John’s disciples told Jesus of John’s
death. Jesus withdrew from the crowds to
what is described as a solitary place.
It wasn’t solitary for long. The
crowds found Jesus. A huge crowd found
Jesus.
In fact, the crowd must have also known
this location because they beat Jesus there.
The crowd was waiting on Jesus when he arrived. He didn’t go looking for another place. He didn’t say, Hey! I reserved this spot. He had compassion on them and began healing
them.
As evening approached, the disciples
reminded Jesus that they were in the middle of nowhere and these people would
need to go to town to get something to eat.
You probably had better send them on their way now.
What did Jesus tell his disciples? They don’t need to go. You feed them.
Jesus replied, “They do not need to go
away. You give them something to eat.”
The disciples did what we would have
likely done. They took inventory. They had 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. There
were about 5000 men plus women and children.
I don’t care if you use the old math,
new math, Japanese math, or common core math, you just don’t have enough
food. There is no way this even gives
the first 100 people a snack. No way!
In Matthew’s gospel, Phillip
and Andrew don’t get speaking parts.
We don’t get a cost
estimate on the price of feeding this crowd. What we find here are instructions from Jesus
to feed these people.
We don’t get doubts from Thomas. Peter doesn’t put his foot in his mouth with
some crazy remark. We see faith not
doubt. There is no way this is enough
food but the disciples just followed orders.
Jesus asked for the food, broke the
bread, gave thanks, and sent the disciples into the crowd with the mission of
feeding them.
The people sat down to eat. The disciples took the food to them. Each person only got a pinch of either bread
or fish. Not!
The scripture said that the people ate
and were satisfied. They were
satisfied.
Now, you might think that maybe each
person only got a pinch and Jesus gave them the sensation of being
satisfied. We have experienced
that. We are hungry and then for some
reason other than eating we are not hungry.
That wasn’t it. How do we know?
The disciples collected more left-over
pieces than the food that they had when they began this dining experience.
Everyone ate and was satisfied and
there was more food leftover than when they began!
Yes, this was a miracle. Jesus performed many miracles, but what is unique
here is that it is the disciples who actually perform the miracle.
God is at work. There is no doubt that God multiplied the
food, but this was done through the disciples.
Jesus told them that they were to feed the people. The multiplication of the loaves and fishes
was done at the hands of the disciples.
Yes, it was by the power of God. Yes, it was a mighty act of God that came through
Jesus, but the disciples were a part of the miracle.
Imagine how they felt when they
started into the crowd with very little food.
How did they feel 30 minutes later when they hadn’t run out? How did they feel when the last people were
fed? How did they feel when they
collected baskets of leftovers?
Think upon whether the disciples even
looked at the size of the crowd while they were feeding each person. Why would I suggest this? Consider Peter
walking on the water so long as he focused on Jesus and his command to come
Peter stayed atop of the water. Once
Peter noticed the storm, his buoyancy factor changed immediately.
The disciples didn’t just see the
miracle. They were part of the miracle.
About twenty years ago, we needed a
new building or to build on to the old building by the football field. There wasn’t a lot of land there, so a new
building was the most likely course of action.
This building came available and we
bought it. That’s the short
version. It came available and it was way
too expensive. It was feeding five
thousand plus expensive. It didn’t
happen, at least not then.
But we didn’t throw in the towel. We worked with what we had, prayed, and were
faithful and the building became available at auction and we bought it. I think we had to buy it twice, but in any
case, we got it for what we thought was reasonable.
It took a big loan to get us what we
wanted out of the building and that loan was paid off in 2019, well ahead of
schedule. There was a bunch of bread
left over.
The building was paid off at exactly
the right time as the Pandemic of 2020 came at a price, at least as far as the
economy in western Oklahoma goes.
About a decade ago, we started this
crazy thing called Chewy Tuesdays. It
took a couple summers to get it right.
At first it was a lot of food and few people receiving help. The workers ate well though.
Over time this turned into taking
lunches to children. The cuisine was not
fancy but it hit the spot with the kids.
The kids would run towards those who delivered the meals. The disciples were in the middle of this modern-day
miracle.
What was the miracle?
Love was delivered in a paper bag by
people who didn’t normally get out that much.
The disciples completed the miracle.
So, I ask everyone to consider the measure
of faith we have each been given.
Even if it is just a mustard
seed’s
worth of faith,
Would you have walked into a crowd of
more than 5000 with so little food? Do
you become anxious when it looks like things are not going to be what you
thought? Do you trust
in the Lord with all of your heart, even when your own understanding is
telling you something else?
The message today is be a part of God’s
mighty acts. Be a part of the
miracle. We don’t have to see the whole
picture. We just see the part that God
gave us. We trust that God
loves
us and has good
plans for us and don’t require him to present an estimate of
supportability.
We should keep moving forward in our
faith and discipleship, keeping our eyes
fixed on Jesus, but every once in a while, we should look not at the size
of the crowd or the storm but back at where we have been. We do this in
affirmation that though our part be small, God has done great things through
us.
We have lived through 100% of all of
our worst days ever.
We have made it to the verge of 2021,
a new century that was ushered in with both hope and uncertainty, is now 20
years behind us.
We have seen growth in the kingdom of
God. We have been a part of the kingdom
of heaven growing within us and around us.
We have been a part of the mighty acts
of God in this age, in this millennia, and in this century.
You have done more than purchase a new
building. You have done more than build
this crazy thing called a Gaga pit that the kids love so much they ask if they
can go out in the rain and play in it.
You have sent missionaries to Africa
from this body. You have sponsored a girl
in Sierra Leone. You send shoeboxes full
of love across the globe. You contribute
to buying shoes for the shoeless. You feed
families year-round with a little extra at this time of year.
You have helped so many get to church
camp—a wonderful experience for many of our children and an overwhelming
experience for some that we don’t see much during the year—that don’t know the Lord
as we do or as our children do.
You have put people up overnight, purchased
fuel to get someone to work or to the hospital for an appointment or surgery,
and you have taken meals to those who are not only hungry but lonely.
You could have looked at the crowd of
more than 5000 and said there’s no way we can make a difference, or you
could have taken the bit of bread and fish that you were given and been a part
of a miracle.
We don’t do anything of substance on
our own. We are a part of something
bigger. We are part of God’s mighty acts
in this age. As we do our part, we may
not even see the whole, or the finish line, or the abundance left over at the
end, but we do our part.
The first inclination of the disciples
was to ask Jesus to send the crowd away so they could eat. In reply, Jesus said, you feed them.
Jesus gave thanks and sent the
disciples into the crowd before them with a simple instruction—you feed them.
How many times do we see only the size
of the crowd and not the size and wonder of our God? How many times do we miss being part of a
miracle, because we can only see an obstacle?
The world is a mess. It looks like it might get worse sooner than
later. Evil is having a heyday. Yes, the church is even persecuted in this
country now. It’s fines and prison now,
not death, but it’s new territory for us.
But here’s the thing. We cannot only have peace
in this troubled world, we can be a part of God’s mighty acts in the small
parts that we have been given.
You never know when you are going to
have more leftovers than you had food to begin with, but you will never know if
you just sit on the sidelines, never get out of the boat, or never take what
little food you have and start feeding people.
Trust in the Lord.
Do your part.
Let God’s mighty acts work through
you.
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