“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” (2 Peter 1:2) Amen.
While preaching in the Capernaum synagogue Jesus said, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh” (John 6:51). The people grumbled and questioned, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat” (John 6:52)? Jesus answered them, “Amen, Amen, I tell you: The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the Last Day” (John 6:54).
Now it was the larger group of Jesus’ disciples’ turn to complain. They said, “This is a hard teaching! Who can listen to it” (John 6:60)? Not “hard” in the sense of difficult to understand. Jesus words were simple enough. Bread, flesh, blood, eat, drink. Simple one syllable words. Nothing hard about them. Hard in the sense of unyielding, demanding, shocking words. Difficult doctrines. Tough teachings.
The Greek word for “teaching” here is the same expression John uses to describe Jesus in chapter 1 – namely “Word” or “Logos.” “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 6:1). Ironically, without making the connection themselves, the disciples were saying Jesus was hard to accept.
These followers could not accept Jesus on his terms. They wanted to accept him on their terms. Teachings that were easier. Softer. Less divisive. Less offensive. More publicly palatable.
“After this, many of his disciples turned back and were not walking with him anymore” (John 6:66). That’s not good.
But notice what doesn’t happen here. Jesus doesn’t “walk it back.” That’s a phrase that’s become popular lately. When an entertainer likes a conservative tweet and there’s a Twitter mob denouncing her, she walks it back to keep her fans. When an athlete speaks up at a school board meeting and then is cut from commercials, he walks it back to retain employment. “I apologize. I didn’t mean it that way. I misspoke. You misunderstood.” They grovel. They cave. They walk it back to win back their influence.
But Jesus doesn’t walk back what he said. Not one bit. He’s not afraid of losing his influence. In fact, he doubles down. “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning those who would not believe and the one who would betray him (John 6:63-64). Jesus knew all along – “from the beginning” who would stop believing and start betraying. He knew this not just from the beginning of this teaching but from the beginning of time.
Jesus is not like us. He’s not afraid people will be offended and leave. He not timid and worried people will stop supporting his ministry. He doesn’t tone it down. He doesn’t try to make his teaching more palatable. He really is the Bread of Life. He really is the Water of Life. We really have no hope of salvation apart from him. Jesus is the Word that began life. He is the Bread that sustains life. Only he grants eternal life.
So he doesn’t walk it back.
Truth isn’t a popularity contest. Jesus isn’t trying to get elected as Bread King of Israel. He’s not worried about a recall on his position as Savior. He is the Savior from the beginning unto eternity. His teachings are hard. But those hard teachings give eternal life.
But so many Christians give up on Jesus because his teachings are hard. I’m concerned about our 25-plus Water of Life college students. They can be influenced by the progressive worldview that fills our college campuses, so they eventually lose hold of their Christian worldview. That’s why I’m connecting every one of our students to WELS campus ministries, so they continue to be fed with the Bread of Life.
I’m concerned about our WLS and Shoreland parents. They can be satisfied with their children receiving slices of Jesus during the weekdays, but as parents they aren’t interested in having the whole family sit down for the entire feast on Sunday mornings.
I’m concerned about our older members who have become complacent in their faith. They’re content with knowing what they learned years ago in confirmation class. So they are disinterested in challenging themselves to learn more and be more active in their faith by attending various Bible studies.
We are often like those first disciples. We want Jesus on our own terms.
Easier … so we can sleep in and do less.
Cheaper … so supporting our church, school and high school ministries don’t cost so much.
Friendlier … so we don’t lose our friends over Christian teachings that don’t fit into our unchristian culture.
Less judgmental … so we don’t feel judged every time we break the commandments of our God and Judge.
And so we stumble in our faith. We stagger. We balk. We bicker. We are tempted to walk back and walk away. Maybe we can influence Jesus to soften and lessen his teachings so we have a life in Jesus and our sinful life at the same time.
Notice what Jesus doesn’t do. He doesn’t walk it back. He doesn’t walk away. Not once. Not at all.
He doesn’t walk back his hard teachings. He doesn’t walk back his commitment to follow him.
He didn’t walk back from his incarnation into a sinful world. He didn’t walk back from the temptations, from the hate, from the scourging or from the cross. He didn’t walk back from taking all your sins of walking back from him. He didn’t walk back from walking to the cross to die your death and be forsaken by your God.
Just as important. … Jesus didn’t walk away from you. You who have come here after another week of wallowing in your sin. Another week of failing to do what you should have done – failing to love God and your neighbor. Another week of doing what you should not have done – loving and serving yourself. Another week of unclean desires, wicked thoughts, grudges and bitterness. You’ve come here reeking of your sins. You walk in here like a bum off the streets of hell.
But your Savior doesn’t walk away from you. He walks toward you, holding out his nail-pierced hands to you. He helps you take off your dirty, tattered clothes. He soaks them in baptismal waters. He gives them back to you as white robes to be worn by his saints. You’ve been starving out in the world. Jesus gives you manna from heaven you can eat and all the fresh water you can drink. Even though you are a prodigal who continually walks away from him grumbling and complaining, he constantly welcomes you back, hosting a party in your honor and rejoicing with the angels when you return.
That’s who Jesus is. The God who loves bums and serves sinners. If you view yourself more highly than you ought, you will think you deserve a return on your prayers. You’ll complain that you’re not getting what you deserve. You’ll think you’re not getting the credit you’ve got coming for being so faithful. You’ll be offended at being called a sinner. You’ll be embarrassed by Jesus’ hard teachings.
And you’ll walk away.
This is why we need to see ourselves as God sees us. Sinners in need of salvation. Allies of Satan who need to be converted into saints. Prodigal children who need a welcoming Father. Starving souls who need to Bread and Water of Life.
If you don’t walk away, you’ll hear the most beautiful words. I baptize you. I forgive you. You are my son. You are my daughter. This is my body. This is my blood. Today you will be with me in paradise. Well done, my good and faithful servant.
These are the words of eternal life.
Beautiful words from the Word.
Wonderful teachings from the Teacher.
Glorious doctrines from the Doctor.
Jesus’ call to follow him still goes out today. Don’t walk back. Don’t walk away … listen. Hear his words of eternal life. Through these words the Spirit will work and the Father will draw us to himself. That’s the only way. To walk away is to walk back to sin and death. Faith comes from hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17).
During the Revolutionary War, Ethan Allen made a name for himself as a capable colonel and the leader of the Green Mountain Boys. He was also widely known as a religious skeptic who had no use for the Christian faith. Allen’s wife, on the other hand, was a devout Christian and taught their daughter about Jesus as the one who loves and saves sinners.
It happened that the daughter fell seriously ill, and her father was summoned to her bedside. As the girl was nearing death, she took his hand and asked, “Father, should I believe what you have taught me, or what I have learned from my mother?”
The long moment of silence after her question must have felt like an eternity. He father finally found his voice to say, “My child, believe what your mother has taught you.”
As we go through life, we will be challenged to abandon Jesus’ teachings. We will find easier paths. More tantalizing food. More progressive doctrines. We will be tempted to grumble, complain, and walk away from Jesus, his teachings, and his Church.
But remember, one day you will be like Ethan Allen and his little girl. You will be looking death in the eye. You will be facing eternity. Are you going to be with Jesus or without Jesus?
Don’t wait until your deathbed to walk with Jesus. After the other disciples found Jesus’ teachings hard and left him, Jesus asked the remaining Twelve, “You do not want to leave too, do you?”
May your confession today and every day be the same as Simon Peter’s “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). Amen.
Now to him who is able to strengthen you— according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, ... to God, who alone is wise, be glory forever through Jesus Christ. Amen. (Romans 16:25a, 27)