“From that moment many of His disciples turned back and no longer accompanied Him. Therefore Jesus said to the Twelve, ‘You don't want to go away too, do you?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!’” John 6:66-69
I love this passage of Scripture. I love the pure, heart-on-the-sleeve vulnerability between Jesus and His disciples. In my opinion, this is one of the most intimate moments recorded in Scripture.
Let me set it up for you. Jesus is in the beginning stages of His public ministry. He has large crowds following Him wherever He goes, including the twelve He has specifically called. The first part of John 6 records the feeding of the 5,000 and how everyone was amazed by that.
John 6:14-15 says, “When the people saw the sign He had done, [the feeding of the 5,000] they said, ‘This really is the Prophet who was to come into the world!’ Therefore, when Jesus knew that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He withdrew again to the mountain by Himself.”
These people were loving Jesus and convinced that He was the One sent from God. Night came and the Twelve set out across the lake without Jesus. Late into the night, they saw Him coming to them walking on the water. The disciples were even further amazed at this man they had been following.
The Message Paraphrase version of John 6:22-26 says this, “The next day the crowd that was left behind realized that there had been only one boat, and that Jesus had not gotten into it with his disciples. They had seen them go off without him. By now boats from Tiberias had pulled up near where they had eaten the bread blessed by the Master. So when the crowd realized he was gone and wasn't coming back, they piled into the Tiberias boats and headed for Capernaum, looking for Jesus. When they found him back across the sea, they said, ‘Rabbi, when did you get here?’ Jesus answered, ‘You've come looking for me not because you saw God in my actions but because I fed you, filled your stomachs—and for free.’”
Ouch! Jesus saw them for what they really were - they were hungry for the miracles that he had done, but they were not hungry for Jesus, and Jesus called them on it. In the next several verses, He then precedes to tell them what they should be hungry for - the Bread of Life, which is of course, Jesus. He also tells them that no one can come to Him unless the Father in heaven draws him. They have a really hard time with the things Jesus is telling them and finally at the end of his discourse, John 6:60-66 tells us the crowds respond in this way:
“Therefore, when many of His disciples heard this, they said, ‘This teaching is hard! Who can accept it?’ Jesus, knowing in Himself that His disciples were complaining about this, asked them, ‘Does this offend you? Then what if you were to observe the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? The Spirit is the One who gives life. The flesh doesn't help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. But there are some among you who don't believe.’ (For Jesus knew from the beginning those who would not believe and the one who would betray Him.) He said, ‘This is why I told you that no one can come to Me unless it is granted to him by the Father.’ From that moment many of His disciples turned back and no longer accompanied Him."
Which brings us back to where we started - hopefully with a bit more understanding of the dynamics of what is happening. These twelve men had been surrounded by crowds for who knows how long. They had seen Jesus feed thousands of people with nothing but a few fish and loaves of bread. They had seen the enthusiasm of the people. They had witnessed Jesus walk on water. And then they watched and listened as Jesus laid down the gauntlet and separated the wheat from the chaff so to speak.
And now after all this, it is suddenly silent for the first time in a long time. No crowds. No noise. Just them and Jesus. And it is in this very vulnerable quiet that Jesus asks the Twelve if they want to leave as well. It is in this very moment - pregnant with silence - that Peter says, "Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!"
What is your answer when the crowds have left, and it’s just you and Jesus in the quiet? In those still moments before God when you're as vulnerable as you can ever be, what is your response? Will it be the words of the crowd who said "this teaching is too hard - who can accept it?" Or the quiet words of Peter who says, "Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!"
When it’s just you and Jesus, and He's revealed a truth to you, whether it be about Himself, or about a sin in your life that needs dealt with, or that He chooses to simply reveal Himself to you, you have a choice to make. You can respond like the crowd and walk away. Or you can respond like Peter did, embrace what has been revealed to you, and commit to follow Jesus on the path that He takes you. The choice is up to you. What will you choose today?
Let me set it up for you. Jesus is in the beginning stages of His public ministry. He has large crowds following Him wherever He goes, including the twelve He has specifically called. The first part of John 6 records the feeding of the 5,000 and how everyone was amazed by that.
John 6:14-15 says, “When the people saw the sign He had done, [the feeding of the 5,000] they said, ‘This really is the Prophet who was to come into the world!’ Therefore, when Jesus knew that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He withdrew again to the mountain by Himself.”
These people were loving Jesus and convinced that He was the One sent from God. Night came and the Twelve set out across the lake without Jesus. Late into the night, they saw Him coming to them walking on the water. The disciples were even further amazed at this man they had been following.
The Message Paraphrase version of John 6:22-26 says this, “The next day the crowd that was left behind realized that there had been only one boat, and that Jesus had not gotten into it with his disciples. They had seen them go off without him. By now boats from Tiberias had pulled up near where they had eaten the bread blessed by the Master. So when the crowd realized he was gone and wasn't coming back, they piled into the Tiberias boats and headed for Capernaum, looking for Jesus. When they found him back across the sea, they said, ‘Rabbi, when did you get here?’ Jesus answered, ‘You've come looking for me not because you saw God in my actions but because I fed you, filled your stomachs—and for free.’”
Ouch! Jesus saw them for what they really were - they were hungry for the miracles that he had done, but they were not hungry for Jesus, and Jesus called them on it. In the next several verses, He then precedes to tell them what they should be hungry for - the Bread of Life, which is of course, Jesus. He also tells them that no one can come to Him unless the Father in heaven draws him. They have a really hard time with the things Jesus is telling them and finally at the end of his discourse, John 6:60-66 tells us the crowds respond in this way:
“Therefore, when many of His disciples heard this, they said, ‘This teaching is hard! Who can accept it?’ Jesus, knowing in Himself that His disciples were complaining about this, asked them, ‘Does this offend you? Then what if you were to observe the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? The Spirit is the One who gives life. The flesh doesn't help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. But there are some among you who don't believe.’ (For Jesus knew from the beginning those who would not believe and the one who would betray Him.) He said, ‘This is why I told you that no one can come to Me unless it is granted to him by the Father.’ From that moment many of His disciples turned back and no longer accompanied Him."
Which brings us back to where we started - hopefully with a bit more understanding of the dynamics of what is happening. These twelve men had been surrounded by crowds for who knows how long. They had seen Jesus feed thousands of people with nothing but a few fish and loaves of bread. They had seen the enthusiasm of the people. They had witnessed Jesus walk on water. And then they watched and listened as Jesus laid down the gauntlet and separated the wheat from the chaff so to speak.
And now after all this, it is suddenly silent for the first time in a long time. No crowds. No noise. Just them and Jesus. And it is in this very vulnerable quiet that Jesus asks the Twelve if they want to leave as well. It is in this very moment - pregnant with silence - that Peter says, "Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!"
What is your answer when the crowds have left, and it’s just you and Jesus in the quiet? In those still moments before God when you're as vulnerable as you can ever be, what is your response? Will it be the words of the crowd who said "this teaching is too hard - who can accept it?" Or the quiet words of Peter who says, "Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!"
When it’s just you and Jesus, and He's revealed a truth to you, whether it be about Himself, or about a sin in your life that needs dealt with, or that He chooses to simply reveal Himself to you, you have a choice to make. You can respond like the crowd and walk away. Or you can respond like Peter did, embrace what has been revealed to you, and commit to follow Jesus on the path that He takes you. The choice is up to you. What will you choose today?
“From that moment many of His disciples turned back and no longer accompanied Him. Therefore Jesus said to the Twelve, ‘You don't want to go away too, do you?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!’” John 6:66-69
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