What do you know?

Jesus, help me know you're from heaven, not just believe it! Amen.

Jesus told all His followers that He came from heaven. Many didn't believe Him and even stopped following Him. Jesus asked the Apostles, "Are you going to leave me, too?" "Where would we go?" Peter answered. "We know that you came from God."

What's the difference between something you know and something you believe? Think about some things you know: your name, where you live, that macaroni and cheese is your favorite food.

You know your name because people have called you that your whole life. You know where you live because it's where you came from and where you're going home to later. You know that macaroni and cheese is your favorite because you've eaten it and also eaten other things, and mac-and-cheese tasted best.

The things you know are the things you're totally sure are true.

This week's Gospel (John 6:60-69) talks about things people knew or believed about Jesus. When Jesus said He was from heaven, some people thought He was crazy! That wasn't something they'd heard a million times, and they hadn't seen Him come from heaven. How could they believe Him?

Peter's answer is interesting: He says, "We are convinced that you're the Holy One of God" -- in other words, "We know it." That means the Apostles had heard Jesus talk about being from heaven a lot of times, and He'd proven it to them with the things He did. They'd probably even seen other people say, "I'm from heaven," but those people hadn't been able to prove it.

When you think about the things you know and the things you just believe, which one is Jesus? Lots of people say they believe in Him, but Jesus must be most impressed with the ones who say, "I KNOW you're God, and I'm not walking away from you."