Greetings stormstopper,
You wrote that Jesus is speaking figuratively in John chapter 6. Where is your evidence?
There are only two alternatives: either Jesus was saying “this is in fact my body”, or “this represents my body”. Contrary to the RCC, we believe that when we respect and stay within biblical parameters, the latter is the only logical choice----it being a metaphor. A metaphor boldly declares that one thing IS another —when it really isn’t.
The key is found in the verb “is”. It denotes representation. We have recourse to metaphor when we look over a map and say, “This is England”. We don’t mean that the paper is England, but those inkspots upon it represent that country.
OBJECTION: “Granted---- but that’s because the listenser already knows that those who point to maps don’t really mean the figure on the map is the actual country. That’s not the case with Matthew 26:26 which has no “already-decided agreement” that the word “is” will be pointing out something that is not real, or is a metaphor.”
ANSWER: Not true! The Passover meal was incredibly rich in symbolism! They would have eaten . . …
*** MOROR {bitter herbs}. Representing the bitterness of Egyptian slavery.
*** UNLEAVENED BREAD {Matzot}. Representing the haste with which the Israelites left Egypt, for they couldn’t wait for the bread to rise.
*** CHAROSETH {mixture of chopped apples, nuts, wine & cinnamon}. Representing the mortar used by the Israelite slaves to make bricks.
*** CEREMONIAL CUPS. Different cups were used to represent the various phases of the Exodus.
*** The Passover Lamb. The blood of that sacrifice was put over their doorposts so the death angel would pass over.
We see then that before the Supper, the apostles were already thinking symbolically because each of the items on the table was a symbol and a reminder to the Jewish people of their escape from Egypt by the hand of God. During the Supper, the disciples had every reason in the world to believe Jesus was speaking figuratively when He said, “This is my body”. When He held the bread and said the words, no one at table could possibly have taken Him to mean the bread was actually His physical body— since He was sitting right there in His physical body! Too, after the Supper, He continued to use illustrations by washing the disciples feet in response to their arguing who among them was the greatest. The greatest was the one who served {John 13:3-17}. And finally, subsequent to the Supper, even Paul used the word “body” figuratively many times to signify something else, namely the church—{Rms 12:5, 1 Cor 12:13; 20, Eph 1:22, 23; 2:16; 4:4; Col 1:18, 24; 3:15}. He even went so far as to figuratively identify the body of believers as BREAD in 1 Cor 10:17: “For we, though many, are one bread and one body. . .” The only sane conclusion is that Paul duplicated the metaphorical speech of Christ when He figuratively identified the bread as His body at the Last Supper!
The biblical evidence is crystal clear: the emblems of bread and wine were meant for us to mediatate on the solitary, majestic and horizon-filling grandeur of the Lord Jesus Christ’s rescue mission to humanity. It was never meant to be a sacrifice offered to God over and over again as we observe in the Mass. That happened “once” 2,000 years ago—“once” being stated 7 times in Hebrews 7, 9 & 10 . . .completely precluding any idea of repetition with, “Nor yet that He should offer Himself often” {9:25}. Needless to say, the event at Calvary doesn’t need to be renewed, re-enacted, reapplied, refurbished or “re-presented”. . . not now----not ever!
Jesus prayed, “I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do” {John 17:4}.
