When Jesus Says “Come!”
“Come, everyone who thirsts,
come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me;
hear, that your soul may live;
and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
my steadfast, sure love for David.
When I was in second grade, I read a story about a boy who was tired of his mother calling him when he was playing. She always had something for him to do that wasn’t as fun as whatever she was interrupting. He determined that the next time his mother called, he would pretend not to hear her. It wasn’t long before he had a chance to implement his plan. His mother called his name several times, and he stubbornly ignored her until she gave up. Later, when he finally decided to go home, his mother told him it was too bad he hadn’t heard her. The ice cream truck had come by, and she had wanted to buy him a treat. The story didn’t need to end with a stated moral. I got it!
I think I’ve remembered that story for over fifty years because, at the time, it seemed so incredibly naughty. I couldn’t imagine doing something that deliberately disobedient to my mom. I wouldn’t have conceived it remotely possible to pull that kind of stunt on my dad.
Jesus said the kingdom of heaven belongs to those who come to him like little children. I was in third grade when, at the end of a church service, I heard Jesus say, “Come!” And I did.
Which doesn’t mean that, ever after, I responded promptly every time I heard him calling. Why not? I know him as my Good Shepherd. I know he’ll lead me in green pastures and beside still waters.
But I also suspect he’s going to want something from me that doesn’t seem as fun as what I had planned for myself. I’m almost certain it won’t be as easy or safe.
During Jesus’s ministry, crowds continually pressed around him seeking, desiring, desperately needing the good things Jesus promised if they would only come to him. But he was distressingly honest about what would happen if they came.
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” he said (Matt. 11:28 ESV). Oh, how good that sounds. Why would I refuse? Well, Jesus immediately starts talking about his yoke. A yoke means work. I want rest, not a yoke.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst” (John 6:35 ESV). Who wouldn’t think that’s a great deal? But he goes on to say, “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink” (John 6:54 ESV).
Jesus didn’t soften the blow when he saw that this statement offended many of his followers. Rather, he reminded them that he had already said no one could come to him unless the Father granted it. At this, “many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him” (John 6:66 ESV).
Does that sound hard? Try this one. “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26-27 ESV). Hating and cross-carrying? Whatever happened to that rest he promised?
If I’ve been under the wrong impression about what I can expect from a life committed to Jesus, I haven’t been listening. “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake” (Matt. 24:9 ESV). “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18 ESV).
Why, then, would I accept the offer to come to him?
After Jesus had thinned the number of followers with the idea of eating his flesh and drinking his blood, he asked the Twelve, “‘Do you want to go away as well?’ 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 6:67-69 ESV).
As difficult as this life can be, I want to be with the One who has the words of eternal life. Whatever hard things Jesus might require of me, I want to be with him in the place he’s prepared for me (John 14:3 ESV).
Lord God, teach us to find our true life in you. Remind us that our eternal hope is only in you, and help us keep our eyes fixed on the prize of your high calling. Amen.
Scripture for Reflection
“So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” (John 16:22 ESV)
“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 ESV)
Reach for More
Jesus used the last hours before his crucifixion to strengthen and encourage his disciples. You can be present for this intimate evening by reading John chapters 13 through 17.
Through the gift of a faithful mother and grandmother, grew up knowing Jesus as a friend. Married for nearly two-thirds of her life, there has been time for several seasons, from homeschooling to owning a coffee shop. She has three grown children and eight grandchildren. An element of this season is writing about literature and life at Plumfield and Paideia.
Photograph © Marcos Paulo Prado, used with permission
