Losing Patience

"Then many of his disciples who were listening said, 'This saying is hard; who can accept it?' Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, 'Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?' " - John 6:60-62

At this point, Jesus has a number of other disciples other than the twelve Apostles. And they've been following him for awhile, listening to what he has to say and seeing the miracles he has performed. But now he's laying it all out for them - making sure they understand who he is, why he's here, and where he's going. And it's a hard concept for many - if not most- of them to follow. After all, many of them have known him prior to the official start of his ministry (though one could argue his ministry started at birth... but that's for another day). They knew him as the carpenters' son, a childhood friend, a regular kid. He certainly was no royalty, didn't come from priestly stock. Rather, he was a simple boy from a simple family, destined to be a carpenter like his dad.

But now he's saying things like "I am the living bread that came down from heaven", "whoever believes has eternal life" and recognizing himself as "Messiah" - things that, at a minimum, are heresy. And they're starting to get scared, starting to question deeper who he is (despite the insurmountable evidence provided to them).

I imagine Jesus must be losing patience with them - because I certainly am. He's multiplied food, turned water into wine, healed the sick, and brought others back from the dead. There had not been anyone like him before, and will never be anyone like him since. But many of his disciples are caught up in the moment - in how their lives interact with Jesus's - and they're choosing to (in their minds) play it safe.

So Jesus plants a seed in their minds - one that won't grow until after he's died. He asks them what they would think if they saw him rise from the dead and ascend into Heaven. And I'm sure that, at this point, the disciples that are ready to leave are done listening. But Jesus gives them that seed - that gift- that will come back and remind them, down to their soul, about what they witnessed and who he was.