Let’s face it – trusting in Christ alone is hard. Oh, it’s easy enough to divide our loyalties, to retain our focus on the things of this world while looking to Jesus for all the “spiritual stuff.” It’s easy to imagine that Jesus will take care of our eternal destiny, even while we continue to act like this world is all that really matters – going to Church on Sundays but allowing our lives to be governed only by what makes sense or feels good to us during the rest of the week.

But Jesus will not settle for such hypocritical followers. No, He insists that the only way to live forever is to feed upon Him, the bread of life (6:35). And he’s not just talking about taking communion, the sign and seal of His sacrifice for us, but about the reality to which it points. For following Christ means nothing less than taking Him into ourselves, having His lifeblood wash us clean from the inside out. It means living the way He lives and loving the way He loves, completely abandoning ourselves to Him, to His agenda and His priorities.

So, how can we possibly make such a radical change? How can we truly become one with Jesus? As He says in verse 63, it is only the Holy Spirit who can give us this sort of new life. But here is the good news: the Father takes the initiative to draw to Himself those who trust in Christ (6:44, 65). He alone makes it possible for us truly to submit ourselves to Jesus’ sovereign power, to turn away from the world and to give our lives completely to Him.

Now, lots of people who call themselves Christians don’t really want to go this far. Even some of the disciples who had seen His miracles turned away from Him when they realized just how radical a commitment He requires all of us to make. But as Jesus said, and as Peter realized, only Jesus has the words of eternal life (6:63,68). So let’s listen to Him and turn exclusively to Him today.

John 6:60-71 (ESV)

60 When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?”
61 But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this?
62 Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?
63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.
64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.)
65 And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”
66 After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.
67 So Jesus said to the Twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?”
68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life,
69 and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”
70 Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the Twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.”
71 He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the Twelve, was going to betray him.