Scripture:
John 6:67–69
67 Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” 68 But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

It’s easy to miss what’s happening in John 6. Jesus tells the crowd that unless they eat His flesh and drink His blood, they have no life in them. He is speaking of the hope you and I have in Him: His sacrifice. They missed it, even though the Scriptures pointed to Him and foretold that He would lay down His life for them. They were educated men, yet they missed that salvation was standing right in front of them. He was speaking of the communion you and I share today, remembering what He did for us on the cross: what His broken body did for us, and what His poured-out blood did for us, freeing us from sin and death. They missed it.

When you read today’s portion, you might think, “Yay, Peter!” But don’t get carried away. Jesus, knowing the hearts of men, turns to the twelve and asks, “Do you also want to go away?” That question tells us that even His closest disciples struggled to understand what He had said, and leaving had crossed their minds.

Let that simmer. Those closest to Him had their doubts and thought about turning away because it got hard. But then Peter snaps out of it and says something that ties into our God-Shot: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

Today our God-Shot is a decision, not unlike Peter’s. There will be days when we face difficult instruction from the Word of God, instruction that stirs up resistance in us. It will create movement in our lives that brings about change, and not all of that change will be easy.

Pruning is never painless, but it is necessary and fruitful; the hard things create the greatest movement. But if, like Peter, we decide even in our day of struggle to say, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life,” then His Word and our obedience will transform our lives, and we will never be the same.

Lord, it is through obedience to what You say, and by allowing Your Word to change us, that we find life, are transformed, and are redeemed. Even when we struggle, give us the courage to step into Your plan and Your purpose. Let us always stand on what we know is true of You: You are life, You are the Christ, and our hope is in You. In Jesus’ name, amen!