The account of the feeding of the 5,000 men (perhaps 15 - 20,000 people all together) and Jesus walking on the water is told here in Johns Gospel. I enjoy reading the accounts, but I must admit i like Matthew's account better. In all 4 gospels the story remains substantially the same: Jesus is in a remote place teaching and a crowd has gathered, he feeds the crowds miraculously with just a small amount of food being multiplied to feed thousands, in the night he walks on water to an astonished and terrified group of his disciples on the sea.
John's account does a great job of exposing the real desires of the crowds that followed Jesus. When the crowds find Jesus, Jesus first statement to them is, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you." John 6:26 & 27 NRSV. Read this section again carefully and their transparency may make you laugh out loud - or cry. They counter his assessment with, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" or How do we learn to do the bread trick? Jesus tries to turn them from their stomachs to their hearts by telling them the works of God is to believe. They are undaunted and ask for bread again, saying "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, “He gave them bread from heaven to eat.” Again, Jesus tries to turn their hearts toward the Kingdom but they only beg more - "Sir, give us this bread always."
Now Jesus throws them some theology that they can't "swallow". He tells them clearly - "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." The Jews begin to dispute with him now, but he will not turn from this path. He says over and over again in the following verses essentially, I am the bread of Life and if you would live you must eat my flesh!
As chapter 6 closes we see some of the first defectors from Jesus camp when John tells us, "Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him." Jesus turns to the twelve disciples and asks if they will leave as well and Peter answers for the group, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." John 6:68 & 69.
How often do we come to Jesus looking for some "goodies" to make us happy? I wonder how often Jesus tries to turn me in another holy direction, only to have me try to out smart the master. Lord, have patience with me, turn me and I shall be turned.
About Me
- Pastor Bill
- I am a committed follower of Jesus Christ, a happy husband, father and grandfather!
5 comments:
I was struck by the verses about the disciples and the boat. (16-21) The disciples got tired of waiting for Jesus and went off in the boat headed for Capernaum. A storm came and they knew they were in trouble. They saw Jesus walking on the water and He told them not to be afraid. They invited Jesus into the boat. Immediately the boat was in the right place. It doesn't say the storm passed. It just says that once the disciples invited Jesus into their boat they were in the right place. A couple of reminders here for me. First of all, I should wait for God's timing and not take off without Him. econdly, if Jesus is in my boat I am in the right place. Thirdly, having Jesus in my boat doesn't stop the storm. It just means I will end up in the right place on the other side of the storm. Lots of lessons in these few verses. I have read these verses many times, but just read them as a story. It is always exciting to get a new insight. Thanks Pastor for doing this with us.
Thank-you Darlynne for your insights. It is amazing to me the way the Holy Spirit works in and through the Word. It really is alive and active and changes and grows with and in us!
I love books and I love to read, but this is the only book I know that changes so dramatically day to day!
No need to thank me for this study - I am having a blast!
Bill
Healed the sick, expelled some demons, gave teaching lectures, fed thousands of people, walked on water, gave insight into the kingdom of heaven, separated the unbelievers from true believers...all in a day's work.
I wonder - am I really doing my part?
(Darlynne, I LOVE your "reminders" - I have never heard that take on this passage before - thank you for sharing your view)
What another great couple of stories. I love food, so it’s always great to relate to the kids when I’m talking to them that Jesus was able to feed probably 20,000 people with such a small amount of food. What a true miracle. As I explored this passage this time, especially with your comments, I was able to see it in a little different light.
God is always doing things in our lives to help us remain in faith, answering prayers and helping our lives stay on track. However, no matter how much we get, there’s always more to ask for, and more to be desired. This is just what the people in the story were thinking also. No matter how many miracles are performed, people will always want to see more. So the question arises…is it ever enough? Then, he answers:
“I am the bread of life.”
(Sara and I were talking about how this chapter has inspired two different Aldersgate sung graces – “the Coca Cola Grace” and “5 and 2.” How cool is that?)
The answer the people receive is not good enough – maybe they had trouble with the concept of eating Jesus… The promise to never be hungry again is incredible. The way I hunger for food, I know we all often hunger for Jesus – but if we remain in him, this hunger is always taken care of. How incredible. I hope that I would have been in the few people that remained with Jesus – they make a good point...“Lord, to whom can we go?”
Last, the walking on water is quite an amazing story. We use it with the Young Life kids to ask: “Would you be able to take that first step out of the boat, or would you be the one to remain in the boat?” Peter had the faith to try to walk on water, the others remained behind. Even though he eventually slipped into the water, he still was able to take the first step. Would you take that first step into the raging seas with the promise of seeing our lord?
God bless,
Marshall B.
"Lord, to whom can we go?" Peter's response makes me smile, because he's not exactly saying he *wants* to stay with Jesus - it's almost like against his will he must admit that though difficult, following Jesus is the only thing to do.
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