MAY 10 "HE (JESUS) DROVE THEM AWAY?"

     Many of us remember Jesus' repelling words in John 6:66 (notice the number) that drove the crowds away, "unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood...and from that point many turned away and followed him no more".  We remember that, but what we don't realize is before He said that he pre-empted it all with the text we read today. In our text today, Jesus is laying down some facts before He is about to "seemingly" drive the crowd away. Jesus says (verse 26) "you're not here for me, you're just hear for a free hand out, you're hear for the food, the hand out". (paraphrased by me of course).  Then he goes on to say, "whoever God draws to me I WILL NEVER drive away (verse 37) but then he turns around and drives this crowd away after just saying he would not. Actually he says specifically " 37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me" WE would have said, "fine sermon Jesus, your crazy sermon just drove thousands away!"  But right before Jesus drives them away with his "eat my flesh and drink my blood" He makes clear that he will not lose any that God has drawn to him AND that he will not drive them away either. We know that after the "eat my flesh" sermon thousands have been driven away and only a handful remain, Peter is one of them. He asks Peter, "will you leave me too?" and Peter's response, "where and to whom would we go, for you have the words of eternal life".  Peter heard the same words, same sermon that all the others heard, but yet he was not driven away, true to Jesus' words, I will not drive them away that God has drawn to me.  Read this text today all the way thru John 6:66 and then re-read again. There is a whole mouthful being said here that is really worth catching. Question is....do you catch it, do you see it? What is Jesus doing here, what is he saying, what has he done and what was his objective?  Once you understand this you will understand much more about church dynamics and the Kingdom of God that is being established here on earth!!!

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