Our scripture is printed also on the opposite page from the hymn, from Mark chapter 6, verses 34 through 44. Then give this attention, it is God’s word to us. Mark 6, 34, when He went ashore, He saw a great crowd, and He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.
And He began to teach them many things. And when it grew late, His disciples came to Him and said, This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat. But he answered them, you give them something to eat. And they said to him, shall we go and buy 200 denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat? And he said to them, how many loaves do you have?
Go and see. And when they had found out, they said, five and two fish. And then He commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups by hundreds and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all, and they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.”
Thus far, God’s holy, inspired, and infallible Word. Grass withers and flower fades, but the Word of our God shall stand forever. Thanks be to God. Heavenly Father, now we do want to focus our attention. We know there are all kinds of things to distract us, but help us to really look deeply into this Word and be blessed and encouraged by it. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Of all Jesus’ miracles, the feeding of over 5,000 clearly touched more people at one time than did any other. Adding women and children to the count, and if you want a reference for that, you can see it in Matthew 14, 21. Adding women and children to the count, the total fed may have approached several more thousand than just 5,000. This miracle was a reward of sorts, for it rewarded those who had come long distances, many of them on foot, and stayed late to hear everything Jesus had to say. Later, when the word of the miracle spread, a cry went up for more bread, but not necessarily for more teaching.
The account of this miracle, as I said, is found in all four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and indicates that God did want it to be emphasized. So our four points today are these, the late hour, the needy people, the miraculous food, and the submission of the disciples. The late hour, that is to say, everyone is on God’s clock.
There’s a story, I’m sure it’s just a jokey sort of a story, but that a certain Christian and a Jew swapped visits to each other’s places of worship. And of course, the Christian man went and he asked questions about different things that happened in the synagogue. And he had a very interesting time there. And the next week, the Jewish man went with the Christian to his church, a Protestant church. And various things happened, you know, the offering and the singing and so forth. And the Christian man told him everything. And when it came time for the sermon, the minister took off his watch and put it there on the pulpit. And the Jewish man said, well, what does that mean? And the host said, absolutely nothing.
Well, I’ll try to stop on time today, but everyone is on God’s clock. We can guess that Jesus faced his largest audience around midday. Now, why midday? Because it took a while for all the people to get there. I don’t know quite where each one started, probably from different places, but it took a while to get there. So we’ll just say that the teaching of the Lord Jesus and the healings that took place also began around midday. So there’s plenty of time for Jesus to give an hour’s message, but it says that he kept teaching them and ministering to them until the hour was late.
He had, let us say, enough compassion to match the crowd. This is the biggest crowd I think that he ever had. Don’t know for sure, but it certainly seems that way. And even so, his compassion was so great, so broad, so deep, that it matched the crowd that he was dealing with. Jesus was speaking and healing with those who had tremendous needs. But his preaching centered upon the kingdom of God.
He was preaching to those who were, as he put it, the lost sheep of the house of Israel, as sheep without a shepherd. And that was part of his compassion for them, that they were really lost. Certainly lost maybe spiritually, not knowing the Lord. Lost not knowing exactly how to approach the Lord and what to expect by way of Messiah, which he was.
So his compassion was very broad, not just to explain a few words or to feel sorry for people. But he used all the time that he had available to him to do everything that this large crowd needed. I don’t believe that God accepted anybody, that’s with an ex, that he said, I’ll accept this one or that one. I think there was something for every sincere person who was there, even maybe some of the insincere people.
The Lord wanted to speak to them. John’s account of the feeding of the 5,000 in the sixth chapter says that the Lord knew how the day was going to end. He knew that there would be some concern upon the part of the disciples or on the part of the people themselves to some extent.
Now, what about supper? Probably a great many of them had had nothing to eat since breakfast. And now it had passed midday and was going on to what we would call supper time or the end of the day. And the disciples of course said, we don’t know how these people are going to have anything to eat if we don’t dismiss them right now. But Jesus says, no, let’s keep them here and you feed them.
Because he very well knew what was going to take place. And that’s because God controls the minutes, the hours, the body clocks, and the hearts that He intends to receive His message. Nobody is going to miss it until he’s heard it. Nobody’s going to miss seeing something that he needs to see until he has seen it.
When we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, When we first seek what God has for us, then time and food and all else that we need, they will be added to us. That was exactly what Jesus said. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you. And sometimes we miss that last part. What does He mean by all these things? Well, whatever it is, covers all things that we need and they will be added to us. if indeed we seek to hear, to believe, to follow what is true. So that’s the late hour. Everyone is on God’s clock. Yes, it was late, but this is what God wanted. God didn’t leave anyone out. God had something to say of great importance, however long it may have taken. Then secondly, we have the needy people.
Now most of these people were probably poor people. There wasn’t much of a middle class in those days, even in other parts of the world, certainly in this part of the world. You were either wealthy or you were poor. And we would say most of these people who came to hear Jesus were poor people. Now, there may have been some wealthy people who were interested, who were feeling that maybe all their riches were not going to get them to heaven.
And they came. But let us just say that in the main, this was a poor, great number of people who were there. Whether you were poor or not, one thing was certain, everybody there, and may I say everybody here, needs Jesus. And you’d do well to do everything you can to get to Him. Certainly these people did.
Here’s Proverbs chapter 15 verse 16. Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil or trouble. These people, many of them poor, were about to find that there was great riches in Jesus and really in nothing else. Now we have these disciples’ remarks, and let’s not criticize them.
They were concerned for the people. They cared about the people. How are these people going to be fed? Many of them, as poor people, didn’t maybe have even much breakfast. They did find the five loaves and the two fishes from a youngster that was there. He had maybe more sense than the rest of them. He brought a little bit to eat along the way. But their remarks send them away to buy.
And it’s the very opposite of what Jesus had in mind, you see. Even though it was late in the day and they’d seen a lot and heard a lot, they said, let’s send them away. And Jesus says, I don’t want to send them away. There’s still people that need to see and hear. And I think that’s very significant because their need for the Lord and what He had to give them was much greater than their need to have supper that night, even though it didn’t seem that way.
Let me quote again from Isaiah chapter 55 in the first verse. You who have no money, come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. My friends, the Lord is able to supply all that we need. Now, the people did not come all this way, you see, because they were well off, as I said. They came because they felt a need.
And Jesus gave them both food and the truth. Which do you think was more important? Well, Jesus didn’t discount the food part, and he fed them. but they needed the truth. They didn’t always get the truth from their teachers. They didn’t always get the truth from the people that they conversed with. But Jesus was the truth and spoke the truth and gave them the truth of much greater significance than food.
You remember when Moses went up on the mountain? He said, I was up there 40 days and 40 nights and I didn’t eat or drink. And how was that possible? Well, that was a miracle of God in itself. But the point is that he got fed there being in God’s presence and probably didn’t even think of food in the course of his being there with the Lord.
The needy people were in need of faith. Always in all of Jesus’ miracles and everything that He did, He said, do you believe? Or, I see that you do believe. Faith was so important in their lives. Needy people were in need of faith. But not only faith, they needed order. Well, they found order there. Sit down in groups, they said. Arrange them in groups of 100 or in groups of 50, whichever fits the situation best. There was order. So they needed faith. They needed to believe what Jesus had to tell them. They needed order. The Bible says that God is not the God of chaos, but the God of order. And there they got that as well.
And they needed patience. because I’m sure there were some of them that began to squirm a little bit. If you go over to our church later on, there’ll be some people in there squirming a little bit. It’s just in the human nature to squirm a bit, but they needed patience. So let me say, these three things certainly, they were needy with respect to.
They needed faith, they needed order, they needed patience. And one of the reasons, not the only reason of course, but one of the reasons that the Lord kept them there so late was to increase their patience. And there in Romans chapter five, it finally comes down, are you patient or not? This and this and this leads to, do you have patience or not? Can you wait upon the Lord?
The disciples cared, yes indeed, about the people. That’s why they said, let’s send them away. Let’s see that they get something to eat, to get where somebody will help them in that regard. But Jesus says that what I have to give them will outweigh anything that they’re going to get in the towns and the villages around here. They cared, but Jesus cared more.
The disciples had limitations. They could only do so much, and they were trying their best. But Jesus had divine power and wisdom to pass along to them. Well, that’s the second point. The needy people. What kinds of people were there? The poor people, yes. Maybe a few wealthy people. Not many in between, if any.
But all of them needed faith and order and patience. And Jesus was prepared to give them everything they needed. Which brings us to the third of these things that come out of our reading of this feeding of the 5,000. Remember, Jesus said, God said, it’s so important, I’m gonna put it in every one of the gospel accounts. I don’t want anybody to miss this, very important. So it was a late hour, but that was God’s doing, your own God’s clock.
They were needy people, but the Lord had everything that they needed. And then this miraculous food. Now, in the Old Testament, the Jewish people got some miraculous food. They called it bread from heaven. Then they called it manna. You know, the word manna is simply Hebrew for what?
What is it? They had never seen anything like it. It was sort of like coriander seed. It had a sweet taste to it that you could grind it and make a kind of bread from it, or you could use it regularly without, you know, diminishing it in any way. That was miraculous food for sure. What did Jesus have to give them here? Well, it wasn’t manna. He didn’t say, look behind you, there’s a pot of manna there, and you’ll all be satisfied and eat well.
He said, what do you have? They said, well, we’ll go look and see. And they came back, and they said, well, all we could find, and again, there was lots of people there, but all we could find was a boy with five loaves and two fishes. The boy part you find in another gospel. But he had five loaves and two fishes. But what are they among so many, they said? It would take 200 denarii. Well, just a denarii was about a day’s wage and probably more than a day’s wage. And he said it’d take 200 denarii to pay for all the food that would be needed to feed these people.
So, guess what? They needed a little faith themselves, didn’t they? They were Jesus’ disciples, but they were learning to believe in Him more and more. Now, let us take another perspective on this. When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness by the devil, the first thing the devil said to Him, you’re hungry, aren’t you? See these stones? Just change those stones into bread. And Jesus refused to do it.
He said, man doesn’t live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. And old Moses could say, yeah, that’s right. I believe that too. But here he could have. He could have fed those 5,000 plus, however many more there were, 6,000, 7,000, 8,000, I don’t know. He could have fed them all by turning the stones into bread. He didn’t do it when he was tempted, but he could have done it here. He could have done it then, but he could have done it here. But he didn’t. He said, let’s work with what we have, okay?
And you know, there’s a great lesson there. God can take and use what we have. We may not be the greatest singer, we may not be the strongest person, we may not be the most brilliant, but God can take us and use what we have. I’m sure that kid that had the five loaves and the two fishes, they said the master needs these, and he gave them up to the Lord. I need to learn to give the Lord what I have and you need to give the Lord what you have and say, Lord, I don’t know how you’re going to use this. I’m sure that boy said this is not going to go very far.
But he gave it over and the Lord Jesus took it and he fed them all from the five loaves and the two fishes. It was miraculous that he could do that. It was a miracle, a great miracle. But he didn’t have to create something from nothing. He didn’t have to turn stones into bread. He didn’t have to bring down manna from heaven. He just took the five loaves and the two fishes, and he fed every last one of them.
And they were so satisfied that they said, we have leftovers. And they took up 12 baskets full. And I don’t know how much a basket held exactly in those days, but it was a lot. And I still wonder sometimes, what did they do with all those leftovers? And maybe the disciples needed some food for the trip home across the waters.
In any event, He was able to supply because that’s what God does. He supplies. He’s a supplier of everything that we need. Now this miracle touched on two matters. First of all, that we should ask the Lord for our daily bread. How do I know that? Because we just prayed it in the Lord’s Prayer. Give us this day our daily bread.
And another occasion, Jesus said, if you ask God, do you think He’s going to give you a scorpion or a stone or something like that? No, He said, God will supply what you ask Him for. That’s the first thing that you need to see here. And then secondly, remember that The Lord said in Deuteronomy, man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. So that it may please the Lord for you to miss a meal or two meals or more meals, but he’ll see that you get fed, but not by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
This miracle also confirmed That God gives exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think. That’s what the Apostle Paul said. God gives abundantly beyond all that we can ask or think. You think that applied here? How many baskets of leftovers were there? Twelve baskets? There were plenty there. God gives exceedingly. Say, God, give me enough food. God, give me enough work. God, give me enough friends. God, give me whatever I need. And God says, I’ll give you above all that you can ask or think. This miracle also proves that selfish man is never satisfied. Later, when he gets back home and some people hear about what happened with the feeding of these thousands of people.
They said, we want some of that bread too. And Jesus said, I’m disappointed. You didn’t say a thing about the word of God being taught. You just said, we’d like some more bread. This miracle proves this selfish man is never satisfied. I’m just gonna read from John, again, John chapter six. Jesus answered them, most certainly I tell you, you seek me not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Don’t work for the food which perishes. but for the food which remains to eternal life, which the Son of Man, that’s Jesus, which the Son of Man will give to you. Well, one more point this morning, and that is the submission of the disciples. We already said that they were concerned about the people, and they wanted to send them away, and so forth.
But Jesus said, I have a better solution, and you can always count on that. That whatever solutions you come up with, the Lord has a better one. What do we need Him for? Well, you can just, in your minds, turn over all the things that you might need, all the things and challenges that you have. The disciples still, as we said, had something to learn there. But Jesus always has the best solution.
The disciples were learning, for example, not to argue or to question Jesus. I don’t know what they said to him after he said, you give them to eat. I don’t know if any of them said, listen, if we don’t feed these people, there’s going to be a riot here and all of that. But they were learning. They were learning not to argue with Jesus when this was all over with. I doubt they ever said to him again, how are we going to do something? Where is something to come from? The Lord says, don’t worry about that. God has in his treasury, in his bakery, in his supply house, everything that you need.
Of course, they questioned the hour. It’s getting late. But God says, I have my own clock going. Jesus said, remember your own God’s clock. They questioned the amount of food. It would take 200 denarii. And Jesus said, don’t worry, there’s plenty with God, there’s plenty. And his remarks to them, and again, I don’t know what they said to him other than what we have in scripture.
But I do know he told them to go and prepare the people, have them sit down in these groups and prepare them for what God is about to do. And I think that’s a marvelous thing. I think God always ought to tell us in our lives, just think about what God is prepared to do, what He’s going to do, what will happen at the later hour today, or tomorrow, or the next week.
Just think, God is preparing people to hear about Him, to look to Him. God is bringing into His kingdom Thousands, and we could extrapolate from that, millions and billions of people. How many are there in the world today? So many. God says, I’m preparing them. So just do what I say, and you will be blessed. No arguing, no questioning with Jesus. Jesus told them not to debate, but to take what God provided. Don’t debate. Just take what God provides. And their willingness, you see, their willingness to do that. How do we know they learned anything? Because the miracle did take place. Their willingness was rewarded with twelve baskets of leftovers and everything that came before.
What’s our job? What’s our responsibility? Do what the Lord says. How do we know what the Lord says? It’s in the Bible. Read the Bible. The Holy Spirit will apply it to whatever situation you have. Our job is to do what the Master says, and then to await the amazing results.
Years ago, my father used to love to tell this story, but we lived in Los Angeles, And there was one of these big semi-trucks that got stuck under an overpass. And so they brought in all the engineers and all the people who were acquainted with roadways and bridges and all this. They still couldn’t figure out how to get that truck out. Some little kid come along, said, I know how to get that truck out.
Oh, you don’t know anything. Yeah, I know how to get it out. OK, what? Let the air out of the tires. And it worked. Well, you know, we can have our understandings of mathematics and all these kind of things, but God knows best. And God can get the truck out from under the overpass.
Let’s pray. Lord, we thank you today for this word that tells us that you know best. You can supply all our needs, whether it’s from five loaves and two fishes or something else. You tend to work, Lord, with who we are and what we are and what You’ve given us already. We pray You would do that today and all the days ahead. We thank You in Jesus’ name.