Read John 6:8-15. Circle the words that stand out to you. What is the Lord saying to you?
8 Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, 9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?”
10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.
12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
14 After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.” 15 Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.
Digging Deeper
At church’s potluck, are you the first in line or the last in line? Being a senior, I am thankful that I am able to move ahead of the line. People are most gracious to seniors for letting them cut in line or even better when the food is brought to them. I have never been without any food at a potluck dinner.
Not trying to be mean, but in a church potluck, I have seen some people stack their plate to the fullest. They must be really hungry! I think in their hunger, they forget that there are others who are behind them. If you are usually last in line, you may not have noticed, but the “best” dish is usually gone before you get there! Being a senior has it’s privileges!
If you were there sitting at the back of the crowd, would you think the bread and fish will make it to you? Sitting down means that there can’t be a rush to push one’s way upfront for the food. Everyone had to wait. As the were disciples going back and forth to Jesus to feed the crowd, would you be wondering, “How is Jesus making that much bread and where is He getting all that fish? How is this even possible?” When one of the disciples bring the basket of fish and loaves to you, how many would you take? I think I would grab at least 2 bread and 2 fish to make myself 2 small sandwiches.
Again, if you were a part of the crowd and were there sitting and eating the bread and fish, what would your opinion of Jesus be? Is He a just a man? Is He an illusionist? Is He a Prophet like Moses or Elijah? Who is this man and would you want to know more about this him? Just on this experience the crowd wanted to make Him king. What position would you give Him?
-Kingston