John 6:66 Not the anti-Christ, just men stumbling
As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore. John 6:66 NASB
Isn’t it a crazy coincidence that when flesh is stumbled by the Messiah that the verse number aligns with the number of man? If you’re not freaked out about the verse notation in John 6:66, there are some great lessons from this story.
Jesus is many things to many people, but a less popular role in which I have experienced his joy (and pain) is that of the winnower or refiner — separating out the bad from the good. In my quiet time I don’t meditate and worship thinking, “You are an awesome rock of offense!” Yet separating is a core activity in his kingdom: the light from the dark, the sheep from the goats, the solid house on the rock from the one on the sand. More personally, kingdom thinking from worldly thinking, heaven values from those of the flesh, strength from my weakness. Out with the old, in with the new. He moves me from glory to glory, transforming my thinking, growing me into a complete man. It’s one thing for narrow thinking men to distinguish (then dismiss) entire populations of unbelievers — those atheists, cultists, or self-gratified — but entirely another when two followers are walking shoulder to shoulder and a knife of separation comes between them. One trusts and believes, the other is offended, stubs their foot, stumbles, and departs to nurse his wound.
Many today would be content when church attendance is high — who cares about the specific quality of faith in all those members? Of course we want everyone to find God, but often our values lean toward the external and the sides with which people appear to align. With a crowd, it is easy for one to blend in and look like they all have the same intent, when the reality is… maybe they don’t belong. Imagine being among the surging mob seeking Jesus on the mountainside. How many of those simply came along for the ride because a family member, or a neighbor was interested? There is a palpable energy with mobs of people. The crowd itself can provide the joy for some. For example, in June 2020 there were George Floyd protest riots in Seattle. While mobs descended upon the city, reporters in the crowd were singling out individuals asking, “What is your cause? Why are you marching? What is your message?” I found it hilarious when many people had a blank look on their face, essentially saying, “I don’t know — but this is where the action is.” They gathered for gathering sake.
It’s a fact of life — most groups of people will almost always be mixed.
The children of the kingdom are true, and pure, and real. One will know them by their fruit. The value of our relationship with God is more important than life itself. Jesus spoke unambiguously about the necessity and priority of pursuing God and prioritizing the most important commands of loving God, even if it means splitting apart the most sacred of earth’s relationships — our families. He is the Rock of Offense.
Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn “ ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.
Matthew10:34-36 NIV
In another place, Jesus spoke about the children of the kingdom being un-mixed with those who only appeared to be children:
The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away… Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.”
Matthew13:24-25, 30 NASB
He spoke passionately about wanting to make this separation:
I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled!
Luke 12:49 NASB
He is a refiners fire.
But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the LORD offerings in righteousness.
Malachi 3:2-3 NASB
When he sits in final judgement at the end of the age:
And He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.
Matthew 25:33 NASB
There are distinctions in the kingdom. But what is being distinguished? Those who believe and trust with those that do not. What a subtle and often hidden line between us all! Our love and acceptance of others is admirable. We extend the kingdom, not by judging, but by embracing each other. So it is understandable how mixing occurs. Our physical presence with each other tends to morph into a common look. This is normal. Mixing is normal. Ambiguity is normal. Unfortunately, sometimes we are influenced by those who do not have faith because we assume something about them when we look at their projected appearance instead of their heart, or their life and fruitfulness. David’s brothers looked like the next Kings of Israel, but God selected David because he looked at the heart.
In John 6, Jesus spoke some difficult words. Even today they cause many to scratch their heads. But there were those who were following for personal and selfish reasons. They forcefully pushed their agenda. And in the timeline of Jesus’ life, his few short years of ministry would quickly conclude when he was marched to the cross — where all the sheep would be stumbled and scattered. Timing is everything in the kingdom. And this was not the time for these self-designated unbelieving disciples to accomplish their agenda and unnaturally influence the real children of God.
All people have a mixture of heaven and earth in their heart. Our Father and Refiner is extraordinarily measured and patient with the process of teasing out our faith. Sometimes the fire is gentle heat — a wise word that helps me see an area in my heart not yet yielded to Him. Other times the fire is more intense — it’s a circumstance that I cannot understand and causes emotional pain and makes me question the love and faithfulness of my very good Shepherd. Any time there is a fire of testing, it’s a risk for me that my heart will lean away rather than lean toward Jesus. To stumble. To fall. Personally, I believe that our Father considers these moments as very precarious and high risk for me and is fully and deliberately intentional in the refining process.
On a personal note, this past week I was convinced of a direction I should be taking, believing that I had heard specific encouragement from the Holy Spirit. I was confident that I had heard His voice. Sure enough, circumstances bore this out. Things were going exactly as I was expecting. Until suddenly — they weren’t. Abruptly I pulled to a stop — stumbled, perplexed, and a bit panicky. What had I heard? What did I have confidence in? If I hadn’t heard from God, how did I mix this up? If I cannot trust my ability to hear and act, what can I trust? I have been a believer for 40 years, so being able to hear my Father’s voice is pretty important to me. Yet here I am, stumbled. But in this He had a new lesson for me: there is something even more important than my ability to hear His voice — it is to trust his goodness and intent for me — no matter the conclusions I draw when listening to him. When I think about the disciples, they maintained a false expectation of the Messiah even after he was raised from the dead — and Jesus never corrected them. They asked right before he ascended to Heaven, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom of Israel?” (Acts 1:6) They still didn’t have a concept of what he was doing or who he was doing it for. The scope of Jesus’ mission was much broader than their imaginations could grasp.
One thing is absolutely certain to me, God loves me and wants me to be a child of his kingdom. He wants to speak to me and he wants me to hear his voice. And He is trustworthy and good. Yet being a believer or unbeliever is not something determined magically — it’s a condition, a choice I make in my heart. Becoming a lover of God or an enemy of God is something that I nurture. It begins as a seed in the heart an is watered and grows. I realize that I have allowed two ways of thinking in my own heart, and they grow side by side. So even though I may be stumbled at times, I forcefully take what I do know and cling to the kingdom. I will not let go. Just like the three Hebrew children responded to the king who was about to kill them in a fiery furnace:
Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.
Daniel 3:17-18 NASB
Fire separates. Purges. Refines.
If I want to be a son of the kingdom, I accept that the fire will come. No one wants a polluted mix of gold and iron, or a diamond with a great big blemish, or wine with the distinct aftertaste of vinegar, or a nice warm garment with a gaping chilly hole. If I’m afraid of the fire it’s most likely because I love something attached to my flesh. I owe my Father, my God, my Savior, a whole person with unmixed love. He will never change, he’s the refiner. But just like his 11 disciples do here in John 6, I land on the very safe and secure rock of Jesus, “Where do we go, you have the words of eternal life.”