Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Finally, after four weekends, we have reached the end the Bread of Life discourse. We could only wish that the discourse ended well. But it does not. It ends letting the readers know that many of Jesus’ disciples “returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him” (Jn 6:66).
John’s conclusion to the Bread of Life discourse is not merely a conclusion to the discourse. It the end of this section of John and the beginning of a new. Now the plot thickens. The dice is thrown. People will make choices regarding Jesus. That choice will disrupt life. That choice will determine eternity.
Here are my three practical implications to conclude the Bread of Life discourse.
Following Jesus is hard
It is interesting to me that John says that many of Jesus’ “disciples” returned to their former way of life. These disciples were not the Twelve who had left everything to follow Jesus, but neither were they simply the crowds that followed him because of the multiplication the loaves and the fish. These people were following Jesus intentionally because they saw signs of the Messiah. It was some of these followers, John says, who returned to their former way of life. The transition from bread to flesh, the transition from Moses to Jesus, the transition from life to eternal life, the transition from flesh to spirit – it was hard. John is making a point – following Jesus is hard.
When has been hard for you to follow Jesus? I can tell you when I find it hard. I find it hard to follow Jesus when my trust has been broken. I trust easily because I believe in the basic goodness of people. But when that trust gets broken, it takes a long time to get over the hurt. I know what Jesus would do and I know what Jesus wants me to do. However, it is hard.
If it was Jesus’ teaching about his “flesh” that made some followers return to their former way of life, are there teachings of Jesus makes us rethink our faith in him? Does Jesus’ demand to love our enemies sit well with us ? What about Jesus’ call to forgive seventy-times seven? What about Jesus’ teaching about wealth and riches? What about Jesus attitude toward suffering or his care for the poor and those on the periphery? Are there times that we just set Jesus aside? Do we ignore some gospel teachings and create our own rationale to not follow Jesus’ commands? When is it hard to follow Jesus?
Faith in Disruptive
In the Bread of Life discourse, the difficulty for some followers of Jesus was his teaching about the bread of life being his flesh. But John’s demand for a confession of faith in Jesus Christ was also hard because Jesus turned religion on its head. In the bread of life discourse Jesus completely disrupted how people believed in God. He disrupted their life so seriously that many of them abandoned Jesus. He disrupted their lives so intensely that one of his disciples betrayed him and the religious leaders killed him.
Here is the crux of John’s entire gospel - genuine faith in Jesus Christ causes a total disruption in a person’s life, indeed in the world. Jesus unsettles us. Jesus makes us uncomfortable. To forgive in the way Jesus demands, to love even our enemies in the way Jesus shows, to give without measure like Jesus does, to live the life that Jesus lived – it is bound to unsettle us.
Faith is disruptive. In fact, the end of the Bread of Life discourse, mirrors life. It mirrors the life of a believer and those who abandon Christ. In the gospel of John, there is no middle ground; there is not sitting on the fence. Either you must give it all or walk away. Either way, Jesus is going to disrupt your life. Either way, it is going to affect your eternity. Either way, Faith is disruptive.
Faith According to John
John’s entire gospel was written for one simple reason – that the readers may come to believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Right at the beginning, John says this to his readers, “But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name… (Jn1:12). John ends his gospel with the words, “… these are written that you may [come to] believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name” (Jn 20: 31). John’s stories about Samaritan woman, man born blind, the resurrection of Lazarus, they all end with a personal confession of faith in Jesus as the Messiah. So too, the end of the Bread of Life discourse. The disciples must come to a personal confession of faith. On behalf of the Twelve, Peter says, "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” (Jn 6:68-69).
For John, those who believe in Jesus must come to an absolute conviction about Jesus Christ. They must acknowledge that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, who has come into the world. They must confess and accept that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; that He is the Bread of Life; that He is the Light of the World; and, that He is the Resurrection and the Life. Faith in Jesus Christ involves a believer’s total surrender to Jesus Christ – no questions asked.
Life was not easy in Jesus’ times and life is not easy today. Life is life and life is real. Faith demands that we bring life and Jesus together in ways that is not always easy. Knowing all this, we must arrive at own faith conviction – not in a selective, ambiguous, or general way, but in an ‘all or nothing’ way. At some point of our life we have to say to Jesus, "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” (Jn 6:68-69). When and how we arrive at this conviction is up to us. But whenever we arrive at that confession – that is also the moment of our salvation.
- Fr. Satish Joseph