Read John 6:1-9. Circle the words that stand out to you. What is the Lord saying to you?
1Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), 2 and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. 3 Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. 4 The Jewish Passover Festival was near.
5 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6 He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.
7 Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!”
Digging Deeper
It’s impossible. It’s not going to work. We can’t do it. When a task is greater than our own abilities and available resources, it’s easier to shut down an idea than to attempt it. It’s easier to see the reality of the obstacles and the situation than to see the possibilities.
Jesus saw the crowds of people. The disciples saw that same crowd. Yet they saw the situation very differently. Jesus proposes a seemingly preposterous question, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” I don’t think the disciples were carrying that much change with them. I don’t think there was a grocery store nearby and even if there were one or two bakeries, they won’t have enough bread to sell to that crowd. On top of that, it is approaching sunset and everything will be closed. The answer to Jesus’ question is obvious, nowhere.
If Jesus sent them away, there would probably be massive rush to the villages. I can just picture people running ahead of the crowd to hoard whatever food they can find. Only to leave empty shelves for the sick, lame and families with young children. There will be nothing for them to eat.
What’s the solution? Take up an offering. Crowd control of everyone to stay in place. Direct the disciples to buy the bread in the closest town. Create a system to provide food for the children first because the adults can go hungry until they get home! That would be my plan given the situation.
If we were there, how would you respond to Jesus asking us this question: “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” How would you and I process the request of Jesus and what would we say to Him? How do we evaluate and respond at a seemingly impossible task? Does our answer consider the God-Factor at all?
-Kingston