The One Who Satisfies
Preached by Benjamin Vrbicek
October 15, 2017
This morning we are in Luke 9:10–17 to study the familiar story of when Jesus feeds the 5,000 with two fish and five loaves, which, by the way, is the only miracle outside of the resurrection that occurs in all four gospels.Before I read the passage, perhaps this would be a good place to make a comment about the supernatural features of the story. Some of you may be thinking, Miracles? Food that keeps multiplying? This can’t be.These feelings might lead you in one of two directions. You might be inclined to dismiss the stories as necessarily unreliable and thus irrelevant to your life. Another approach might be to say, “No, the stories are still relevant to my life, but what looks to be supernatural, is only a misreading. Nothing supernatural is happening at all. There are natural explanations for this.”Just to be concrete on this approach, one book I looked at this week gave a list of seven different possible natural explanations. One possibility is that the story is simply about sharing and generosity; when one man—in this case, a small boy—shared his food, then everyone was inspired to do that same. Another option on the list of natural explanations was that everyone received a crumb of food. Another option was that Jesus hypnotized the crowd, which apparently took their hunger away as well.If you’re inclined to be skeptical, if not dismissive, of the supernatural in the Bible, I wonder if you’ve taken time to consider your own presuppositions that might lead you this way.For my own sake, I’ve found it more helpful to step back from this passage and the many, many other passages that prominently feature supernatural elements, and ask the question more generally about whether or not this world is all that there is.If your presuppostion is that this world is all that there is and the natural laws are all that there are, then yes, there must be a natural explanation for everything, and so when the Bible speaks of the miraculous, either the authors are misleading us or confused themselves, or we, as readers, are doing a poor job of reading. If you take the first approach, you don’t really pay attention. If you take the second approach, you end up creating natural explanations (some of them admittedly wild explanations) for what certainly looks like the supernatural.There is a lot at stake. If you dismiss the possibility of the supernatural in this passage, what you are doing is not simply saying that Jesus can’t make more food; you’re saying something more substantial. You’re saying it’s not possible that God could exist.A better way to approach this passage, we think, would be to acknowledge the possibility that there could be a God and thus supernatural events. This allows you to read the story at face value, and to see if, perhaps, the view of God presented in this passage couldn’t become attractive and compelling and convincing to you.Well, these comments are far more than we usually say about such things, but because it’s been about five sermons in a row where these same things could have been said, it seemed like a worthwhile thing to address now, even if only briefly.
Scripture Reading
If you have a Bible, please turn with me to Luke 9:10–17. If you are using the brown Bible’s on the end of the row, it’s on page 984. After I read, we’ll pray and then study this together. As I read, you’ll see that if you’re shocked by the way Jesus supernaturally satisfies the crowd’s hunger, then you’re actually in good company. The disciples, the closest followers of Jesus, didn’t see it coming either.10 On their return the apostles told him all that they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida. 11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing. 12 Now the day began to wear away, and the twelve came and said to him, “Send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions, for we are here in a desolate place.” 13 But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.” 14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 And they did so, and had them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
Prayer
This is God’s Word. Thanks be to God. Please pray with me. “Heavenly Father . . .”
Introduction
It’s been my experience that it’s more difficult to preach familiar passages, as opposed to passages that are less familiar. With an obscure passage, there is immediate interest because it’s obscure. But few stories are more familiar than this story. Yet as I studied it closely, I saw some of the details of the story more clearly than I had ever seen them before, and I for one was greatly encouraged by what this passage says about Jesus. The main takeaway is that we see God’s sufficiency best when we see it against the backdrop of our insufficiency. Let me say that again. We see God’s sufficiency best when we see it against the backdrop of our insufficiency.This was, to say the least, a week I felt my own insufficiency. I won’t go into all of the ways, but I know even when I looked out a month ago, I could tell last week would be a terribly busy week that would leave almost no time for writing a sermon. But I was wrong. It didn’t leave almost no time, it left no time.Well, that’s exaggerating. There was some time, a little time. There was a pastor’s conference on Tuesday and Wednesday in Allentown. Our church denomination is broken into 17 districts, and we’re in the eastern district. I did have a few hours at the office on Tuesday morning to work, but I didn’t realize that the three hours I had would be taken by our computer company who is helping prepare to move the office building. And then my daughter had a birthday, which was great, but then family came into town so I took a day off, and then worked on my off days to finish this. But then when working, because the building move is happening soon, I ended up getting pulled into that project for a good bit of time.And all the while—all week while I was not working on this sermon—I had this haunting suspicion that long before this sermon would be for you, it would be for me. Often, when we are squeezed, and when we are caring for those around us, we first only see natural resources, forgetting God’s supernatural provision. That’s what happened to the disciples.
1. The Setup, vv. 10–11
We’re going to re-read this story in little sections. Let’s start by looking at vv. 10–11.
10 On their return the apostles told him all that they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida. 11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing.
Some things to notice. First, this story is a continuation of the previous one. The disciples, here called apostles, returned from doing the very thing Jesus is doing in this passage: teaching about the kingdom of God and healing people. That’s an exciting but exhausting thing to be engaged in.But you know this already. It’s exhilarating to help others, to feel like you really made a difference in their lives. We have a number of people who volunteer as mentors for Center of Champions. I just heard a mentor from our church talk about how meaningful it is. But you also know it’s exhausting to be constantly helping others. It’s not something new.In v. 10 we read that Jesus was seeking, for a time, to get away from the crowds to be with his disciples. But the crowds follow him; they hunted him down. Imagine being dog tired, and then walking into Starbucks for a teeny-weeny break to enjoy a cup of dark roast, but when you get in there, it turns out everyone doesn’t actually need coffee. No, they need to talk to you, and not only talk to you, you need to solve their problems. In fact, their problems are not their problems at all; they are your problems. How would you respond? I’m sure Jason has never had this thought before, but I confess that I’ve thought pastoral ministry would be a whole lot easier if you people weren’t so needy.Verse 11 says that Jesus “welcomed them.” I’m not sure how strict you are with the definition of supernatural, but it would seem to me there is more of God’s supernatural love for needy people happening in this passage than simply the feeding that takes place. He graciously welcomed them. He graciously taught them. He graciously healed them. Jesus always has time for you and your problems.
2. The Problem, vv. 12–14a
Let’s keep going. Look at vv. 12–14a. The disciples see a problem and propose a solution. And so does Jesus, but it’s a different solution that he proposes.
12 Now the day began to wear away, and the twelve came and said to him, “Send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions, for we are here in a desolate place.” 13 But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.” 14 For there were about five thousand men.
Couple things to notice. First, we are tempted to applaud the disciples. I am. You might not think that right away, but let me tell you why you’d be tempted to hire them as your pastor. They see a problem and provide a solution. That’s a good thing, isn’t it?The disciples see that the people are making a huge sacrifice to be near Jesus. They are missing out on a day of work and the associated pay, but crowd doesn’t care because they want to hear about the kingdom of God and how it’s breaking in among and around them.But the disciples say, “Enough is enough. If they stay here any longer, they won’t make it home.” Perhaps some are too old and others are too young. This is problem. So we applaud the disciples, then, for taking the initiative. They foresee the problem and seek to address it. What’s not to love about this American, go-get-’em, church-leadership style?Jesus sees the problem, too. His disciples think too little of him. And sending sinners away from himself isn’t his plan. He tells the disciples, “You give them something to eat.”I love their response. They say, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people” (v. 13). I love that. Do you notice what their response implies? Not only have they seen the problem, but they have already thought about some various possible, and natural, solutions. “Hummm . . . lots of people to feed . . . what could we do? Well . . . how much food do we have?” From their answer, you can tell they’ve already done inventory. In another gospel account, we learn that a boy had two fish and five loaves. But that’s not enough—and they already checked. (Which, by the way, makes the “sharing” natural explanation impossible. They checked and there is clearly not enough food even if people did share.)What’s amazing, is that despite all that they have seen—Jesus healing the two women at the end of chapter 8, and the calming of the storm and the healing of the demon-possessed man in the middle of 8—their first instinct is not to seek Jesus’ help to provide. The disciple’s first instinct is to care for people in their own strength, and then when they come to the limits of their ability, rather than seeking God’s help, they give up.When Jesus tells them to give the crowd something to eat, he wants his disciples to see their insufficiently. He wants them to be confronted with their inability, with the impossibility of serving Jesus in their own strength.I don’t know what difficulties you are currently experiencing, but perhaps this is one things that God wants you to see as well. We see God’s sufficiency best when we see it against the backdrop of our insufficiency.
3. Jesus’ Satisfying Solution, vv. 14b–17
Let’s keep going. Rather than sending them away, we see Jesus’s solution to satisfy.
And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 And they did so, and had them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
I’m not sure the disciples understood what was going to happen next when they put the crowd in groups of 50s. Sometimes in the gospels we see that obedience to Jesus proceeds our complete understanding (cf., in Luke 5:5 they go fishing again after not catching anything simply because Jesus said to do so). But Jesus says, don’t send them away, group them into groups. And they obey, probably not fully understanding what would happen.Now, look again closer at v. 16. It says, “Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.” A more literal translation might read like this: “Jesus was continually giving [food] to the disciples to distribute to the people.”1 I find that fascinating.When Jesus told the disciples, “You give them something to eat,” Jesus did mean for them to give the people something to eat. But he never for meant finite, fallible, fragile disciples to rely on their own resources as they cared for the needs of others. They were to give people something to eat. But they were to do so with his power and his provision. They were to go labor until they had nothing left, then they were to go back to Jesus to get more. When Jesus tells you to love your enemies and share with those in need and to forgive those who have wronged you, he expects you to come to him for the strength to do it, and then when you run out of steam, to go back to him for more strength, and then more strength, and then more strength.And not only does Jesus provide, he more than meets the needs of the people. He gives them not just food, but what does it say? “And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces” (v. 17). Jesus doesn’t just turn water to wine, it turns it into the best wine. He doesn’t just feed the people, he satisfies. And he does so to the extent that each disciple, after they had helped everyone, had a basket filled up with the superabundance.This reminds me of another familiar passage in the gospel of John. In John 15:1, 2, 4–8 we read,
1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit . . . 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
When Jesus speaks here of “abiding in him,” I don’t think he has in mind simply that we become Christians, that is, that we trust Jesus at the beginning of our Christian life. What he says includes this, but it means more than this. It means there is an ongoing striving to do the things he requires of us, but not to do them in our own strength, but in the strength that he provides.
Conclusion
At an elder meeting the other week, we were discussing a few of the building details that hit a small snag, which is like the dozenth time this has happened, but we’ve also seen God provide a solution to the snag a dozen times. One of our elders said to all of us, I don’t want to be like those Israelites who saw God work over and over and over, but then they struggled to trust him for the present problem.” The problem is not simply an Israelite problem. It’s a people problem, even a problem for the people God has redeemed.The impulse to provide for ourselves, rather than trusting God, began in the Garden of Eden. And now, the impulse to trust ourselves, rather than God, courses through our veins and haunts all actions. And as such, then the solution the human problem must be deeper than a mere example. [Insert comments about disciples: when they are merely anti-examples, we haven’t seen the problem deep enough, nor the solution either.] We don’t just need an example, we need the Savior.Over the last few weeks, Jason and I have been pointing out that the block of passages we’ve been looking at in Luke’s gospel are there to help us understand who Jesus is. There are several reasons we’ve been saying this, but one of the clearest ways to see this is to note the frequency of people in the stories asking the very question, “Who is this Jesus?”I won’t rehearse all the times this is asked, but the verse right before where we pick up this morning, a local king hears the rumblings that Jesus is preaching about another kingdom and healing people, and many people are pledging their loyalty to that kingdom, and this is unsettling. So he wants to know who Jesus is. And then in next week’s passage, the place we’ve been building to for several weeks, you have Jesus himself look back at his disciples and asking them, “Who do you say the I am?”I won’t steal the thunder from next week’s passage, but what Jesus is that I’m the Messiah of God who suffers for the salvation of his people. In essence, Jesus says, “Not only do you see your insufficiency, but I have seen it. And I will live and die and rise so that you might be made whole again.” When it says that Jesus was preaching about the kingdom of heaven, this is what he was saying.Church, I don’t know all the challenges that God has in your life. But I do know that part of the reason they are there is to cast you back upon God. He will graciously welcome you. And he will supply you with strength . . . that is, if you’ll only see your inability and ask him for this help.
Prayer
Pray with me as the music team comes back up. Let’s pray . . .
1 The Greek word “to give” is in the imperfect tense which implies continuing action, that is, Jesus was continually giving food to the disciples to distribute.
