John 6:63–71

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. 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. 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.”

From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more. Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?”

But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.

Jesus finally manages to drive some disciples away. Their brains are just too full, and they can’t stand all the apparent contradictions. This is by design. Jesus wants the core of His church to be a handful of guys with bulletproof faith.

Except for one. One of the twelve will play a very different role. He will help deliver Jesus to the cross.

“Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” This statement is shocking—and surely shocked the twelve. Why announce this now? What’s the point?

Most everything else Jesus said was to set the stage for later events. Why not this? If so, what difference will this make later?

Judas and the others now suspect that something extreme is coming and that Jesus knows what it is. It may be a surprise to them, but it won’t be a surprise to Jesus.

They’ll know that He’s still in control.

In a perverse twist, this will make His crucifixion even harder on His disciples. They will watch Him go to the cross, all the time exuding confidence. They know He’s in control. He acts like He’s in control.

But that makes them think that He’s going to emerge victorious somehow. They keep waiting for the great plot twist where He escapes or wins somehow. This distracts them from remembering Jesus’s other predictions of His death and being in the ground three days.

Then He dies. The end. Their depression and confusion is total.

Then He pops back up again. Then they remember, and it all makes sense.

You want bulletproof faith? You got it.

These Monday—Friday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay. The Saturday DEEPs are written by Matt Richardson. To subscribe to all the DEEPs click here:

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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. ESV stands for the English Standard Version. © Copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved. NIV stands for The Holy Bible, New International Version®. © Copyright 1973 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. KJV stands for the King James Version.