Monday after Jubilate
Scripture: St. John 6:60-71 (NKJV)
6:60 Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”
61 When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. 65 And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.”
66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
67 Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?”
68 But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
70 Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” 71 He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.
Devotion
When Jesus finished preaching in the synagogue about the necessity to eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to have eternal life, many of His own disciples replied, “This is a hard saying.” Many things the multitudes could believe about Jesus, but when confronted with the teaching that this Man was God, who had come from God and had to be believed in as God who is the only Way to life, they stumbled.
Why did they stumble? Did Jesus fail to preach in a winsome enough manner? Was the Holy Spirit not drawing, not working through Jesus’ words? No, Jesus’ words were “Spirit” and “life.” He preached the truth. He preached perfectly. But many simply would not believe in Jesus as their God, and so they left Him.
Nothing has changed. Many people who hear the truth of Christ rightly preached, who may even join a church and live as Christians for a while, eventually walk away for no other reason than that they stumble over Jesus. The only question at that point for those who remain is the question Jesus posed to His twelve disciples. “Do you also want to go away?” If, by God’s grace, you are convinced, as eleven of the twelve disciples were, that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, if you’re convinced that your church teaches the word of Christ correctly, then you have all you need. You have Jesus. And with Him, you have also the Father and the Holy Spirit, and the sure hope of everlasting life.
Prayer: O Father in heaven, by Your Word You have graciously drawn us to Jesus as Your Son and our Savior. Keep us firm and steadfast in the faith, that we may always find joy and contentment in His teaching. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
