Throughout the Bible food and drink are often used as metaphors. It may be useful for us here to summarise some of the major examples from the New Testament.
Bread
The most obvious example is in John 6 where, in an extended metaphor, the Lord Jesus declares himself to be the 'Bread of life'. The Israelites ate bread from heaven in the desert but they needed to see that this manna pointed to the Lord Jesus who stood there in front of them. He is the one who gives eternal life to all who feed on him by faith. He speaks in a similar way of the need to 'drink his blood'
Feasting
The Lord's Supper majors on this metaphor. There, believers symbolically eat and drink the body and blood of Christ. See 1 Corinthians 10:16,17; 11:23. It also points us to the great banquet at the end of time when Christ will return and the new heavens and earth will be established. This is alluded to in parables such as those of the Wedding Banquet and the Ten Virgins.
In John 4:34, Jesus uses food as a different metaphor, when he says: My food is to do the will of him who sent me. This was not to suggest that he did not need ordinary food but to show that working for God was more important to him than mere earthly food.
Milk and meat
Believers also, as Peter puts it, should like new-born babies, crave pure spiritual milk so that by it you may grow up ... now that you have tasted that the Lord is good (1 Peter 2:2.3).
In other places a distinction is made between milk and meat, the former being for young believers and the latter for the mature in Christ. Paul explains to the Corinthians: l gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. (1 Corinthians 3:2). The writer to the Hebrews similarly complains of their slowness to learn: by this time you ought to be teachers, he says, but you need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an Infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (Hebrews 5:12-14)
Yeast
Writing to the Corinthians. Paul refers to the Feast of Unleavened Bread which was closely associated with that of the Passover. During that period the Jews were not to eat anything with yeast in it. Paul applies it by calling on the Corinthians to get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new botch without yeast - as you really ore. For Christ. our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let In keep the feast not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity and of truth (I Corinthians 5:6-8).
Salt
Salt was a universal preservative in the ancient world and Jesus uses it to describe the way believers ought to preserve society from decay (Matthew 5:13; Mark 9:50). In Colossians 4:6 Paul says. Let your conversation be always full of grace. seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone'. In Mark 9:49 Jesus speaks of the judgment in terms of being salted with fire.
Wine
Wine is a frequent New Testament metaphor. For example, we read of the wine of God's wrath (Revelation 14:10,19), the wine of the adulteries of Babylon (Revelation 14:8;17:2;18:1) and the new wine of the gospel (Matthew 9:17, etc.).
The cup is also used as a metaphor for suffering in Matthew 20:20-28 and John 18:11. In John 15, Jesus declares himself to be the true vine. He speaks of the importance for those who remain in him to bear the fruit of a good character and good deeds. This is a common New Testament metaphor.
As we eat our daily food, we ought to be alert to these New Testament metaphors that we may benefit from the teaching to be found in everyday things.
This article first appeared in Grace Magazine
