“Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” Jesus said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” They replied, “We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.” And he said, “Bring them here to me.” Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.”  Matthew 14:13-21

{“When my father ran out of gas, he called my mother to pick him up in her car. They went to a gas station, filled a gas can, and returned to his car. After a few minutes, he got into her car again. “We need to go back to the gas station,” he said. “One gallon wasn’t enough?” she asked. “It would have been if I’d put it in the right car.”}

The story of the feeding of the 5000, like the miracle of the water turned to wine, are stories about abundance. From nothing more than five loaves and two fish, Jesus feeds 5000, plus women and children. Where does the abundance come from? They come from Jesus, of course. And, they come through the hands of the disciples who are willing to partake in the miracle. The skeptics will say “Oh it is just hyperbole, a myth, story, a fabrication.” Oh, really? If this was just a story, a fabrication, a myth, then why are we still telling it 2000 years later? And not just repeating a story written 2000 years ago, but a story that was first told and shared by mouth from generation to generation, person to person, household to household before it was finally written down and put into any kind of book. If this story was a fabrication, it wouldn’t have had enough gas to last for two millennia.

Just like the man from our story who mistakenly put gas in the wrong vehicle, perhaps the skeptics are mistaken in understanding the parable – that the story is not about “How Jesus did it”, but about “How Jesus Used disciples” in accomplishing the impossible. The story is really about how we together, the collective disciples of Jesus, can feed a hungry world when we minister in the name of Jesus. I have seen small miracles – how few resources can be used to help many – how just a few people can do great things. We just need to be willing to be the hands that carry the food, the feet that visit the sick, or the voices that pray for the weary.

Pastor Dave