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.”
Yesterday I received word of the moral failure of one of my greatest spiritual heroes. Months after his passing the news was uncovered and confirmed. I don’t know the details and frankly never want to know. It is simply unbelievable. I can’t accept it. My mind is blown and my heart is deeply hurt. His family must be in the depths of depression. His colleagues must be reeling with deep angst and profound confusion. Those who learned from him and follow his teaching surely feel lost and possibly even duped. One of the most successful preachers and evangelists to have lived failed profoundly and kept it hidden. Words fail me.
To whom shall we go in seasons such as this? Where does one go when their heroes fail them? Shall we abandon his teaching because he failed to live up to it? Was it his teaching? For true believers the answer is obvious. There is One who never failed and never fails. He is Lord Jesus and He has proven into eternity that He can be trusted. He alone has the words of eternal life and He alone is the Holy One of God. We so easily set our hope on humans here and the result is disillusionment and idolatry. Men always fail whether publicly in their actions or privately in their hearts. We are failures all of us. Jesus alone is Truth and Life. He will not cast off those who come to Him, even those who fail publicly and conceal it. Even well known Christian leaders or speakers who fail Him and hide it. (Even me – thank God!) All who come to Him will never be cast out. We who are left with the disappointment and potential disillusionment must not be distracted by the failings of men. Jesus alone has the words of Life. He alone is The Holy One of God. We cannot make earthly men our heroes. They fail every single time. “In Christ alone my hope is found….”
It is surely not coincidence that this chapter was in my daily reading. I should be long past this chapter but I have been running behind this year. It is clear to me that Lord Jesus wanted me to hear this again. Maybe He wanted you to hear it also. It is a remarkable promise and an eternally poignant encounter.
In these dark days of disappointment maybe, just maybe, Jesus looks deeply into our souls yet again and asks, “Do you want to go away as well?”
And He hears our reply…..
Lord, to whom shall we go? All of our hope is in You.
To Whom Shall We Go? – John 6:67-68
Ventanas 