2 Kings 4:42-44 Psalm 145: 10-19 Ephesians 3:14-21 John 6:1-21
The use of a lectionary, or schedule for our readings in worship, goes back to before Jesus. Jesus, himself, read from the lessons appointed for the day. The early Christian Church adopted a common lectionary and most of the mainline churches, the Catholic, Episcopal, Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Christian and many others continue to use it – though for some it is optional. The Revised Common Lectionary, developed after Vatican II, became our official lectionary within the last couple of years providing your preacher with a choice of Old Testament readings on many Sundays. After weeks of using the continuous readings in Samuel – this week I took the easy way out and selected the reading from Kings where Elisha feeds 100 people with only twenty loafs of bread– and has some left over. It is the reading that follows most closely the Gospel reading. If I had stayed with Samuel, I would have to talk about David’s affair with Bathsheba
By choosing the reading from Kings, I can spend all my time talking about miracles – not an easy concept for many who can’t help but question the authenticity of these stories. For all accounts, Jesus feeding the five thousand with little more than a sack or two of groceries is an incomprehensible deed – but it was not unheard of by the people of
As a kid I thought Jesus could do those things because he was the one and only messiah – he was God in the flesh. As for what Moses, Elijah, or Elisha did – those were just stories – I didn’t think of them in the same way. Jesus was the real thing and the miracles proved it. Later in life I believed the bible to be full of myths, or stories that contained truth without necessarily being factual. The demonstration of supernatural powers by Jesus was a literary convention used to convey the fact that Jesus was the messiah – just as the miracles performed by the Old Testament prophets demonstrated that their authority came from God. Following this logic, Jesus didn’t actually feed the five thousand with five loafs of bread and two fish. Rather, after Jesus had the people sit to eat and blessed and broke what little he had to offer, others shared what they had as well and before all was said and done everyone had eaten their fill and there was food left over. My twentieth century scientific mind could accept this account. After all, won’t we consider it a miracle if everyone in Mountain Home were convinced to go home, open their cupboards and bring what food they had to town square and share it? I suspect that if we did this, there would be enough food to feed every family for a week – with some left over.
The problem with approaching the miracles in the gospel scientifically is that it negates the possibility that Jesus did in fact feed the five thousand with so little. Not everything in life can or should be explained in logical terms. What we learn about creation through science only raises additional questions. In the Episcopal Church we are invited to seek answers – but we are also invited to live in the mystery. It is truly a wonderful way to go through life. We are free to ask questions and explore, to learn and develop our potential – and we are free to remain open to what is and will be.
Whether or not these miracles actually happened as written is not as important as the stories themselves. Elisha trusts the Lord will provide – and the Lord does provide. The apostles did not understand that the food they had was enough to feed so many, but Jesus knew. We may think we have very little to offer, after all, what can we do when the need is so great? We, like the disciples of Elisha and the apostles, have often been paralyzed by the sheer numbers of people in need – and we do nothing.
As John tells this story, I can imagine a sly grin on Jesus’ face as he asks Philip where they can buy enough food to feed such a crowd. Jesus, John says, asks this as a test – a test of his faith. Philip is amazed Jesus would even ask such a question and replies, “Six months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” Jesus and his disciples are not wealthy men and the crowd is much too large for them to feed. Andrew says there is a boy with five loaves of barley bread and two fish – but then adds, “But what are they among so many people?” That’s when Jesus says, “make the people sit down,” he takes the bread and fish, gives thanks for what God has provided and feeds the five thousand.
We may not feel we have enough, but what have can make a difference. Paul says to the Ephesians: “Now to him by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine.” Paul is speaking of Christ as dwelling within us in our hearts through faith. When Christ dwells within us – we are rooted and grounded in love, a love that surpasses knowledge. The feeding of the five thousand teaches us that God can take what little we offer and do infinitely more with it than we can conceive.
The passage in John does not end here. The people saw Jesus as the prophet who had been foretold, the prophet who had come to save them. Jesus sees they are ready to make him king, so he departs. Although the people are beginning to understand, Jesus knows they do not yet understand. Jesus has not come to be king over earthly things, but over life eternal.
The next six verses, tell the story of Jesus walking on the water. When the disciples see him coming, they are naturally afraid. It is, after all, a normal response to be afraid when we see something unknown coming directly at us. Jesus responds to their fears using the same words that God used with Moses at the burning bush – this translation reads, “it is I,” but it actually can be translated “I am,” which is the name God gives for himself when Moses asks God’s name and God says, “I am who I am (Exodus 9:14).” In this miracle, Jesus reveals his true self – his divinity, to the disciples. Then, before they can take Jesus aboard their boat, they are suddenly ashore, safe from the storm that has threatened them. Unlike this miracle story in the gospels of Matthew and Mark, Jesus does not calm the storm – he provides them safe passage. John makes it clear that God is concerned for our physical needs – food and safe passage through the storms of life.
The keys to remember are that God uses what we offer, however small, to do wondrous things; and, what we offer is from God. Even if we have worked hard to earn what we have – it was our God given talents and abilities that enabled us to do so. Rags to riches stories are popular because they give us hope for the less fortunate. Yet, for every pro athletic, there are countless young men and women who do not make the cut. We have each been given different talents and the odds are against many. But when we work together in faith, miracles can happen.
In God’s kingdom the hungry are fed. People offer what they have to God and all who are gathered are satisfied. Christ offered himself as a sacrifice for us – one man for all of humanity. He was the perfect sacrifice and through him we are fed.
Our purpose as the assembled Body of Christ is not praise and worship – though that is a large part of why we are here today – our purpose here today is to be fed so that we might go forth in the name of Christ to feed others.
