephusēsen) and (kai) he says (legei) to them (autois), "Receive (labete) holy (hagion) Spirit (pneuma).
Jesus inhaled (enephusēsen) (I can see in the compound Greek word the word en prefixed to the word phusao, can you? It literally means in-breath, or breath in) giving his disciples an example of what they should do to receive the gift of holy Spirit, God's Spirit within them. If anyone desires to receive God's Spirit into his blood, and thereby into his flesh, let him ask and then thank God for it in the name of Jesus Christ, and then inhale several times, and then perhaps God may give it to him, depending upon that mortal's heart condition of repentance and belief toward God and his son Jesus Christ.
Now, using inductive, deductive, or any kind of logic we can muster, based upon God's Word we can lay out the metaphorical meaning of drinking, when Jesus said "drinking the blood of me" in John 6:54. We have seen that "drinking" can symbolically mean to hear and believe God's Word. But the deeper and more specific meaning is to inhale or drink-in God's Spirit, as a result of hearing, repenting, and believing God's Word about his son Jesus Christ. I believe this is what Jesus meant in John 6:54 by "drinking the blood of me". Inhaling God's Spirit is equivalent to inhaling ageless life (John 6:54) because God's Spirit is ageless life. Just as God's Spirit gave ageless life to Jesus' physical, mortal body (Luke 24:39; 1 Tim. 2:5), it shall give ageless life to the physical mortal bodies of all those who believe also (John 5:21; 2 Cor. 4:14).
As we have seen, Spirit, Spirit-based drink, Way, Truth and Life are all types, symbolic references to God's Word, all of which are attributes of God's Word as well, and benefits of God's Word to the believer, when God's Word is believed. When the children of Israel believed God's Word through the mouth of Moses, God brought them on their way toward the promised land. Apostle John introduces us to yet another type to God's Word, specifically to the Spirit of God, water.
1 John 5:5 (LIT/UBS4) But (de) who (tis) is (estin) the one (ho) conquering (nikōn) the (ton) cosmos (kosmon) if (ei) not (mē) the one (ho) believing (pisteuōn) that (hoti) Jesus (Iēsous) is (estin) the (ho) Son (huios) of the (tou) God (theou)!?
1 John 5:6 (LIT/UBS4) This one (houtos) is (estin) the one (ho) having come (elthōn) through (di’) water (hudatos) and (kai) blood (haimatos), Jesus (Iēsous) Christ (Christos).
[He came] absolutely not (ouk) in (en) the (tō) water (hudati) only (monon), BUT (all’), in (en) the (tō) water (hudati) and (kai) in (en) the (tō) blood (haimati)!
And (kai) the (to) Spirit (pneuma) is (estin) the one (to) witnessing (marturoun), (because (hoti) the (to) Spirit (pneuma) is (estin) the (hē) Truth (alētheia)),
"the one having come" - A reference to Jesus Christ, the promised messiah. Before the Christ was manifested in the flesh to begin the new covenant age of God's grace, which began on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), how was Christ manifested in the cosmos (universe), in the old covenant times? We have seen in 1 Cor. 10:1-4 that he was manifested as God's Word!
Here we see again in verse 6 that the Spirit is equal to Truth. I believe the word Spirit refers to both God the Spirit, and the gift of holy Spirit from Christ Jesus, since both are literally God himself (Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 3:16; Eph. 4:30).
1 John 5:7 (LIT/UBS4) Because (hoti) the things (hoi) witnessing (marturountes) are (eisin) three (treis),
the (to) Spirit (pneuma),
and (kai) the (to) water (hudōr),
and (kai) the (to) blood (haima).
And (kai) the (hoi) three (treis) are (eisin) into (eis) the (to) one (hen) [witness].
Apostle John, in 1 John, gives us the key to understanding what are the three main types used symbolically throughout God's Word which are equivalent to one another, because they all witness to the one and the same thing, the Spirit of God. The Spirit, which is the Truth, is referred to symbolically in God's Word using both the words water and blood. The witness to us in God's Word is that the words water and blood are used as symbolic types to represent the Spirit of God throughout God's Word, with the exceptions of where the word spirit is used in the context to refer to demon or evil spirit.
Spirit = Water
and
Spirit = Blood
therefore
Water = Blood
God's Word, Spirit, Spirit-based drink, Way, Truth, Life and Water can all be symbolic types to one another in their usages, depending upon the context of their usages, BUT, they are not always used as symbolic types to one another. The contexts of their usages must be scrutinized closely by the hearer to determine if the prophecies or the teachings of Jesus are couched in figures of speech, such as parables or metaphors, or some other figure of speech.
So then, the Spirit, which is witnessing to us now, which is Truth, i.e., which doesn't lie (1 John 5:6), tells us that the word Spirit is referenced symbolically in God's Word using both the words water and blood. So then, under the old covenant of the law, as well as under the new covenant of belief, the Spirit of God, God himself, was and is referenced to as sometimes water, and sometimes as blood, on account of the cleansing properties ascribed to each in their various contextual usages.
Under the old covenant the cleansing power of water was referenced as not only a cleansing agent for physical filth, but a type to the cleansing and healing power of God's Spirit. The water of the laver cleansed the sacrificial priests for service to God and his people, but it cleansed them only on the outside. But Jesus, in his reference to plain water to the woman at the well, spoke of it as a type or metaphor for living water, the coming gift of God's holy Spirit (John 4:10).
Under the new covenant in Jesus' shed blood, when we believe upon Jesus' name the shed blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all of the penalty of our sin. And then since we believed and were cleansed from the penalty of our sin, we thusly become 100% righteousness in God's eyes. And then since we have become 100% righteous in God's eyes, we then receive the baptism from above in God's gift of his holy Spirit, from Christ Jesus. Then God's Spirit in us makes us to become a royal priesthood of God under his new Covenant (1 Pet. 2:9)?
So then, in how many various places and in how many various subject matters in the old covenant writings are the words water and blood used to represent Jesus Christ and his baptism in the gift of holy Spirit? I don't know, but through hard study a very good number may be obtained! There are many other types to Jesus Christ also, in the forms of people, like Moses and David, and in various other physical manifestations like the cloud, the ark of Noah, the ark of the covenant, etc.
When and how can the hearer of God's Word know when to consider a certain usage as figurative? Through learning to recognize figures of speech and the typical indicators within God's Word (1 Cor. 10:6-11), and most importantly, through the Spirit of Truth working in the believer's heart (John 6:45; 1 Thes. 4:9). In the record of Jesus witnessing to the woman at the well (John 4), he obviously uses the phrase "living water" symbolically, which is used as a symbolic type.
Now that we have seen and understand what Jesus meant by "gnawing the flesh of me" and "drinking the blood of me", in John 6:54, let's finish "eating" God's Word in John 6, eating more with our eyes of understanding being enlightened.
John 6:55 (LIT/UBS4) Because (gar) the (hē) flesh (sarx) of me (mou) is (estin) true (alēthēs) food (brōsis), and (kai) the (to) blood (haima) of me (mou) is (estin) true (alēthēs) drink (posis).
John 6:56 (LIT/UBS4) The one (ho) gnawing (trōgōn) the (tēn) flesh (sarka) of me (mou), and (kai) drinking (pinōn) the (to) blood (haima) of me (mou), he stays (menei) in (en) to me (emoi), and I (kagō) [stay] in (en) to him (auton).
John 6:57 (LIT/UBS4) Down according to as (kathōs) the (ho) living (zōn) Father (patēr) sent (apesteilen) me (me), and I (kagō) live (zō) through (dia) the (ton) Father (patera), the one (ho) also (kai) gnawing (trōgōn) me (me), that one also (kakeinos) shall live (zēsei) through (di’) me (eme).
John 6:58 (LIT/UBS4) This (houtos) [manna, v49, RE] is (estin) the (ho) bread (artos), the (ho) [son, v53, RE] having stepped down (katabas) out (ex) of heaven (ouranou);
absolutely not (ou) [manna, v49, RE] down according to as (kathōs) the (hoi) fathers (pateres) ate (ephagon), and (kai) they died away (apethanon)!
The one (ho) gnawing (trōgōn) this (touton) [manna, v49, RE], the (ton) bread (arton) [of me, v55, RE], he shall live (zēsei) into (eis) the (ton) age (aiōna)!”
John 6:59 (LIT/UBS4) These things (tauta) he enunciated (eipen) in (en) a synagogue (sunagōgē), teaching (didaskōn) in (en) Capernaum (Kapharnaoum).
John 6:60 (LIT/UBS4) Therefore (oun), many (polloi) out (ek) of the (tōn) disciples (mathētōn) of him (autou), having heard (akousantes), they enunciated (eipan), “The (ho) Word (logos) is (estin) a hard one (sklēros).
Who (tis) can inherently power himself (dunatai) to hear (akouein) this (houtos) of him (autou)?”
John 6:61 (LIT/UBS4) But (de) the (ho) Jesus (Iēsous), having seen (eidōs) in (en) himself (heautō) that (hoti) the (hoi) disciples (mathētai) of him (autou) are murmuring (gonguzousin) about (peri) this (toutou), he enunciated (eipen) to them (autois), “This (touto) you (humas) scandalize (skandalizei)?
John 6:62 (LIT/UBS4) Therefore (oun), [what, AE] if perhaps (ean) you may observe (theōrēte) the (ton) Son (huion) of the (tou) Mortal (anthrōpou) stepping up (anabainonta) where (hopou) he was being (ēn) the (to) previous (proteron) [time, AE]?
John 6:63 (LIT/UBS4) The (to) Spirit (pneuma) is (estin) the (to) [life, v54, RE] making one alive (zōopoioun).
The (hē) flesh (sarx) absolutely does not profit (ouk ōphelei), absolutely not one (ouden) [profit, RE]!
The (ta) statements (rhēmata) which (ha) I (egō) have spoken (lelalēka) to you (humin), [each statement, RE] is (estin) Spirit (pneuma), and (kai) [each statement, RE] ] is (estin) life (zōe)!
John 6:64 (LIT/UBS4) BUT (all’) there are (eisin) some (tines) out (ex) of you (humōn) who (hoi) absolutely do not believe (ou pisteuousin)!”
Because (gar) the (ho) Jesus (Iēsous) had seen (ēdei), out (ex) of [the] beginning (archēs), some (tines) [who] are (eisin) the ones (hoi) not (mē) believing (pisteuontes), and (kai) who (tis) is (estin) the one (ho) passing him aside (paradōsōn auton).
John 6:65 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) he was saying (elegen), “Through (dia) [the sake] of this (touto) I have stated (eirēka) to you (humin) that (hoti) absolutely not one (oudeis) can inherently power himself (dunatai) to come (elthein) to (pros) me (me) if not perhaps (mē ean) it may be (ē) it having been given (dedomenon) to him (autō) out (ek) of the (tou) Father (patros)!”
John 6:66 (LIT/UBS4) Out (ek) of this (toutou) many (polloi) out (ek) of the (tōn) disciples (mathētōn) of him (autou) were gone away (apēlthon) into (eis) the ones (ta) behind (opisō).
And (kai) they were absolutely no longer yet walking around (ouketi periepatoun) with (met’) him (autou)!
John 6:67 (LIT/UBS4) Therefore (oun), the (ho) Jesus (Iēsous) enunciated (eipen) to the (tois) twelve (dōdeka), “You (humeis) also (kai) do not desire (mēthelete) to get underway (hupagein)!?”
John 6:68 (LIT/UBS4) Simon (Simōn) Peter (Petros) was caused to make a decision (apekrithē) for him (autō), “Lord (kurie), to (pros) whom (tina) shall we cause ourselves to go (apeleusometha)?
You hold (echeis) statements (rhēmata) of ageless (aiōniou) life (zōēs);
John 6:69 (LIT/UBS4) and (kai) we (hēmeis) have believed (pepisteukamen), and (kai) have known (egnōkamen) that (hoti) you (su) are (ei) the (ho) holy one (hagios) of the (tou) God (theou)."
ARE WE TRUE OR FALSE DISCIPLES OF JESUS CHRIST?
We've touched lightly already on building our believing through renewing our mind to God's Word (Rom. 12:2), through learning all the great works God and his son Jesus Christ have done in the past. But Jesus adds another important, practical facet of knowledge to the important work of our learning to build our believing into the one whom God has sent, which is the work of God the heavenly Father.
Luke 17:5 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) the (hoi) apostles (apostoloi) enunciated (eipan) to the (to) Lord (kurio), “Add to (prosthes) us (hēmin) belief (pistin)!”
Luke 17:6 (LIT/UBS4) And
(kai) the (ho) lord (kurios) enunciated (eipen), “If (ei) you hold (echete) belief (pistin) as (hōs) a kernel (kokkon) of a mustard tree (sinapeōs), perhaps (an) you would be saying (elegete) to this (tautē) the (tē) sycamine tree (sukaminō), ‘Be rooted out (ekrizōthēti) and (kai) be planted (phuteuthēti) in (en) to the (tē) sea (thalassē)’, and (kai) perhaps (an) it would have obeyed (hupēkousen) you (humin).
Luke 17:7 (LIT/UBS4) But (de) who (tis) out (ex) of you (humōn) having (echōn) [a] slave (doulon) plowing (arotriōnta) or (ē) shepherding (poimainonta), whose (hos) [slave] having entered in (eiselthonti) out (ek) of the (tou) field (agrou), he shall state (erei) to him (autō) straightaway (eutheōs), ‘Having passed (parelthōn), fall up377 (anapese)!?’
Luke 17:8 (LIT/UBS4) BUT (all’), shall he absolutely not state (ou erei) to him (autō), ‘Make [it] ready (hetoimason) [on] whatever (ti) I may dine (deipnēsō);
and (kai) having girdled yourself around (perizōsamenos) minister (diakonei) to me (moi) until (heōs) I may eat (phagō) and (kai) I may drink (piō);
and (kai) with (meta) [the passing of] these things (tauta) you (su) shall cause yourself to eat (phagesai), and (kai) you shall cause yourself to drink (piesai)!?'
Luke 17:9 (LIT/UBS4) Does he not have (mē echei) grace (charin) for the (tō) slave (doulō) because (hoti) he did (epoiēsen) the things (ta) having been thoroughly arranged (diatachthenta)?
Luke 17:10 (LIT/UBS4) Thusly (houtōs) you (humeis) also (kai), when perhaps (hotan) you may have done (poiēsēte) all (panta) the things (ta) having been thoroughly arranged (diatachthenta) for you (humin), do you say (legete) that (hoti), ‘We are (esmen) useless (achreioi) slaves (douloi).
Things which (ho) we were owing (ōpheilomen) to do (poiēsai) we have done (pepoiēkamen)?’”
"Things which we were owing to do, we have done?" - In Luke 17:5 above Jesus' disciples asked him to increase their belief. In verses 6 -10 Jesus gives them a practical example of how to increase their belief. The lesson Jesus taught is that in the doing of the Father's will our belief is not only increased, but confirmed. The parallel of the object lesson is that when believers have done ALL (panta) the things arranged for them to do in service to the Father and his son Jesus Christ, then our belief is confirmed by our heavenly Father, and subsequently it grows a little more.
What are ALL the things God the heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ have arranged for his disciples to do? Are we not to love God out of the whole of our heart, soul, mind and strength, and then to love our fellow mortals as we love ourselves (Luke 12:30-31)? Therefore, isn't doing the work of a "slave" of the Father and his son all about loving? Is to go about loving the Father, Jesus and others too heavy a yoke to bear (Mat. 11:29-30)? When we walk in love then we know we are valuable slaves to the Father and his son Jesus Christ. When we walk in love then we know that we have confidence toward the Father and his son Jesus because we are doing the things arranged for us to do. When we walk in love we are paying back our debt of gratitude to the Father and his son Jesus for freeing us from the bondage of sin and death. Herein our believing is perfected, through our own walk of love as we determine in our hearts to walk.
Rom. 10:17 (LIT/UBS4) So (ara) the (hē) belief (pistis) [is] out (ek) of [a] [Word, RE] heard (akoēs);
but (de) the (hē) [Word, RE] heard (akoē) [is] through (dia) [a] statement (rhēmatos) of Christ (Christou)!
In Luke 17 Jesus taught that doing God's will increases disciple's belief. Here in Rom. 10 apostle Paul teaches another facet of increasing belief, that belief comes through knowing and understanding God's Word, which tells slaves that we are to love. If Jesus Christ taught his disciples that walking in Godly love would increase their belief in God, then how does that compare to apostle Paul's advice here to study God's Word about Jesus Christ to increase our belief? The answer is simple. God's Word tells us WHAT to do. Disciples/believers need to know WHAT to do before they can do it, right? You must know God's Word before you can know what to do to please God, and HOW to do it.
Therefore the beginning of belief comes through determining WHAT God's will is that we must do, and then HOW to do it, as Jesus Christ gave us an example through his own walk in love. Therefore, the complete Law of Belief is both discovering God's Word about WHAT we must do according to his will, and then HOW to do it, according to his will. Therefore the beginning of increasing our belief starts with studying God's Word, and the ending or results of our belief is carrying it out, doing it according to God's Word. The complete Law of Belief is both LEARNING and DOING God's Will. Both learning and doing increase a disciple's belief. But logically, it must start with learning God's will.
If I may add a word of caution; learning God's will is different from learning mortalkind's will. God's Word warns us that there are many wolves in sheep's clothing, antichrists working in and around God's called out ones. Believers must be very sure they are not confusing learning their will as opposed to learning God's Will. The only way to determine truth from sly error is to first have a thorough and accurate knowledge of God's Word. God's Word is what exposes close counterfeit error, and those preaching and teaching it.
"belief comes out of hearing" - A slave must first hear what he must do before he can know what to to.
"but the hearing comes through a statement of Christ" - Every single statement in God's Word about the promised coming messiah, his promised work, his arrival, his work while physically present upon the earth, his departure, his accomplished work, hearing all these details about Christ Jesus in God's Word builds belief in his name, which is why belief begins and is built through knowing this knowledge in God's Word, and is built and perfected through doing God's Word, as Jesus taught in Luke 17. What else did Jesus Christ do if not love mortalkind through his works (Mat. 4:23; Acts 10:38)?
1 Cor. 13:1 (LIT/UBS4) If perhaps (ean) I may speak (lalō) the (tais) tongues (glōssais) of the (tōn) mortals (anthrōpōn) and (kai) of the (tōn) messengers (angelōn), but (de) I may not hold (mē echō) love (agapēn), I have become (gegona) an echoing (ēchōn) piece of copper (chalkos), or (ē) [a] wailing (alalazon) cymbal (kumbalon);
1 Cor. 13:2 (LIT/UBS4) and (kai) if perhaps (ean) I may hold (echō) prophecy (prophēteian), and (kai) I may have seen (eidō) all (panta) of the (ta) mysteries (mustēria) and (kai) all (pasan) of the (tēn) knowledge (gnōsin), and (kai) if perhaps (ean) I may hold (echō) all (pasan) of the (tēn) belief (pistin) and so (hōste) to stand together with (methistanai) mountains (orē), but (de) I may not hold (mē echō) love (agapēn), I am (eimi) absolutely not one (outhen) [thing, AE]!
"but I may not hold love, I am absolutely not one thing!" - These verses help characterize the importance of a disciple, a slave having belief in relationship to godly love (agapēn). Apostle Paul clearly ranks having godly love as a priority over having belief. This does not mean we are to have one rather than the other, by no means. The teachings of Jesus Christ and his apostles are harmonious. We are to have both in abundant evidence. Apostle Paul clearly teaches we are to have both, but that demonstrating godly love has a higher value than demonstrating belief. Why? God is love (1 John 4:8,16). God so loved that he gave... (John 3:16). On account of love belief takes action! Love is the great motivator, instigator and energizer. The point is obvious, when one has love, his belief will become energized to act.
God was with his son, Jesus Christ, because Jesus always did those things that pleased the Father.
John 8:29 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) the (ho) [Father] having sent (pempsas) me (me) is (estin) with (met’) me (emou).
The (ho) Father (patēr) has absolutely not let go (ouk aphēken) of me (me) [to be] alone (monon), because (hoti) I (egō) always (pantote) do (poiō) the things (ta) agreeable (aresta) to him (autō)!
If believers, disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, desire the Father to be with them, then they also must do the things that are agreeable to the Father, as Jesus Christ did. Those things which are agreeable are determined by his new covenant injunctions, and especially the things which Christ Jesus taught.
Heb. 11:6 (LIT/UBS4) But (de) without (chōris) belief (pisteōs) [Enoch, v5, RE] [was] [an] inherently unpowered one (adunaton) to be well agreeable (euarestēsai) [to the God, v5, RE].
Because (gar) it is required (dei) of the one (ton) causing himself to come to (proserchomenon) the (tō) God (theō) to believe (pisteusai) that (hoti) he is (estin);
and (kai) [to believe that] he causes himself to become (ginetai) a payer of wages (misthapodotēs) to the ones (tois) searching him out (ekzētousin auton).
Therefore, building our belief in God the heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ is our primary goal as believing disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ, because believing pleases God. Therefore, diligent study of God's Word to learn what to do and how to do it, and then developing a spiritual walk of Godly love toward both God the heavenly Father and our fellow mortals in practical application, both builds and demonstrates our belief, and pleases God.
Building Our Belief Builds Confidence Toward God, And Pleases him
1 John 3:18 (LIT/UBS4) Little born ones (teknia), we should love (agapōmen) neither (mē) [in] word (logō) but nor (mēde) [in] the (tē) tongue (glōssē), BUT (alla), in (en) work (ergō) and (kai) Truth (alētheia)!
1 John 3:19 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) in (en) this (toutō) we shall cause ourselves to know (gnōsometha) that (hoti) we are (esmen) out (ek) of the (tēs) Truth (alētheias), and (kai) we shall persuade (peisomen) the (tas) heart (kardias) of us (hēmōn) in front (emprosthen) of him (autou)!
1 John 3:20 (LIT/UBS4) Because (hoti) if perhaps (ean) the (hē) heart (kardia) of us (hēmōn) may denounce (kataginōskē) [us], [we shall cause ourselves to know] that (hoti) the (ho) God (theos) is (estin) a greater one than (meizōn) the (tēs) heart (kardias) of us (hēmōn), and (kai) he knows (ginōskei) all things (panta)!
1 John 3:21 (LIT/UBS4) Beloved ones (agapētoi), if perhaps (ean) the (hē) heart (kardia) of us (hēmōn) may not denounce (mē kataginōskē) [us], we have (echomen) boldness (parrēsian) toward (pros) the (ton) God (theon);
1 John 3:22 (LIT/UBS4) and (kai) if perhaps (ean) whatever (ho) we may request (aitōmen) we receive (lambanomen) [it] from (ap’) him (autou), because (hoti) we watchfully keep (tēroumen) the (tas) injunctions (entolas) of him (autou), and (kai) we do (poioumen) the things (ta) agreeable (aresta) in sight (enōpion) of him (autou).
1 John 3:23 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) this (hautē) is (estin) the (hē) injunction (entolē) of him (autou):
that (hina) we should believe (pisteusōmen) [in] the (tō) name (onomati) of the (tou) son (huiou) of him (autou), Jesus (Iēsou) Christ (Christou);
and (kai) we should love (agapōmen) one another (allēlous), down according to as (kathōs) he gave (edōken) an injunction (entolēn) to us (hēmin).
1 John 3:24 (LIT/UBS4) And (kai) the one (ho) watchfully keeping (tērōn) the (tas) injunctions (entolas) of him (autou) stays (menei) in (en) him (autō), and (kai) he (autos) in (en) him (autō).
And (kai) in (en) this (toutō) we know (ginōskomen) that (hoti) he stays (menei) in (en) us (hēmin), out (ek) of the (tou) Spirit (pneumatos) which (hou) he gave (edōken) to us (hēmin).
Here in John's first letter we are given more teaching on the practical application of our belief, that our belief in the name of Jesus isn't proved through the wagging our our tongue in talk, but made evident through our work to love one another. The emphasis here is on the works of Godly love we demonstrate toward our fellow mortals, as we love ourselves.
Apostle John lays out for us a chain of logic upon which our renewed mind thoughts must track, if we are to be thinking soundly according to God's Word.
IF we love others with our works instead of only our talk (1 John 3:18),
THEN we shall experientially know that we are out of the Truth (1 John 3:19);
THEN our heart shall be persuaded to have confidence toward God in his presence (1 John 3:19);
THEN our heart won't condemn us down, become down-hearted (1 John 3;21);
THEN we shall have boldness toward God in prayer to ask him for our needs (1 John 3:21);
THEN what we ask for we shall receive because we keep the commands of him and do those things which are pleasing in his sight (1 John 3:22);
THEN we shall be believing upon the name of the son of him, Jesus Christ (1 John 3:23);
THEN we shall be loving each other as he has commanded us to do (1 JOHN 3:23);
THEN we shall be abiding in him and he in us (1 John 3:24);
THEN we shall experientially know that he abides in us out of the Spirit which he gave to us (1 John 3:24). This is how we come in contact with the new man on the inside, the spiritual man, Christ in you (Col. 1:27).
If I claim to believe God's Word to go to him in prayer for my needs and needs of others, but yet I don't do these things, then am I really believing?
One of the questions I find most often on the hearts of newborn babes in Christ, is "How do I become spiritual; how do I manifest the gift of holy Spirit I received through the new birth above?" This record in 1 John is one place in God's Word where the answer to this question is laid out for us very clearly. Could a 10 by 12 photo glossy with circles and arrows on it pointing out certain features, with paragraphs on the back describing the locations, work any better to tells us HOW to demonstrate our belief, HOW to walk spiritually, HOW to keep God's commands and be pleasing in his sight, and WHERE to find the abundant life which Jesus Christ came to give to us?
In computer programming, when a programmer makes a set of instructions to tell the computer what to do, a procedure using this conditional structure is often used, and is called an IF-THEN-ELSE loop. IF this condition exists, THEN computer do this, ELSE computer do that. Apostle John doesn't mention the ELSE condition here in his letter, but it is obviously implied. We should love others with our works and not only our mouths, ELSE none of the great and precious promises apostle John lays out for us in 1 John 3:19-24 shall come to pass for us in our lives.
THE MANIFESTATION OF BELIEF
So how specifically does our belief which we have gained tie into this? Apostle Paul in his letter to the Roman believers teaches them on a point in which they were demonstrating misconduct among themselves.
Rom. 12:3 (LIT/UBS4) Because (gar) I say (legō), through (dia) the (tēs) grace (charitos), the (tēs) [grace, RE] having been given (dotheisēs) to me (moi), the (tō) [grace, RE] being (onti) [given, RE] to everyone (panti) among (en) you (humin), not (mē) to be over-thoughted5252 (huperphronein) beside (par’) that which (ho) is required (dei) to think (phronein).
BUT (alla), to think (phronein) into (eis) the (to) [grace] to be whole-thoughted (sōphronein), as (hōs) the (ho) God (theos) divided (emerisen) a measure (metron) of belief (pisteōs) to each one (hekastō)!
"not to be over-thoughted beside that which is required to think." - They, as individual members of the one body of Christ, were having too many thoughts about what other members of the body were doing, instead of limiting their thoughts to be upon how they could better carry out the work of their own particular part of the body. Apparently one or some of the believers were worrying how others should be doing their parts, i.e., sticking their noses into other's spiritual business, where those noses didn't belong.
"BUT, to think into the [grace] to be whole-thoughted" - Those believers who were in a dither about how other believers should be doing their work and walking spiritually, were over-thoughted, with many thoughts they should not have been thinking; thoughts which only brought confusion to them and others, and were causing believers to take their focus and believing off the work which God had prepared for those particular parts of Christ's body. They were not to be preoccupied with confusing fragments of thoughts about other's work, whether others doing their jobs correctly, but were to stay focused and maintain uninterrupted thoughts, whole thoughts, about doing their own spiritual work, for which God had given them a particular measure of belief to to.
"to each as the God divided a measure of belief" - I believe this is a reference to what apostle Paul refers to as the manifestation of belief in his letter to the undiscipled "believers" in Corinth (1 Cor. 12:9). To believers who have discipled themselves to the Lord Jesus Christ, God gives a measure (metron) of belief to each of those believers to believe to do the works which their parts of the body have been called to do. This is what is also referred to in God's Word as living by belief (Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38).
At this point in my studies I ask myself, what do I do for others? What are some works I can do to demonstrate my love and belief which God has given to me?
§ Loose the bands of wickedness (Isa. 58:6)
§ Undo the thongs of the yoke (Isa. 58:6)
§ Set free the oppressed (Isa. 58:6)
§ Break every yoke (of bondage) (Isa. 58:6)
§ Give food to the hungry (Isa. 58:7)
§ Bring the needy to our house (Isa. 58:7)
§ Clothe those who are naked (Isa. 58:7)
§ Hid not ourselves from our own flesh (Isa. 58:7)
THEN shall thy light break forth as the dawn, and thy health shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee, the glory of Jehovah shall be thy rearguard (Isa. 58:8).
THEN you shall call, and Jehovah will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, "Here I am" (Isa. 58:9).
§ Comfort those that mourn (Mat. 5:4)
§ Be merciful (Mat. 5:7)
§ Do those things which make for peace (Mat. 5:9)
§ Love our enemies (Mat. 5:44)
§ Bless them which curse us (Mat. 5:44)
§ Do good to them which hate us (Mat. 5:44)
§ Pray for them which abuse and persecute us (Mat. 5:44)
§ Love those who don't love us (Mat. 5:46)
THEN... Go back and read 1 John 3 again for those great and precious promises.
SUMMARY
Righteousness Before the Covenants
Before the institution of the law of Moses for the children of Israel, Abram believed God's Word, what God had said, and because of Abram's belief, God counted or measured an allotment of righteousness to Abram. Although Abram was a mortal born with a sin nature as was all of Adam's progeny, which sin nature separates all mortalkind from God, Abram was able to draw closer to being "right" with God, because of what Abram believed about God, according to what God had said in his Word to Abram.
The amount of righteousness God allotted back to Abram was in equal proportion to how well Abram believed what God wanted Abram to believe about God. However, no matter how well Abram believed God, because of the unsettled issue of sin nature still inherent within Abram as within all mortalkind, Abram was still not able to become 100% righteous with God, because at this time there was still no perfect blood in any of God's creatures which could atone for the sin (lack of life) in the blood of all mortalkind.
Based upon Abram's belief in God's Word, which made Abram eligible to receive an allotment of righteousness measured back to him, that measure of righteousness made Abram eligible to receive a relatively measured amount of benefits from God. The benefits were in the form of God becoming Abram's sufficiency, for his spiritual, mental, physical and financial wholeness, based upon the count or measure of his righteousness measured back to him from God.
Righteousness Under the Covenant of the Law of Moses
The institution of the law of Moses, especially the perfunctory genuflections which they were to perform over and over and over, were meant to teach the children of Israel trust in God, and therefore lead them into believing God which would subsequently bring to them a measure of the righteousness of God. Abram was able to believe God without the imposition of liturgical calisthenics in a body of law. But the children of Israel, even with the benefits of having a process of law to teach them trust and belief in God's Word, a process which could earn them God's sufficiency even while they were supposed to be learning to believe God, didn't produce in them the intended long-term belief in God collectively as a nation. Why does it appear easier for Abram to believe God without the benefit of a body of law as a pedagogue, while the children of Israel were constantly challenged to rise up in their collective belief in God's Word with the benefit of a body of law as a pedagogue to help them live and learn to belief God? Desires of the heart!
Those relative few among the children of Israel who came to a lasting conviction and belief about God's Word started with a free will desire in their hearts to want to know God. The vast majority of the children of Israel, which I believe is representative sample of the entire population of mortalkind, did not have the desire in their hearts to want to know God. Their hearts desires were on other things, first and foremost. Doing the works of the law simply to appease God didn't make any of the children of Israel righteous to any measure whatsoever. But if through the works of the law they would learn to trust, obey and believe God's Word, then he would be their sufficiency through all things in life, then they could receive righteousness counted or measured to them. Under the law of Moses, anyone's belief in God's Word, with or without the law, brought to them a measure of righteousness of God, with or without the law. The motions of the law were intended to teach trust, confidence, obedience and ultimately belief in God's Word.
The Law of Works and the Law of Belief
The Law of Works is articulated by God throughout the law of Moses, though the motions of keeping the law. The Law of Belief is articulated by Jesus Christ, through what he said and did, and is summed up in Heb. 11:1. The children of Israel, through doing the motions of the works of the law of Moses, earned wages of benefits from God. The old covenant deal was if the children of Israel practiced the law, which was intended to teach them belief in God's Word, that while they were on their way to learning belief in God's Word God would supply their needs as they earned them through doing the physical motions of the law, in absence of their belief.
The intention of God for the law of Moses was for it to eventually make itself obsolete through teaching belief in God's Word, to the extent to where the law would no longer be necessary after the children of Israel learned the lessons to trust and believe in God's Word. God's hope was for the children of Israel to eventually learn to trust and believe in God's Word, to the point where their belief became instinctive within their hearts, as their hearts became purified through believing. Instinctive belief in God's Word never fully gelled within the hearts of the children of Israel as a nation, although relatively few among them did reach the bullseye and learned to believe like Abraham.
Although God had made it amply simple to learn how to believe in him and his Word, through the institution of the law of Moses, God, at the dawn of the history of mortalkind, had promised a coming redeemer who would come and settle the issue of sin nature in the blood of mortalkind, once and for all, whether or not Israel would learn to believe. The remainder of mortalkind, besides the children of Israel, needed redemption and a way of becoming whole again, from out of the clutches of the devil and of the bondage of sin and its wage, death. The coming redeemer would demonstrate, while in flesh and bone as all mortals, how to believe God's Word, and demonstrate God the heavenly Father's heart's desire for all mortalkind to be made whole and come to the knowledge of the Truth.
The coming redeemer brought a new covenant to replace the covenant of the law of Moses. Under the law the children of Israel could earn wages of God's sufficiency through doing the repetitive motions of the law, for "believing" in the law (if you will) for the sake of the law itself, which measured to them no righteousness of God, as opposed to believing in the giver of the law, God, who would measure to them righteousness. But without believing in the shed blood of the coming redeemer, there was no way that any mortal could become 100% righteous with God. Abraham and all those after him who believed in God could only obtain a portion of righteousness, a measure of righteousness as counted to them, but not obtain 100% righteousness. The old covenant under the law did not provide the conditions under which, when fulfilled, could provide 100% righteousness. Under the new covenant, believing in the shed blood of the coming redeemer, God provided the conditions through which anyone of all mortalkind could obtain 100% righteousness with God. These conditions are called the Law of Belief (Rom. 3:27).
The Law of Belief is believing upon the name of God the heavenly Father's son Jesus Christ, and all that name means and represents. It includes believing that through Jesus' shed blood the penalty for mortalkind's sin nature, death, is commuted, and wholeness is given in its place. Under the law of Moses, the works of the law earned wages of God's sufficiency. Under the Law of Belief, one's belief in God's son Jesus Christ is rewarded with gifts through God's grace. Under the Law of Belief there is no penalty for our sin, only wholeness from the penalty of death and the effects of sin in our lives. Under the Law of Belief God does not deal with mortalkind based upon its sin nature, but according to its belief upon the name of his son Jesus Christ.
Under the Law of Works, under the law of Moses, even if mortals didn't believe God, but simply carried out the tedious motions of the law, doing those motions earned wages of God's sufficiency, and in this sense the law of Moses was their safety net for getting their needs met in lieu of their lack of believing God. But, since God's promised redeemer has come, his son Jesus Christ, now all mortalkind is in a period of a new covenant with God the heavenly Father in Jesus' shed blood. Under this new covenant, under the Law of Belief in Jesus Christ, we have either everything in Jesus Christ, 100% righteousness with God, all of our earthly needs met, all of our spiritual needs met, the sentence of death commuted to eternal life, or we have nothing at all if we don't believe, but a moment on earth as a blade of grass in Death Valley, under the hot sun.
Under the old covenant the law of Moses, under the Law of Works, righteous was counted or measured to a believer, based upon how much belief they had in their heart toward what God had said. This means if they had no knowledge of what God had said then they had no opportunity at all to obtain any measure of righteousness other than zero. Under the new covenant in Jesus Shed blood any believer can still obtain a measure of righteous with God, but the opportunity to obtain 100% righteousness with God has now become available, and with it eternal life. The new covenant under Jesus' shed blood offers what the old covenant under the law of Moses couldn't, 100% righteousness with God, and eternal life, which I believe is a much better deal.
So why in the history of mortalkind didn't God make this new covenant available earlier? Why did approximately 4,000 years pass by before Jesus Christ came? God had to wait for someone to believe to be the mother of the promised messiah. God had to wait for a believer to literally believe the prophecy of his Word, and then ask (Mat. 7:7) for it! That believer was Mariam, the mother of Jesus Christ, down the flesh.
Luke 1:38 (LIT/UBS4) But (de) Mariam (Mariam) enunciated (eipen), “Behold (idou), the (hē) female slave (doulē) of [the] Lord (kuriou).
May it cause itself to come to pass (genoito) to me (moi) down according to (kata) the (to) statement (rhēma) of you (sou)!”
This should be our believing response to any and all of God's great and precious promises now available to us under his new covenant Christ Jesus put through for us with his own shed blood. When we build our belief in our own hearts through learning and understanding the knowledge of God's Word, his great and precious promises to us under that new covenant, and then we believe, and then we ask, and then we thank him for it, whatever our need may be, the heavenly Father of us is believable to give to us whatever we may need.
Thank you heavenly Father for teaching us your Word, making us your sons and daughters through giving us the gift of your holy Spirit into us through your new covenant; and thank you Christ Jesus for volunteering for that hazardous duty to put through that new covenant with your own shed blood and death, and then for raising us up as disciples of you.
Eph. (LIT/UBS4) 4:11 And (kai), truly (men), he (autos) gave (edōken) the ones (tous) [being] apostles (apostolous), but (de) the ones (tous) [being] prophets (prophētas), but (de) the ones (tous) [being] evangelists (euangelistas), but (de) the ones (tous) [being] shepherds (poimenas), and (kai) [the ones being] teachers (didaskalous),
Eph. 4:12 (LIT/UBS4) toward (pros) [the sake] of the (ton) making fit (katartismon) of the (tōn) holy ones (hagiōn) into (eis) [the] work (ergon) of [the] ministry (diakonias), into (eis) [the building] of a domed-roof house3619 (oikodomēn) of the (tou) body (sōmatos) of the (tou) Christ (Christou);
Eph. 4:13 (LIT/UBS4) until (mechri) all (pantes) the (hoi) [holy ones, v4:12, RE] may come down adjacent2658 (katantēsōmen) into (eis) the (tēn) oneness (henotēta) of the (tēs) belief (pisteōs), and (kai) of the (tēs) experiential knowledge (epignōseōs) of the (tou) son (huiou) of the (tou) God (theou), into (eis) [a] complete (teleion) male (andra), into (eis) [a/the] measure (metron) of the (tou) fullness (plērōmatos) of maturity (hēlikias) of the (tou) Christ (Christou);
Eph. 4:14 (LIT/UBS4) in order that (hina) no longer (mēketi) may we be (ōmen) infants (nēpioi), ones being caused to surge (kludōnizomenoi), and (kai) ones being brought about (peripheromenoi) to every (panti) wind (anēmo) of the (tēs) [winds] of teaching (didaskalias) in (en) the (tē) die2940 (kubeia) of the (tōn) mortals (anthrōpōn) in (en) shrewdness (panourgia), toward (pros) the (tēn) method (methodeian) of the (tēs) Wanderer (planēs)!
Eph. 4:15 (LIT/UBS4) But (de) being true ones (alētheuontes), in (en) love (agapē) may we grow (auxēsōmen) into (eis) him (auton) [in] all the things (ta panta), who (hos) is (estin) the (hē) head (kephalē), Christ (Christos);
Eph. 4:16 (LIT/UBS4) out (ek) of whom (hou) all (pan) the (to) body (sōma) being called to join together (sunarmologoumenon), and (kai) being made to come together (sumbibazomenon) through (dia) the (tēs) choreography (epichorēgias) of every (pasēs) joint (haphēs), down according to (kat’) [a/the] measure (metrō) of energy (energeian) in (en) each (hekastou) single (henos) part (merous), in (en) love (agapē) causes itself to make (poieitai) the (tēn) growth (auxēsin) of the (tou) body (sōmatos) of itself (heautou) into (eis) [a] domed-roof house3619 (oikodomēn)!
Brother Hal Dekker