Joh 6:67-68 | KingComments | STEP | The twelve disciples stay with Him. The Lord puts their faith in Him to the test by asking them the challenging question of whether they maybe also want to go away. They see the many disciples leave. Are they not going to live a more pleasant life than they could expect? Shouldn’t they join them? Surely there are only a few of them left, isn’t it? Doesn’t the majority see it right? Belonging to a minority always entails rejection and contempt. The Lord knows the answer, but He wants to hear it from their own mouth. Then comes the wonderful answer of Peter. He wouldn’t know any other person to whom to turn. Who else has words of eternal life? Only the Lord Jesus does. Peter is not interested in taking advantage of the signs the Lord does, but in the spiritual meaning of what He speaks. He is not concerned with literal bread, but with spiritual food. Not only the words of eternal life are important, but also Who speaks them. He Who speaks them is that which He has been saying to them from the beginning ( ). They have believed in Him as the Holy One of God, as the One Whom God has sanctified for Himself. If He is everything to God, with whom would a man rather be than with Him? The Lord answers not only Peter, but all twelve disciples, for Peter has spoken on their behalf. What Peter said does not apply to all twelve. Certainly, He has chosen all twelve of them to be with Him on earth and to follow Him on His walk through the land, to serve Him and to learn from Him ( ). The election the Lord is talking about here is not the eternal election for heaven, but the election to be with Him on earth. Unfortunately, not all twelve have faith in Him being the Holy One of God. The Lord calls one of them “a devil” because that one has entered into the service of the devil. He knows who that devil is. He did not accidentally choose Judas as one of the twelve. Nor did he choose him to make him a traitor, as if Judas had no other choice. Judas has had enough chances to repent, but he didn’t want to. After many disciples have left and a small company remains that remains faithful to Him, we would humanly speaking have rather postponed the veiled ‘unmasking’ of Judas for a moment. It may give the impression that the Lord is spoiling the good atmosphere that has been created by speaking of one of his disciples as ‘a devil’. Once again it proves that He is the Holy One of God. He is focused only on His God and not on man.

‏ John 6:67-68

The Confession of Peter

The twelve disciples stay with Him. The Lord puts their faith in Him to the test by asking them the challenging question of whether they maybe also want to go away. They see the many disciples leave. Are they not going to live a more pleasant life than they could expect? Shouldn’t they join them? Surely there are only a few of them left, isn’t it? Doesn’t the majority see it right? Belonging to a minority always entails rejection and contempt.

The Lord knows the answer, but He wants to hear it from their own mouth. Then comes the wonderful answer of Peter. He wouldn’t know any other person to whom to turn. Who else has words of eternal life? Only the Lord Jesus does. Peter is not interested in taking advantage of the signs the Lord does, but in the spiritual meaning of what He speaks. He is not concerned with literal bread, but with spiritual food.

Not only the words of eternal life are important, but also Who speaks them. He Who speaks them is that which He has been saying to them from the beginning (Jn 8:25). They have believed in Him as the Holy One of God, as the One Whom God has sanctified for Himself. If He is everything to God, with whom would a man rather be than with Him?

The Lord answers not only Peter, but all twelve disciples, for Peter has spoken on their behalf. What Peter said does not apply to all twelve. Certainly, He has chosen all twelve of them to be with Him on earth and to follow Him on His walk through the land, to serve Him and to learn from Him (Lk 6:13). The election the Lord is talking about here is not the eternal election for heaven, but the election to be with Him on earth. Unfortunately, not all twelve have faith in Him being the Holy One of God. The Lord calls one of them “a devil” because that one has entered into the service of the devil.

He knows who that devil is. He did not accidentally choose Judas as one of the twelve. Nor did he choose him to make him a traitor, as if Judas had no other choice. Judas has had enough chances to repent, but he didn’t want to.

After many disciples have left and a small company remains that remains faithful to Him, we would humanly speaking have rather postponed the veiled ‘unmasking’ of Judas for a moment. It may give the impression that the Lord is spoiling the good atmosphere that has been created by speaking of one of his disciples as ‘a devil’. Once again it proves that He is the Holy One of God. He is focused only on His God and not on man.