WEBVTT 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:21.120 Today we're going to hear this account of Jesus feeding 5,000 men plus an unnumbered amount of women and children in an incredibly miraculous way, connecting his ministry and who he is to how Yahweh always fed his people, fed them in the desert with man and things like that. 00:00:21.440 --> 00:00:33.600 But we're especially going to focus in today on this command, this invitation that Jesus gives to his disciples that is just kind of mind-blowing and impossible in a lot of ways. 00:00:33.759 --> 00:00:42.560 So I'd like to start out by administering a little bit of a pop quiz that some of you have been subjected to before, but let's see how well you remember it. 00:00:42.719 --> 00:00:45.200 Um, it's just one question, and it's true or false. 00:00:45.439 --> 00:00:46.880 Can't be that hard, right? 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:48.399 Are you ready? 00:00:51.600 --> 00:00:53.759 Alright, I was waiting for somebody to respond. 00:00:53.920 --> 00:00:54.240 Okay. 00:00:55.200 --> 00:00:57.280 Alright, true or false? 00:00:57.520 --> 00:00:58.960 Think carefully. 00:00:59.359 --> 00:01:04.000 The correct answer to this question is false. 00:01:07.280 --> 00:01:08.400 Think about it for a second. 00:01:08.560 --> 00:01:10.400 Who says that that is true? 00:01:10.719 --> 00:01:11.920 Raise your hand. 00:01:12.959 --> 00:01:14.719 Two, three, okay. 00:01:15.120 --> 00:01:15.439 Four. 00:01:15.599 --> 00:01:17.040 Who says that that is false? 00:01:17.280 --> 00:01:18.239 Raise your hand. 00:01:19.200 --> 00:01:21.599 One, two, three, four. 00:01:21.680 --> 00:01:22.799 Oh, it's tied at four. 00:01:23.040 --> 00:01:24.079 Oh, six, seven? 00:01:24.239 --> 00:01:25.439 Oh, six, seven. 00:01:25.599 --> 00:01:26.319 Some of our. 00:01:26.480 --> 00:01:27.680 Yeah, thank you. 00:01:27.920 --> 00:01:31.519 We just did a lot of that at camp this last week at middle school. 00:01:31.760 --> 00:01:42.959 Um, unfortunately, um, the what, 11 of you who chose to participate are not going to be rewarded for that courage because you're all wrong. 00:01:43.120 --> 00:01:44.159 Isn't that sad? 00:01:44.560 --> 00:01:46.560 Um, it's impossible. 00:01:46.799 --> 00:01:51.760 Because if you answer true, then you're wrong because it says the correct answer to the question is false. 00:01:51.920 --> 00:01:53.760 So it can't be true, obviously. 00:01:53.840 --> 00:01:56.239 But if you answer false, then you're also wrong. 00:01:56.480 --> 00:02:02.400 Because the statement, the correct answer to this question is false, would then be true and not be false. 00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:04.079 Does that make sense? 00:02:04.560 --> 00:02:05.280 Probably not. 00:02:05.439 --> 00:02:06.560 That's okay, Stan. 00:02:06.719 --> 00:02:09.439 It's not your fault if you participated in what's wrong. 00:02:09.520 --> 00:02:11.520 It's it's a problem without a solution. 00:02:11.759 --> 00:02:17.120 And maybe those of you who chose not to raise your hand knew that, and that's why you didn't say anything. 00:02:17.360 --> 00:02:19.919 Um, this is an impossible assignment that I gave you. 00:02:20.080 --> 00:02:32.560 Well, in the reading that we heard today from Matthew, Jesus gives his disciples an impossible assignment, it seems, when he speaks six simple words to them, words that are going to be the focus of our meditation today. 00:02:32.879 --> 00:02:36.400 You give them something to eat. 00:02:36.719 --> 00:02:45.599 Out in the middle of nowhere, with five thousand plus hungry mouths and no resources whatsoever, Jesus tells his disciples, you give them something to eat. 00:02:45.759 --> 00:02:47.280 It's an impossible assignment. 00:02:47.360 --> 00:02:50.159 It's a ridiculous and unreasonable command. 00:02:50.479 --> 00:02:53.039 And the disciples respond accordingly. 00:02:53.280 --> 00:02:56.479 We have only five loaves here and two fish. 00:02:56.879 --> 00:03:00.000 Not even enough for themselves, arguably. 00:03:00.800 --> 00:03:06.000 But this wasn't the first unreasonable command that Jesus had issued to them, not even recently. 00:03:06.159 --> 00:03:09.680 Remember a little over a month ago when we were in Matthew chapter 10? 00:03:10.080 --> 00:03:18.719 There Jesus had asked something just as unreasonable of his disciples, if not more so, as he sent them out to the nearby towns to proclaim a message of repentance. 00:03:18.800 --> 00:03:32.879 Here's what Jesus said there: Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff. 00:03:34.400 --> 00:03:46.080 Our family got back a little over a month ago from a trip to Italy, and in preparation for that trip, months in advance, we had made a list, we checked it off thoroughly as we packed, we planned for every contingency we could possibly think of. 00:03:46.240 --> 00:03:50.000 We made sure we had everything packed neatly in our luggage before heading out. 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:56.080 But Jesus tells his disciples to set out on this journey with virtually nothing. 00:03:56.479 --> 00:04:02.800 He tells them not to pack any bags, to leave their wallets and probably even their cell phones behind. 00:04:03.199 --> 00:04:06.639 Jesus won't even let them bring an extra pair of underwear. 00:04:07.120 --> 00:04:12.000 If you really think about it, this sounds not only inconvenient, it sounds foolhardy. 00:04:12.639 --> 00:04:22.560 Especially when Jesus then makes it clear to them that there will be plenty of people that will not welcome them or provide for their needs, that some won't want anything to do with them. 00:04:23.279 --> 00:04:27.759 It was a perilous mission for which the disciples were ill-prepared. 00:04:28.639 --> 00:04:30.639 But Jesus sent them anyway. 00:04:31.360 --> 00:04:38.720 And then, as if to drive this point home, Matthew shares the story of John the Baptist's death right before the miracle we've heard today. 00:04:39.040 --> 00:04:43.439 Following Jesus can be a demanding and dangerous task. 00:04:43.759 --> 00:04:47.279 And John's execution shows us that it can even be deadly. 00:04:48.160 --> 00:04:50.959 And that's where our reading for today picks up the story. 00:04:51.199 --> 00:04:58.800 Jesus and his disciples withdraw to a desolate place to rest and recuperate, a place where they won't be disturbed for a while. 00:04:59.920 --> 00:05:03.519 But as often happens in ministry, things don't really go according to plan. 00:05:03.680 --> 00:05:08.639 And the disciple's much-needed and well-deserved rest is cut short. 00:05:08.959 --> 00:05:12.079 Thousands of people swarm them. 00:05:12.720 --> 00:05:17.199 Jesus has compassion on them and he heals their sick late into the evening. 00:05:17.759 --> 00:05:29.040 And so it is that his weary disciples find themselves in a desolate, uninhabited place with hungry multitudes as night fast approaches and dinner time comes and goes. 00:05:29.279 --> 00:05:34.399 And so they tell Jesus, This is a desolate place, and the day is now over. 00:05:34.480 --> 00:05:38.480 Send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves. 00:05:39.439 --> 00:05:44.879 But the good shepherd can't leave his hungry sheep with empty bellies. 00:05:45.519 --> 00:05:47.920 It's a cool song, by the way, isn't it? 00:05:48.639 --> 00:05:52.079 So Jesus speaks those six mystifying words to his disciples. 00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:55.360 You give them something to eat. 00:05:56.000 --> 00:06:01.279 On their mission trip, the disciples had had to rely on getting food from those who had heard the gospel they preached. 00:06:01.360 --> 00:06:06.800 And now, ironically, Jesus asks them to provide for those who are hearing the gospel. 00:06:07.439 --> 00:06:09.199 But there's just one small problem. 00:06:09.439 --> 00:06:11.279 They have next to nothing. 00:06:11.920 --> 00:06:18.240 You can hardly blame them for pointing out to Jesus that his request is unreasonable because of how much they lack. 00:06:20.079 --> 00:06:26.240 Have you ever felt like Jesus is asking of you something unreasonable or even impossible? 00:06:26.560 --> 00:06:28.000 I certainly have. 00:06:28.399 --> 00:06:40.160 Life's many challenges, be they relational or emotional, physical, they sometimes leave us wondering if we can keep going, can keep things afloat, and prevent it from all falling apart. 00:06:40.399 --> 00:06:47.120 And when we look at the world around us to which Jesus calls us to minister, it can be discouraging to say the least. 00:06:47.279 --> 00:06:52.079 It can seem like we live in a desolate place, and the day is now over. 00:06:52.879 --> 00:06:55.439 Our society is full of hungry people. 00:06:55.759 --> 00:07:02.240 And Christ's command to us is the same as his command to his disciples that evening in the Galilean countryside. 00:07:02.639 --> 00:07:05.680 You give them something to eat. 00:07:06.319 --> 00:07:07.920 But what can we do? 00:07:08.800 --> 00:07:16.160 People may be hungry, but they seek to satisfy that hunger with all the wrong things while discarding the Word of God and the gospel of Christ. 00:07:16.319 --> 00:07:19.199 Fewer and fewer people care what the church has to say anymore. 00:07:19.360 --> 00:07:24.959 More and more our Christian worldview is dismissed as irrelevant and out of touch with today's reality. 00:07:25.839 --> 00:07:32.240 But worse than the darkness that we see in our culture around us is the darkness we find in our own hearts. 00:07:32.480 --> 00:07:37.360 Because there we see that we are utterly infected with sin and its devastating effects. 00:07:37.519 --> 00:07:41.680 We find that the natural state of our hearts is one of selfishness and rebellion. 00:07:41.920 --> 00:07:46.000 We find that it is not our society or our culture that is the problem. 00:07:46.720 --> 00:07:47.759 It's us. 00:07:48.560 --> 00:07:55.199 And when we rely on ourselves to do something about it, we discover we are in the exact same boat as the disciples. 00:07:55.519 --> 00:08:02.800 Weary, empty-handed, and just as hungry as the crowds of people who press in on us on all sides. 00:08:03.040 --> 00:08:08.399 Like the disciples, we find ourselves facing a perilous mission for which we are ill-prepared. 00:08:08.720 --> 00:08:10.720 But Jesus sends us anyway. 00:08:12.240 --> 00:08:12.879 Why? 00:08:15.120 --> 00:08:18.639 It is an impossible assignment Jesus gives to us, you know. 00:08:19.040 --> 00:08:26.319 Just as it was an impossible assignment that he gave to his disciples that evening when he said to them, You give them something to eat. 00:08:27.279 --> 00:08:33.200 But then again, nothing is impossible with Jesus. 00:08:34.000 --> 00:08:40.320 Let's remember that night and that desolate place, and let's hear and see what Jesus says and does for his people. 00:08:40.639 --> 00:08:45.679 When it came to the 5,000 hungry men before them, the disciples felt at a loss to do anything. 00:08:45.759 --> 00:08:50.720 But Jesus shows them that they have more than they could ever ask or imagine. 00:08:50.879 --> 00:08:56.879 They've checked their inventory, they've decided that the task is impossible for them to complete, they just don't have enough. 00:08:57.120 --> 00:09:04.960 But it is more than enough for the disciples to give the people something to eat, because the bread of life himself is right there with them. 00:09:05.200 --> 00:09:12.559 The same shepherd who makes his sheep to lie down in green pastures now makes the people sit down on the grass. 00:09:13.120 --> 00:09:25.919 Just as God had fed Israel with manna as they wandered in the wilderness, as God had given to his people everything they needed, so God shows up again in this desolate place to feed his people with miraculous bread. 00:09:26.240 --> 00:09:34.480 And Matthew tells us that everyone there all ate and were satisfied, five thousand men, besides women and children. 00:09:34.960 --> 00:09:40.320 And if that weren't enough, there were twelve basketfuls left over, one for each of the disciples. 00:09:40.480 --> 00:09:49.600 It's as if Jesus is showing them and us that there are plenty of leftovers in the overflowing abundance of his kingdom for each one of us to distribute generously. 00:09:49.840 --> 00:09:55.120 As our shepherd anoints our head with oil, our cup truly does runneth over. 00:09:55.840 --> 00:10:01.039 If we can just open our eyes to what he's giving, we will never find ourselves lacking anything. 00:10:01.600 --> 00:10:03.279 So let me ask you this. 00:10:03.919 --> 00:10:10.559 What gifts do you have from God that are going unused, because you have undervalued them? 00:10:10.799 --> 00:10:13.840 What resources could be used to help people in need? 00:10:14.240 --> 00:10:25.679 What overabundance of kingdom assets can be found in your basket for the purpose of distribution to the masses who hunger for the truth and life and peace that only Jesus can give. 00:10:27.120 --> 00:10:28.639 Now, don't get me wrong here. 00:10:28.879 --> 00:10:39.360 I am not saying that Jesus has given us a task that only seems impossible for us to accomplish, but that we really just need to figure everything out on our own in a creative way to find the answer. 00:10:39.679 --> 00:10:44.720 We need Jesus, because he is the only answer. 00:10:45.200 --> 00:10:49.039 Without him, baskets and bellies remain forever empty. 00:10:49.279 --> 00:10:51.840 Jesus is the one who performs the miracle. 00:10:52.080 --> 00:11:02.799 And in the original Greek, the tense of the verbs is significant because it gives the sense that Jesus broke the loaves and then continued to give them to the disciples to set before the people. 00:11:03.200 --> 00:11:10.480 One commentary on this text says, the miracle of multiplication occurred in Jesus' hands. 00:11:11.279 --> 00:11:16.960 The disciples do indeed give the people something to eat, but they can't take any credit for doing so. 00:11:17.279 --> 00:11:21.600 The bread and the fish come from the hands of Christ. 00:11:23.039 --> 00:11:31.360 And so as we take inventory of the resources Jesus has given us, we place our faith and our trust in Him to supply everything that's lacking. 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:39.200 We might be able to scrounge up five loaves and two fish if we try really hard, but that's not good enough unless Jesus does something with it. 00:11:39.360 --> 00:11:47.120 Just as nothing in us is good, let alone good enough, without the blood of Jesus covering over our sins and giving us new life. 00:11:47.440 --> 00:11:57.360 You see, we were lost in the desolation of our sin, utterly hopeless and empty-handed, hungering for a righteousness that was forever beyond our reach. 00:11:58.240 --> 00:12:00.639 But where we lacked everything. 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:03.039 God lacked nothing. 00:12:03.360 --> 00:12:08.159 And he provided all that we needed by giving us his very Son. 00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:29.360 The miracle occurred in Jesus' hands as they were driven through with the nails of our transgressions, and on that cross he died, the shepherd and overseer of our souls, the bread from heaven given for our eternal life, to forgive our sins and feed our hungry souls with his very self. 00:12:30.240 --> 00:12:34.399 He's going to do that again for us today in just a few moments through Holy Communion. 00:12:34.639 --> 00:12:44.000 Like that evening, some 2,000 years ago, here also today in our worship, Jesus comes to us through his compassionate teaching and a miraculous meal. 00:12:44.240 --> 00:12:48.000 A meal that is given to strengthen our faith and to forgive our sins. 00:12:48.320 --> 00:12:54.240 A meal where Jesus also looked up to heaven, said a blessing, broke the bread, gave it to his followers. 00:12:54.480 --> 00:12:58.879 It's a meal funded purely by the compassion of our Savior. 00:13:00.080 --> 00:13:08.799 And it's a meal that leads us into our mission, demanding and dangerous though it may be, because it assures us that the Lord of the church provides. 00:13:09.360 --> 00:13:15.840 We are a church built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone. 00:13:16.000 --> 00:13:20.320 And it is Christ Jesus Himself who gives of his great abundance. 00:13:20.399 --> 00:13:27.759 It is Christ Jesus Himself who multiplies the bread and gives it to us to feed a famished and spiritually emaciated world. 00:13:28.320 --> 00:13:31.360 Jesus is multiplying the bread and placing it in our hands. 00:13:31.440 --> 00:13:37.919 And so when he says, you give them something to eat, we can't just say, No, Jesus, you do it. 00:13:38.320 --> 00:13:44.399 Because his answer is, I am doing it, and I'm doing it through you. 00:13:45.679 --> 00:13:51.840 So let's embrace this impossible assignment Jesus is accomplishing and will continue to accomplish through us. 00:13:52.080 --> 00:13:57.759 Let's follow Jesus to dark and desolate places and bring the light of the gospel along with us. 00:13:58.000 --> 00:14:07.919 It may be a perilous mission for which we are ill prepared, but Jesus is sending us anyway, and he's coming along for the ride, providing everything that we need along the way. 00:14:08.559 --> 00:14:14.080 So, people of God, you give them something to eat. 00:14:14.720 --> 00:14:15.919 In Jesus' name. 00:14:16.799 --> 00:14:17.279 Amen.