A Hard Saying & The Words of Eternal Life

The Gospel of John

The Words of Eternal Life

John 6:60-71

Find a quiet place, alone and apart from distractions. Be comfortably alert, still and at peace. Say the Lord’s Prayer. Sing or cant the Jesus Prayer. Pray for family, friends, neighbors, and yourself. Slowly and carefully read the passages of Scripture. Reread them. From memory, determine the central points.

  1. After hearing Jesus speak of His body and blood as food and drink, which are necessary to ingest in order to receive eternal life, the disciples protest the words were a “hard saying.” And indeed they were correct.
  2. Jesus urges them not to be offended however. And there would be more. They would witness His ascension, and this after His death on a cross.
  3. Then Jesus explains that is the Spirit that gives life, perhaps meaning bringing understanding of what they are seeing since without such revelations, the disciples would not comprehend.
  4. He knows there are those whom are crowding around Him that did not believe in Him to be the one sent by the Father.
  5. John the author of the Gospel then explains that Jesus not only knew those who did not believe in Him but that one of them would end up betraying Him. Such a betrayal would be made to those who rejected Jesus claim to be the Messiah.
  6. He reminds His listeners that He had already told them that no one could come to Him, believe in Him, unless it had been made possible by the Father. Here then is a strong reiteration of the sure calling and election brought about only by divine intervention.
  7. Of course then, many of the followers were offended, even those who had witnessed the miracles, and walked away. But no one of the Twelve left Him.
  8. Peter, speaking for the called apostles, states that they will not leave as they have seen and understood who Jesus is, He is the one who has the words of eternal life.
  9. Jesus goes on to state that one of the Twelve “is a devil” even though He had chosen them all. This remains a mystery to us as it has for Christians down through the ages.
  10. John then explains that Jesus was referring to Judas Iscariot.

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