John 6:52-71 – Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. 54 The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. 56 The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. 57 Just as the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, the one who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. 58 This is the bread that came down out of heaven, not as the fathers ate and died; the one who eats this bread will live forever.” These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum. 60 So then many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This statement is very unpleasant; who can listen to it?” 61 But Jesus, aware that His disciples were complaining about this, said to them, “Is this offensive to you? 62 What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh provides no benefit; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit, and 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 it was who would betray Him. 65 And He was saying, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.” As a result of this many of His disciples left, and would no longer walk with Him. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to leave also, do you?” 68 Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. 69 And we have already believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” 70 Jesus answered them, “Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.” 71 Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot; for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him.
“So then many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This statement is very unpleasant; who can listen to it?” 61 But Jesus, aware that His disciples were complaining about this, said to them, “Is this offensive to you? 62 What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?” It was very difficult for many of the disciples of Jesus to hear Him say that all who become His disciples must eat His flesh and drink His blood. We know that Jesus was saying that His disciples must not trust salvation to their own efforts but must believe on who Jesus is and on His great sacrifice to save us. Jesus gave up His flesh and blood by His suffering until death. Jesus persevered unto death and so are we to persevere in our belief in Him. Whatever would come Jesus would confront and defeat. So, in Him, we are victors in all things through Jesus. Depending on nothing but Jesus, it is His flesh and blood in which we believe in is our victory sure. Jesus is our victory and we depend on Him rather than ourselves. (1 Corinthians 15:57) We depend on Him.
Is Jesus our rock who saves us or not? Is it offensive to lean not on ourselves but upon God? (Proverbs 3:5-6) Is what is offensive is to trust God at all times? He who will die is the one who remains dead because He rejected Jesus. (John 3:18, 36) We must not trust on what we can do in this life, but instead trust on what Jesus did. Praise God!
Some of the disciples of Jesus clung to physical understanding instead of God given spiritual insight. Jesus again referred to Him being the eternal God as He pointed out that He would return from whence He came beside His Father. He would ascend back to the right hand of the Father.
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh provides no benefit; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit, and 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 it was who would betray Him.” Life is started and completed in the Spirit. (Genesis 37:6-10) Man may have physical form, but he is not living until the Spirit blows the breath of life into him. (Ezekiel 37:5-10)
Jesus knew who believed in Him and who would walk away from Him. Just as Jesus foreknew who would betray him to the Jews, He knew whose faith would not last. But Jesus gave everyone the offer of eternal life through Him. Jesus has said that He would in no way cast away those that came to Him (John 6:36), but verses such as do show that some would, by their own will, choose to walk away from Him. He did know who would not last. Too bad, if they had only asked instead of quit, they may have made it through this trial.
“And He was saying, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.” As a result of this many of His disciples left, and would no longer walk with Him. God the Father drew disciples to Jesus to live forever with them. However it states here that many, speaking of Jesus’ “disciples,” would no longer walk with Him. Obviously it was the will of God that they would continue their walk with Christ and that it was the decision of some of the disciples to walk away from the Lord. The worst decision of a person can make is to, having known the Lord, to turn away from Him. (Hebrews 6:4-6) Yet we remember Hebrews 6:9 “But, beloved, we are convinced of better things regarding you, and things that accompany salvation, even though we are speaking in this way.” We have confident that the Lord knows how to keep us. (2 Timothy 1:12)
Free will? Yes? Who gave it to us? God did. We live in God’s perfect will. How does that work out? He knows, it was His idea. That is why we don’t need to understand how that is, but rather embrace that it is and we are safe in His perfect will. How wonderful our God! Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.