A Lesson from Bread and Fish

John 6

Bread and Fish for All

1-4After this, Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee (some call it Tiberias). A huge crowd followed him, attracted by the miracles they had seen him do among the sick. When he got to the other side, he climbed a hill and sat down, surrounded by his disciples. It was nearly time for the Feast of Passover, kept annually by the Jews.

5-6When Jesus looked out and saw that a large crowd had arrived, he said to Philip, "Where can we buy bread to feed these people?" He said this to stretch Philip's faith. He already knew what he was going to do.

7Philip answered, "Two hundred silver pieces wouldn't be enough to buy bread for each person to get a piece."

8-9One of the disciples—it was Andrew, brother to Simon Peter—said, "There's a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But that's a drop in the bucket for a crowd like this."

10-11Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." There was a nice carpet of green grass in this place. They sat down, about five thousand of them. Then Jesus took the bread and, having given thanks, gave it to those who were seated. He did the same with the fish. All ate as much as they wanted.

12-13When the people had eaten their fill, he said to his disciples, "Gather the leftovers so nothing is wasted." They went to work and filled twelve large baskets with leftovers from the five barley loaves.

14-15The people realized that God was at work among them in what Jesus had just done. They said, "This is the Prophet for sure, God's Prophet right here in Galilee!" Jesus saw that in their enthusiasm, they were about to grab him and make him king, so he slipped off and went back up the mountain to be by himself.

This passage struck me, in a lot of different ways. First of all, Phillip saw the situation as impossible, even though he was in the presence of Jesus. He failed to realize the power in front of his face. Next, before Jesus did anything else, He gave thanks to God, acknowledging by Whom all is given, provided, and multiplied by. Another thing: There was not "just enough" or "wow, we just slid by!" There was abundance. A picture of how God blesses us and goes so far beyond JUST meeting a need, but shows His love for us in giving us so much more than we deserve. Next, they demonstrated good stewardship of what they were blessed with; gathering the extras and not wasting anything. Do I waste the blessing God pours out because it is more than just what I need, or am I a good steward of it? Last, but in no way least, it was not in any way, shape, or form about what that little boy had to offer. It had nothing to do with that and everything to do with a heart of surrender and trust for God to do what only He could. What is my heart attitude with the life I offer to God? Do I offer all of it? Do I hesitate or hold back because I think "It's just not good enough..."? Do I think, "surely this little bit could never make an impact..." On its own; no. But when we bring something before God and let Him bless it and work what He desires through it, it is not about what we have to offer, but entirely about Who He is and what He does.