Reflection for May 10 Saturday of the Third Week of Easter: John 6:60-69

Gospel: John 6:60-69

Many of the disciples of Jesus who were listening said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, “Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the Spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail.  

The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.” Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him. And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father.”  

As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him. Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”

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Reflection:

When many of the followers of Jesus went back to their former way of life because they couldn’t believe His Bread of Life discourse, Jesus—perhaps quite sad—turned His attention to His twelve apostles and said to them: “Do you also want to leave?” (John 6:67) This is the million-dollar question that confronted the twelve apostles:“Do you also want to leave?” (John 6:67) 

For many of us, the teachings of Jesus are actually hard to follow. For example, His teachings about humility—how many of us are still willing to offer the other cheek if we are struck on one side? (Luke 6:29) Or His teachings about fidelity to the Sacrament of Matrimony (Matthew 19:4–6). Are we still faithful, or have we ever been faithful, to our respective spouses? 

And there are many more teachings that Jesus wants us to follow, but we don’t—for the simple reason that we want to satisfy our earthly desires. 

It’s hard to follow Jesus because He will stir our lives according to what He wants them to become, not according to what we want them to be. Jesus will turn our lives upside-down. He will shake and disturb them until we are purified. And this is hard for many of us because we want to follow our own self-serving wants and desires. 

But if we do not follow Jesus, where else shall we go? Shall we follow the fleeting pleasures of this world, only to find ourselves lost and broken? When we choose the path of sin, we begin to experience a kind of hell even while still alive. 

It’s only through Jesus that we can have peace—a peace this world cannot give. And it’s only through Jesus that we can have eternal life. The things we have right now are all temporary. We will leave them—or they will leave us—at any time. 

Therefore, we must always be faithful to the Lord, no matter the trials. — Marino J. Dasmarinas