Jesus made weird statements (First part)

Eat my flesh and drink my blood?

John 6:53 ESV

[53] So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.

Was Jesus preaching cannibalism?

Interestingly, there is a story in the Bible where a human was eaten.

The city of Samaria was under siege by the king of Syria and was cut off. Famine became so severe that even worthless scraps of food were sold at high prices. As the king of Israel walked along the city wall, a woman cried out for help and when he asked what her trouble was, she revealed a shocking story.

She and another woman had agreed to eat their sons to survive. They killed and ate her child first, but when it was the other woman’s turn, she hid her son. Hearing this, the king tore his clothes in grief, realizing how far the nation had fallen under God’s judgment, just as He had warned long before (check 2 Kings 6:24–31 for reference).

In Leviticus 26:27–29, God warns that disobedience will bring such distress that "you shall eat the flesh of your sons and the flesh of your daughters."

Human life is sacred (Genesis 9:6). Cannibalism directly violates that principle. The Bible presents cannibalism only as a horrific sign of judgment and extreme desperation when people turn away from God. It is never condoned, never commanded, and always portrayed as the lowest, most tragic outcome of rejecting God.

Jesus could not have been teaching such a thing. When He said to eat His flesh and drink His blood, He was definitely speaking metaphorically.

I once had a strange experience at a prayer meeting where we were asked to do really out-of-place things. The leader of the prayers told us to stretch out our hands, saying they would feel heavy, and that we could eat the bread that would be there. As if that wasn’t enough, he went on to say we should drink from our hands, claiming it was blood of some sort.

How ridiculous! I was so ignorant. I can’t believe I indulged in those things. Looking back, we were engaging in cult-like behavior in what was supposed to be a Christian prayer meeting.

When we consider the entire John 6 in context, we will find it easier to understand what Jesus said.

In John 6, Jesus fed 5,000 people. Because of this, the crowd followed Him wanting more food. Jesus told them not to focus on physical bread but on the food that brings eternal life.

The contrast Jesus made between physical food and spiritual food set up His strong words about eating His flesh and drinking His blood. He was showing that He Himself is the true spiritual bread we need. He emphasized this three times (John 6:35, 48, 51). Jesus also made it clear that the way to receive this bread is not through physical eating, but through believing in Him (John 6:40, 47).

To make sure people didn’t take Him literally, Jesus clarified: “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. My words are Spirit and life” (John 6:63). Sadly, many stayed stuck on the physical meaning and walked away, missing the spiritual truth.

While the practice of breaking bread together and drinking wine as communion is a biblical church practice, that is not what Jesus was referring to in the context of John 6:58–59. You don’t live forever or have eternal life because you ate bread and drank wine with God’s people.

The Fijians, once known as the “Cannibal Isles,” practiced ritual cannibalism in the 19^th century not out of hunger but as a spiritual act tied to the concept of mana. They believed that by consuming the flesh of their enemies, especially war captives, they could absorb their strength and spiritual power.

Eating human flesh is associated with paganism and depravity, never as something holy or acceptable.

The only time eating flesh and drinking blood is acceptable is with Jesus and this speaks of believing in Him. Putting your faith in Jesus is likened to embracing Him as the spiritual food necessary for your living.

I have eaten of His (Christ) flesh and drunk of His blood. Therefore, I live by His life. The life of Christ is in me.