At that, the whole town went out to meet Jesus. When they saw Him, they begged Him to leave their region.
Can there be a sadder event ever recorded in Scripture regarding those who directly encountered Jesus? Granted, He didn’t present Himself to them as they might have expected but still, those who needed Him the most went to meet Him only to beg Him to leave. They went out to Him in order to beg Him to go.
“Please leave.”
The presence of Jesus demands a response. He may not present Himself as we might have expected. He may shake up our world in ways we did not imagine. Yet, there is no other option. He will be welcomed or refused. He will enter or exit. The choice is ours.
John 6:66-69
After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”
Come Lord Jesus and stay.
