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.”
- John 6:68-69
Perhaps, the most striking element of Peter’s confession comes from what preceded it. Jesus was teaching a crowd of disciples and effectively declared that the Spirit is the one who gives eternal life, not the flesh. In fact, He told them that the flesh would be no help at all (7:63). He went on to reveal that there many among them who did not believe Him and that was why He said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.” - John 6:65. As a result of Christ’s revelation, “. . . many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.” - John 6:66. It was when Jesus asked his Apostles if they wanted to walk away from Him as well (6:66) that Peter gave his response. This small moment thunders through Church history right up until today. There are still those who walk away from the Christian faith today because they fail to grasp that it is through the work of the Holy Spirit that we find our salvation in Jesus Christ and not through the flesh or our works.
Peter recognized that the words of eternal life came through Jesus Christ and through no other. Peter understood that there was one way and only one to heaven. There were not many roads to salvation . . . only one - Jesus Christ! The options for walking away from Christ were effectively off the table. Peter boldly stated that it was Christ’s way or the highway for those who would seek salvation, much as Jesus Himself would later reveal. “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” - Matthew 7:13-14.
In addition to Christ’s gate being narrow, it was understood that His way would be a difficult road to follow. That was the realization of those disciples who “no longer walked with Him.” They weren’t willing to make the effort needed to follow Christ. And Jesus made no secret of the hardship involved. He assured us that following Him would indeed be difficult - “And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.’” - Luke 9:23. Denying one’s self certainly precludes one’s works and flatly denies the power of our flesh. So if our own strength is the power we are relying on, it is easy to see why we would turn away and no longer walk with Him. Those who insist they can follow Christ today without bearing their crosses are only fooling themselves. If we reject the narrow way and we reject the cross then we effectively reject Jesus Christ because there is no Christ without the cross!
Of course, at the time of this conversation between Jesus and His Apostles, there was still confusion among them as to Jesus’ fulfillment of the Scriptures. “But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.” - Luke 18:34. But even in their confusion, the Apostles were convinced that Jesus was the Way. Why? Because they believed and had come to know that Jesus was the Holy One of God.. Their faith, while still immature, was certain.
The faith of the Apostles would continue to be tested by the events that followed, right up to and including the morning of the Resurrection. It would not be until they witnessed the risen Christ with their own eyes and felt His presence that they would understand the meaning of the cross. And upon the day of Pentecost, their faith and fates were sealed forever by the filling of the Holy Spirit.
It is easy to see why Peter uttered his question: “Lord, to whom shall we go?”
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