I think all this can be summed up as this: ENJOY CHRIST! Christ is our enjoyment and life's sustenance.
What does eating and drinking a picture of? 2 things:
1. enjoyment- When we eat, we enjoy the food, how it tastes, the texture, and how it satisfies our hunger.
2. nourishment- As our food digests, it breaks down and provides the nourishment for life and growth of our body. The food we eat becomes a part of our body.
Most of us know when Jesus said for us to eat and drink Him, He wasn't talking in a literal sense. Are we to get our daily delivery of vacuumed pack Christ steaks from Swanson foods? This is Christs' allegory to those who want to receive Jesus as eternal life and how to live in it. It's not a simple mere belief and then on we go on our way (a spurious faith). As our bodies need food and drink everyday, so does our spirit/mind/heart need Christ everyday to be conformed into His image and to live a godly lifestyle pleasing to God (which happens over time, as a baby starts off with milk, then to baby food, then to real food). It seems to me and I may be wrong in my judgment, but Christians (including myself) in most communities (including this one) seem to forget this. The enjoyment of Christ and of each other should be right up there with other biblical doctrines such endurance, perseverance, obedience, and diligence (and all the other orthodox doctrines). Jesus=Bread of Life=The Word=The Spirit=Our portion=Our Sharing=Our joy.
The Bible speaks of many passages of eating and enjoying.
Some Scriptures to consider:
The Lord the Shepherd of His People
A Psalm of David.
23 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.
Luke 7:34 -
34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’
Revelations 3:20 -
20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
Psalms 119:57
57 You are my portion, O Lord;
I have said that I would keep Your words.
Psalms 119:103
103How sweet are Your words to my taste,
Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Jeremiah 15:16
16 Your words were found, and I ate them,
And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart;
For I am called by Your name,
O Lord God of hosts.
Ezekiel 3:3
3 And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you.” So I ate, and it was in my mouth like honey in sweetness.
I wanted to through in Revelation 10:9-10 but this passage also portrays a taste of bitterness in John's stomach which has a different meaning in which jumps outside the point I'm trying to make. Which is, ARE YOU ENJOYING CHRIST by the eating and drinking of His Word in reading, meditation, reflection, praise and in prayer?