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Crisis in Galilee
235
and left Him with disdain. They had made their choice; they did not
walk with Jesus any more.
By the words of truth, the chaff was being separated from the
wheat. See
Matthew 3:12
. Many turned away because they were too
self-righteous to receive reproof. People are tested today as those
disciples were in the synagogue at Capernaum. When truth comes
home to the heart, they see the need of an entire change but are not
willing to take up the self-denying work. They go away offended,
complaining, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”
Truth Is Unwelcome
When the crowds follow and the multitudes are fed and people
are shouting in triumph, their voices are loud in praise. But when
God’s Spirit reveals sin and calls them to leave it, they turn their
backs on the truth.
As those alienated disciples turned away, a different spirit took
control of them. They could see nothing attractive in Christ whom
they had once found so interesting. They misinterpreted His words,
falsified His statements, and attacked His motives, gathering up
every item that they could turn against Him. These false reports
stirred up such indignation that His life was in danger.
The news spread swiftly that by His own admission Jesus of
Nazareth was not the Messiah. This caused the popular feeling
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in Galilee to turn against Him, as it had turned in Judea the year
before. Israel rejected their Savior because they wanted the food that
perishes, not that which endures to everlasting life.
With a yearning heart, Jesus saw His former disciples leave. His
compassion was unappreciated, His love unreturned, His salvation
rejected—these things filled Him with inexpressible sorrow. Such
developments as these made Him “a Man of sorrows and acquainted
with grief.”
Isaiah 53:3
.
Without attempting to stop those who were leaving, Jesus turned
to the Twelve and said, “Do you also want to go away?”
Peter replied by asking, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have
the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know
that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”