LORD WHERE MUST WE GO: JOHN 6:68 Then Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. COMMENTARY: Then Simon Peter answered Jesus. Peter who was strong in the hope of Christ, and full of zeal for Him, and love to Him, and who was the often mouth of the apostles, and always forward to speak out of the abundance and sincerity of his heart, in their name, and believing, that they, all of them, for he had now no suspicion of Judas, no more than of the rest, had the same hope in Christ, love to Him, and esteem of Him, as he himself had, wherefore out of a good opinion of them, and love to Christ, he thus addressed Him: Lord, or my Lord as the Syriac version renders it, which was either a title of respect, and the same with Sir is with us, or else, as acknowledging the dominion and authority of Christ, as Lord of all, and especially of the saints, and as claiming his interest in Him, and which carries in it a reason, why he should abide by Him: Lord I ask you, to whom shall we go? as a teacher, whose ministry we can attend upon, to greater profit and advantage? not to the Scribes and Pharisees, whose leaven, or doctrine, that you you Jesus, bid us to beware of, they who taught for doctrines of the commandments of men, and were blind leaders of the blind, neither can we go to John the Baptist, who had declared he was not the Messiah, but had pointed you Lord out to them in his presence, as the Son of God, and in your office as the Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world and perhaps, John the Baptist might not be now living, and if he was, he would have encouraged them not to follow him, but to abide with you our master. So that there was no other, that was better, that they could go unto, and therefore it would be folly and madness in them to leave Him: and as it was with Peter and the rest of the disciples, so it is with all sensible sinners, and true believers, who see there is no other to go to for life and salvation, but Christ. We are not to go to the law of Moses, which accuses, curses, and condemns, and by which there is neither life nor righteousness, nor to any creature, or creature performance, for there is a curse on them that trusts in man, and makes flesh his/her arm, nor to their own righteousness, which is impure and imperfect, and cannot justify any one before God, nor can any one answer for themself in a time to come, nor to their tears of repentance, which will not satisfy the law, atone for sins, or wash them away, nor to carnal descent, birth privileges, a religious education, sobriety, and civility, to trust to which, is to have confidence in the flesh, which will be of no avail, nor to ceremonial services, or moral duties, or even evangelical ordinances, neither of which can take away sin. There is no other Saviour, but Christ, to look to, no other mediator between God and man, to make use of, no other physician of value, for diseased and sin sick souls to apply unto, no other fountain but His blood, for polluted souls to wash in, and be cleansed, no other city of refuge, or strong hold, for souls sensible of danger, to flee unto and be safe, no other to come to as the Bread of Life, where hungry souls may be fed; no other place of rest, for those that are weary and heavy laden; nor is there any other, where there is plenty of all mercy and grace, and security from every enemy, as is in Him: and therefore, to whom can they have recourse, but unto Him? and that for the following reason: Lord, thou hast the words of eternal life: meaning, either the promises of eternal life, which were made before the world began, and were put into Christs hands, for His people, and are yea and amen in Him, or the doctrines of eternal life, for so the Gospel, and the truths of it, are called ACTS 5:20, and that because the Gospel brings life and immortality to light, gives an account of eternal life, of the nature of it, that it is a glorious life, a life free from all the sorrows of the present one, a life of pleasure, and of perfect knowledge and holiness, and which will last for ever: and because it points out the way to it, that it is not by the works of the law, but by the grace of God, that it is His free gift, through Christ, and that Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, or the true way to eternal life: and because it is a means of quickening dead sinners, and of reviving true believers, and of nourishing them up unto everlasting life: or this phrase may design the power and authority which Christ has, to dispose of, and dispense eternal life, for He has the firing itself in His hands, and a power to give it to as many as the Father has given Him, and to them He does give it: and each of these senses carry in them a reason why souls should go to Christ, and to Him only, for life and salvation. Then Simon Peter, whose forwardness in this case was noble, and to the wounded spirit of His Lord doubtless very grateful. Have you asked, Lord, to whom. We cannot deny that we have been staggered as well as they, and seeing so many go away who, as we thought, might have been retained by teaching a little less hard to take in, our own endurance has been severely tried, nor have we been able to stop short of the question, Shall we follow the rest, and give it up? But when it came to this, our light returned, and our hearts were reassured. For as soon as we thought of going away, there arose upon us that awful question, To whom shall we go? To the lifeless formalism and wretched traditions of the elders? to the gods many and lords many of the heathen around us? or to blank unbelief? Nay, Lord, we are shut up. They have none of that ETERNAL LIFE to offer us whereof you have been discoursing, in words rich and ravishing as well as in words staggering to human wisdom. That life we want, that life we have learnt to crave as a necessity of the deeper nature which you Lord have awakened: the words of that eternal life, the authority to reveal it and the power to confer it. Thou hast: therefore will we stay with you Lord, we must. A-MEN
Posted on: Thu, 10 Jul 2014 04:37:27 +0000
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