"He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me and I in him."  (Jn.6: 56) 

Thus said our glorious Lord, but  do you allow me, dear reader, to repeat this verse in the negative?  "He who does not eat My flesh and does not drink My blood, does not abide in Me and neither do I abide in him!!"  Do you not agree with me that this is an alarming version and its result a painful one?! 

If    you  find   that   you   are spiritually weak and not fixed in Christ and that Christ does not abide in you, you will know that the reason is that you do not take Holy Communion regularly or with preparedness.

What is Holy Communion?
It is simply "union with Christ", for we eat and drink of the body and blood of Christ, so the Lord of glory enters into us and unites with us, and we are   grafted  into him like the branches are grafted in the vine.

The matter is most reasonable, for if the food that a child eats is transformed into blood and flesh and tissues, what is the problem with the same thing happening to the bread and wine which become the body and blood of the Lord?  What is important is that:

1.  Trust in the Accuracy of the Words of Christ:
"I am the living bread which came down from heaven.  If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world .....   Whoever eats

My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life ...... for my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.  He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in me, and I in him." (Jn. 6: 47 - 58).

The Jews were astonished at those words and the disciples found them hard;   who can understand it? (Jn. 6: 60).

The Lord, however, insisted on what He had said although some people went back.  He declared the necessity of walking by faith, asserting   the  truth of the Holy body and blood.

2.  Obedience to the Commandment of Christ:
 It is He who commanded insistently that we "break the bread" when    He   said    "Do   this     in remembrance of Me" (Lk. 22: 20). This is a remembrance in kind, just like the remembrance of the manna from the measure of manna which symbolized the true manna, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Lord entrusted this same mystery   to our    teacher,    St. Paul:

"For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed took bread. and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.'" And the same thing happened with the cup.... "'This cup is the new covenant in My blood.'" (1 Cor. 11:  23 -25).

Therefore, it is a matter of the Lord entrusting this to the apostles and the apostles to us. So let us keep that    with   which   we   have    been entrusted.

Not Deserving
Someone might say: "I believe in all that, but I am undeserving.  This is both light and fire and I cannot 'preserve the Holy Communion'!  Did you not hear what the apostle Paul says:  'Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.' (1 Cor. 11:  27).  Do you want me to become a criminal where the body and blood of the Lord are concerned?... God forbid!!"

But I say to you, dear reader:  "Continue the verse" ..... "But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup." (1 Cor. 11: 28).  This means that you are to examine yourself and to confess any transgression that disturbs your conscience.  Struggle against it and you will have victory over it in the strength of the Lord, and in the strength of the body and the blood you will win and be sanctified!

Is it   conceivable  that  we let the disease ravage our body and reject the remedy?!    The  remedy  is present on the altar every day ... "given for our salvation and the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life to all who partake of it."
  Let go of sin.... and not of Communion!
Let go of dissension .... and not of Communion.

Christ is waiting for you on the altar to grant you forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life, so do not delay and may the Lord be with you.

My Lord Jesus Christ, In the Eucharist, I see You, I touch You, I talk to You,  I unite with You!
Your blood flows in my veins!
Your flesh unites with my weak flesh!
Lasting life and strength are poured into me and the strength that comes from abiding in Your person.
Lord, I neglect to partake of Holy Communion regularly, being prepared, in the fervor of love.

When do I start..... and continue?
When do I go to the depth of Your eternal gift of love that is present with us everyday on the altar?!

 END

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