Quote for the Day
“…no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.”
Today's Prayer
This week allow yourself to rest completely in the arms of a perfect and loving Father.
John 6:60-71
John 6:60-71 (NIV)60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.”66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”70 Then Jesus replied, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” 71 (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.)
Message
In the first part of chapter 6 we saw many comments by Jesus that were hard to understand. In fact the disciples themselves commented on the “hard” teachings, and some of those who had investigated the claims of Jesus had begun to fall away. The facts and claims of Jesus have been difficult for many people since the beginning of time. There are various reasons why they are hard to understand, but the bottom line is the ego and the flesh. The flesh of man causes confusion and does not allow many to understand or accept what Jesus has to say about Himself. For many of the Jewish leaders of the day it was about a loss of power and position. Today those same issues are what many of us struggle with. The flesh is a powerful tool that warps the mind of man in opposition to God.This is also why many consider the quote for this week a “hard verse.” We have grown up and become accustomed to having power over our life, and God has granted that to us. No person is required to believe the claims of Jesus. He has brought them before all mankind and allowed us to make a choice. At the same time it is required of us when we choose Him, that we let go of the flesh and its decisions and allow “…the Father to enable…” Again this is hard for us to grasp as we have so long been taught that WE have the power and WE have the “right” to decisions, and we do. At the same time we need to forgo that power and right and allow the Father to enable us to come to Jesus, so that we might love Him and accept His plan.Yes, a very “hard” concept, but one with perfect power and ultimate peace.
