And I am not sure about you, but I get impatient when I’m hungry. Or some may call it hangry. Angry and hungry. The thing is, when I am hangry, I don’t mean to be, it kinda creeps up and it happens. I don’t actively think, hey I am hungry, so I am going to be impatient and snappy. It just kind of happens without me knowing. I am not self-aware of what is going on inside of me. Do you feel that sometimes, that later on reflection you think, I shouldn’t have said that, or I should have brought a snack to church and had a coffee this morning?
So today we are seeing a story where a bunch of people are fed and it is crazy. The disciples essentially steal some kid's lunch and then Jesus uses it to feed everyone. The story just before this was about a King's banquet that should make your stomach turn. The thing served at that banquet was John the Baptist's head on a platter. John the Baptist was the new Elijah, the latest prophet of God and he got killed. No one should be feeling great after this banquet, and then here, right after this, we have another meal where everyone hears from Jesus and is left satisfied. While the food was basic, this simple meal may have more Old Testament overtones and be much more significant as the Herod’s lavish birthday party[1].
Old Testament background
When Moses was leading the people of Israel out of Egypt into the Promised Land, God brought down manner, which was kinda like bread and He fed like a million maybe two million like this for 40 years. That's some multiplication of food right there.
There is another story in 2 Kings 4 where Elisha is given 20 loaves of bread but then tells the bread to be given to 100 men to eat and afterwards, they had leftovers. This wasn’t as extreme as feeding 5,000 men plus women and children with five loaves, but still that story was worthy of being recorded as a miracle under Elisha.
And so with that background, we have Jesus showing that He is able to feed lots of people in remote places, that He is able to feed lots of people with little and still have much leftover. Simply put, Jesus can provide for people[2].
Jesus the good shepherd
In this story, we sometimes get hung up on the food, but I think it is interesting to see what else Jesus provides and why.Verse 34 I think is big:
When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he ….Fed them… no wait that isn’t what it says, it says
So he began teaching them many things.Jesus was getting away with the disciples for a break, for some downtime and then a mob comes after Him. They are going to interrupt their break and their plans, but Jesus doesn’t shoo them away.
Instead, He has compassion for them. He sees them as lost and misguided. They were sheep who weren’t being led, in this remote place. The religion of the day put heavy burdens on the people, Israel’s rulers were pawns for Rome, they weren’t being looked after. Jesus sees the crowd and begins to teach them many things.
The people were starved for teaching. Whether they knew it or not. They needed a shepherd to lead them. They weren’t getting any of this with their current leaders. So out of compassion for these people who were lost, who were roaming around, Jesus begins to teach them many things. This miracle story doesn’t start off with Jesus feeding them with food but feeding them with teaching, for that is what they needed. They needed a shepherd.
Moses saw it important to have a good leader over Israel. When he appointed Joshua in Numbers 27 he said this was so “that the Lord’s community won’t be like a sheep without a shepherd” (Num 27:17). This new Joshua, Jesus was also like that shepherd.
One of the most famous Psalms, number 23, do you know how that starts:
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing
Jesus had compassion on these people for they didn’t have a good shepherd, so He begins to teach them. So that they wouldn’t lack anything. However, it gets late, and they were hungry. So, the next two verses in Psalm 23
He makes me lie down in green pasturesHow does Mark describe this remote place in verse 39? The people sat down on the green grass, near the water. And after he taught them the ways of the Kingdom and they ate, and they were satisfied.
He leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths, for his name sake
Jesus provides for the people because He is the good shepherd. First by teaching them and then by feeding them. He does this because He had compassion for these lost people, who needed both spiritual and physical food.
Involvement of the Disciples
But do you also notice one more quick thing in this passage? Jesus involves the disciples; they aren’t sitting around on the sideline. They get involved. Jesus gets them involved.The disciples want the crowd to be dismissed so they could find food elsewhere. This seems quite reasonable; they probably didn’t want 5,000 hangry people on their hands. But Jesus has a better idea. Jesus sees this as an opportunity to trust in the father and glorify His Name[3].
He wants the disciples to give the people something to eat. At first, this seems insane. Where would they get the money to buy all that food? But Jesus sends them out to see what they have and what little they return with is enough to feed everyone with leftovers. Jesus gets the disciples to hand out the bread and the fish and in the end, each disciple has a basket leftover.
The disciples said, “send them off”, Jesus said “feed them”, and with God’s help, that is what they did. The disciples worry about a shortage and want to exclude; Jesus creates plenty and includes everyone[4].
For us
Jesus cared for the whole person, and He involved His disciples in this task. God wants us to have compassion for those in need, and He wants us involved with Him. We are to minister to the whole person. That’s what Jesus did[5]. We are to follow the example of Jesus in His compassion for those who are lost. Both physically and spiritually. For there are people out there who are hungry for bread and hungry for God’s word. We sometimes neglect one side over the other.
Maybe you could encourage your family or your D-Team to sponsor a child, maybe your group could help with Friends of Jesus for one week, or maybe if you have a job you commit to giving to some charity that has compassion on those in need.
But maybe you are thinking, there aren’t many starving people around me - and that may be true. But are there people around you who do not know the Lord? Do you have compassion for those who are away from God as much as you have compassion for those who do not have food? Just work with those who are around you - are they in need? Or a better question is, are they lost and without a shepherd? Maybe you could introduce them to the good shepherd.
Or to get more personal. How about you? Are you under the Good Shepherd? Do you know what God can provide for you? And you may not even be aware that you are hungry, that you need God to provide something for you. In the same way, we can slip into being hangry, we may not notice that we need to be fed by Jesus.
Jesus can provide satisfaction. Jesus can provide security for Jesus can provide salvation in God from judgement.
Do you have a sense that you are not whole, that you actually are not certain about life and are trying all sorts of things to fit in and be satisfied? Do you have some discontent with how you are living, a feeling that there is a better way out there?
In this passage, Jesus has compassion on the people, and sees their great need, even if they don’t see it themselves. And in doing so He teaches them about the Kingdom of God and provides for their stomachs.
If you are under the good Shepherd, if you are led by Him, He will provide for you. He wants to include you in His plans, as you reach other and serve those around you, both physically and spiritually.
This is an important lesson, and next week we will see what the disciples don’t get. But come back next week and we will see them go off course.
I’ll pray.
Lord, thank you that your Son Jesus has compassion for people and provides for them. Help us to live under your Good Shepard, trusting and knowing that He will provide for us, and wants to involve us in His plans.
Amen
[1] R.T. France, Mark (The New International Greek Testament Commentary)
[2] Grant R. Osborne, Mark (Teach the Text Commentary)
[3] Warren Wiersbe, Be Diligent (Mark)
[4] William C. Placher, Mark (BELIEF)
[5] Daniel L. Akin, Exalting Jesus in Mark
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