The ‘Hard’ Teachings

 “On hearing it, many of his disciples said,

“This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.”

John 6:60, 66

Have you ever heard a ‘hard’ teaching?

Perhaps it was the way it was presented, or it was a new way of looking at things that you had never understood before or it was just so opposite of the traditions you had learned.

In our walk with God we are all presented with ‘hard’ teachings.

A passage seems to hit us right between the eyes with a truth we are not able to understand or it seems so outlandish that we feel there must be some other explanation.

Those who were listening to Jesus clearly heard him say:

“For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.” John 6:55

Many decided that day that they would not stick around to understand what Jesus was saying.

Those who did stick around were undoubtedly scratching their heads thinking they would corner Jesus sometime later and ask Him to explain what He said.

Maybe you’ve watched a friend who held dearly to a particular doctrine and watched as that belief unraveled before them.

It wasn’t that Truth had changed, but the understanding of it certainly had.

Let me offer two simple things to do if you are confronted with a similar situation.

First, remain teachable.

Remember that none of us is Truth. Only God is so don’t hold so dearly to something that what you end up rejecting is God.

Second, even when you do not understand – stay close to the Lord.

It is not a time to push away.

Many do in those moments.

That really is a form of pride.

It declares: “If I cannot understand all that God is and says then I do not want to walk with Him.”

We are then trying to reduce God to who we are.

God delights to bring us revelation but the secrets are given to those who draw near and not to those who pull away.

Stay teachable and stay close!