Scripture
Many Disciples Desert Jesus
60Many of his disciples said, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?”
61Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining, so he said to them, “Does this offend you? 62Then what will you think if you see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again? 63The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64But some of you do not believe me.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning which ones didn’t believe, and he knew who would betray him.) 65Then he said, “That is why I said that people can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me.”
66At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him. 67Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?”
68Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. 69We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.[1]”
70Then Jesus said, “I chose the twelve of you, but one is a devil.” 71He was speaking of Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, one of the Twelve, who would later betray him.
Translation notes (1)
- 6:69 Other manuscripts read you are the Christ, the Holy One of God; still others read you are the Christ, the Son of God; and still others read you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, "Are you also going to leave?" Simon Peter replied, "Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. John 6:67-68
If you have been following along with these devotions this week, you know we have been talking about following Jesus, and the requirements for His followers. We have talked about His call for followers of Jesus to be fully devoted. Followers of Jesus are called to show their love for Him in both their words and their actions. They are called to commit to Him. They are called to sacrifice. The question is, will we take our relationship with Him seriously?
John chapter 6 records a series of miracles that Jesus performed that drew a large crowd. As the crowd grew, Jesus' teaching became more difficult to understand for people who did not know and understand who Jesus was. Because of this, a lot of people left Jesus and stopped following Him. When this happened, Jesus' disciples looked at Him and asked, "Are you also going to leave?" (verse 67). At this, Peter spoke up and said, "Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life" (verse 68). In other words, Peter confessed that He knew Jesus spoke words of eternal life and that He was worth following and giving his whole life to, even if he did not always understand.
As we consider the teachings of Jesus, we must acknowledge that many of them are difficult. We do not like to talk about sacrifice. We like the idea of getting revenge, yet Jesus tells us to let God take care of that for us. We want to build our own kingdoms, yet Jesus asks us to give up our lives for the sake of His. As we contemplate these hard truths, we must ask ourselves the same question that Jesus asked His disciples. Will we stay? Will we be devoted followers? As we contemplate these questions, we will certainly have the same response as Peter. Where else will we turn? Christ leads to eternal life. We can trust Him with our lives and follow Him whole-heartedly as a result.
Moving Toward Action
As you think about Jesus and His call for followers of Christ, will you take His call seriously? Will you stay faithfully committed to Him? After thinking about this for some time, spend time praying. As you pray, thank God for His faithfulness to you, and commit to being faithful to Him in return. Ask Him for the courage to be a fully devoted follower of Christ.
Going Deeper
Read John 6:60-71 (NLT)
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