You Feed Them

Alright, well, last Sunday we heard about how Jesus gathered the twelve apostles and sent them out for the first time on a ministry trip.

! We heard about how he gave them power and authority to heal people of all kinds of sicknesses and diseases and to cast out evil spirits.

And he sent them village to village to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

They were to travel very light, taking nothing with them but the clothes on their back.

And they were to receive the hospitality and lodging and meals of only one house in each town as they traveled.

And so out they went and it caused quite a stir in the region.

The big question on everyone's minds was, who is this Jesus sending these men around?

How are all these miracles being performed?

Let's jump right back into the story in verse 10 of Luke chapter 9.

Luke 9 · chapter mention

Luke chapter 9.

Luke 9 · chapter mention

When the apostles returned, they reported to Jesus what they had done.

Then he took them with him and they withdrew by themselves to a town called Bethsaida.

But the crowds learned about it and followed him.

He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God and healed those who needed healing.

Here's a map of Israel around this time.

You can see the various regions on the map.

You've got Judea in the south, just west of the Dead Sea.

Samaria, kind of in the middle, west of the Jordan River.

And then up in the north you have Galilee.

This is the region where Jesus has been doing all this with the disciples.

Here's a close up.

There's the town of Bethsaida, just on the northeast shore of the Sea of Galilee.

So he's been ministering all in here and now he and his disciples are heading in that direction.

The town itself was probably a mile from the shore.

The whole area, very sparsely populated.

Not a very fertile land.

Not great for growing crops because of the soil.

Just kind of a grassy wild land.

And Mark actually tells us that Jesus and the disciples traveled there by boat.

So we might have wondered how Jesus could ever get away from the crowds.

Well, getting in the boat was one way to do it.

And Mark tells us, actually, that many saw Jesus leaving in the boat

and they ran on foot and got there ahead of Jesus.

Mark says, when Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them.

So in the last chapter we read about how Jesus was being swarmed and smothered

to the point where he was almost crushed by the crowds that were following him.

So this is Jesus and his disciples attempting to get away and to get a break, to get some rest.

And yet they can't seem to shake the crowd.

The boat ride was it.

He barely gets to shore.

And there they all are waiting for him.

And now to us, this probably would feel annoying.

We're kind of used to the quieter pace of life here in Davidson.

You go back to your house.

You go in.

You shut the door.

And there's some quiet.

Unless you're at my house, of course.

Where there's lots of noise all the time.

But Luke says that Jesus welcomed them.

He says that Jesus had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.

And what did Jesus do with them?

Well, the same thing that he's been doing and the same thing the apostles have now been doing.

And he says that Jesus spoke to them about the kingdom of God and healed those who needed healing.

Verse 12.

Late in the afternoon, the twelve came to him and said,

Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging.

Because we're in a remote place here.

And this reply, I mean, think about this from the perspective of the disciples for a second.

It's late in the afternoon.

It's getting towards supper time and sundown.

They're thinking, you know, we need to start thinking about the basic needs of all these people for food and shelter.

This is a remote place.

They're probably not right in the town of Bethsaida but still down on the shore if we look at the various accounts and compare them with each other.

So Jesus, what are we going to do?

Let's maybe send them away so that they can get the provisions they need.

Evening's coming fast.

And this reply of Jesus is something else.

Verse 13.

Jesus replied, you give them something to eat.

This is one of those moments where I imagine myself laughing out loud if I had been there.

Skip down quickly to verse 14.

About 5,000 men were there.

5,000 men.

And Matthew tells us in his gospel that this didn't include, this number didn't include the women and the children.

What brings out this size of this group even more is what Jesus tells them to do next.

He says, have them sit down in groups of 50 each.

So imagine a group of 50 people.

I'm not sure if we're quite 50 this morning.

A little bit more than this here.

Now imagine a hundred of those groups.

This is a massive crowd of people.

And so we have to laugh.

Don't we?

When Jesus looks at Peter and James and John and the others and says, you give them something to eat.

Has anyone here ever prepared a meal for 500 people?

Maybe a camp or...

Not quite.

Even if you did, it would need to be a group effort.

You would need more than one person.

Think about what it would take.

Or how about for 1,000?

This is 5,000 plus women and children.

How many men does it take to prepare a meal?

Well, lots.

Because we're not very good at it sometimes, right?

How could 13 men who just got off a fishing boat feed supper to a group this size?

A hundred groups of 50 people.

It's impossible.

This is a remote place.

There's no kitchen here on the hillside by the shore.

And yet Jesus says, you give them something to eat.

John's gospel tells us that Jesus said this only to test them.

Why did they need a test?

Now this is speculation, but I can't help but wonder, is there a connection to what Jesus has just sent the disciples out to do in this moment here?

Maybe the disciples were on a bit of a high.

We now have power to heal people.

And we've been, you know, can you imagine them sharing all the stories of the things that they did as they take this boat ride?

And now we come to this moment and Jesus says, you give them something to eat.

Well, one thought is that maybe he's giving them the opportunity to do the miracle.

Something even bigger and wilder than they've ever done using the power and authority that he's given them.

On another occasion, Jesus will tell them that even a tiny bit of faith is enough to move mountains.

On the other hand, John, in his gospel, lets us know that Jesus already had in mind what he was going to do here.

And so maybe this isn't an invitation for them to try performing the miracle.

But a reminder of who really gives them the authority and the power to do what they've been doing.

Maybe something like, you know, you've just been out doing all kinds of miracles of healing and exorcisms.

Things you thought impossible.

But now, here's another impossible thing.

Feeding this massive crowd supper out here in the middle of nowhere.

Can you do this?

Here's where I'm going to remind you from whom the power you have really comes.

I'm going to do this.

Well, we don't know exactly whether that was what Jesus was thinking or not.

Or what it would mean for the disciples to pass the test.

All we know is that they seem to have failed the test.

Rather than believing and trusting and looking to Jesus for a miracle,

what do they start doing?

They start counting and doing math.

Well, we have only five loaves of bread and two fish.

Unless we go and buy food for all this crowd.

They start doing math.

They start counting.

They start tallying up what they have, which is meager.

They rule that out.

Can't feed them out of our own supplies.

And then they very quickly rule out the insane idea of going to some nearby town

and trying to buy enough food to feed the crowd because of the cost.

And I love the extra details that Mark includes.

They say, that would take more than half a year's wages.

Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?

Or Philip's response, which John includes,

It would take more than half a year's wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite.

Again, we can't help but laugh at the thought.

Can you imagine someone spending half their annual salary on bread for one meal for a massive group of people?

And still being only enough for each person to have just one bite.

5,000 people is a lot of people.

Now, I know they ate different kind of bread back then than we eat today.

But just to get a sense of this in my head, I imagine a loaf of Wonder Bread.

There's about 15 slices or so in a good loaf of Wonder Bread.

Not that that's my favorite kind of bread, but we all know what it is, right?

Chop up, eat...

What's that?

I wonder if it's bread.

Yeah, I wonder if it's bread. That's true.

Yeah, especially if it's the white loaf.

All right, well, chop each of those slices, of those 15 slices, up into four pieces.

So that would be about, you know, one bite for each person, each piece.

Four bites out of one slice.

Well, you factor in the women and the children, and we're still talking about over 250 loaves of bread.

Just to get everyone one bite.

Even if we could afford it.

How are we going to carry all that here?

Do we rent a cart?

And again, it's just one bite each.

And yet Jesus says, you give them something to eat.

Well, after having them all sit down in about 100 groups of 50 each,

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven,

Jesus gave thanks and broke them.

Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people.

They all ate and were satisfied.

And the disciples picked up 12 basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.

Amazing.

Every time I read this, I can't help but think, how did Jesus do this?

How could five loaves and two fish become so much?

I know it's a miracle.

But even knowing that, I can't even imagine what this miracle looked like.

Like, did Jesus just begin breaking pieces off of the bread and the fish,

and as his hand goes to put it in the basket, it regrows and more is there,

and then it just keeps going?

Or did he have the basket in his hand, and did it just start overflowing from the bottom of the basket with bread and fish?

I can't even imagine what this miracle looked like.

Did the disciples see the food multiplying and materializing out of thin air before their very eyes?

And then to feed a crowd this size, it would have been multiple trips back and forth from Jesus to the people,

to each of these groups of 50.

Can you imagine them going back and forth with the basket only to find another basket full of bread and fish,

waiting for them to take?

Like, where is this all coming from?

There can be no natural explanation to this.

I know people have tried, and I didn't even put this in my sermon,

but, you know, oh, they caught all these fish in the nets and dragged it with them behind the boat,

and now it's just, or they were all sitting on their lunches, impossible.

Bread is, it's not like some, you know, chemical reaction,

where if you combine small amounts of certain chemicals, bam, you've got lots of a crystal or a solid.

No, these are loaves of bread.

Making it takes time.

It's a process.

There's work that goes into it with certain ingredients,

and then it would have to be baked.

And then there's the fish.

This is meat.

This is the flesh of a living creature, now dead, but not dead so long that it's rotting.

You can't just whip that out of thin air.

And then there's this detail.

They all ate and were satisfied.

Another of the gospels speaks of them having their fill.

Each of them had their fill.

In other words, they didn't just each get one little bite of fish and one crumb of bread.

Each of them ate as much as they wanted.

It was like one of those all-you-can-eat places where they just keep coming around with the platter.

Would you like some more?

Until you finally put up the hand and say,

Nope, I'm good.

I've had lots.

And it just keeps coming.

It keeps coming.

It keeps coming.

Until they all ate and were satisfied.

Jesus just keeps passing it out

from seemingly nowhere.

I got thinking about this.

How many slices of bread would you eat

if the only two things in the meal were bread and fish?

At least two.

Okay.

That's kind of what I settled on to.

How about fish?

How many pieces of fish would you eat in a meal

if the only other thing in the meal was bread?

Depends on your appetite.

I'd say one to two.

Yeah.

At least one minimum.

If not two.

Depends on the size of the fish and the fillet.

If I'm cooking a good-sized walleye for supper

just for my family of seven,

two adults, five kids,

we usually eat at least three or four good-sized walleye

along with the other stuff in the meal.

So how many fish and loaves

would Jesus have to make

in order to feed all of these 5,000 people

plus women and children

until they all ate and were satisfied?

Let's just say that it was two slices of bread each.

Of that 15-slice wonder bread loaf

and one fillet of fish,

one half of the fish.

We're still talking about 1,300 loaves of bread

and 5,000 fish.

There is no other explanation for this

but the power of Almighty God

working through this man, Jesus.

And then I love the final situation

at the end of this meal.

The disciples picked up 12 basketfuls

of the leftover pieces of bread and fish.

I'll be honest.

If I had been there

and had I seen that there was only

five little loaves of bread

and two fish,

probably the first thing going on in my mind

when Jesus says,

you feed them is,

I'm not going to get anything to eat

for supper tonight.

We're going to start divvying this up

for the crowd.

It'll be gone

and we're going hungry tonight.

Even if we slice them real thin.

But at the end of the meal,

after everyone had eaten

and was satisfied,

there were 12 basketfuls of bread

and fish pieces left over.

Enough for each of the disciples themselves

to have a whole basket

of bread and fish.

Even the leftovers of the meal

were far more than they started with.

But what are we to make of all this?

I think there's at least three different ways

we can be encouraged from this

and probably more.

First of all,

there's a great and deep symbolism

and meaning to this particular miracle.

And Jesus explains what this miracle points to

in John chapter 6,

John 6:25–59

verse 25 to 59.

It is a sign that points back

to what God did to sustain Israel

in the wilderness with manna from heaven.

And Jesus, in John chapter 6,

John 6 · chapter mention

we read,

he explains that this miracle

points to a wonderful, great truth

that Jesus himself is the bread of life

that has come down

from heaven

to give life

to his people.

If you've never heard that before

but would like to go deeper into that,

I did preach a whole series of messages

on that passage from John 6

back in October and November of 2020.

And you can find those on the church website.

This is a miracle about how God is our sustainer

and our life.

And it's not about bread,

but about Jesus,

the one through whom God gives life

and sustains.

Second,

there's a powerful principle bound up in this miracle.

The whole thing,

the way that Jesus tests the disciples

to how Jesus feeds them

to the leftovers,

the whole thing is a massive demonstration

of how God is powerful

and capable

and compassionate

to provide all that we need

and even more.

Maybe you find yourself this morning

wondering

where the money is going to come from

for something.

A certain thing you need.

Maybe there's been some frustration

or some anxiety this past week

as you felt limited

and constrained

by your finances.

Maybe there's things

that you would have liked to have done

or bought

or maybe even

something you wish

you could have just

given to somebody.

But for one reason or another,

the money just isn't there.

And some of you

maybe have never known this,

but it's tough

when the bills

are coming due,

add on a few major expenses

or repairs to the vehicle.

Maybe the emergency fund

just had to be used up.

And last Friday's paycheck

is already gone.

And you're just a few good hits away

from getting told at the checkout

that your card is declined.

Insufficient funds.

Boy, that can weigh heavy on the heart

throughout the week.

That anxiety and fear

of not having enough

or of running out.

Meanwhile,

others are counting on you.

Well, this miracle,

this sign,

is a beacon of hope

and light

in that kind of darkness.

If Jesus can feed

5,000 people

in the middle of nowhere

out of almost nothing,

can he not provide

what we need

for today

and for tomorrow?

On another occasion,

Jesus said this,

he said,

are not two sparrows

sold for a penny

and yet

not one of them

will fall to the ground

outside your father's care?

God is more than able

to provide

what we need

for every day

and through every season

and through every trial of life.

all we need to do

is look to him.

Look to Jesus.

Even if it seems impossible,

all we need to do

is put our trust in him,

our faith in him

and ask.

And he will provide.

Now, of course,

we have to be careful

with this too.

It's not an excuse

to be unwise

or undisciplined

with our finances

or to spend out of control

on things we don't need.

Greed and the love of money

and the desire

for all the stuff

of this world,

whether possessions

or expensive experiences,

that can still be

our undoing.

God doesn't promise

to give us all we want

in this world

and in this life,

but he provides

what we need

so that we can eat

and be satisfied.

I think back

to those words

that Jesus taught

his disciples to pray.

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come.

Your will be done

on earth

as it is in heaven.

Give us today

our daily bread.

Give us today

our daily bread.

Paul said this to Timothy.

Godliness with contentment

is great gain.

For we brought nothing

into the world

and we can take

nothing out of it.

But if we have food

and clothing,

we will be content

with that.

Jesus said,

do not store up

for yourselves

treasures on earth

where moth

and vermin

destroy

and where thieves

break in and steal.

But store up

for yourselves

treasures in heaven

where moth

and vermin

do not destroy

and where thieves

do not break in

and steal.

for where your treasure

is,

there your heart

will be also.

And so we're back

to this question.

If Jesus can feed

5,000 people

in the middle of nowhere

out of almost nothing,

can he not provide

what we need

for today

and for tomorrow?

He is more than

capable

to give us

what we lack

to meet

our needs

in each season

of life

no matter

what trials

we face.

And so I just

want to encourage us

this morning,

let's look to Jesus

and let's trust him

for that provision.

Finally,

there's one more way

that this miracle

I think is meant

to impact us.

I don't think

it's a coincidence

that on either side

of this account

Luke emphasizes

the big question

of who Jesus is.

It was the question

that they were pondering

in the region.

Herod was wondering

about it.

Is it John the Baptist

come back to life

from the dead?

Who is this?

And then after

this miracle,

look at what comes after

in verse 18 to 20.

Once when Jesus

was praying in private

and his disciples

were with him,

he asked them,

who do the crowds

say I am?

They replied,

some say John the Baptist,

others say Elijah,

and still others

that one of the prophets

of long ago

has come back to life.

But what about you?

Jesus asked.

Who do you

say I am?

Peter answered,

God's Messiah.

Christ of God.

The Christ of God.

The Christ of God.

The great King

promised and chosen

and anointed

and sent by God

to rule over his people

in his kingdom.

Jesus' miraculous meal for the 5,000

is a sign of who Jesus is

that he isn't just any ordinary man

he is the king whom God has chosen

for humanity's greatest and final kingdom

the kingdom of God

what about you?

who do you say that Jesus is?

have you made that good confession

that he is God's king for you?

I imagine that Peter and the other disciples

were astonished at the things

they were now able to do

healing, casting out demons

but they knew that their new powers

were given to them by Jesus

miracles like this feeding of the 5,000

reminded them that Jesus was still

far greater than they

let's pray

Lord Jesus as we look at this and see this

even from a distance over time

we make that confession that Peter made

you are God's Messiah

you are the king

chosen by him for us

and so we bow before you

we pledge allegiance to you

we ask that you would rule and reign in our lives

and we anticipate and we look forward to

with great hope and joy

your return

when you set up your throne

and bring in that great kingdom

that's promised all through the pages of your Bible

thank you

that we can look to you

for all of our needs

and we pray that

we wouldn't be

filled with doubt

and anxiety

this week

help us to trust

and to walk by faith

for your name

amen

as you

as you