Chapter 3
The Pathology of Counterfeit Faith
(John 6)
John MacArthur
I grew up in a pastor’s house. My father loved the Lord, the Bible, and the church. The congregation he pastored was a typical revivalistic fundamental church, and I assumed that everyone in it was saved. I assumed that if you walked an aisle, signed a card, or prayed a prayer you were a believer. However, in high school I began to question the salvation of certain people in the church. Their lives did not bear testimony to what they professed. I knew there was something more to Christianity than what I saw in these people, but I didn’t know where to find it.
Then, I found some mystical books. As early as junior high, I was reading things like The Imitation of Life and books by Ian Bounds. I was reading about people who got on their knees and wore grooves in the floor with their prayer life—and I wondered where this real spirituality was.
I was raised with what you might call decisional evangelism—with its practices like the raising of hands, the walking of aisles, the kneeling on benches—and a very undefined doctrine of salvation, justification, and sanctification. I watched people whose lives caused doubt in my mind as to their true salvation. This doubt led to certainty when I witnessed them leave the church.
One of those people was a close friend and fellow teammate in high school, Ralph. He and I used to go down to Pershing Square in the city of Los Angeles and witness to people. We graduated together, and then he went to college and declared himself an atheist. I didn’t have a category for Ralph.
I went to college and I had a buddy there, a co-captain of the football team; his name was Don. He and I led a Bible study together. He was headed for seminary, but then Don did a PhD in philosophy instead, denied the faith, and was arrested for lewd conduct. I really didn’t have a category for Don.
When I went to seminary I had another friend, the son of one of the leading faculty members. After he graduated, he set up a Buddhist altar in his house. I didn’t understand that.
When I came to my final year in seminary I had to pick a thesis subject. It seemed there was no other choice for me, so I wrote on Judas, because I couldn’t understand Judas either. I couldn’t understand how Judas, after three years of being in the presence of Christ, could walk away from Christ and betray him. I couldn’t understand anyone who walked away from Christ.
I remember watching the rapid growth of the Billy Graham Organization. I remember watching those crusades all over the world with people pouring down aisles but never showing up in churches afterwards. The organization confessed that they weren’t sure how many of those people were really converted.
Reaching the Reached or Evangelizing the Church
I came to Grace Community Church after seminary and I was still burdened by this topic. On my first Sunday at Grace—February 9, 1969—my sermon was on Matthew 7:21–23: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven” (v. 21).11 Within months it became evident that there were elders, deacons, choir members, and all kinds of people in the church who didn’t know the Lord.
One year after that, a book came out written by the rather eccentric theologian John Warwick Montgomery called Damned through the Church. He chronicled the history of heresy, which had affected the church and damned people in the church. This reinforced my thinking that there were nonbelievers in the church.
So I began to realize very early in my ministry that I needed to do the work of an evangelist in the church. When Paul wrote to Timothy, he instructed him, with emphasis, “Do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry” (2 Tim. 4:5). Someone has to reach the unreached; I began trying to reach the reached.
I began to question things like the Four Laws Book—that Jesus is “Savior” but not Lord. I began to question carnal Christianity. I wrote a little book called Kingdom Living Here and Now and the Beatitudes, which upset a lot of people. I wrote another book called The Gospel According to Jesus, addressing the issue of genuine salvation, and another one called The Gospel According to the Apostles, followed by Ashamed of the Gospel, The Truth War, Hard to Believe, and The Jesus You Can’t Ignore.
I think the Lord has shaped me to evangelize the church. Not many people realize that aspect of evangelism. I know I didn’t, since I grew up with the assumption that if you walked an aisle and prayed a prayer, you were in, regardless of what your life was like. But now I know that the church contains false converts. Let me tell you something, hell will be far worse for the reached people than it will ever be for the unreached. And I fear that the failure to confront people on this issue is more common today in churches that feature a cheap gospel and a glitzy–pop Jesus, and whose congregations are neither regularly confronted about the legitimacy of their profession nor regularly warned about the most eternally devastating of all sins—knowing the gospel and walking away. So maybe that helps explain my ministry a little bit and why I always seem to be burdened to correct gospel errors that infect the church. Maybe I’m just an evangelist to the church. This seems to be an emphasis that God has laid on my heart.
God wants believers to have confidence in their salvation. We read in Hebrews 10:19–22, “Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith.” The author of Hebrews also writes, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, . . . let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (10:23–25). The “day drawing near” means judgment. As a result, Christians should be confident in their salvation, since if you’re not genuine you’re going to get caught in that judgment.
I appreciate what John Piper has said before—if you don’t pursue holiness in your life, you’re going to hell. In my experience it is the most heartbreaking part of pastoral ministry to see someone walk away from Christ. I can deal with the dying children; I can deal with the broken hearts of people who lose a spouse or a child; I can deal with all the diseases; I can deal with all the struggles of life. But there is a profound pain in my heart when somebody just turns his or her back on Christ and walks away. It’s not rare; I deal with it all the time. It is, I fear, the eternal undoing of all the hope and all the warnings that we’ve tried to give, sometimes for years and years.
Counterfeits
Jesus experienced this as well. We read in John 6:
Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, “This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?” But Jesus, conscious that His disciples grumbled at this, said to them, “Does this cause you to stumble? What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray Him. And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.” As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore. (vv. 60–66)
We continue reading in verses 67–71:
So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also, do you?” Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have believed and have come to know that you are the holy one of God.” Jesus answered them, “Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?” Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him.
Look again at verse 66, “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.” That is very strong language. In the original language it expresses finality. The same idea appears in Luke 9:62, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” What is tragic about this incident in Jesus’ life is that there are disciples that walk away. John later describes such false followers who abandon the Lord Jesus in his first epistle: “They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out so that it would be shown that they all are not of us” (1 John 2:19).
We’re familiar with that verse. But are we aware of the verse that precedes it? First John 2:18 calls these apostates anti-Christs. Some people will defect from Christ in their heart, and we won’t know until the judgment reveals it. It will be revealed for some on that day as Matthew 13:24–30 illustrates that the angels, who are at the behest of God, separate the wheat from the tares. Until that day we may not know who the false disciples are, but sadly there are many cases we do know of.
I’ve pastored Grace Community Church since 1969, and I have stayed long enough to see the fruitless soil that looked good for a season. As our Lord says in Luke 8:13, “They believe for a while.” I have seen them come and go—from the most faithful loving congregation, under the most firm and clear biblical preaching—the half-converted who can’t handle any tribulation, who can’t loosen their grip on sin, who can’t let go of the world, who can’t let go of money, who can’t let go of the culture. I have reminded them through the years repeatedly of 1 Corinthians 10:1–12, the example of unfaithful Israel in the desert, “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (v. 12). I have cried out to them from Colossians 1 that, “Yes, the work of Christ on the cross is applied to you if you remain faithful” (my paraphrase). Every time I have called them to the Lord’s Table, hundreds and hundreds of times through the years, I have asked them to examine themselves because a man must examine himself.
I have poured out my heart from 2 Corinthians 13:5, “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith.” I have gone through the warnings of Hebrews in chapters 2, 3, 4, and 6. “How will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (2:3). If it was horrendous for those who ignored the law, what’s it going to be for those who ignore the gospel? I have reminded them so often of Hebrews 10:23, of how important it is to hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering. God will be faithful, but you must hold fast the confession. Then I’ve reminded them of Hebrews 10:26, which is the reality of apostasy, “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins.” What is apostasy? It is going on in the unbroken pattern of corrupt sinfulness after receiving the knowledge of the truth. That’s the fact of apostasy.
The Consequences of Apostasy
What is the result of apostasy? There’s no remaining sacrifice for sin. There is only a “terrifying expectation of judgment, and the fury of a fire that will consume the adversaries” (Heb. 10:27). Hebrews 10:29 says, “How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?” The writer of Hebrews wrote this to an assembly of people who constituted a church, and I don’t know stronger words than that to say to a church.
What are the results of apostasy? Unparalleled punishment in hell. The Lord will judge his people. You know why Jeremiah wails with tears? Do you know why Jesus weeps over Israel in Luke 19? Because those who have the greatest spiritual privilege suffer the greatest eternal punishment, if they reject it. That is why Hebrews 10:31 is a message for the church: “It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Especially terrifying if you know the truth. Verses 35 and 36 sum it up: “Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.” You need endurance and perseverance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. Do you know how to get what was promised in eternity? Endure! Persevere and do the will of God. False disciples shrink back to eternal destruction; true disciples persevere in faith to the end. I don’t know if you preach that way in your church, but you should.
The Characteristics of False Disciples
This paradigm of true and false discipleship will be evident as we survey John 6, which is such a powerful, sorrowful, and poignant text. Let’s begin by reading verse 66 again: “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew, and were not walking with Him anymore.” What’s the pathology of this? How does this happen? To answer these questions, let’s look at the character of false disciples.
Everything really began at the beginning of the chapter, at the miracle meal. All four Gospels record this historical event, which caps off the Galilean ministry and is the most extensive miracle Jesus did in terms of the number of people who participated. It’s one thing to heal a blind man and a deaf person; it’s something else to feed twenty thousand to twenty-five thousand people who all participated in the miracle. Matthew wrote that Jesus, “seeing the people, . . . felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd” (9:36). Jesus’ heart must have been overwhelmed with joy. It all started so wonderfully, but we begin to see the pattern of false disciples form right there in the high moment of that day.
Attracted by the Crowd
The first thing to note is that false disciples are attracted by a crowd. Most people follow a crowd even when they have no idea what the crowd is there for. What do you do when you see a crowd? Go the other way? I don’t think so. What do people do driving down the highway when they see a crowd of people off the road? They slow down and sometimes even stop. We’re naturally drawn by a crowd. Crowds have an energy of their own, whether it’s a spontaneous incident that has drawn people, a rock concert, or a megachurch. The anonymity of crowds, the excitement, the energy, the interest—it becomes attractive to people with mundane lives. You could say the bigger the crowd the more likely you are to attract people who are only drawn by the crowd.
Fascinated by the Supernatural
The second point to note is that false disciples can be fascinated by the supernatural. I think our whole culture is bizarre, because they’re so caught up in the supernatural. I have no interest in that. I can’t watch anything on television but news or a sporting event, because I can’t live in the fantasy world. I can’t live with weird unreal beings that dominate television. There’s a fascinating escape mentality in our culture, the enthrallment with the supernatural. Likewise, people in the ancient world would be fascinated by the prospect of something miraculous. People are still intrigued by the promise of the paranormal even from people who can’t pull it off—fake miracle workers. But in John 6 we see the real deal. Jesus’ power over demons, disease, death, and nature was fascinating because such things had never happened in the history of the world.
Just think about Jesus’ power manifested in that one miracle. I asked a scientist in our church, “How much power would it take to make a half-pound meal for twenty thousand people?” He went back, calculated it, and came to me and said, “All the electrical power on earth operating at 100 percent output for 100 percent of the time for four thousand years.” That’s pretty good, but that was no big deal for Jesus. Why? Because He created the sun. The sun consumes approximately six hundred million tons of matter per second, generating enough energy in that one second to supply all the U.S. energy needs for thirteen billion years. That did not come from some oozing mud with an amoeba in it; it came from the Creator of the universe—the same Creator who fed that large group of people.
The display of power drew these massive crowds, because people are attracted to supernatural wonders. Simon Magus was even willing to pay for it (see Acts 8:9–24). The pull is so strong toward the supernatural that even the false miracle workers can draw and deceive crowds. False disciples are fascinated by the miraculous.
Hungry for Worldly Benefits
A third characteristic of a false disciple is evident in John 6:14–15:
Therefore when the people saw the sign which He had performed, they said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone.
False disciples crave worldly benefits.
The people want to make Jesus king. This is carnal enthusiasm. This is free food permanently. What Jesus had done was a taste of what he could continue to do. The crowd had a desire for comfort, desire for provision, desire for freedom from the difficulty of the battle for bread. “What can he do for us?”—that’s what was in the minds of the people. This is the same kind of thinking that accompanies the prosperity gospel, for the prosperity gospel works on natural desire.
We see the crowd become bold and demanding to Jesus in John 6:28: “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” I don’t know if you’re aware of what they’re asking, but this is not a spiritual question. They’re saying to Jesus, “Give us the power,” similar to what Simon Magus said in Acts 8:19. The people want to be able to speak these things into existence. They want to be able to create their own world, to create their own fulfillment. They want to be miracle workers.
Jesus responds in John 6:29, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” In other words, Jesus is saying, “The only participation you’ll ever have in a miracle is the miracle of believing in him whom he sent.” We must remember that miracles were confined to Jesus and the apostles, but Jesus is saying that there is a miracle you can participate in, there is a work of God that you can partake in; it’s faith and believing. Jesus repeatedly called the crowds to believe. We see this in John 6:47, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.”
Let’s recap. The people demand, “Give us the power.” Jesus responds, “You’re not going to get the power. The only participation you’ll have in the power of God, the only time you’ll be engaged in the work of God, is when you believe on him whom he sent.” So they said to him, “If you’re not going to give us the power, then what are you going to do for a sign, so that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform?” (John 6:30, my paraphrase). Since Jesus isn’t going to give the people the power, they’re still expecting him to give them the provisions. They want Jesus to keep doing what they want him to do.
You might say, “That’s bizarre, because he just created a meal. Does he have to validate himself?” The people diminished the miracle Jesus had just performed: “Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread out of heaven, to eat’” (6:31). It’s as if their response is, “Moses provided food for many years. If you want to prove to us that you’re a prophet, one miracle isn’t going to do it. You must give us this bread constantly.”
Then we read in verse 34, “Lord, always give us this bread.” This is the pattern of the false disciple: drawn by the crowd, fascinated by the supernatural, sees a means to have his personal temporal desires fulfilled, and consequently makes demands on God and expects God to validate who he is by meeting their demands.
No Interest in the Person of Jesus
The fourth characteristic of false disciples is that they have no real interest in the Lord Jesus. We skipped a little section from John 6:16–21 of Jesus walking on the water overnight. The response of the individuals in the boat is recorded in Matthew 14:33. Matthew writes, “And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘You are certainly God’s Son!’” The true disciples acknowledged who Jesus was. They had an interest in the Lord Jesus. They were the people described in the parable found in Matthew 13:44–46, individuals who sold all to buy the field in order to obtain the treasure; those who sold all their possessions to buy the pearl of great price.
However, the crowd in John 6 has no interest in Jesus. Jesus said in John 6:35–36, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet you do not believe.” This is the issue. Sure, these disciples are attracted by the crowds. Of course they’re fascinated by the supernatural. Yes, they want power and provision—miracle power and all the provision they can get to satisfy their carnal desires. But they have no interest in Christ as the bread of life. No soul interest in him whatsoever.
Jesus continued this discussion regarding the bread of life in verse 51: “I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.” Jesus is saying, “You have to eat my flesh and drink my blood.” This is atonement; it’s now about sin, repentance, substitution, imputation, and personal appropriation of this truth. A true disciple must embrace the cross. Yet, these disciples have no interest in Christ or the cross.
The cross is an offense, and it is a stumbling block. Here’s the pathology that we’ve thus addressed in our text: false disciples are drawn by the crowd, fascinated by the prospect of the supernatural, desire worldly benefits, and have no true interest in Christ, completely rejecting the notion of atonement.
Verse 59 clarifies that this incident took place as Jesus taught in the synagogue in Capernaum. Remember what Jesus said about Capernaum in Matthew 11:23–24: “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day. Nevertheless I say to you it will be more tolerable.” It will be more tolerable for the homosexuals in Sodom who tried to rape angels than it will be for the religious Jews in Capernaum who rejected Jesus Christ.
Mass Defection
The defection in this narrative comes fast: “Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, ‘This is a difficult statement’” (John 6:60)—a hard teaching most translations say. “Who can listen to it?” Figuratively, the word used for difficult means unpleasant, objectionable, offensive, unacceptable, harsh, violent, fierce, defiant, or repulsive. The bottom line, the NASB says, is that this is a difficult statement—but please give me more than that. The text is not claiming that this statement is confusing to them; it’s crystal clear to them. One lexicon states that the term Sklēros used figuratively means “grating on the mind.” What irritated them? Jesus said he came down from heaven. He said he is the only true food for eternal life. He said he would die as an atonement and a sacrifice for sinners. That’s a very grating message. Nothing that Jesus did offended them, because everything he said offended them.
Based on Jesus’ miracles the people were willing to declare him a prophet. Nicodemus said this on behalf of those who were not true believers in John 3:2: “We know that You have come from God as a teacher.” But that’s not enough. Jesus didn’t claim to only be a teacher come from God, he claimed to be God. He claimed to be eternal, from heaven, the source of life, the Son of Man, the Son of God, the One who alone grants eternal life, the One who personally raises the dead, and the One who provides atonement for sin. All this from the mouth of a local carpenter from Nazareth who looked just like everyone else.
The Rejection of Words
The issue the crowd had with Jesus was not associated with his actions, but with his words. Sometimes you hear this crazy statement: “Preach the gospel and, if necessary, use words.” I don’t know who said that. And I don’t want to give tribute to the wrong person, because it’s so stupid. You can’t preach the gospel without words. That’s a lie. Preach the gospel and always use words. Of course, people welcome you when you feed them. Of course, they welcome you when you give them medicine and you heal them. But don’t be under the delusion that because people welcome you when you give them what they want they will respond when you call them to repentance and faith.
They will not reject you for your works, but they will reject you for your words. You still do the works, but don’t assume there’s an immediate connection. Read what Jesus said in John 8:31–32: “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’”
As Jesus spoke these things some people believed, but further into the chapter we learn more about them, “I know you were Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father” (8:37–38). It comes all the way down to Jesus saying, “You are of your father the devil” (8:44).
Then we read in verse 45, “But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me”—and verse 47, “He who is of God hears the words of God.” We are reminded in Luke 4:16–30 that Jesus went back to the Nazareth synagogue he grew up in to preach the gospel, to fulfill Isaiah 61. He said, “The gospel is for the poor, the prisoners, the blind and oppressed” (my paraphrase). His words so offended them that by the time he was done they tried to throw him off a cliff and kill him.
People want the miracles, but the words will kill you. In John 7:1, at the end of the verse the Jews are seeking to kill Jesus. In John 8:59, they picked up stones to throw at him, and it’s always because of his words. In John 6:61 we read, “But Jesus, conscious that His disciples grumbled at this, said to them, ‘Does this cause you to stumble?’” Well of course they stumbled, because his words were a stumbling block.
But Jesus’ words also contain life. He says, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life” (6:63). If you’re going to do evangelism, you have to speak the words of the gospel, just like Jesus did:
“If anyone keeps My word he will never see death.” (John 8:51)
“He who rejects Me and doesn’t receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day.” (John 12:48)
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love.” (John 15:10)
“These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” (John 15:11)
Salvation is about believing the words. Faith comes by hearing (Rom. 10:17), hearing the message concerning Christ. The issue is described in John 6:64, “‘But there are some of you who do not believe.’ For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him.” What fascinates me about this narrative is that Jesus knew from the beginning who wouldn’t believe and yet he pled with all of them to believe. In John 8:21–24 Jesus said, “If you don’t believe you’ll die in your sins and where I go you’ll never come” (my paraphrase). I also love Jesus’ plea for them to stay in John 6:62; it’s as if Jesus is saying, “Why don’t you just hang around until the ascension? Wouldn’t you just please stay until the ascension? I’m telling you, I came from heaven. If you stay you’ll see me go back. Then you’ll know. Stay” (my paraphrase).
We continue reading in John 6:66, “As a result of this [this kind of talk, this message, these words] many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.” The result was unbelief, an unwillingness to hear and to believe the words from heaven they had heard. The crowd abandoned the Lord Jesus Christ due to their worldly interests. They left for good. They went out. That’s the false disciples.
True Followers
Look at John 6:67–69 for the description of a true disciple. Brokenhearted Jesus—crushed, maybe even weeping—sat with the few who remained. Pensive, exhausted, and disappointed out of his pain, he said, “You do not want to go away also, do you?” (v. 67). Simon Peter, the spokesman, answered him: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God” (vv. 68–69).
By the way, “the Holy One of God” was one of Isaiah’s favorite names for God. And now in the incarnation it becomes the name of Christ. Peter was saying, “We know who you are. We know you’re the Christ, the Son of God. We know you’re the Holy One of God.”
True discipleship affirms faith in all the claims and all the truths that Jesus has ever made. These disciples are the ones who receive eternal life. What a precious moment we witness in this text—true believers affirming their commitment to Christ. However, we’re not allowed to dwell on the blessed confession very long because we’re back into the pathos that dominates the text—the tragedy of false discipleship and mass defection. “‘Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?’ Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him” (John 6:70–71).
This is not intended to open up a biographical study of Judas, but only to make the final point of the whole chapter: expect anti-Christs and devils among those you disciple. Judas wouldn’t even be exposed for another six months. And he was so good at his hypocrisy that when Jesus said one of the twelve was a traitor, they all thought it might be them.
Contrasting Examples
Two names appear at the end of John 6, Peter and Judas. Both were drawn to Jesus. Both were personally called by Jesus. Both were taught by Jesus. Both affirmed devotion to Jesus. Both were trained for ministry by Jesus and did ministry alongside Jesus. Both taught Scripture. Both were taught Scripture in Jesus’ small group. Both experienced the gripping evidence of our Lord’s heavenly perfection. Both saw the miracles of Jesus. Both heard the Lord Jesus answer every theological question truthfully, completely, and clearly. Both were daily confronted with the nature of sin, death, judgment, and the need for repentance and grace. Both were told of the reality of hell and heaven. Both even preached the Lord Jesus as the Son of God, Messiah, and Savior. Both knew their sinfulness. Both experienced overwhelming guilt. Both gave themselves to Satan. Both took sides against the Lord. Both betrayed the Lord Jesus boldly, emphatically, and openly. Both were devastated by their betrayal. Both felt guilty about it.
However, one is considered so honorable that in spite of his betrayal some of you are named after him. The other one is so dishonorable that none of you are named after him. One ended a manic suicide. The other is a martyred saint. Both were sorry, but what was the major difference? For Peter, the words of Jesus were life. He received them, he believed them, he obeyed them, he rejoiced in them, and eventually he preached them.
For Judas, the words were death. They killed his interest. They killed his ambition. They devastated his expectations. They overwhelmed him with angry resentment. It’s always about the words. Therefore, warning the people in the church is serious business in evangelism. There is far greater punishment in hell for the reached than the unreached.
Peace amidst Defection
What does Jesus turn to in the midst of such defection? He turns to the only place any of us can: “This is the reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” (John 6:65). Jesus had declared this truth earlier in the chapter:
“All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.” (John 6:37–39)
Where did Jesus find his rest? He found his rest in the sovereign elective purposes of God. Without that truth I don’t think I could be in pastoral ministry, because I would tend to lay the failure at my own feet.
“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:44). I find my rest in the same place that the original Calvinist found his rest—in God’s sovereignty. This would have been a perfect moment for Jesus to harmonize human responsibility and divine sovereignty, and yet he doesn’t say a word. He just leaves it there. How do I find peace in the midst of the defection? I rest in the purpose of God.
Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an incorruptible love. Amen.