John 6:65-69 "And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father. (66) From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. (67) Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? (68) Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. (69) And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God."
How big is your God? Now that's a strange question, isn't it? But it is a
legitimate question. Maybe I should reword the question. How big is your
estimation of your God? How big? How powerful? How knowledgeable? Can He do all
things? Does He know all things? Can He provide your needs, even when you do
not know your own needs? Does He need you? Does He need your help? How often do
you rely upon Him? Who initiated your state of eternal life? Who consummated
your state of eternal life? Did God need your help in order to bring you
into His family? Was your eternal life an offer to you that you had to finish?
Or, do you believe Jesus both finished and secured your eternity through
His work when He died on the cross?
Questions! Questions! Questions! Why so many questions? Notice what
happened to many of His disciples when Jesus stated the fact that they could
only come to Him because the Father drew them to Him. "Many of His
disciples went back, and walked no more with Him." Now that is a sad
statement. What was their reason for not walking with Him anymore? It seems to
me they were unhappy with Jesus telling them that their coming to Him was not
their work, but the Father's work. "No man can come unto me, except it
were given unto him of my Father." It just does not get any more plain
that that, does it? I go back to the verse from the Old Testament that I used a recently. "The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have
loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn
thee." (Jeremiah 31:3)
Now I have to ask the question, because I really do not have the answer: Why
would anyone become offended by being in the hands of the Sovereign Lord? Yet,
these disciples walked no more with Jesus when He made this great statement.
Let's combine John 6:65 and Jeremiah 31:3. What is God telling us through the
words of Jeremiah and the words of Jesus? Let me share my experience with
you through these verses and hopefully you will understand why I am so joyous
concerning my relationship with my Lord. Combining the two verses: God appeared
to me (in my spirit) many years ago and said, "Steve, I have always loved
you. Even when you gave me no thought, I loved you then. I love you now. I will
always love you. Because of my great love for you Steve, I have given you to my
Son, Jesus. He went to the cross to pay the debt of sin you owed and could not
pay. Let me tell you now, 'It is paid in full. You are mine!'" I
was already His when He spoke those words to me. I did not do ANYTHING to
acquire eternal life. It was given through God's amazing grace and solely
through His amazing grace.
Now, that I have eternal life by His free effective gift, I have a choice (as
His child) to make everyday: Who will I follow? When there were those who
walked away, Jesus turned to the twelve and asked, "Will you also go
away?" They were ALREADY His disciples, His children, but now there
was a vocal choice to be made. Will you walk away or will you walk with me? I
love Peter's answer. I pray that is my answer each day. "Lord, where else
could we go? The life of peace and joy is only found in you. There is no where
else we want to go except to walk with you."
What is your choice today as a child of God? Walk with Him? Or turn and follow
the way of the world?