Today’s world moves very fast and changes all the time. People want quick results. If you send a message and see it is “read” but there is no reply in a few minutes, you may already feel impatient. We make decisions as if we are racing against time. Even when we need to be quiet and seek God’s will, we feel it is a waste of time. We think solving problems immediately is the best way. Slowly, the life within us is covered up by daily matters.
I used to be a software engineer. When a problem came, my natural reaction was to find the most efficient solution. I often felt that I did not need to bother the Lord with my daily issues, because He had already given me personal ability. In life, we rarely pray unless we face a very big problem. We pay even less attention to our inner spiritual life.
In John chapter 6, Jesus wanted people to come to Him not just for food that perishes. He wanted them to receive the true bread of life—Jesus Christ Himself. He even said that His flesh could be eaten and His blood could be drunk, showing that His life can be received by people. The Jews thought this sounded crazy. How could anyone eat Him? They came to Jesus for a stable life, not for an answer that seemed disconnected from reality. They found His words hard to accept and left. Even many disciples stopped following Him. When Jesus asked the twelve if they also wanted to leave, Peter answered: “Lord, you have the words of eternal life. To whom shall we go?” (John 6:69). The twelve stayed because Jesus had the words of eternal life. What they wanted was eternal life, not just solutions for physical needs.
Many people follow the Lord hoping He will solve their life problems, because that feels practical. Experiencing the life of Christ is often put aside. When storms come, we rarely ask the Lord what lesson He wants us to learn in life. We just want to escape the trouble as quickly as possible. The words of eternal life should guide us, but often they are pushed into a dark corner. If the Lord asks us to show the light of Christ’s life in dark days, we may feel it is unrealistic.
In this age, lawlessness increases. When people live in sin and turn away from God, we can become numb. We may think sin is their personal choice, and as long as we choose eternal life, that is enough. But does the life of Christ cause us to mourn for those who are fallen? Even though we cannot stop people from sinning, will we work harder to share the gospel so sinners may repent and be saved? When the Lord’s leading does not match our reality, will we walk away, or will we continue to follow the Lord who has the words of eternal life?
Pastor Tak Lee