“Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard
this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? When Jesus knew in himself
that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you?... From that time
many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Then said Jesus
unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to
whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.” John 6:60-68
Life’s pilgrimage is far from easy. There are all sorts of
sacrifices, stumbling blocks, and hardships that make our journey hard. There
are times when our journey seems too difficult to endure; “I give
up,” we want to say. The words of Christian faith for this circumstance
are articulated in a dialogue between Jesus and his disciples centering upon
the severe demands and difficulty of His teachings.
Some of his disciples expressed their feelings, “This
teaching is too hard. Who can accept it?” Their grumbling had to do
not only with His teachings but also with their frustration in handling life’s
challenges in general. Knowing of their unrest, Jesus addressed His disciples
by asking them simply, “Does this make you want to give up?” A
number of them did give up. Jesus then asks, “And you, would you also
like to leave?” There was a real pull in the direction of quitting.
Who knows how many times His disciples had to deal with feelings of
frustration? Giving up, was an enticing option.
To be able to understand better the context of this portion, we
go to what the Lord said on another occasion; “Then Peter said to him,
“We’ve given up everything to follow you. What will we get out of it?”Jesus
replied, “I assure you that when the world is made new and the Son of Man sits
upon his glorious throne, you who have been my followers will also sit on
twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And
everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or
children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in
return and will inherit eternal life. (Matthew 19:27-29). Peter said
to the Lord; “We have left everything: what are we going to get?” I
believe that this question is one that occupies all of us, every now and then.
It seems that we place more importance on what we are going to
receive instead of the generosity and kindness of the Lord towards us. The
question of the rewards and what we are going to receive seems to hinder us!
The Lord answers them, “You’re going to help me judge the twelve tribes
of Israel.” I believe that the Lord is saying: “Why are you
presenting me with a bill?” “Are you afraid of losing, or that you
are not going to gain anything?” “Do you believe that after the journey I'm
going to leave you with nothing?” Dear brother we should always
remember and understand that what we do for the Lord is not in vain.
Our relation with God is not a question of accounting, what does
the Lord owe us! He is much greater than this because there is no limit to His
generosity and kindness. After everything, with what is the Lord going to
reward us? With eternal life!
It was not in turning away, but in drawing closer to Jesus that
the disciples found their footing once again. Peter answered Jesus’ question
about quitting by saying: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the
words of eternal life.” Aware that the issues were not solved nor
simplified, Peter refused to withdraw and the others agreed. They maintained
their allegiance to God.
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