Rejection by Many Followers
June 28, 2020
Commentary
As the people began to understand Jesus’s teachings, they found them to be totally unacceptable. Besides the hostile Jewish leaders, many of the Galilean disciples turned away from Him. The popular enthusiasm for Jesus as a political Messiah (v. 15) was then over. They saw that He was not going to deliver them from Rome. He might be a great Healer, but His words were hard to accept. Many rejected Him because they could not accept His teachings (v. 60).
Christ asks them if they would accept the fact that He came from heaven once they saw Him return to heaven (vv. 61-62). Christ then explained. He did not intend for them to eat physically of His flesh; that would profit nothing. Rather, it is His spirit (person) which gives life (v. 63). They did not accept His words and, consequently, they would not be drawn to Him (vv. 64-65). Many of those who were impressed by the signs, now left Christ because of their unbelief (v. 66).
His rejecting of their desire to make Him their political king; His demand for personal faith; His teaching on atonement; His stress on total human inability: His claim that salvation was a work of God; all these proved to be unacceptable for many people.
This is a turning point in our Lord’s ministry, where He confronted the twelve with the question, “Will you also go away” (v. 67)? Many people start out the Christian life and seem to do very well for a while, but then they drop out of sight, and nobody seems to know what happened. Peter had understood the teaching of his Master (v. 68). The message of Christ was not dead words to him, rather they were full of spirit and life (v 69). The Twelve affirmed their confidence through Peter. One of them, however, was a devil who would eventually betray the Bread of Life (vv. 70-71).
Application
Christ was rejected by many in His day and if I proclaim His Word I can expect to be rejected. I need to be bold in my witness for Him no matter what the consequences may be. I cannot do this in my own strength but only with the Holy Spirit’s power.
John 6:60– 71 (NET)
60 Then many of his disciples, when they heard these things, said, “This is a difficult saying! Who can understand it?” 61 When Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining about this, he said to them, “Does this cause you to be offended? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascending where he was before? 63 The Spirit is the one who gives life; human nature is of no help! The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus had already known from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) 65 So Jesus added, “Because of this I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has allowed him to come.”
66 After this many of his disciples quit following him and did not accompany him any longer. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve, “You don’t want to go away too, do you?” 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God!” 70 Jesus replied, “Didn’t I choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is the devil?” 71 (Now he said this about Judas son of Simon Iscariot, for Judas, one of the twelve, was going to betray him.)