Where else would I go?

The Apostle Peter is known for a lot of things. Much of the time his life is viewed through a lens of highs and lows, and for every bold statement regarding the truth of Christ’s identity, their came an equal screw up. John 6, however, features one of those shining highs.

We may have our preferred image of Jesus as someone who said all the right things and always made His listeners happy, but this image is purely a man-made idea. The reality is that Christ, in His own words, brought division and not unity (Matthew 10:34). This became especially evident when His message became especially difficult to accept and many left because of it (John 6:65-66). It was at this point that Christ turned to His twelve disciples and posed the question, “Do you also want to go away?” Peter responds with a statement that is among the wisest in all the Scriptures; “Lord to who would we go?” A simple statement at first glance takes on a whole new level of importance when we look at it deeply. Peter was a simple man. He was a man who spoke first and thought later. Here though, he was a man that captured the core of the Gospel in a simple phrase; “Where else could we go?”

In this statement Peter said that he knew there was nowhere else to go and no one else who could give them what they needed. There would be difficulties, persecutions and problems, but in spite of all that the statement remains the same- “Where else would we go?”

This is still the question for each and every one of us today. When the truth of Christianity is presented, the parts that we don’t necessarily want, the aspects of sacrifice, dying to self, growing in Christ and persecution from the world, that statement should serve as the banner for Christians today as well. “Where else can we turn?” And the beautiful truth of the Gospel is that Peter’s answer all those years ago is just as simple and accessible now as it was then. The Christ of the Bible is the Christ of today. His Blood is still enough, and His sacrifice is still enough, for all those who turn to Him.