Devotional 8-1-08

You Give Them Something to Eat
Please read Matthew 14:13-21

The story of the miraculous feeding of the 5000 has always been one of my favorite bible stories. I learned about it in Bible School . In the version I first learned, a boy about my age was the hero. I could imagine myself handing over my lunch to Jesus' disciples and watching as Jesus used it to feed the multitudes. It wasn't until I was much older that I discovered the little boy is only in one of the four gospel accounts of the miracle. Matthew, Mark, and Luke do not mention a little boy.

This is the only miracle that occurs in each of the four gospels, so it must be pretty important. What does it mean for us today?

Today's passage starts out in verse 13 with "[w]hen Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself..." This was the murder of John the Baptist. Imagine that you are one of the twelve, and you have given up everything to follow Jesus. I imagine the disciples were afraid; if John the Baptist had been killed, maybe Jesus (and they) would be next.

Even though Jesus wanted to get away to be by himself, he put himself in the place of the crowds. Verse 14 tells us he had compassion for the crowds that followed. He felt for them, and put their needs first before his own need to be by himself. The disciples wanted to get rid of the crowds, to send them home; they wanted to be left alone. They wanted to eat, and they only had enough for themselves.

It doesn't seem that unreasonable to me that the disciples would want to get rid of the crowds. They needed time to regroup, to relax, to refresh. They didn't have food enough for the large crowd.

Jesus gave a harsh command. "You give them something to eat."

The disciples offered their defenses, but Jesus wouldn't hear them. They protested that they only had a few loaves of bread and a couple fish. "Bring them to me."

The disciples obeyed, and the results were miraculous. Jesus took what was offered, gave thanks, and then distributed it. Not only was everyone fed, but also there were plenty of leftovers.

We view the world through eyes of scarcity in the midst of abundance. There's not enough time; not enough money; not enough resources; not enough help; not enough people. When we offer what we have to Jesus, miracles happen. There is more than enough, if we are willing to obey Jesus' command.

"You give them something..."

Jeff Taylor