Talk of eating His flesh and drinking His blood was too much for some of them. That He claimed to be living bread that came down from heaven was a metaphor with implications they couldn’t stomach. That eternal life with God was somehow bound up in deeply entangling their present life with Him was not something they were prepared to accept. So, writes John,

When many of His disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?”

(John 6:60 ESV)

His teaching was expansive. His teaching was exclusive. Therefore, for many, His teaching was offensive.

And so,

After this many of His disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him.

(John 6:66 ESV)

They were happy to follow Him as long as they could get fed by Him (Jn. 6:26). But feed on Him? Believe He had come down from heaven? Trust Him alone as the way to get to heaven? Nope. We’re outta here, they said.

What about the others?

So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that You are the Holy One of God.”

(John 6:67-69 ESV)

Lord, to whom shall we go? Great question to have ready in your back pocket when the going gets tough.

When the way is unclear, when everything seems hard, when the burden seems too heavy to bear, when temptation arises to turn back and look other places for life and sustenance, before walking away it might make sense to intentionally process, “To whom shall we go?”

If we believe that Jesus really is the Holy One of God, then to look to anyone or anything else for eternal life would be to settle for a lesser life. If, by faith, it just makes sense that the One from God could provide directions on how to get to God, then to listen to anyone else would be to trade flourishing for foolishness.

Yeah, at times we may encounter hard stuff, but to whom shall we go?

For, when by faith we commit to follow, we find that His grace is sufficient. His power is made perfect in our weakness. His yoke is easy and His burden is light. Because when we purpose afresh to go to Him, we realize afresh His promise that He is always with us.

Because of grace. For His glory.