Touching our Saviours speech, of the eating of his flesh, and the drinking of his blood, in the sixth of John; ⟨p. 46⟩these five things specially may be observed. First, that the question betwixt our Adversaries & us, being not, Whether Christs body be turned into bread, but whether bread be turned into Christs body; the words in S. John, if they be pressed literally, serve more strongly to prove the former, then the latter. Secondly, that this Sermon was uttered by our Saviour, above a year before the celebration of his last Supper, wherein the Sacrament of his body and blood was instituted: at which time none of his hearers could possibly have understood him to have spoken of the external eating of him in the Sacrament. Thirdly, that by the eating of the flesh of Christ, and the drinking of his blood, there, is not here meant an external eating or drinking with the mouth and throat of the body, (as the dJews then, and the Romanists far more grossly then they, have since imagined:) but an internal and a spiritual, effected by a lively faith and the quickening spirit of Christ in the soul of the believer. For ethere is a spiritual mouth of the inner man, (as S. Basil noteth) wherewith he is nourished that is made partaker of the Word of life, which is the bread that cometh down from heaven. Fourthly, that this spiritual feeding upon the body and blood of Christ, is not to be found in the Sacrament only, but also out of the Sacrament. Fifthly, that the eating of the flesh, and the drinking of the b•ood here mentioned, is of such excellent virtue, that the receiver is thereby made to remain in Christ, and Christ in him, and by that means certainly freed from death, and assured of everlasting life. Which seeing it cannot be verified of the eating of the Sacrament (whereof both the godly & the wicked are partakers:) it proveth, not only that our Saviour did not here ⟨p. 47⟩speak of the Sacramental eating; but further also, that the thing which is delivered in the external part of the Sacrament, cannot be conceived to be really, but sacramentally only, the flesh and blood of Christ.
Touching our Saviours speech, of the eating of his flesh, and the drinking of his bloud, in the sixth of Iohn; ⟨p. 46⟩these five things specially may be observed. First, that the question betwixt our Adversaries & us, being not, Whether Christs bodie be turned into bread, but whether bread be turned into Christs bodie; the words in S. Iohn, if they be pressed literally, serve more strongly to prove the former, then the latter. Secondly, that this Sermon was uttered by our Saviour, above a yeare before the celebration of his last Supper, wherein the Sacrament of his bodie and bloud was instituted: at which time none of his hearers could possibly have understood him to have spoken of the externall eating of him in the Sacrament. Thirdly, that by the eating of the flesh of Christ, and the drinking of his bloud, there, is not here meant an externall eating or drinking with the mouth and throate of the bodie, (as the dIewes then, and the Romanists farre more grossely then they, have since imagined:) but an internall and a spirituall, effected by a lively faith and the quickning spirit of Christ in the soule of the beleever. For ethere is a spirituall mouth of the inner man, (as S. Basil noteth) wherewith hee is nourished that is made partaker of the Word of life, which is the bread that commeth downe from heaven. Fourthly, that this spirituall feeding upon the bodie and blood of Christ, is not to be found in the Sacrament onely, but also out of the Sacrament. Fiftly, that the eating of the flesh, and the drinking of the b•ood here mentioned, is of such excellent vertue, that the receiver is thereby made to remaine in Christ, and Christ in him, and by that meanes certainly freed from d•ath, and assured of everlasting life. Which seeing it cannot be verified of the eating of the Sacrament (whereof both the godly & the wicked are partakers:) it proveth, not onely that our Saviour did not here ⟨p. 47⟩speake of the Sacramentall eating; but further also, that the thing which is delivered in the externall part of the Sacrament, cannot be conceived to be really, but sacramentally onely, the flesh and blood of Christ.
- dJoh 6.52.Ioh 6.52.
- e[Greek or Hebrew]. Basil. in Psalm. 33.〈non-Latin alphabet〉. Basil. in Psalm. 33.
