Feeding of the 5000 People

Feeding of the 5000 People
October 15th, 2017, Miyota Gospel Meeting
Kimito Furuta

John
6:1 After this, Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias).
6:2 A large crowd kept following him because they had seen the signs that he was performing by healing the sick.
6:3 But Jesus went up on a hillside and sat down there with his disciples.
6:4 Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.
6:5 When Jesus looked up and saw that a large crowd was coming toward him, he asked Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?”
6:6 Jesus said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do.
6:7 Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread isn’t enough for each of them to have a little.”
6:8 One of his disciples, Andrew, who was Simon Peter’s brother, told him,
6:9 “There’s a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fish. But what are these among so many people?”
6:10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was plenty of grass in that area, so they sat down, numbering about 5,000 men.
6:11 Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were seated. He also distributed as much fish as they wanted.
6:12 When they were completely satisfied, Jesus told his disciples, “Collect the pieces that are left over so that nothing is wasted.”
6:13 So they collected and filled twelve baskets full of pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
6:14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they kept saying, “Truly this is the Prophet who was to come into the world!”
[International Standard Version]

Jesus fed the 5000 people abundantly with loaves of bread. What does this incident mean to us? I would like to discuss with you today, what we can learn from His feeding of the 5000.


The meaning of Jesus' feeding bread is summarized in the last verse we just read, “When the people saw the sign that he had done, they kept saying, truly this is...” It indicates that it was a sign. Therefore, we need to realize the intention of the Lord that is hidden behind the miracle He performed there. I would like to discuss it from two perspectives today. To begin with, what kinds of people were there at this scene? And secondly, what did Jesus actually do there?


Let us look at the people who were involved in this incident. Other than Jesus, there were His disciples, the large crowd, and a boy.

The disciples were, in this situation, caretakers, so to speak. Jesus asked Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?” Philip answered, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread isn’t enough for each of them to have a little.” It was such a strange answer, wasn't it? What Jesus asked him was where they would find the bread to feed the crowd, but Philip took it as a matter of money. And, another disciple, Andrew also said something peculiar; “There’s a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fish. But what are these among so many people?” He had already drawn a conclusion that what the boy had was useless before he answered the Lord.

After all, these two disciples only relied on what their eyes could see and judged the situation based on their own reason. And it is revealed to us that, not only these two but none of His disciples was spiritually prepared to acknowledge His sign. It was for this reason that they were only given assistant roles at this event such as having people sit down or collecting the pieces of bread that were left over. Jesus must have wanted them to play more important roles. I have no idea in what way the Lord wanted to use them, but He definitely wished to use them more in His ministry. However, these verses tell us that they were not yet prepared for what it would take to serve in His ministry. And I presume that they represent many of the theological scholars and pastors of our times.

Let us look at the crowd now. They must have been from different places and backgrounds, and they had different life experiences. However, now, being united under Jesus, they sat down on the grass in circles and ate loaves of bread that were given through the hands of Jesus. But, unfortunately, most of these people were just satisfied to have their hunger filled with bread and they did not proceed any further. It can be seen from this verse:

John
6:26 Jesus replied to them, “Truly, I tell all of you emphatically, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate the loaves and were completely satisfied.

After all, people in the crowd did not consider the spiritual meanings of what was provided by Jesus. It makes me believe that they symbolize churches and worshippers of these days.

Finally, there was this boy in the crowd. He did not consider that five loaves of bread and two fish were meaningless in this situation. Instead, he handed over everything he had to the Lord hoping sincerely they would be used by Jesus and glorify Himself. And in actuality, it was not a matter at all for Jesus whether there was enough bread or not. He simply used whatever was offered to Him and gave the crowd abundant blessings. There might have been quite a few people who acted this way, but I suppose that it always has been because of people like this boy that the life of churches has been maintained throughout history. Nobody knew who this boy was; even his name is not recorded in history. It is quite clear that he did not wish to be acknowledged by others at all. He must have quickly disappeared into the crowd and he was never seen again.

Now, I would like to discuss what Jesus wanted us to understand through this feeding of 5000 people. Let us begin with what Jesus Himself said through this Chapter 6 of the Gospel according to John. This entire chapter basically revolves around the feeding of 5000 people. To begin with, Jesus revealed Himself by feeding them with the bread.

John
6:38 I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of the one who sent me.

6:46 Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who comes from God. This one has seen the Father.

6:50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that a person may eat it and not die.

6:57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will also live because of me.

That is what Jesus told them. What Jesus performed there was something that no human being could do. Jesus proved, through this miracle, that He came down from heaven.

The second thing that Jesus revealed was that He would provide all that is necessary for humans as we continue to live in this world.

John
6:35 Jesus told them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never become hungry, and whoever believes in me will never become thirsty.”

6:48 “I am the bread of life.”

6:50 “This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that a person may eat it and not die.
6:51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. And the bread I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

6:58 “This is the bread that came down from heaven, not the kind that your ancestors ate. They died, but the one who eats this bread will live forever.”

Jesus called Himself, “the bread that comes down from heaven,” which implied that He was the One who could provide the people with what was indispensable for them to continue their lives. It actually referred to the forgiveness of sins and fellowship with the Lord God. What is important for us is to come to Jesus and receive the bread of life He gives us. Then, our sins will be forgiven and we will obtain reconciliation with the Lord God.

The third thing Jesus revealed to the people as a sign was that He could give them eternal life.

John
6:39 “And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything that he has given me, but should raise it to life on the last day.
6:40 This is my Father’s will: That everyone who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him to life on the last day.”

6:47 Truly, I tell all of you emphatically, the one who believes in me has eternal life.

6:54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him to life on the last day.

6:58 “This is the bread that came down from heaven, not the kind that your ancestors ate. They died, but the one who eats this bread will live forever.”

As I mentioned earlier, Jesus has revealed to us that, just like bread is indispensable for humans to continue to live and to maintain their physical bodies, there is one thing that is absolutely necessary for us to continue to live as human beings created by God as the subject of His love and fellowship; it is Jesus Himself. He also told us that those who take bread with Him and have fellowship with Him will have eternal life. Those who believe in Jesus will be given the life of Jesus, which is eternal life. Having eternal life, needless to say, does not mean to live forever in this world, which is even dreadful to imagine. If we have eternal life in the true sense, life on this earth will not end with death. Rather, it is nothing but a preparation period before our spirits and souls are raised to heaven. For those who have obtained eternal life, to die is to have their spirits and souls raised to heaven, which is nothing but a change of residence and the way of living.

This makes it possible for us to live with joy and hope no matter what the condition of our lives is. It is for sure. We can believe it because we have seen how a great number of our predecessors in the faith ended their lives on this earth being convinced of this fact and filled with true hope.

Now, as the fourth revelation from Jesus, which is closely combined with the eternal life I just mentioned, He promised us the resurrection of our bodies. Let us read these verses again:

John
6:39 And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything that he has given me, but should raise it to life on the last day.
6:40 This is my Father’s will: That everyone who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him to life on the last day.”

6:44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him to life on the last day.

6:54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him to life on the last day.

When the earthly lives of those who have eternal life ends, their spirits and souls will be raised to heaven where Jesus is. Their bodies remain on this earth and most of their parts will decay but when Jesus comes back, new bodies will rise from the remains afresh. When Jesus returns, He will come back in an incorruptible body of glory just like when He was raised to heaven. And it is promised in the Word of the Lord that we will be transformed into the same body as this resurrected Jesus.

1 John
3:2 Dear friends, we are now God’s children, but what we will be like has not been revealed yet. We know that when the Messiah is revealed, we will be like him, because we will see him as he is.

Of course, this will happen regardless of whether they are already dead or are still alive. It is promised that those who have been raised to heaven shall live in the resurrection body, be transformed into the image of Christ and be given the body of glory that will never decay.

When Jesus fed the 5000 with bread, their hunger was sated and they were all satisfied but there was something more.

John
6:14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they kept saying, “Truly this is the Prophet who was to come into the world!”

Many people there realized that what Jesus did was absolutely impossible for human beings. They accepted His authority but many of them arrived at a wrong conclusion.

John
6:15 Then Jesus, realizing that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, withdrew again to the hillside by himself.

Although they recognized Him as the prophet who was to come into the world, they only thought of using Jesus for their own worldly purposes. They intended to crown Jesus as the king who would control the country the way they themselves wanted. But, needless to say, that was not what Jesus came into this world for. As Jesus Himself once said, He came to this world not to be served, but to serve the people and sacrifice His own life as the price for their salvation. Jesus came down from heaven to be crucified to forgive the sins of human beings and redeem them from their sins. It was totally opposite to the intention of Jesus to come to a palace in Jerusalem, be placed on the throne as a king, and be served by many people.

After admitting Jesus was the prophet who came down into this world, they interpreted His sign in the wrong way. I suppose that the difference between those who admitted Jesus as the prophet and still intended to make Jesus king and those who instantly decided to follow Him blindly was very small at the beginning. However, those who planned to make Jesus king and use Him to control the country the way they wanted must have left Him eventually. I believe that it was only those who accepted the bread from Jesus with gratitude and looked up to Him who received the true salvation only Jesus could give.

Matthew
11:28 “Come to me, all of you who are weary and loaded down with burdens, and I will give you rest.”

This is exactly the call of Jesus to us. He is calling us repeatedly to come to Him.

Isaiah
45:22 Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth. For I am God, and there is no other.

It is possible for everyone to look up to the Lord if they try to. Even if you are blind, you can do so with the eyes of your heart. When Jesus shared five loaves of bread and two fish among 5000 people, He demanded the crowd, not just to admit Him as the prophet who could do what no human being could, but to look up to Him too. It was because He knew that it would save all of them. However, the majority of the people there did not seem to act the way He wanted. It must have broken the heart of Jesus so badly. Although Jesus told the crowd that He came down from heaven; He was the bread of life; He could give them eternal life, and He could bring them the body of the resurrection, it was not necessary for them to understand the profound meaning of those words before they took the bread. All they were supposed to do was to take that bread and follow Jesus because they would have eventually understood all these things empirically if they did.

I would like to finish this sermon with some remarkable words from the Scripture.

John
6:28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to perform the actions of God?”
6:29 Jesus answered them, “This is the action of God: to believe in the one whom he has sent.”

It was such a simple and easy thing that the Lord asked them to do in this last verse. Just like looking up to Him, it is something even a three-year-old infant can do; in fact, it is even possible for a paralyzed person who lies in bed all day. It is to believe in the One who was sent by God, to believe in Jesus, to accept Him as the Saviour, to acknowledge Him as our redeemer, to embrace Him as our Lord; that is all.

John
6:34 Then they told him, “Sir, give us this bread all the time.”
6:35 Jesus told them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never become hungry, and whoever believes in me will never become thirsty.

This is exactly what will happen to those who eat the bread of life. They will never become hungry; they will never become thirsty again.

John
6:56 The person who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.
6:57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will also live because of me.

As Jesus proclaimed His intention to the people, He had never asked them to study the Scripture, to come to church, to donate their money or to live an ascetic life. He only demanded people to know Him; just look up to Him and realize who He is. That was all the Lord asked.

John
6:63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh accomplishes nothing. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

Let us all come to Jesus and look up to Him. Then, we will be given the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Furthermore, we will be liberated from our past, our guilty consciences, and ourselves. It will make it possible for us to live the time left for us in this world being filled with joy and hope.


End