Words of Eternal Life
Reflective Reading: John 6
In the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, the word “know” appears an average of 20 times in each. In the gospel of John, it appears a grand total of 71 times! Why so many? Because the book of John is about knowing who Jesus is and knowing him personally. Let’s explore…
In John chapter 6 we see a crowd following Jesus, not because of who he is but because of what he does—feed them. Jesus tells them point blank,
“Truly, Truly, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.”
Then Jesus continues,
“Labour not for the meat which perishes, but for that meat which endures unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.”
Then said they unto him, “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said unto them,
“This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.”
They said therefore unto him, “What sign do you show then, that we may see, and believe you? what work do you do?” (John 6:26-30).
I find this very humorous in light of the miracle of just feeding them. Are they serious? They want Jesus to show them a sign that is greater than taking two fishes and five small loaves of bread and feeding 5,000 men (not including women and children)?! Why did they need another sign? Will more signs help them to believe or help them to know who Jesus is? No, more signs are not going to convince them; and neither would it convince anyone today.
Even if someone were to rise from the dead right in front of their very eyes (like Lazarus), they still wouldn’t believe. Remember what Abraham said to the rich man while he was being tormented in hell?
“If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead” (Luke 16:31).
Do you see where Jesus is going with this? He himself will die and rise from the dead and still people will not believe. Even the disciples, though they walked and talked with Jesus and experienced his teaching and miracles, were still puzzled about who Jesus really was.
Try to put yourself in the disciple’s sandals, and see if you can imagine what it was like to be walking and talking with God himself. What would the moment have been like when you first realized that this was no ordinary man; no mere prophet?
Picture yourself going to bed at night and wondering to yourself, “Who is this Jesus?” You toss and turn and say to yourself, “I think he’s just a prophet.” But then you say, “But who can command the wind and sea to obey him?” Or perhaps you say, “Did he really raise that child from the dead today?” “Who is this man?” You’re perplexed; the crowd is puzzled, and the rest of the disciples are still clueless as to who Jesus really is.
Now carry this perplexity into John 6. The crowd is hungry for the bread that Jesus claims will last forever. Jesus has whetted their appetite. At this critical moment, Jesus is going to present something that is about to blow their minds and weed out those who are following him for the wrong reasons,
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eats me, even he shall live by me. This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eats of this bread shall live forever” (John 6:53-58).
Time out! Now, again, picture yourself walking with the disciples and hearing this kind of talk for the first time. Up until now, everything has been good; great teaching, plenty of food, the sick made healthy—I like this, I’m in. But wait a minute! Did he just say to eat his flesh and drink his blood?! Who talks like this? The Bible records,
“Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, ‘This is an hard saying; who can hear it?’” (John 6:60).
Jesus said,
“Does this offend you?” (John 6:61).
“From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him” (John 6:66).
I can understand how they felt. I’m not following a fanatic who is telling me I have to eat his body and drink his blood in order to have eternal life! I think that would have done it for me. I like adventure and non-tradition; I’m a risk taker and love a challenge, but not this. This is just too much. Then Jesus said to the twelve,
“Will ye go away also?”
Can you imagine this moment? May the real followers please step forward. If I was there, I would have so many thoughts swirling through my mind. I would be thinking, “Everything he’s done so far has been so good; even miraculous. Everything he’s said so far, has been so enlightening, inspiring, inviting, life-transforming, and convicting. He keeps hinting that he’s…well, that he’s…ok, I’ll say it, that he’s God! But, if he’s God, then what do I do with this outrageous command of eating his body and drinking his blood?”
It is at this moment that I either step up to the plate and ask him what he means, or “cut bait.” What do I do? Ah! Saved by the bell; actually saved by Peter! As usual (and right on time), bold Peter steps forward with humble honesty,
“Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God” (John 6:69).
That certainly answers Jesus’s question, but it doesn’t answer mine about eating his body and drinking his blood. Or does it? Note Peter’s words, “Thou hast the words of eternal life.” I think Peter got it! Earlier, when Jesus knew that everyone was murmuring about what he had just said, he responded by telling them what he meant (and most everyone missed it),
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing: the Words that I speak unto you are Spirit and are life.” (John 6:63, emphasis added)
Do you get it? He wasn’t talking about his physical body and blood. He was talking about being all-in regarding “the Words that I speak.” This makes sense since Jesus is the Word, the Logos—the Word made flesh that dwelt among us—
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God… And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1, 14a).
The very essence of who Jesus is, is encapsulated in the Words that he speaks. In the beginning, he spoke the world into existence. He is now speaking to men about how to have an eternal existence with him. The requirements? Total enlistment; total investment; total commitment to follow his Words, believe in them, trust them, and ingest them…did you hear that? Yes, to follow Jesus requires that we ingest every Word that he speaks to us; for the Words that he speaks are Spirit and they are life! Apart from his Words is death and eternal separation.
Good ole Peter. As brash as he may be, sometimes he gets it before anyone else. It was Peter who was willing to get out of the boat and walk on water in the midst of the storm. It was Peter who dove into the sea when he knew that it was Jesus on the shore. It was Peter who told the Lord to not only wash his feet but give him a bath too. As unbalanced as Peter might seem, this is the kind of person that Jesus is looking for—one who is all in.
A follower of Jesus is someone who sees the Words that Jesus speaks as the most important Words in the universe. This is the kind of person who understands that Jesus’s Words are life-giving, life-sustaining, and without them there is no real life. He understands that man does not live by bread alone but by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
So my friends, are we holding fast to his Words? Or, when faced with difficult circumstances, “Will [we] go away also?” May our response be like Peter’s, saying: “Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the Words of eternal life.”
Sincerely,
Mark Hamby
M.S., M. Div., Th. M., D. Min.
Recommended Reading:
Teddy's Button book/audio drama (Ages 6+)
Ned Franks the One-Armed Sailor book/audiobook (Ages 12+)
Phil Tyler's Stand book/audiobook (Ages 9+)
The Duel (Ages 12+)
