By the end of chapter six
the five thousand fed on loaves and fishes have gone home and “many of his
disciples” desert him. Only the Twelve are left and as usual Peter gives voice
to what they’re thinking. They have come to accept what the crowds cannot and
because they believe Jesus is the Holy One of God they aren’t turned off by his
“eat my flesh and drink my blood” talk. I don’t think they understand what he
is saying any better than those who declare it to be “a hard teaching” but then
accepting doesn’t require understanding. Not that they don’t have limits to
what they will accept as in Peter’s “God forbid it!” when Jesus says he is
destined to suffer and die and rise again. And when the mob comes to the garden
to grab Jesus the Twelve (minus one) find another “to whom shall we go” place
to hide until the risen Jesus breaks in on their pity party to prove with nail
scarred hands that death itself has died. But for now they are the ones enabled
by the Father to believe. We too have been enabled by Spirit filled words to
believe what we cannot fully understand and only dimly perceive, that all our
best hopes and dreams for the here and now and the forever future are found in
the Holy One of God.
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