After these things Jesus went over the sea of
Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias. 2 And a great multitude followed
him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. 3 And
Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples. 4 And
the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. 5 When Jesus then lifted up his
eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
6 And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do. 7 Philip
answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that
every one of them may take a little. 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon
Peter's brother, saith unto him, 9 There is a lad here, which hath five
barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many? 10 And
Jesus said, Make the men sit down.
Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about
five thousand. 11 And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks,
he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down;
and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. 12 When they were
filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up
the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. 13 Therefore
they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of
the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.
14 Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said,
This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. (John
6:1-14)
This miracle is recorded in all
four Gospels: (Matt-14:15, Mark-6:35, Luke-9:12)
The chapter before us is one of
profound meaning, and with Sacramental implications, that lends meaning to the
Bread of the Lord’s Supper. The first part of the chapter (1-14) finds Christ
feeding the multitudes in signification of His feeding the Bread of Heaven to
all who will come to Him. In verses 15-21, Jesus leaves the multitudes because
they would have made Him king by force. He even sends His own disciples away to
shelter them from the influence of the crowd just as He may do with us today.
Herod has beheaded John the Baptist and so Jesus had passed over the Sea of
Galilee so as not to unnecessarily fuel the passions of the Jews. The disciples
perhaps basked in the warmth of public popularity until Jesus parted them from
the crowd. They went from popularity to peril on the stormy night Sea. Though
Jesus had fed the multitudes with spiritual and physical bread, they preferred
only the physical bread and would have dreamed of a life of leisure under such
a Sovereign. The whole chapter centers on bread, but more importantly, the
Bread of Heaven. In the last chapter, Jesus satisfied the thirst of the Woman
at the Well with the Water of Life. But He will also satisfy our hunger with
the Bread of Heaven. Perhaps the salient point here is that the Water of Life
is a door through which we once gain eternal life, but the Bread of Heaven is
for daily consumption. If we truly love the Word and hunger for it, we
will never be filled completely. It is a joyful hunger that drives us ever
deeper into that Word. It is almost certain that a year has passed since the
incident at the Well in Chapter 5.
“After these things Jesus
went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias.” The
crowds had been flocking to Jesus over the past many days so that he had no
time for rest, or even for eating. It was for this reason that He withdrew to a
desert wilderness. When amidst a constant roar of voices and traffic, it is a
relief to go to a place desolate of such voices and traffic, and breathe air
that is fresh and not laden with the odors of man. “And he said unto
them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place,
and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no
leisure so much as to eat.” (Mark 6:31)
“And a great multitude
followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were
diseased.” An interesting contrast here between Christ traveling
a great distance seeking a single soul, and now we see a multitude seeking
Jesus. There reasons, however, were physical and not spiritual. He was the
Great Physician whose services were free as well as sure.
“And Jesus went up into a
mountain, and there he sat with his disciples.” In a previous
devotion, we discussed how mountains afforded us an environment more greatly
surrounded by heaven and less encircled by the world. The higher you climb the
mountain, the less of the world and its people we see around us. Even seclusion
was impossible for the Lord. Not only did our Lord have no place to lay His
weary head, but He could not even find a quiet place apart from those who
constantly sought Him for reasons other than spiritual enlightenment. What
percentage of members of the First Church would not be there was it not for the
prospects of finding clients to improve their physical means and wealth? The
mentality of the crowd forever seeks to manipulate the Lord for a personal,
private agenda—to get something from Him rather than simply to be with
Him.
“And the passover, a feast
of the Jews, was nigh.” This is a discreet mention of the Passover so
that we may better understand the full chapter dealing with Bread. “When
Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith
unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these
may eat?” Though Jesus knew these people came to Him for the
wrong reason, and would turn against Him in due course, He nonetheless took
pity on them as a father for an erring lad whose ambitions are amiss. He viewed
these multitudes as sheep without a Shepherd (Mark 6:31). The location
is a wilderness mountain area. There are no villages conveniently at hand. A
starving soul would become desperate in searching for bread in this place.
Jesus knew what He would do, but He wanted to contrast between the lack of
human ability to satisfy the need alongside His abundance of grace in doing so.
“And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.”
“Philip answered him, Two
hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them
may take a little.” If the disciples traveled a great distance to buy
bread at the nearest village, it would cost a great deal of money and would
still be insufficient to feed all. Those who DID receive would have received
only “a little.” The need seems hopeless of satisfaction. Have
you ever had a need that seemed hopeless of satisfaction? Did you ask our
Father in Heaven for provision? Did He ever fail you?
“One of his disciples,
Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him, There is a lad here, which
hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?”
I like Andrew very much. He is one who seeks people out and brings them to the
Lord. He brought Peter first to Jesus, and now he brings the boy with the bread
and fish. There is something in the meager provision of the lad that, though
Andrew knows will fail of satisfying the multitudes, he also knows that Christ
is a Lord of surprises. His trailing comment: “…but what are they among
so many?” is spoken with a sense of expectant apprehension.
We would do well to recognize in
our ministries that it is not our bread that we serve, but the B read of
Christ. He is the One who supplies; His servants are the ones who serve. “And
Jesus said, Make the men sit down.” All things before the Lord must be
done in good order. No matter how hungry a man becomes, he will always enjoy a
meal more if seated at leisure. “Let all things be done decently and in
order.” (1 Cor 14:40) No one seriously
believes the small supply will meet the great need – perhaps only one or two
people could receive a bite from such scarce supply. But Jesus knows what He
will do. As He made a young boy victor over a great giants, a little girl the
guide for Naaman, the Captain of the Hosts of Assyria, and a partially disabled
lad to head a three hundred man army to defeat another of one hundred and
twenty thousand in Gideon. We think we have not enough for our purposes, but
look at what God can do with our small provision!
“Now there was much grass
in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.”
That is a large number of men, but there must have been women and children
there in addition. But five thousand alone is a great number to feed with only
five loaves and two fishes. One drop of the blood of Christ would be sufficient
in saving the whole world, were they to come, from their sins. There was not a
molecule of water, mineral, or organism when God set out to create all that we
know of the world. He can start with nothing and end with everything. He didn’t
need the boy’s bread and fishes, but He was inclined to reward the great
generosity of a small lad. He does not need tithes and offerings from us,
either, but He takes what little resources we share and multiplies an hundred
fold.
“And Jesus took the
loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the
disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as
they would.” Remember: the bread belongs to Christ! It is His
provision to us. He took the bread (almost as if at the Last Supper), and gave
thanks. How many meals are eaten every day in homes across America without a
word of thanks to God for providing that meal? He handed the bread and fishes
to His disciples to serve those seated on the ground. What an honor and
privilege we have to be servants of God and discover the Bread of Heaven and
the Water of Life to either great numbers, or even one soul! Each person got
plenty to eat until they wanted no more. Have you ever read a particularly
touching and inspiring bit of Scripture and find that you must stop for now and
digest that which you have read?
“When they were filled, he
said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments
that remain, that nothing be lost.”
In the economy of heaven, nothing is lost. We must be wise and careful stewards
of those resources God has placed at our disposal. Our own administration will
fall short unless it is watered with prayer and the counsel of heaven. Not only
were five thousand (at least) fed with such a small amount, but there were
leftovers!
“Therefore they gathered
them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley
loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.”
Baskets in those days were not like the little baskets a girl would use to
gather the eggs. These baskets were more than bushels. There were twelve of
these baskets left over – enough to feed another five thousand! I’m sure the
little boy went home with more loaves and fishes than he brought to Christ. We
all profit greatly from our investments of love and charity.
“Then those men, when they
had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that
should come into the world.” No mere man could have performed the
miracle these men witnessed. They knew, without a doubt now, that this was the
prophesied Messiah spoken of by the prophets. I wonder why the learned
Pharisees, seeing like miracles, could not believe for they saw as many as the
disciples had seen?
When you look back across that
long, winding road of your life, do you recognize that Christ was right there
beside you even when you were being foolish and contemptible? Did you often
feel shame at your disobedience knowing that the hedges did not hide your
sinful acts? Do you remember that moment when you began to realize how utterly
helpless you were to amend your own soul and felt the imperative to call upon
the One who bled and died at Calvary just for YOU? Recall, if you will, the
warm glow that filled your heart when you turned to Christ for succor. Yes,
there does remain a Balm in Gilead, and that Balm is Christ:
There
is a balm in Gilead
To
make the wounded whole;
There
is a balm in Gilead
To
heal the sin sick soul.
There is a healing Balm in
Christ for our sin-plagued souls. Have you benefitted from that Balm, Friends?
