Title: Where Do I Go?
Contents
♡♥♡ Where would I go? / John 6:66-71
*** Introduction
Have you seen the movie 'Quo Vadis'?
The highlight of the movie is the scene where Peter meets Jesus. It was a time of great persecution against Christianity by the Roman emperor Nero. Thousands of saints were burned to death or torn to pieces by starving lions. The saints urged Peter to flee Rome and flee, saying that they could die, but the teacher had to stay and teach more people. Peter, unable to resist the invitations of the Saints, left Rome with the young boy.
As I was walking through the woods, there was a man approaching Peter from the distance. When his face was recognizable, Peter was astonished. He was the Lord. Peter asks. “Quo Vadis O Domine (Lord, where are you going?)” Jesus said, “I am going to Rome.” The Lord said, “I am going to Rome to be crucified in your place.” When Peter realizes that it is God's will that he be martyred, he turns back, saying, “Lord, I will go.” The boy asks Peter on his way back to Rome. “Quo Vadis O Domine?”
It is said that Peter eventually went to Rome and was crucified upside down and martyred.
In the history of Christianity, countless people must have come close to the Lord and then moved away from Him. There are many reasons for leaving the Lord. Among the many reasons, I think that “things that do not match your thoughts” are the most common. As far as I know, most of them left because their circumstances were different from what they were pursuing.
There will be many cases like this today. Like Paul, there will be many saints who have solid faith in Jesus, make decisive decisions and follow the Lord in any case. On the other hand, while weighing the spiritual and the world, there will be cases where they lean toward the world and leave the Lord, and there will be cases where they follow Jesus but their heart is inclined towards the world. In the latter two cases, whether the body leaves or the mind leaves, both have departed from the Lord. The Bible speaks both about those who are confident and about those who turn away from the Lord. Through the text of this time, let's think about our determination.
First, let's look at the full text to understand the text.
John 6 records the amazing miracle of Jesus feeding 5,000 people with five barley loaves and two fish in the field of Bethsaida. After experiencing the miracles firsthand, the crowd wanted to make Jesus the king of Israel. Then Jesus fled to the mountain and sent his disciples to the other side of the lake first. And again he walked on the Sea of Galilee and performed the miracle of coming to the disciples who were suffering from wind and waves. The crowd followed Jesus across the lake to Capernaum in search of him.
To the relentless crowd, the Lord said, “You are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate the loaves and were satisfied. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life.” And the Lord taught the crowd that Jesus Himself is the “living bread that came down from heaven” that gives life to many. The Lord said that you must eat His own flesh and drink His blood in order to have life. But the crowd did not understand it. The Lord said that the reason we do not understand is because we do not believe. And he said that only those whom God has chosen can follow the Lord.
One by one, people began to leave the Lord's side. They never followed the Lord again. When the Lord saw this, he asked the disciples. “Are you going to cover it too?” This question is being asked of us now. How would you answer?
The confession of the saints should be clear and certain.
“Are you going to cover it too?” The Lord's question to His disciples was simple and clear. This question has the meaning of ‘Is your thoughts the same as theirs?’ Peter, who was impatient at the Lord's question, immediately came forward. “Lord, you have the word of eternal life; where shall we go? We believed and knew that you were the Holy One of God.” Peter gave a very clear answer about the identity of Jesus. Peter confessed that he not only believed that Jesus was the Messiah and that He was God, but also knew him by experience. ‘But where shall I go?’ Peter confesses that apart from the Lord he has nowhere to go.
We must have Peter's confession. How can you have such a clear and sure confession? This confession comes from God. A similar confession is found in Matthew 16:16. When the Lord asked the disciples, “Who do you say I am?” Peter also confessed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” At this time the Lord said, “Simon Bar-Jonah, blessed are you. Flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” In other words, he said that the knowledge and confession of knowing God comes from God. Therefore, believers must earnestly long for the Lord.
However, the difference between the remaining disciples and those who left was that they believed in Jesus as the Son of God and the Messiah. Unfortunately, however, Judas Iscariot had a more wicked heart than those who had left the Lord. He saw the Lord as a means to satisfy his desires.
There are many of these people today. Just as Judas succumbed to worldly desires, even today's church members yield to the demands of the world or environmental pressures and have formal faith, or often leave the Lord altogether. Anyone who compromises and yields to material desires or the pressures of political and social circumstances is ultimately cut off from Jesus Christ. James 4:4 says, “Therefore, whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
Many believers say it is God's will, but they live according to their own desires. Just like in the movie, Peter thought that it was God's will while he was running away from persecution for his life. The justification is plausible. It was the cause of surviving and preaching the gospel to more people and teaching the word of the Lord. As the saying goes, “There is no grave without excuses,” the saints of today have their own cause. However, you cannot go to the kingdom of God with a cause. There must be a clear and unequivocal confession of Jesus Christ. This confession is accompanied by the practice of obeying the Word even at the cost of life.
Friends, like Peter, the Lord forgives and tolerates many mistakes, betrayals in crisis, frustration and discouragement, and when we repent and turn around. But this must not happen over and over again. As long as you have faith like a child, you cannot be the joy of God. Now, let's have a sure confession to the Lord, "Where will I go from leaving the Lord?" and live by that confession. Then the Lord, who is our life, our strength, and our strength, will guide our lives in the will of God.