Tested At the All You Can Eat Buffet

Kids, I think you get to go to King's Kids today, so I'm going to let you go ahead and make your way out there.

And while they're leaving, just as a reminder, if you didn't do what Steve asked you to do, then you can find the text on page 1059 in the few Bibles.

Or if you have your own Bible, you're on your own. Okay. Chapter six, John, verse 15 verses.

All right, let's pray together.

Heavenly Father, we thank you that we can be together for a time of worship.

We thank you for the opportunity to sing songs that express our heart, our worship.

We thank you for the opportunity to share in communion, reminding us that the payment that was made in the story that includes us.

You having redeemed us, washed us.

We thank you for the opportunity to open the word and to take a look at it and see ourselves in the story a bit.

To see where sometimes we recognize who you are and we honor who you are and sometimes not.

Sometimes we don't see you for who you are and we fail to depend on you.

So help us to face some of those things, keeping Jesus front and center, but at the same time, seeing ourselves in the way we respond.

We pray that you'll help us by your Holy Spirit to understand the text and then to apply the text.

For the glory of the Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen.

The text is chapter six of John, verses one through 15.

Please follow as I read that text with you.

After this, Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias.

And a large crowd was following him because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick.

Jesus went up on the mountain and there he sat down with his disciples.

Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand.

Lifting up his eyes then and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him,

Jesus said to Philip,

Where are we to buy bread so that these people may eat?

And he said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do.

Philip answered him,

Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.

One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him,

There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?

Jesus said, Have the people sit down.

Now there was much grass in the place.

So the men sat down, about five thousand in number.

Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated.

So also the fish, as much as they wanted.

And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples,

Gather up the leftover fragments that nothing may be lost.

So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten.

When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said,

This is indeed the prophet who is coming to the world.

Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king,

Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

Tests.

Most of us are not fans of tests.

But tests are important to see what we have learned and to reveal how far we need to go to master the material.

In a statement, chapter five was a declaration that Jesus is God.

Pastor Mike made that very clear to us over the period of the last few weeks,

showing us again and again and again in chapter five that Jesus is declaring himself to be God.

Jesus showed his deity and the miracle healing of the man who lay at the pool of Bethesda.

He declared it in various ways to the religious leaders of the day.

All the while his disciples were watching and listening.

It's not likely that chapter six follows immediately after chapter five.

When you see the first two words of the text after this, that means after this.

It doesn't necessarily mean to happen immediately.

In fact, in chapter five, most of that was in Jerusalem.

And yet here we are in Galilee.

The Galilean ministry is pretty substantive.

Whatever that word is.

Substantive.

Anyway, there was a lot going on in Jerusalem and a lot going on in Galilee.

But John sticks pretty much to Jerusalem.

But here we're in Galilee.

This little bit in chapter six.

John wrote near the end of the gospel that Jesus did many signs and miracles.

He did so many that it would be difficult to include all of those, to write those and put them in a book.

It would be hard to put all those together.

But the disciples saw them, pretty much all of them.

And in fact, in some cases, they participated in them.

Surely it would have become clear by now that Jesus was God.

Again, what John said was Jesus did all these miracles.

Why did he do them?

He did all those for many reasons.

But John says the seven that I recorded, these are the ones that you need to look at because that you might believe that Jesus is who?

The Christ, the son of the living God.

And that by believing, you might have life through his name.

So surely by now, it would have been clear even here on this, what is this, the third or fourth sign that John gives?

Surely becomes clear by now that Jesus is God.

We're going to find out how clear that was in a couple of minutes.

Jesus already knew what they understood, but the disciples needed some confirmation.

So one way or another, the test here was whether or not they got it, and then how would they respond to the truth.

Therefore, Jesus gives them a test in verse six.

This test, I think, was mostly for the disciples.

The gathering crowd participated, but the primary target was for the disciples, for the twelve.

To help us listen and learn, I have a test for you.

Okay?

Jesus tested Philip and Andrew and then all the disciples.

The test required two answers.

The first involved the identity of Jesus,

and the second

would express

how they were to respond to Jesus.

The correct answers by the disciples

are also the correct answers for us.

So, as we're talking,

you've got to figure out what those are.

Okay?

They're easy.

In fact, I'm going to give them to you in a couple minutes.

All right?

But they're real easy.

I think you probably already know.

Jesus sets up this test,

beginning with Philip.

And I guess you could say this,

what are we going to do

in an impossible situation?

What are we going to do

in an impossible situation?

Let me set this up.

The disciples had been on a mission trip.

They had been given power and authority

by Jesus

to heal sick people,

to deliver demon-possessed people,

and even, according to Mark,

even to raise the dead.

So, they were given

incredible power

from Jesus

to do these things.

But the main thing

that they were to do

was to speak

of the good news of God

that there is salvation

in Christ,

in Jesus.

So, they're doing

these miraculous things

that Jesus was doing

as he gave them power to do so,

and the disciples come back.

How do you think they came back?

I mean, man,

they were pumped.

They were excited.

But they also came back exhausted.

So, Jesus takes them away

by boat

across the Sea of Galilee

to a desolate place to rest.

And when the crowds heard

that they were there,

they walk around the lake,

and then basically,

shortly after Jesus

and his disciples arrived,

they show up.

And so, Jesus,

seeing them,

he heals their sick,

he teaches the multitude

about the kingdom of God,

and by this time,

it's getting to be evening.

And the disciples

are asking Jesus

to send these people away.

I mean, after all,

they're going to need

to find something to eat,

they're going to need

to get home,

so it's time

to shut this down.

And that's when Jesus

sets up the test.

Here's the setup.

If you compare the four Gospels,

by the way,

this is interesting

that this particular sign,

this particular miracle

occurs in all four Gospels.

Each emphasizes a little bit

differently what's going on,

but it seems that the disciples

first suggested

that Jesus send the people away

so that they could,

on their own,

find something to eat

in the surrounding villages.

But Jesus,

directing comments to Philip,

says,

you give them something to eat.

In fact, that's exactly

the way Luke puts it

in his account.

So there's the test.

The people had followed

after Jesus.

It's one day.

Now, have you ever missed a meal

for a whole day?

Probably.

Did you, like,

go on your deathbed

the next day?

Probably not.

I mean, this was one day.

I mean, it wasn't like

they were starving to death.

It was one day.

And if they missed a meal,

it wouldn't be that big of a deal.

If they were really hungry,

they could have probably

found something to eat

in one of the villages

along the way

as they're heading home.

But this was really not

about hungry people.

This was about developing

faith-filled disciples.

So this was the test.

Jesus asked,

where are we going to buy bread

that so many people may eat?

What would Philip's response be?

Well, it was a calculated answer.

Immediately, Philip looks around

the situation.

He assesses the situation,

and he comes up with this.

200 denarii worth of bread

would not be enough.

There was a supply problem,

and there was a financial problem.

Where can we even find

that much bread out here?

And even if we find it,

how are we going to buy it?

And even if we empty the treasury

and then some,

it would only be a small bite,

not a meal.

This guy's good.

He's a mathematician.

He's a whiz.

He effectively analyzes the problem,

but he sees no solution.

5,000 men plus women and children.

To add all that together,

you might have 15,000,

20,000 people there.

200 denarii,

about eight months wages.

Can't be done.

Send them away.

Let them fend for themselves.

This is an impossible situation.

By the way,

have you ever had

an impossible situation

in your life?

Just asking.

We can see all the hurdles.

We can see all of the obstacles.

I would suggest to you

that Philip got an A in mathematics,

that he got an F in theology.

What was Philip missing?

Well, there was a factor, I think,

to figure in God in all of this.

One commentator said this.

It would have been a different story,

perhaps,

if Philip would have said,

Lord,

why are you asking me?

You made everything.

You're the creator.

We've seen you create.

Surely you can do all these things.

You can make dinner for everybody.

But that's not what Philip said.

He just flunked theology 101.

Nothing is impossible for God.

He made water into wine.

They saw him do it.

Surely he can meet this need.

Do you know what the right answer is here?

The ultimate answer

for all of life's problems?

He's God.

You can argue that.

By now,

the disciples knew it.

In their head, maybe.

But what they should have known

didn't carry over to their response.

So what should have been their response

and what should be our response?

He's God.

Then what do we have to do?

Trust him.

You get those two answers right,

and they're in your heart,

in your head,

and in your life,

you're not going to have

too many overwhelming difficulties

that can't be solved.

You see,

he's God,

and you can trust him.

Those are answers to the test

that I mentioned earlier.

Is that too simplistic?

I don't think so.

He's God.

Trust him.

Well, let's keep going

because there's something else

going on here.

What are we going to do

with totally inadequate resources?

The focus moves from Philip to Andrew.

Again, I'll set this up.

It was a little uncertain

what happens next,

but from Mark's account,

Jesus requested an inventory

of what might be available.

How many loaves do you have?

Go and see.

They did.

And what they discovered

was that apparently

one kid in this massive crowd

had saved some food.

Maybe he didn't like it

or maybe he failed

to eat it earlier.

Maybe he forgot he had it.

I don't know,

but he had it.

And basically,

it was the equivalent

of five crackers

and a couple of sardines.

That's it, okay?

When we think of loaves,

we think of, you know,

loaves.

Not loaves, okay?

Just a little snack.

That was it.

That's all they had to work with.

Often God makes something

out of nothing.

Sometimes God makes a lot

out of a little.

How would Andrew respond

to this test from Jesus?

He failed.

I'm going to call this

a faithless obedience

to start with.

At Jesus' directive,

a search was made

and this boy

with his lunch was found

and Andrew had been obedient.

He gets an A

in inventory retrieval.

Okay?

Good deal.

Way to go.

He also gets a bonus point

for talking this little boy

out of his lunch.

I find that to be

quite interesting.

But he failed

creative distribution.

Andrew made this

faithless statement.

after he brings

the lunch,

here's what we have,

Jesus.

Then he says,

but what are they

for so many?

That's a logical response

to the situation.

Given the circumstances,

most people

wouldn't have even bothered

to bring the boys'

lunch forward.

Andrew's assessment

was spot on,

but faithless.

And then there's

this blinded response.

Standing beside him

and giving directions

was Jesus.

He had made water

and wine.

He had healed the sick.

He had delivered people

from demonic possession.

And remember,

who is he?

He's God.

Okay.

Very good.

Okay.

A couple of you

have got it.

All right?

We're moving

in a good direction.

All right?

Now,

could not the creator

of all things

made fish and bread

enough to feed the crowd?

Imagine if Andrew

had said to Jesus,

I love this,

at this direction,

I have found a boy

with five loaves

and two fish.

I can't wait

to see what you're

going to do with that.

Sadly,

he didn't say that.

And more often than not,

neither do we.

It's one thing

to declare Jesus as God.

It's another thing

to trust him.

So now we have

this amazing revelation.

The disciples

were given the task

of organizing the people

into manageable groups

of 50 and 100.

Jesus gave thanks

and then began

to break the loaves

and the fish.

Now,

it depends on,

you kind of get

the impression

from John 6

that Jesus

was passing it out.

But if you read

the other accounts

of this,

actually,

to whom was Jesus

giving the bread

and the fish

to the disciples

so they could deliver

it to the people.

So he kept handing out

more and more

to his disciples.

They keep,

they continue to distribute

what's received

from Jesus

to each group.

You might enjoy

this kind of corny comment

from the late

John MacArthur.

I'm going to read it

and anybody thought

it was kind of fun.

He says,

with no fanfare,

no voice from heaven,

no lightning,

no thunder,

he distributed

to those who were seated.

He just kept

passing out

crackers and fish.

He was creating it.

These were crackers

that never came

from grain,

that never grew,

that never were in dirt.

These were fish

that never swam.

He created them.

These are the best

crackers anybody ever ate.

These were unfallen crackers.

Those were uncursed crackers.

Look,

I like

cursed crackers,

actually,

so I don't even know

what uncursed crackers

would be like.

Maybe they'd be like manna.

Came from heaven.

And this is a fish

with no mama fish.

This is what kind of fish

would God create

if he created a perfect fish

never touched by fallen world.

Okay.

But they got the food,

all right?

They got it all.

They got all that they needed.

Everyone had enough.

Everyone had everything

they wanted.

Everyone had their fill.

Before the wilderness

smorgasbord closed

for the evening,

Jesus instructed

his disciples

to gather the leftovers

that nothing

may be lost.

Why?

Maybe

to show the abundance

of God's provision.

After all,

they had more left

than they started with.

Maybe.

Perhaps

it was a tangible

evaluation

following the test

that they had today

learned something

about Jesus

and what

had they learned.

you know,

I think the leftovers,

and this is

Les Martin talking,

not scripture,

but I think

the leftovers

play a part

in the next event

that the disciples

would experience,

particularly from

Mark's account.

If you read ahead,

you might be able

to figure that out.

I think it had to do

with the 12 baskets

that the disciples

probably took with them

on the boat

when they encountered

the storm

when Jesus

wasn't with them.

I say that

based on what

Mark said

at the end of that,

for they did not

understand

about the loaves,

but their hearts

were hardened.

Those fragments,

those leftovers,

said,

he's God.

Trust him.

But that was not

their response.

Okay,

back to the test.

Back to the text,

I should say.

This has been a story,

amazing story,

but we're not finished.

So,

picture this,

huge crowd,

little lunch,

everybody fed,

wonderful.

And the people

at this point

are not exactly

participants

in what's happening,

but now they get

into the scene.

What are we going

to do

when the tide

of public opinion

changes?

That's my question.

Here the crowd,

again,

plays a role

in the drama.

They get an A

for recognizing

something very special

and something

very unique

about Jesus.

but they fail

to understand

how they were

to respond to him.

Again,

I'll set this up.

People have just

been fed.

They're filled

and satisfied.

They also have

some time

to think.

This is a great deal.

He took care of us.

He healed us.

And then he fed us.

Moses said

that there was

a prophet

that was coming

someday.

This must be

that prophet.

Let's make him king.

So,

by force,

the crowd

attempts to make

Jesus king.

What can we learn

from this?

Well,

I guess to start

with,

the world's evaluation

is always wrong

about Jesus.

Have you noticed?

There are times

when people

of the world

get excited

about Jesus,

but generally

it's not the real

biblical Jesus.

It's the Jesus

they want.

In the words

of one commentator,

quote,

it may be

the morally

exemplary

Jesus

or the socialist

Jesus

or the capitalist

Jesus

or the revolutionary

liberationist

Jesus

or the counter

cultural cool

Jesus,

but not the whole

Jesus who in the

end gives his

life a ransom

for sinners.

And if your

enthusiasm for

Jesus is for a

Jesus that doesn't

exist,

your enthusiasm

is no honor

to the real

Jesus and he

will leave you

and go into

the mountain.

End quote.

See,

the world saw

their provision

in the bread,

but they failed

to see Jesus

as the bread

of life.

In effect,

Jesus was saying,

you've seen my

power,

but you do not

know me.

You don't know

who I am

and what I came

to do.

The world's

evaluation is always

wrong about Jesus.

The world's

response is always

wrong about

Jesus.

The people tried

to make Jesus

or take Jesus

by force

and make him

king.

Jesus quickly

pushed his

disciples into

the boat

to head across

the Sea of

Galilee again

and that he

might dismiss

the crowd.

We're not told

how,

but he dismisses

the crowd

and then he

goes himself

up into the

mountain to

pray.

I'm guessing

that the

disciples are

quite confused

at this point

as to what's

going on.

Huge crowd

apparently ready

to follow

Jesus,

ready to

treat him

as their

king.

Jesus knew

what was in

man,

but the

disciples failed

to understand.

They had

failed to

realize how

the typical

sinner responds

to God.

It's not

bowing before

the one who

can save

us.

It's

demanding

what he

can do

for us.

this is

always a

response

of the

multitudes.

And

sometimes

the only

response

for the

believers

to move

away.

It's not

possible

to reason

with the

determined

mob.

So the

exhausted,

confused

disciples

leave

Jesus

behind.

They

head

across

the

sea

of

Galilee

as

darkness

falls.

They

row and

row and

row,

unaware

that

Jesus

is

setting

up

an

even

greater

test

to see

what

they

have

learned

in

regard

to

who

he

is

and

how

they

should

respond

to

him.

Remember

the right

answers on

the test

I mentioned

at the

beginning?

Basically

been the

message

throughout

John's

gospel.

He's

God

and

we need

to trust

him.

That's

it.

Most of

us have

settled on

the issue

of who

Jesus

is.

He's

God.

But

I think

we struggle

a lot

with trusting

him in

any given

situation

at any

given

time.

I can

be amazed

at God's

works

and still

not trust

him.

I can

respect

God and

hold him

in high

regard but

still be

guilty of

a lack

of trust.

I can

profess to

be inspired

and excited

by the

word and

by his

power and

by his

wisdom

and by

any or

all of

his

attributes

and still

struggle to

trust him.

Trust is a

real problem

for us.

We struggle

with it

every day.

God has a

way of

teaching us

to trust

him.

One of

those things

is called

unsolvable

problems.

It's called

inadequate

resources.

It's called

negative

reactions from

others who

hear about

our faith

to name a

few.

As these

impossible

problems

assault us

this week

before we

say things

like where

are we

going to

get that

or what

good will

that little

bit do

or why

did they

respond to

me in

that way?

Why don't

they respond

to me in

the right

way?

I didn't

sign up

for such

treatment.

Remember

he is

God.

It's time

that we

learn to

trust him.

Before we

wrap this

up,

why do we

have a

problem

trusting the

Lord?

You ever

thought about

that?

He's

God.

He created

all things.

He's sovereign

over all

of them.

He's in

control.

And if we've

trusted him

for our

salvation,

why do we

have trouble

trusting him

for anything

else?

I've spent a

long time

thinking about

that this

week.

And I

just,

I thought

of a lot

of things,

but it's

like none

of them

really were

worthy

things.

I don't

trust him

sometimes

because I

just don't

trust him.

I'm looking

at myself,

I'm looking

at the

situation,

and I

fail to

see who

he is.

I fail

to remember

what he's

done.

I fail to

remember that

he is my

Lord and

my Savior,

and he

takes care

of me,

and provides

for me,

and protects

me,

and loves

me,

and has a

plan and

purpose that's

eternal for

me.

Do you

remember

Romans chapter

Romans 8 · chapter mention

8, this

verse?

He who

did not

spare his

own son,

but gave

him up for

us all.

Here's the

question.

How will

he not

also with

him graciously

give us

all things?

If he

did that

for us,

what's this

other stuff?

in the

same chapter,

Paul wrote,

and we

know that

for those

who love

God,

all things

what?

Work

together

for good,

for those

who are

called

according to

his purpose.

glory,

our good,

always at

work,

and everything

that happens

to us all

the time.

And what I

have to keep

learning is to

trust him.

Now,

did the

disciples

finally,

completely,

ultimately,

trust Jesus

after this

experience?

No.

they failed,

and they

failed,

and they

failed.

Does

Les Martin

trust God

and all the

experiences of

life?

Don't talk

to my wife

about this.

No.

Sometimes

I'm

frustrated,

irritated,

upset,

you know,

and why is

this happening?

No,

you know,

and all this

kind of stuff.

And what

she should

do is put

a sign

on the

refrigerator,

since I

would spend

a lot of

time there,

a sign

that says,

he's God,

trust him.

They

forgot,

the disciples

forgot what

had happened

because they

were focused

on the

next 30

minutes,

not

eternity.

they

forgot to

fix their

eyes and

ears and

minds and

hearts on

things above.

They forgot

all about

the fact that

this is all

for God's

glory.

Are we going to

struggle with this

issue the remainder

of our lives?

Probably.

But here and

there,

we're going to

get it right.

He's God.

I can trust him.

I can't wait

to see what

he's going to

do with the

situation to

bring good

to me and

glory to

himself.

Wouldn't that

be a great

way to live?

That almost

make you want to

have a problem.

I can't wait

to see what

he's going to

do with this.

Let's pray.

Father,

thank you.

Thank you for

your grace.

Thank you for

your mercy.

Thank you for

the test.

These are not

to hurt us.

They're to help

us.

They're not to

make us frustrated.

They're to make

us trusting you.

They're to make

us understand that

you are God and

you're trustworthy.

Please help us.

Please help us.

For those who are

struggling with these

kinds of things

right now,

Lord,

help them to have

that in front of

them today.

He's God.

We can trust

Him.

The answers

won't always be

what we want.

But again,

they'll be for our

good.

They'll be for

your glory.

And they come

out of a heart

of love that

you have for us.

Thank you for

being with us

today.

Thank you for

helping us today.

Thank you for

reminding us that

a lot of important

people in the

Bible had trouble

doing the same

things we

have trouble

doing.

But ultimately,

they found the

answer in you,

Lord Jesus,

because you're

God and we

can trust you.

Amen.

Thank you.