The Gospel of John: John 6.60-71

Read and meditate on John 6.61, 62.
Jesus had no sympathy for those who would only believe what they could make sense of for themselves.

⁶¹Jesus, when He knew that they complained
about this, said to them, “Does this offend
you? ⁶²What if, then, you should observe the Son
of Man ascend again to where He’d come
from?”  

- John 6.61, 62

Reflect
1.  Hard sayings? These people hadn’t heard anything yet. What does the verb complained suggest about the heart attitude of these disciples? Complete this prayer: Help me, Father, to keep watch over my own heart, so that my attitudes are always…

2.  Here again, as in John 2.24, John advises us that Jesus knew the hearts of these people. Does Jesus know your heart? Does it matter whether He does? Lord, You know my heart. You know that..,

3.  We note that Jesus does not apologize, as if He were being merely obtuse. Nor does He back up and try to explain Himself, to assuage their complaining. Is it possible that some people simply will not believe unless they can figure it all out for themselves first? How would you be able to recognize someone like that? Lord Jesus, I cannot make people believe in You. I can only…

4.  So instead of trying to bring these complaining disciples along, Jesus leaves them in the dust. He rebukes them for being offended. Why? Do you ever need to be rebuked by the Lord? I welcome Your every rebuke, Lord, so that…

5.  And then, as if to push these complaining disciples further away, Jesus adds a “What if?” hypothetical. To what does He refer? Do you fully understand everything involved in that event? But do you believe it? Bring together into one prayer the prayers you wrote from questions 1-4.

Summary
“Therefore Christ is one, the Word, soul and flesh, one Christ; the Son of God and the Son of man, one Christ. The Son of God always, the Son of man in time, nevertheless, one Christ according to the unity of the person. He was in heaven when he was speaking on earth. So the Son of man was in heaven as the Son of God was on earth. The Son of God was on earth in the flesh he had taken, the Son of man was in heaven in the unity of person.” Augustine (354-430 AD)

How can we know how far to go in trying to understand before we simply decide to believe? Should something in our heart cue us that it’s time to stop questioning, and just accept the Word of God?

Closing Prayer
The LORD is on my side;
I will not fear.
What can man do to me?
The LORD is for me among those who help me;
Therefore I shall see my desire on those who hate me.
It is better to trust in the LORD
Than to put confidence in man.
It is better to trust in the LORD
Than to put confidence in princes.

Psalm 118.6-9

Psalm 118.1-9 (St. George’s Windsor: Come, Ye Thankful People, Come)
Thank the Lord, His love endures! All to whom is love is sure,
All who fear Him day by day, let them thanks and praise now say!
Out of my distress I cry; He will hear me from on high.
He will free me from all fear. What can man do to me here?

For the Lord stands next to me; He will give me victory!
Over all who hate my life, I will triumph through the strife!
In His grace I refuge find; in His steadfast love so kind.
Trust not princes, trust not men – Christ shall be our haven then!           

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series IV a and b: John, edited by Joel C. Elowsky, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006. Verse translation of John by T. M. Moore.