66 As a result of this many of His disciples abandoned Him, and no longer walked with Him. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve [disciples], “You do not want to leave too, do you?” 68 Simon Peter answered, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You [alone] have the words of eternal life [you are our only hope]. 69 We have believed and confidently trusted, and [even more] we have come to know [by personal observation and experience] that You are the Holy One of God [the Christ, the Son of the living God].” 70 Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve [disciples]? And yet one of you is a devil (ally of Satan).” 71 Now He was speaking of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot; for he, one of the twelve [disciples], was about to betray Him.

John 6:66-71 (AMP)

Walk away

If you’ve been following along since John 6:26, you know Jesus shared some heavy truth with them and used eating his flesh and drinking his blood to communicate how to believe and abide in Him. It is a difficult teaching to accept, not to mention a bit gross to think followers of Christ must be cannibals. He used this figurative example as a teaching technique. Some didn’t get it and were so disturbed that they abandoned him. They walked away from Jesus.

Walk with

Jesus turned to the 12 disciples and asked them if they also would stop following him. Would they also walk away? Peter replied (on behalf of the others, as he usually did) with an acknowledgement of the core truth Jesus was teaching: Jesus was the only source of truth to understand and receive eternal life. They had seen Jesus demonstrate His power and heard His teaching. They would continue walking with Jesus, following Him.

Choosing a traitor

Jesus chose a devil! Just to be clear, Judas was not the devil. “The word devil here is used in the sense of an enemy, or one hostile to him.” (Barnes’ commentary). It’s clear Jesus knew who Judas was (in his nature) and that he would betray Him. So why did he choose him? “Jesus chose Judas as a disciple because, ultimately, Judas fit into the plan of God. Jesus had come to earth to die for the redemption of sinners…In Judas, we have a clear example of how a person can be religious, hear the Word of God taught, witness genuine miracles, and for all appearances seem to be saved, and yet not be born again.” (enduringword.com) Check out that link for more on the topic.

<- Reflection ->

• Which direction are you going? Will you continue to follow Jesus? Maybe you’re at a difficult juncture in your life. God is calling you to press on and keep following Jesus. But it’s difficult, even painful. Keep following Him. He, alone, as the words of eternal life.
• If you aren’t following Jesus, consider believing  in Jesus.