bread

One of Our Redeemers

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14 And at mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here and eat some bread and dip your morsel in the wine.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over. 15 When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. 16 And also pull out some from the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her.”

17 So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. 18 And she took it up and went into the city. Her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also brought out and gave her what food she had left over after being satisfied. 19 And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today? And where have you worked? Blessed be the man who took notice of you.” So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked and said, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.” 20 And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by the Lord, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!” Naomi also said to her, “The man is a close relative of ours, one of our redeemers.” 21 And Ruth the Moabite said, “Besides, he said to me, ‘You shall keep close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest.’” 22 And Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, lest in another field you be assaulted.” 23 So she kept close to the young women of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvests. And she lived with her mother-in-law. – Ruth 2:14-23 ESV

The kindness of Boaz has taken Ruth by surprise. Being a foreigner in a strange land and unfamiliar with their religious laws and customs, Ruth would not have expected this unknown man to treat her with so much dignity and respect.

Boaz went well beyond the obligations prescribed by the Mosaic Law, inviting Ruth to remain in his field under his protection. He even fed her and treated her with the same dignity afforded the maidservants who worked for him. And Ruth, fully recognizing and appreciating the kindness of this stranger, expressed her surprise at his gracious words and generous actions towards her.

“…you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not one of your servants.” – Judges 2:13 ESV

Boaz was motivated by his responsibilities as a kinsman-redeemer. According to the Mosaic Law, as a relative of Elimelech, Naomi’s deceased husband, Boaz was obligated to care for her. As a widow, Naomi was in a vulnerable position, having no means of livelihood and poor prospects for remarriage. But God had provided a safety net for situations such as this, commanding the relatives of individuals like Naomi to step in and redeem them from their distress.

Upon discovering the identity of the man in whose field Ruth had gleaned, Ruth refers to Boaz as her ga’al, her kinsman-redeemer. It is the same word used to describe God’s redemption of the Israelites out of their slavery in Egypt.

Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment.” – Exodus 6:6 ESV

Naomi had been just as impressed as Ruth with the over-the-top kindness that the landowner had shown to her. And when she found out he was a close relative, it all made sense to her. Now it was all beginning to make sense to her. Boaz was fulfilling his responsibility as her kinsman-redeemer, and this important detail did not escape Naomi’s notice.

“May the Lord bless him!” Naomi told her daughter-in-law. “He is showing his kindness to us as well as to your dead husband. That man is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers.” – Ruth 2:20 NLT

Things were looking up. Noami could begin to see a glimmer of hope in the overwhelming darkness that had marked her life for the last ten years. While the future had looked bleak and foreboding that morning, Naomi now had reason to believe that the days ahead might be brighter. And Ruth added a bit of additional good news.

“What’s more, Boaz even told me to come back and stay with his harvesters until the entire harvest is completed.” – Ruth 2:21 NLT

This dramatic change in circumstances should not be overlooked. If you recall, when Naomi had informed her two daughters-in-law that she was returning home to Bethlehem, they had expressed their desire to go with her. But she had tried to talk them out of it, providing a rather dark view of God and his recent actions in her life.

“Why should you go on with me? Can I still give birth to other sons who could grow up to be your husbands? No, my daughters, return to your parents’ homes, for I am too old to marry again. And even if it were possible, and I were to get married tonight and bear sons, then what? Would you wait for them to grow up and refuse to marry someone else? No, of course not, my daughters! Things are far more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord himself has raised his fist against me.” – Ruth 1:11-13 NLT

Yet now, with news of Ruth’s encounter with Boaz, Naomi was beginning to see things differently. But take note that Naomi recognized and commented upon the kindness of Boaz. She referred to his hesed, a Hebrew word that described the mercy or benevolence shown to those going through difficulty. It is a loyal love that expresses itself in willing sacrifice for another. And it is the kind of love Naomi had asked God to show to her two daughters-in-law because of their love to her.

“And may the Lord reward you for your kindness [hesed] to your husbands and to me.” – Ruth 1:8 NLT

God was answering her prayer. Boaz had shown kindness to Ruth and Naomi recognized it. But at this point in the story, Naomi makes no mention of God’s hesed. There is no indication that she saw the hand of God in the events of that day. She was glad that things had worked out so well for Ruth and was excited that Boaz had been the owner of the field where Ruth had gleaned that day. But at no point does Naomi express her recognition of God’s sovereign hand in her life. She simply tells Ruth to take advantage of their seeming good fortune.

“Good!” Naomi exclaimed. “Do as he said, my daughter. Stay with his young women right through the whole harvest. You might be harassed in other fields, but you’ll be safe with him.” – Ruth 2:22 NLT

Practical advice from a very pragmatic woman. This was all too good to be true, and Naomi wanted Ruth to take full advantage of the serendipitous circumstances in which they found themselves. Ruth had brought home far more grain than Naomi had expected. And the unexpected news that Ruth had wandered into the fields of one of Elimelech’s kinsman had been an unexpected and much-welcomed boon to Naomi.

Yet, neither of these women had any idea what God had in store for them. Their expectations were not ambitious. They were simply looking to survive. As Naomi had told her two daughters-in-law, she was too old to even consider remarriage. And Ruth was a Moabite widow living in the land of Judah, so her prospects of finding a husband were limited as well. They were content with Ruth continuing to glean grain from the fields of Boaz. Their luck had changed. Things were looking up. But little did they realize that all of this was because God was looking down on them. And He had far greater plans in store for them than they could have ever imagined. While the prospects of gleaning grain in a safe environment was good enough for Naomi and Ruth, God had something far better planned.

Yahweh, the kinsman-redeemer of Israel was about to do something that would eventually provide spiritual sustenance for generations of Jews and Gentiles.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

The Blessing of Brokenness

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26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31 Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 32 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 33 Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” 34 Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 35 Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. – Matthew 26:26-35 ESV

break-bread-300x178Jesus and His disciples had gathered in the upper room of a borrowed house somewhere in the city of Jerusalem in order to celebrate the Passover together. It was at this gathering that Jesus revealed the one who would betray Him: Judas. One of the original 12 disciples, Judas had already made a deal with the chief priests, agreeing to turn Jesus over to them in return for a bounty of 30 pieces of silver. And, when Jesus exposed Judas as the one who would betray Him, rather than repent and beg for forgiveness, Judas left the room, intent on doing what he had agreed to do.

Jesus shared some serious words of warning regarding Judas.

“…woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.” – Matthew 26:24 ESV

Judas’ decision to betray Jesus was part of God’s redemptive plan. Jesus had been well aware of it and knew it was necessary for God’s will to be fulfilled. But Judas had made the willful choice to betray his master and friend. He put his own self-interests ahead of any devotion he may have had for Jesus. And, evidently, Judas had done a masterful job of disguising his true nature from the rest of the disciples, because when Jesus had announced that one of them would betray Him, none of them assumed it would be Judas. Instead, they each wondered if he was speaking of them. But Jesus made it perfectly clear who the betrayer was.

“It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.” – John 13:26-30 ESV

His departure must have left the rest of the disciples in a state of disbelief. It’s interesting to consider that no one among them attempted to stop Judas, not even the normally impulsive Peter. Judas simply left the room, and the meal continued.

What happened next takes on an even more serious tone when we consider that Judas was on his way to meet with the religious leaders in order to set in motion the betrayal and ultimate arrest and crucifixion of Jesus. He was about to initiate a chain of events that would lead to the death of the Son of God. And as Judas made his way through the streets of Jerusalem, with the words of Jesus echoing in his mind, Jesus addressed His remaining disciples.

He took a piece of unleavened bread, prayed over it, then divided it among them. And He announced, “Take, eat; this is my body.” In his gospel account, Luke adds, “which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19 ESV). It may be that, at this moment, some of the disciples recalled the words of Jesus spoken earlier in His ministry:

“…the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” – John 6:33 ESV

“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” – John 6:35 ESV

“I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” – John 6:48-51 ESV

Jesus was about to lay down His life as a sacrifice for the sins of mankind. His body would be beaten, broken, and bruised. He would have His life brutally taken from Him by those whose very existence was His doing. Yet, for the sake of His disciples, Jesus commemorated what was about to happen, so that they might always remember the source of their salvation. His death would be the means of their eternal life. No amount of good works could earn for them what Jesus was about to provide for them by the sacrifice of His own life.

And then Jesus took one of the cups of wine, prayed over it, and said, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:27-28 ESV). Jesus, as if to emphasize what He had just said, pointed the disciples to the sacrificial nature of His pending death. His blood would be poured out, like the lambs used in the temple sacrifices.

On the day that Jesus had appeared at the Jordan River to be baptized, John the Baptist had announced:

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” – John 1:29 ESV

Jesus was the consummate paschal lamb, the sinless substitute who would offer up His life as payment for the sin debt of fallen humanity. And the author of Hebrews clarified the necessity of Jesus’ blood sacrifice.

…without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. – Hebrews 9:22 ESV

There was no other way. Jesus had to die. His body would be broken, and His blood would be spilled because the just wrath of God against the sins of mankind had to be satisfied or propitiated. And the apostle John would later write, “He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 1:29 ESV). And John would go on to describe this sacrificial act of Jesus as an expression of God’s love for sinful mankind.

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. – 1 John 4:10 ESV

All of this had to have struck the disciples like a lead weight. It was all so unexpected and unbelievable. And none of it lined up with their hopes and dreams concerning the Messiah. With each word Jesus spoke, their world collapsed in on them, and it was about to get even darker as the night progressed.

Jesus informed them that this would be their last meal together, but assured them that they would feast together again at a later date, most likely a reference to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

But with the Passover meal completed, they made their way through the dark night, out the eastern gate of the city to the Mount of Olives. And Jesus dropped yet another bomb on His already shell-shocked disciples.

“You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’” – Matthew 26:31 ESV

Every single one of them would desert Him at His greatest hour of need. Under the coming persecution of the religious leaders, the disciples would scatter and hide. But upon hearing this pronouncement from Jesus, the always impulsive Peter said, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away” (Matthew 26:33 ESV). Those words would come back to haunt Peter. And Peter would make matters even worse for himself by refuting Jesus’ claim that he would deny the Lord three times.

“Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” – Matthew 2:35 ESV

Peter was well-intentioned, and with his bold claim, he spoke for all of the disciples. But none of them knew what was about to happen. They had no idea just how bad things were going to get in the next few hours. But Jesus did. And yet, He gave them a subtle, yet confident bit of news:

“…after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” – Matthew 26:32 ESV

Jesus knew He was going to die, but He was also confident that He would rise again. That was the Father’s plan. His death was necessary, but so was His resurrection. His death would serve as the payment for the sins of mankind. But His restoration to life would be proof that His death had been sufficient and fully satisfactory to God.

This dark cloud had a silver lining, even though the events of the next few hours would be horrific for the disciples. They would be agonizingly painful for Jesus. But He faced it all with confidence and faith in His Father’s will. And what He was about to do, He did willingly.

“No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.” – John 10:18 NLT

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Day 116 – Matthew 26:21-25; Mark 14:18-21; Luke 22:21-23; John 13:21-30

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God’s Perfect Plan.

Matthew 26:21-25; Mark 14:18-21; Luke 22:21-23; John 13:21-30

Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl.” And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him.” – John 13:26-27 NLT

It is easy to read the account of Jesus and His disciples having their Passover meal together and treat each of the various elements as separate incidents. We see the washing of the feet as one scene. Then we see Jesus breaking the bread and giving it to His disciples as another. The revealing by Jesus that one of them would betray Him is yet another separate scene in our minds. But they are all part of a whole. This was one solitary evening that revolved around the Passover meal. In and of itself, this was a significant occasion, one that held great value in the hearts and minds of the disciples. But on this particular evening, it had taken on much greater significance because of what was about to happen. There is a tension in the room that, for the most part, goes unnoticed by the disciples. They are oblivious to all that is happening behind the scenes on both an earthly and spiritual level, that will bring this week and Jesus’ life to a climax.

It is important to remember that this was a spiritual battle. It had been since the day Jesus was born. Satan had been out to destroy Jesus from the moment He arrived in Bethlehem as a baby. You recall the efforts of Herod when he received news from the Magi that a king of the Jews had been born. This would have been up to two years after Jesus’ birth. As the Roman-appointed king of the Jews, Herod took this news badly and had all the baby boys two-years and younger living in the vicinity of Bethlehem killed. Who was driving his actions? Satan. Because he knew who Jesus was and he was desperate to eliminate Jesus. At the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry, immediately after His baptism, He was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness where He spent 40 days and nights fasting. At the end of that time, weakened by thirst and hunger, Satan showed up. His mission was to convince Jesus to give up His mission. He offered Him alternatives. He appealed to His senses, His vanity, His pride. All things any normal human being would have given in to. But Jesus was the God-man, and would not listen to the lies of the enemy. Eventually, Satan left Him, but he never gave up his quest to eliminate Jesus. He used the religious leaders to attack Him. He attempted over and over again to discredit Him. And finally, Satan would put it into the hearts of men to destroy Him. He believed that by killing Jesus he could destroy God’s plan. By eliminating the messenger, he could stop the message. You see, even Satan had a limited perspective. He didn’t know the end of the story.

It was in the middle of the Passover meal that Jesus chose to reveal the sobering news that one of their own would betray Him. “But here at this table, sitting among us as a friend, is the man who will betray me. For it has been determined that the Son of Man must die. But what sorrow awaits the one who betrays him.” (Luke 22:21 NLT). This news was shocking to the disciples. John records, “The disciples looked at each other, wondering whom he could mean” (John 13:22 NLT). Peter got John’s attention and had him ask Jesus who He was talking about? They wanted to know who it was who would do such a thing. A few even asked if it was them. Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl” (John 13:26 NLT). This is significant.

There are many elements to the Passover meal that carried special significance and meaning. Everything had a purpose and was a symbol that was meant to communicate a spiritual truth. At this point in the meal, Jesus more than likely took a piece of unleavened bread, wrapped in around a small portion of the sacrificial lamb and then dipped it into a solution made with bitter herbs. Each of these elements on their own would have carried specific symbolism related to the release of the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt. The lamb represented the innocent, spotless lambs the people had killed and whose blood they had sprinkled on the door posts and lintels of their homes in order to turn away God’s wrath in the form of the death angel. The unleavened bread had always represented the haste by which the people departed Egypt. They had no time to add yeast to their flour. But during the meal, Jesus would state that the unleavened bread now represented His own body, which was going to be broken for them. The bitter herbs were symbolic of the suffering of the people. Do you catch the symbolism as it relates to Jesus? The broken body of the sacrificed lamb, wrapped in sinlessness and dipped in suffering.

It says that Jesus took the bread, dipped it into the bowl and handed to it Judas. What is amazing is that Judas ate it. You would have thought that he would have rejected it and vehemently denied that he was the one. But instead, he took the bread, wrapped around the small piece of lamb, dipped in the bitter herbs and ate it. And John makes it clear that it was at this point that Satan entered into him. He had already made up his mind to do what he was going to do long before Satan entered into him. But Satan is an opportunist and he sought to utilize Judas’ hardened heart to his advantage. The deal between Judas and the high priest had already been struck. Now it was just a matter of following through on his commitment. “So Judas left at once, going out into the night” (John 13:30 NLT). The sinless, innocent Son of God, was about to have His body broken and undergo the most severe suffering known to man. Satan thought this was all his doing. He thought he had come up with the perfect plan, but little did he know that this was all the preordained work of God Himself. Peter makes this point clear in his sermon preached immediately after the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Addressing the predominantly Jewish audience, he said, “But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed” (Acts 2:23 NLT). This was all part of God’s perfect plan. It all happened just as God had orchestrated it, long before the foundation of the world. We don’t know what Judas was thinking or what his motivation was. But he had a limited perspective. So did Satan. He is not omniscient or all-knowing. He truly believed this was the beginning of the end of Jesus, but he would prove to be so wrong. This was beginning, but of the end of him. Jesus was going to conquer sin, death and Satan with His actions. His betrayal was part of the plan. It had to happen just the way it did. And Jesus had to die in just the way He did. It was all part of God’s perfect plan of redemption.

Father, I can’t thank You enough for what You planned and Your Son accomplished. At no point were you ever out of control. There was never a moment when Satan had the upper hand. You were working Your plan to perfection, down to the last detail. And so I should trust that You are still working Your perfect plan perfectly today. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

Day 64 – Matthew 16:5-12; Mark 8:14-26

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Deeper Truths.

Matthew 16:5-12; Mark 8:14-26

“You have eyes – can’t you see? You have ears – can’t you hear?” – Mark 8:18 NLT

The disciple were just ordinary men. Most of them were uneducated, even by the standards of their day. And each of them had willingly left behind whatever career they had chosen for themselves, in order to follow Jesus and learn from Him. It was a common practice for young men to follow a rabbi and become His disciples. But the disciples probably had no idea just what they were getting themselves into when they took up after Jesus. This was going to be one wild ride. Jesus was not like any other rabbi or teacher. He was the Son of God and the long-awaited Messiah. He had unprecedented power and unparalleled teachings. Learning from Jesus was like drinking from a fire hose. There was more truth than they could handle. Everything He said and did caused them to have to rethink everything they thought they knew about God, religion, life, ministry, the Messiah, and His coming Kingdom.

But what I love about them is their ordinariness. These guys were just like me. They didn’t always come across as the brightest bulbs in the box. They could be stubborn, insensitive, uncaring, prideful, argumentative, overly competitive, and at times, just plain stupid. But then, so can I. Their hearts were in the right place, but they were having to deal with a lot of issues that sometimes blinded them to the truth of what Jesus was trying to teach them. They were just men, and they tended to get stuck on an earthly level, obsessing about things that didn’t really matter. Today’s passages share just such an occasion. They have crossed back over the lake, and when they arrive on the other side, Jesus makes a comment regarding the Pharisees, “Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matthew 16:6 NLT). Now the disciples were already a little put out, because they realized that they didn’t bring any bread with them. And what makes this particularly funny is that they had had seven baskets full of bread left over from when Jesus fed the 4,000. They just forgot to bring any of it with them. So, the disciples get into a heated argument over the fact that nobody had brought any bread. They somehow think that Jesus is talking about bread, and so they start passing blame and pointing fingers. Jesus stops them right in their tracks. “You have so little faith! Why are you arguing with each other about having no bread? Don’t you understand even yet? Don’t you remember the 5,000 I fed with five loaves, and the baskets of leftovers you picked up? Or the 4,000 I fed with seven loaves, and the large baskets of leftovers you picked up? Why can’t you understand that I’m not talking about bread?” (Matthew 16:7-11 NLT). Ouch! That had to have hurt. But Jesus is trying to get them to understand something far more important and life threatening than a lack of bread. It is as if He is saying, “I can get you plenty of bread when you need it. That’s not a problem.” But the greatest threat to their lives was false teaching. The kind of false teaching that the Pharisees and Sadducees were spreading among the people under the guise of truth. Like yeast, this teaching was working its way through the nation of Israel, contaminating the minds of the people against Jesus and His teaching. Ultimately, they would turn the people against the disciples as well.

Their obsession with temporal, physical things was preventing them from understanding the more significant issues that threatened the cause of Christ. They were majoring on the minors. Jesus could provide them with plenty of bread. He had already shown His ability to do that. But He was much more concerned that they understood why He was so strongly opposed to the religious leadership of the day. They needed to see the danger of following their ways and listening to their teaching. Because they were wrong. Regardless of how spiritual and righteous they may appear, they were prideful, arrogant men who were teaching a different kingdom and rejecting the very Son of God. Better to go hungry than feed on the false food these men offered up on a daily basis.

Jesus wanted the disciples to listen and learn. He wanted them to see the world around them with new eyes. The message He would leave them to take to the world would be opposed by these same religious leaders. They would face ongoing resistance from the Pharisees and Sadducees. Jesus wanted them to understand just how dangerous these men were. They were not allies. They were not on the same team. Their message stood in direct opposition to that of Jesus. And they would continue to be a stumbling block for many when it came to the Good News of Jesus Christ. And that piece of information was far more important than who forgot to bring the bread.

Father, it is so easy to focus on the wrong thing in this life. We can easily take our eyes off the task at hand and obsess about things that have no eternal significance. Help us stay focused. Help us to see what is really important to You and Your Son. Because we are so effected by the physical, we can easily get distracted by physical things like food, clothes, money, shelter, etc. But there are far more dangerous and subtle threats to our lives and to Your Kingdom. Open our eyes so we can see what You see. Amen.

Ken Miller

Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

Day 54 – John 6:1-14

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A Lesson In Limitlessness.

John 6:1-14

“Jesus soon saw a huge crowd of people coming to look for him. Turning to Philip, he asked, ‘Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?’” – John 6:5 NLT

John gives us a unique insight into this familiar story. Matthew, Mark and Luke all record that as the day grew late, the disciples came to Jesus and asked Him to send the crowds away. It was getting close to dinner time and they would have to find someplace to eat. John gives us the added insight that “it was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration” (Luke 6:4 NLT). Which means that there were more people in this vicinity as Jews were making the long trek to Jerusalem for Passover. So that explains why the disciples mentioned the crowds having to find somewhere to buy food rather than simply return to their own homes. Many of these people would have been pilgrims, just passing through on their way to Jerusalem for Passover. Inns were few and far between. There would have been few places to eat or sleep. This only intensifies the need of the moment.

At some point, Jesus turns to Philip and asks, “Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?” (John 6:5 NLT). We’re not told why Jesus singled out Philip, but it was probably because he was from the town of Capernaum, which was about nine miles from where they were standing. He would have known all the towns and villages in the area. Interestingly enough, Philip’s response didn’t bring up the fact that there weren’t enough places around there to buy food. Instead, he pointed out that their real problem was a lack of resources. They didn’t have enough money to buy the food to feed that many people. So he simply responded, “Even if we worked for months, we wouldn’t have enough money to feed them!” (Luke 6:7 NLT). We don’t know why the other Gospel writers didn’t record this exchange. It may have been that Jesus did it in private and only John was there to overhear it. John had a unique relationship with Jesus and always seemed to be at His side. So he could have been there when Jesus had this conversation with Philip. But we’re told that Jesus was simply testing Philip, to see what he would say and do, given the circumstances. Jesus already knew what He was going to do. Remember, the disciples had just returned from their short-term mission trip where they had experienced first-hand the power and authority given to them by Jesus. They had cast out demons and healed all kinds of diseases. Now they found themselves facing a new kind of problem, a different kind of need. How would they respond? What would they do?

Philips response is totally normal and natural, but it reveals a limited perspective. He was judging their capacity to solve the problem based on human and physical limits. There were too many people and not enough money. Case closed. The need outweighed their resources. Even when they found a young boy with five barley loaves and two small fish, Andrew said, “What good is that with this huge crowd?” (Luke 6:9 NLT). They had limited resources. But Jesus was about to show them new way of looking at things. He was going to change their perspective by taking what little they had and doing much with it. The real lesson was going to be that nothing can limit God. Jesus had everyone sit down. We don’t know the exact number of people, but chances are, if there were 5,000 men alone, there were probably at least an additional 5,000 women and children present. So at minimum, there were 10,000 plus people in the crowd that day. Jesus took the fives loaves and the two fish, gave thanks to God, then began breaking them apart, giving them to the disciples to distribute among the people. “And they all ate as much as they wanted” (Luke 6:11 NLT). John tells us that Jesus did not stop until everyone was completely full and satisfied. This was not a case of careful rationing of what they had. It was a miraculous multiplying of what appeared to be not enough. Jesus used the limitless power of God to produce a limitless supply of food. Nobody went without. And nothing was wasted. Jesus had the disciples pick up what was not eaten and there were twelve baskets filled with the leftover scraps the people didn’t eat. No money was used to solve this problem. There was no pooling of resources in order to produce a solution. Surely the disciples could have come up with a plan to take up an offering and then use that money to go and buy food for the people. And if they had succeeded, they would have taken credit for having solved the problem on their own. But Jesus wasn’t really interested in how or what they could do. He was trying to get them to understand that God solves human problems by heavenly means. I have to believe that there was subtle message from Jesus to the disciples in all of this. He was breaking bread and handing it to the disciples, who then passed it out among the people. The day was coming when Jesus, the Bread of Life, would be broken on a Roman cross, and the disciples would be tasked with passing on the message of His death and resurrection to people in need all around the world. And the day right after this event happened, Jesus would say, “The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world” (John 6:33 NLT). The people responded by asking Jesus to give them some of this bread. To which He replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35 NLT). Jesus would go on to tell them, “Yes, I am the bread of life! Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, but they all died. Anyone who eats the bread from heaven, however, will never die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh” (John 6:48-51 NLT).

The real message on the hillside that day wasn’t just about Jesus being able to miraculously feed thousands of people with next to nothing at His disposal. It was about something far greater and more important. The people who ate the food that day would have been hungry again in just a few hours. Their satisfaction would only have lasted a little while. They were amazed at Jesus had done and wanted to crown Him king right then and there. But they had yet to eat of the Bread of Life. They were still spiritually needy and condemned by their own sin. But not long from this moment, the disciples would be handing out a new form of sustenance and salvation that would have the potential to change the lives of these people forever. Jesus would give His life so that others may live. He would be broken so that others might be healed. He would suffer so that others would not have to. That’s the real message behind the miracle. We can’t save ourselves. Our resources are limited. But God has a plan to meet our need, and His name is Jesus.

Father, thank You Jesus. Thank You for providing a solution to my problem. My sin was great, but Your solution was greater. You provided a way to satisfy my spiritual hunger and give me life when I was faced with certain death. Never let me lose sight of the real message of this story. It isn’t about bread and fishes, but about the Bread of Life – Jesus Christ – the only answer to the spiritual hunger of the world. Amen.

Ken Miller

Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org