That great American writer, Mark Twain, wrote: "Most people are bothered by those passages in Scriptures which they cannot understand; but as for me, I always notice that the passages in Scripture which trouble me most are those which I do understand."
I suspect that, at times, we all would like to walk away from the church and never come back. We want a God different from the one we find in Jesus.
Flesh and blood? Yes. But demanding? No.
Resurrected? Yes. But crucified? No.
Salvation? Yes. Repentance? No.
Love? Yes. Commitment? No.
Unfortunately you cannot have one without the other. The rose comes with the thorns. The pains come with the birth. Night comes with day.
This week we read one of those difficult passages from Scripture. In fact, it was such a difficult teaching of Jesus that many, as the Scripture itself attests, left Him. "As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.” John 6:66. Yikes! They could not accept the truth He revealed that they must eat His flesh and drink His blood. They are the same people who would abandon Jesus when persecution comes their way. These are fair weather disciples. This is the true "mark of the beast”—to turn from following Jesus when teachings or times get difficult. A missionary in Brazil visited a market town on a religious holiday, and saw a sale sign in a store's window advertising "Cheap crosses for sale." We may look for cheap crosses - no sacrifice, no commitment, no cost, no pain - but there is no such thing. Jesus' disciples have to follow the way of the cross.
The glory is that if you stay close to the Lord in the most difficult of times, you will experience His steadfast love. You will have the strength to weather the storm. You will come through victoriously! Don’t allow the devil to confuse you with his lies. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. And if you believe in Jesus you really must believe Him. In other words, believe what He says. He is the bread of life.
Joyfully,
Father Mike