Dear John 6-Offended?

-
Our oldest granddaughter. Please pray for her as her little body battles pneumonia.

January 6
Me oh, my. When the going got tough, some disciples got going in John 6.  Zip past the all familiar feeding of the  5,000 and Jesus walking on water.  This chapter has some show stopper stories!  I don't think I've ever zoned in on this quote from Jesus to his disciples…."Does this offend you?"
Jesus has just taught on his nickname, "The Bread of Life."  Many of His followers have in mind what they want in the Messiah and Jesus' teaching on heading back to heaven isn't measuring up.

Check this out…v.60-68 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, 'This is hard teaching. Who can accept it?' Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them.  'Does this offend you? Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before!' …From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
"You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus asked the Twelve.
Simon Peter  answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God."

When we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior are we willing to accept the whole package?  The love, the discipline, and the call to live by faith?
The Women of Faith Bible has this to say about this passage: "The difference between a student and a disciple can be viewed as a difference in the level of commitment.  While a student merely studies a master's teachings, a disciple fully accepts and apples those teachings to his or her life."  (My husband illustrates this by considering the players in an egg and bacon breakfast.  "The chicken made a contribution; the pig made a sacrifice.")

Father, may we find no offense in any of your teachings. May we have hearts like Peter which are drawn to all of your ways simply, because of who you are:  Love, Faithful, True, The Great I Am. When it comes to our discipleship, may our quick, no brainer, response be: 
"Who else would we follow!"
In Jesus' Name, Amen

Popular posts from this blog

She Fought the Good Fight

-
Image
February 27 Bible Gateway's verse yesterday was: This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him . 1 John 4:9 A fitting verse for the day my everyday friend, soul sister, monster of the faith and mischievous partner in crime, Kaye, left this world behind and headed to her heavenly home. My husband was able to be by her bedside and said he knew she heard the words of our faith that he shared. Her sweet daughter held the phone up to her ear so I could say good-bye and the brightest single star you have ever seen shown through my bedroom window as she exited this earth! Yesterday, my heart literally ached so badly that I told the Lord, "Take me too!" Wouldn't she have been surprised if I had snuck up on her in heaven and said, "Thought you were going somewhere without me, did ya." When we received the call she was ready to go, I called out to the Lord for comfort and He led me to the Bible Gat
Read more

Toe Sucking

-
Image
June 13 If I keep my eyes on God, I won't trip over my own feet. Psalm 25:12 …or allow them to be sucked off by carp!  For as long as I've been on this lake (49 years) we've gone to feed the carp at various marinas.   I have a bag of old bread waiting to be tossed to the carp tomorrow by our grandchildren!   There's a new adventure at a couple of the marinas.  Toe sucking!   For 25 cents you can buy a small scoop of peanut butter to go on your toes. Then the carp suck it off!   I just got a pedicure, so I have an excuse not to participate! What we do need to participate in is keeping our feet on the paths the Lord sets before us. Give careful though to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Proverbs 4:26 
Read more

Remember Your Story

-
Image
Our oldest granddaughter made this bouquet and hand painted card for me.💖 Nothing touches our lives that God doesn't allow.  He has a plan and a purpose, sometimes far into the future, that can be used for His glory. (Jeremiah 29:11) Flash back 40 years and I approached life's downs with an "I can't believe this is happening." and truth be told "How can I fix it?" attitude.   Now that I am older and wiser I see that God truly works all things together for good for those who are called according to His purpose.  (Romans 8:28) I thank God for the stroke 8 years ago and how it mellowed me out (okay some of you are laughing, but it really did). And honestly,  I like getting old. Sure, there are regrets, but there is also value in being able to pass along the wisdom learned from those regrets. God CAN use everything for His good. Mentoring moments are what I feel called to at this stage of life.  Working on a talk for a women's retreat weekend, I came ac
Read more