"13 Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the people heard of this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. 14 When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick.
15 When it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, "This place is desolate and the hour is already late; so send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves." 16 But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!" 17 They *said to Him, "We have here only five loaves and two fish." 18 And He said, "Bring them here to Me." 19 Ordering the people to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds, 20 and they all ate and were satisfied. They picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve full baskets. 21 There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children."
Good Morning my beloved,
Many people today work hard to be good enough in order to earn the respect of family, friends and even those of social media whom they do not know. Unlike many today, Jesus didn’t seek fame, public attention or praise. He came to seek and to save the lost, to heal and forgive sin. He came to give His life as a ransom that we might be reconciled to God. Not feeling good enough in a particular area is what stops a lot of people from being used by God. God can do extraordinary things with ordinary people, all He requires is willingness and availability.
Jesus' popularity was at a pinnacle, people were enamored with Him. People wanted to take Him by force and make Him the king, which was not in God’s design. Just prior to this was the murder of John the Baptist, so this point marks the beginning of Jesus' withdrawal as well. Having just learned of the death of His cousin, John the Baptist, Jesus wanted to be alone. Even though He was trying to escape the crowds, people were superficially fascinated by Him, and were still following Him around. People just wouldn’t leave Him alone. Because He had risen to a new level of popularity, He was also facing religious hostility from the scribes and Pharisees, as well as political opposition.
When I was going through colon cancer, my body started doing weird things, I was diagnosed with metabolic acidosis, which I'd never even heard of, my potassium and sodium levels, red and white blood cell counts were all completely out of whack, needless to say, I wasn’t feeling well. Because I was only expected to live a few weeks, people started gathering around, all I really wanted was to be left alone. But because of my situation, I tried to get through it and be as compassionate toward others as I could, though I admit was probably not a hundred percent.
All the work that Jesus had been doing was setting the stage, He’s about to give them an impossible situation to see how they will respond. And even though Jesus’ disciples had been with Him for some time, watching Him heal the sick, the lame and the blind, casting out demons and forgiving sin, they still had trouble with getting the answer right. How often do we see what we’re looking for and that’s all, nothing more? In my experience, I have found that no matter what you give God, He is capable of adding or subtracting whatever He needs to, in order to obtain the result He desires.
Let us pray
Heavenly Father,
Father, thank You for Your Word. Lord, we confess we give You so little to work with, yet You accomplish such impossible things. Examine every heart today, may You unmask those of us who are superficial followers, whose faith is shallow and bear no fruit. Convict them and call them to repentance. Humble those of us who are prideful, self-righteous. Test and strengthen those of us who are Your faithful disciples, help us that we may learn and apply these treasured principles to better serve You and Your kingdom. Father, we pray for those who choose to live by the flesh, who live for this world, who choose to live without Christ. Do a mighty work in their heart even this day and draw them to You in repentance that they might receive Christ's sacrifice for their sin and find forgiveness. For those of us who are Yours, because of Your great grace toward us, may we rejoice that we are forgiven in Christ. May You be glorified and Christ be exalted.
In His name we ask and pray
Amen
Today's Message: Feeding The 5000
Though Jesus wanted to be alone, rather than tending to His own hurt, in unmatched compassion, He addressed the needs of hurting people. Thank God He doesn’t respond like you or I. There is no compassion like the compassion of our Lord Jesus Christ! I believe we can all learn a thing or two from Him.
Open our Bibles to the fourteenth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew. Verses 13-21. Matthew 14:13-21.
I invite you to follow along with me as I read them.
Let us open our hearts and see what the Spirit of God has to say to each of
us. I pray that the Lord would help us to hear and apply what He's saying to each of us today.
"Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the people heard of this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. When
it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, "This place is
desolate and the hour is already late; so send the crowds away, that
they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves." But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!" They *said to Him, "We have here only five loaves and two fish." And He said, "Bring them here to Me." Ordering the people to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the
two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds, and they all ate and were satisfied. They picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve full baskets. There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children."
Let's look at verse 13, "Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the people heard of this, they followed Him on foot from the cities."
When Jesus heard the news that John the Baptist had been beheaded, He wanted privacy, to be alone with His disciples. Also He knew that Herod believed that He was John risen from the dead. He knew that people believed the Messiah to be a political ruler, a king who would overthrow the Roman occupancy, free the land of Israel, and He knew this would eventually get back to Herod, which would only complicate matters. Some people have indicated that Jesus was afraid. If John was not afraid of Herod, surely Jesus wasn't afraid. Jesus knew that no one could take His life, unless He permitted it. He was on His Father's timetable, He had a mission to complete, He would have nothing or no one interfere with that. If Herod was intimidated by John, certainly he would stop at nothing to deter the one whom John the Baptist announced as the Messiah, the King of Israel.
Remember, Herod's father, Herod the Great murdered all the male children under two in attempt to prevent the king of Israel from dethroning his empire. Surely his son would do no less if he were convinced that Jesus was a threat to his reign. As the hostility continued to mount, both religiously and politically, Jesus needed to withdraw, this was time for preparation, to further instruct the disciples, to contemplate was now ahead of Him, in just a few short months, He would face the imminent future of the cross. John the Baptist was the first to be martyred for Christ, Christ Himself would be next. Just as countless thousands of Christ followers around the world have been even unto this day who lose their job, their families and even their lives because they refuse to deny the Lord Jesus.
Even in the freest nation on the planet, the United States of America, Christians are facing increasing hostility and ill-treatment because their faith. As we draw nearer and nearer to Christ's return, I expect it will become much worse. As the body of Christ, we need to be in prayer for our brothers and sisters, regardless of where they are. In Matthew 5:11-12, Jesus said "Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
During the Covid-19 pandemic, churches were forced to close without substantial scientific evidence supporting the decision, nor has it been provided since, while strip clubs, casinos and liquor stores remained open. And there's certainly no shortage of Christian business owners, who have been senselessly targeted and dragged to court for standing up for their faith and God’s Word. The Biden administration and progressive politicians like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Elizabeth Warren who are committed to legislation that restrict or remove our God-given liberties. While standing firm, contending for our faith, we must fight this on our knees praying for our leaders to do what’s right according to God, not a fallen society.
Back to Matthew 14, verse 14, "When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick." Many were probably Jews passing through Galilee on their way to the Passover celebration in Jerusalem. Much like today, many followed Him for their own self-indulgent reasons, word was spreading of His miracles and they wanted
what He could do for them, they were there for the healings. In other
words, they were not the kind of true worshipers the Father seeks. Yet,
He felt their pain and had compassion. God continues to reveal His heart
of compassion and mercy in Christ toward shallow, superficial
worshipers, unbelievers and Christ rejecters even today. God’s heart
goes out to those in need, whether or not they respond by believing.
I believe that's why Christ healed so many and continues to heal people even today, to display divine compassion. He could have chosen to demonstrate His divine power in any number of ways, He could have moved mountains from one place to another had He wanted to, that was never the issue. The used word for "sick" is the word "árrhōstos," meaning feeble, not strong. Even though they were without strength from a persisting illness that would not leave, they made great sacrifice to be there. Allow me to draw your attention to the fact that Jesus set aside His time alone with the disciples. May we who follow Him never be too busy to stoop to help one who has a need.
Verse 15, "When it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, "This place is desolate and the hour is already late; so send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves." The word desolate is the Greek word "érēmos,"meaning it was barren, uncultivated, and unpopulated. How richly God grants His provision to those who seek Him. In spite of what some have taught, the disciples weren't being mean, they were very concerned with the feeding the crowd. They knew people had made a long journey to be there, they had been there all day, they were hungry and needed to eat.
John's account fills in some of the details that we don't get from Matthew. Turn with me to John chapter 6, following along with me as I read. "After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias). A large crowd followed Him, because they saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick. Then Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat down with His disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near. Therefore Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, *said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?" This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. Philip answered Him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little."
Notice that as Jesus is going down to heal them; But before He even started, He initiates a conversation with Philip. He presents him with the problem, most likely because Philip was from the area, he would have known the places where food could be obtained. "Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?" By the way, Mark and Luke both add that He not only healed them, but He spent the whole day, healing and teaching, instructing them in the things concerning the kingdom of God.
Look at verse 16, "But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!" The disciples, like most of us, are a little thick headed, even though they've personally witnessed Jesus perform many miracles, turning water into wine, casting out demons, healing the sick, making the lame walk, causing the blind to see, raising the dead, and they still didn't get it. I imagine they were wracking their brains all day, struggling to come up with some sort of solution to the problem. You would think by this time, two years walking with Him, they would expected Jesus to do something miraculous to address the problem. The best they could come up with is "We don't have enough money and we don't have enough food." How often do we fail to give Jesus what little we have and pray, asking Him to take care of the solution? How many times has God has met our needs in the past, yet we struggle to figure out where the answer to our current problem is going to come from. How small is our faith that we do not expect Him to do the unexpected, to make the impossible possible, to consider His divine compassion and power?
"One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, *said to Him, "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?" Jesus said, "Have the people sit down." Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand." I imagine Andrew's response was tongue in cheek. Barley was for many centuries the basic staple food. Since barley was the most inexpensive grain, the poorer you were, the more likely you would be to use barley. Barley cakes or "maza" was kind of like a cracker, or rice cake today. You could eat them plain or put honey on them. Sometimes they would put picked fish or vegetables on them. Even today, many Jews continue to enjoy pickled herring. Despite its small size, Israel is one of the world’s top importers of herring, after the Netherlands, Germany, Ukraine and Lithuania.
I love the way Jesus forces them face the fact that they don’t have enough resources on their own. Obviously, they already knew they didn't have what they needed but I believe He wanted to make sure they really understood their inability to do anything about the current circumstances. As I was studying this passage, preparing for our message, I began to think of all the times I've gone to Him in prayer, with little or no resources sufficient to handle the enormous issues that I faced, and with what little I had to give Him, I gave to Him and He not only took care of my problem but there was enough left over to help someone else who was in need. What an amazing and loving God we serve.
Verses 17-18, "They *said to Him, "We have here only five loaves and two fish." And He said, "Bring them here to Me." Can you imagine what the disciples must have been thinking? That isn't nearly enough food for these people. This is a huge crowd. Jesus says "Bring them here to Me." These five words changed everything. If you want to see something changed miraculously, bring it to Jesus! He's saying what you have isn't enough but if you will only bring it to
Me and I am able to provide everything you need.
In verse 19, "Ordering the people to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds." Jesus commands this massive crowd to sit down on the grass, below that gently rolling hill on the northeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. Probably a nice breeze blowing across the sea on a cool spring time evening, the sun would have been setting in the west. The Jews had two periods of evening, the first from 3 to 6 and the second from 6 to 9. This would have been the first, just prior to sunset. Mark says, "He sat them prasia, prasia," meaning garden bed by garden bed with aisles in between, so they could serve them. I'm sure it was a beautiful sight from God’s perspective.
In John's account, John 6:11-14, he writes "Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, He distributed to those who were seated; likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted. When they were filled, He *said to His disciples, "Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost." So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. Therefore when the people saw the sign which He had performed, they said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world."
In bringing what they had to Jesus, He miraculously multiplied the bread and fish so that everyone was able to eat and be satisfied. There’s no indication that the crowds knew that a miracle was taking place, the miracle is almost hidden isn't it? But the disciples knew, they participated in it! It's important to note, Jesus didn’t merely provide just enough, He provided far more than was needed. This is the only miracle that Jesus performed that is recorded in all four Gospels, by the way. These are words to live by, "Bring Me what you have, and I will provide more than you need." May we never underestimate the divine power of Jesus Christ!
Verse 20, "And they all ate and were satisfied. They picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve full baskets." They all ate and were "chortazó." It means foddered up. A term used to describe feed domesticated livestock who through the feed trough can eat all he wants. Matthew is saying they all ate as much as they wanted and were completely satisfied. The supply was equal to the demand.
Many of us struggle daily just to provide the needs of our families, it's more than we can do, but for God to miraculously feed five thousand men, it was no challenge at all. And when they collected all the fragments, there was twelve full baskets left. It's interesting that there were twelve disciples. God can not only wipe away your sins, but He can comfort you in the midst of sickness or sorrow, provide the love you need to love that difficult family member, co-worker, and even that disagreeable church member. He can satisfies us more than anything else in all the world, even a big breakfast on a Saturday morning. And if you will surrender your all to Him He can do exceedingly more in your life than you can ever imagine. That’s the economy of God.
Isn’t that like the Lord to abundantly meet our needs? In Ephesians 3:20-21, Paul says "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen."
That brings us to verse 21, "There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children." There were five thousand men besides women and children who ate, there were twelve baskets full left for twelve disciples. The church does not exist to feed the poor, but the church does exist to serve Jesus Christ and if the church serves Him, we will help feed the poor and take care of those in need. In Matthew 25:40, Jesus said "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’" And in verses 45-46, He tells us "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
In Closing..
Many churches and Christians claim their focus is on serving Jesus
Christ, but if you are serving Christ, you will reach out to help people
who are struggling. What practical lessons can you and I learn from all of this? We must seek rest to restore our strength for the task ahead of us. We must know when to withdraw from needless danger that can jeopardize our mission. How important it is to retreat, fellowshiping with those who labor along side us. And sacrificially giving ourselves to those who are in need, taking their physical needs at face value, without trying to make them understand their spiritual needs in order to demonstrate the heart of God.
First and foremost, we must desire Him and long to please Him more than anything or anyone else in the world. When you learn to find your satisfaction in Jesus Christ, you have already experienced the greatest miracle. Anyone can talk about a campaign promise, but only the true Living God can deliver.
May it be so..
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen