Nineteenth Sunday B in Ordinary Time Jn 6,41-51

The Jews stumbled upon Jesus, for he said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven” (Jn 6:41).

These words became a stumbling block to those who did not understand or want to understand Jesus’ words. Jesus explains the mystery of his person: “No one can come to me unless he is drawn to the Father who sent me.” (Jn 6:44) God the Father gives God the Son for bread. Jesus says of himself: “I am the bread which came down from heaven” (Jn 6:41). The words of Jesus bear the seal of truth. These words are to renew our faith and love for Christ in the Eucharist. Jesus remains with us in the Eucharist until the end of time. Through the Eucharist, we are offered a new life. As branches, Jesus is the vine from which we can draw strength for a new, eternal life. The words of Jesus and the Eucharist are an expression of love.
Jesus was a man of flesh and blood. The natives in the synagogue were offended by it (cf. Mk 6: 1-6). They could not accept Jesus as the expected Messiah. That is why Jesus says that we can be drawn and guided by the Father. The people of Capernaum are as hard as the natives of Jesus and their fathers in the wilderness. Jesus came not only for his contemporaries, but also for all people until the end of time. Jesus fulfills the will of the Father and remains present among us as the true God in the form of bread. He gives us the Eucharist – proof of love. He wants us to trust Him in the Eucharist. That is why we also have the admonition: “Do not spare among ourselves” (Jn 6:43). Jesus gives proof of himself that truth, love, righteousness are our salvation. God provided manna to the people in the desert. The nation nourished it until it came to the Promised Land. Jesus instituted the Eucharist, which becomes food from heaven: “He who eats of this bread will live forever” (Jn 6:51).

Today’s man is threatened in his being. Its environment is endangered; life itself is endangered. Philosophers – existentialists write about the problems of the human personality, its existence, personal freedom, that man is an unnecessary, unfortunate certainty, thrown in a kind of play of lot into life and then into nothingness, death, from where there is no way anywhere. By teaching about the Eucharist, Jesus, “whoever eats of this bread will live forever,” (Jn 6:51), teaches that man is not thrown into the abyss of nothingness and death. Jesus offers everyone the opportunity to “live forever.” Jesus requires believing in him, which is “Life” (Jn 14: 6). To receive Jesus, to welcome him, is a gift.
The words “I am the bread which came down out of heaven” (Jn 6:41) are a stumbling block even for today’s people who mourn against God. Likewise, those who consciously and voluntarily despise the Eucharist. Thousands of excuses, explanations, interpretations will not stand, only to not accept the words of Jesus.

Today, in the age of ecumenism, the search for ways to unite between different denominations, faith in Jesus’ actual presence in the sacrament is considered the pinnacle and almost the only content of the Christian understanding of the Eucharist. This is undoubtedly a crucial point, but not the only one. In life, we need to realize that our relationship with Jesus in the Eucharist is to be based on faith. It is not enough to believe, but it is also necessary to prove your relationship by deeds. It is suitable to long for a living God and believes in God’s real presence in the Eucharist. We need to be sure of what life we ​​are about.
He who does not fool but accepts Jesus and his gift, the Eucharist, has a clear promise: “And I will raise him up at the last day” (Jn 6:44).
It is not worthwhile to despise God, to despise the gifts that God gives out of love because we must realize the words: “No one can come to me …” (Jn 6:44).

The comical but instructive story of Sheikh Abd el-Krim, preceded by the Messenger of Allah, the angel of death, and told him the hour when he would come for him. The sheikh secretly ordered him to prepare a quick camel for the journey. He drove the camel forward. He was glad in his heart that he had escaped the angel of death. Tired but happy, he was approaching an oasis in the desert when the angel of death was about to come after him. He tells himself how the angel of death will be disappointed; he will growl that he has overtaken him. But how surprised he was to see the angel of death under the first palm tree. Seeing the sheikh, he said, “Now I know why Allah sent me here and from there he ordered me to take you away. I was just wondering how you could get here in such a short time. “

We can squirm, but will grumbling help us at the hour of death? The opposite is correct. We will begin to do the will of Jesus Christ. Let us establish the right relationship with the gifts offered, especially with the Eucharist. At the hour of death, the living God will be a righteous Judge.

When we know that before the judges on earth, who are proponents of justice, truth, love, we have respect, respect, we appreciate them, the more we realize the need to prepare for a meeting with God – a Judge who will give us a just reward.