Mark 6:35-38

Sermon Title: “You give them something to eat…”

Introduction:

Opening Scripture or Quote:

Mark 6:35-38

Attention Grabber:

The Bible says that the same disciples who have walked with Jesus, and have seen his compassion toward others, now implore Jesus to send away a crowd who is starving.

Compassion comes from the Latin word “compati,” which literally means “to suffer with.” It is more than mere empathy and care—it is the desire to help someone who is suffering, and to be able to help that person ease their pain.

“I heard (this story) from a friend who works with the down-and-out in Chicago:

A prostitute came to me in wretched straits, homeless, sick, unable to buy food for her two-year-old daughter. Through sobs and tears, she told me she had been renting out her daughter – two years old… She made more renting out her daughter for an hour than she could earn on her own in a night. She had to do it, she said, to support her own drug habit. I could hardly bear hearing her sordid story… I had no idea what to say to this woman.

At last I asked if she had ever thought of going to a church for help. I will never forget the look of pure, naïve shock that crossed her face. “Church!” she cried, “Why would I ever go there? I was already feeling terrible about myself. They’d just make me feel worse.”

What struck me about my friend’s story is that women much like the prostitute fled toward Jesus, not away from him. The worse a person felt about herself, the more likely she saw Jesus as a refuge. Has the church lost that gift? Evidently the down-and-out, who flocked to Jesus when he lived on earth, no longer feel welcome among his followers.”

(Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace?

Transition to Main Idea:

Other people have similar experiences like that with the church. Why is it that people feel better going to clubs, concerts, gangs, or parlors than to the one place that is promised to be an aid to them?

As believers we are not called to be complacent, but are called to be compassionate.

The call of a Christian is not to just feel compassion but to do compassion

Body: I believe that while Jesus can do the impossible, in requires us to do something that is uncomfortable.

Introduction: Setting of the miracle

This is the only miracle recorded in all four gospel accounts, and each one adds on to the scene at large

The Evangelist Matthew tells us that the day was far spent, and that evening had come up them all.

Mark tells us that the grass they sat on had a green hue to it.

Luke tells us that Jesus was not only teaching throughout the day, but He was also healing. And that around this time, they made their way to Bethsaida, a quiet private place.

Then John as he tends to do, brings the scene all together. He lets the reader know it was near the passover, the crowds were ill and tired, and the person they recieved food from was a little boy.

John 5 lets the reader know that Jesus had also lost John the baptist who was beheaded.

So not only was Jesus tired, hungry, and grieving, but Jesus was annoyed. The disciples in almost every account, are recorded telling Jesus to let these people go home.

Point One: Jesus tests the disciples/apostles to see where their faith was

Scripture: John 6:7

Explanation:

The crowd has been seated, the crowd has been counted, and as they look they see a great multitude of individuals waiting to be fed.

Then Jesus asks a question to Phillip. Though Phillip seemed to be a minor character in scripture, Jesus asks him a pivotal question in his earthly ministry.

Jesus asked Him, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat”. On the surface this may seem like a probing question, but John lets the reader know that this was merely a test.

Phillip’s response is Lord, it would take roughly 6.5 months to be able to feed all these people.

Jesus asks this question not to get direction, but to see His heart’s direction.

Application:

While it’s easy to criticize Phillip for showing lack of faith, Phillip was doing what many of us do.

Phillip looks at the reality of the circumstance, and could not wrap his mind around how the miraculous could happen.

And so many of us do that everyday, we just call it being realistic; but O I’m so grateful that we do not serve a God who is bound by the prison of reality.

Examples:

When God took the prophet Ezekiel through a valley of dried up, dead, no good bones, the Reality was that it was impossible for those bones to live. Yet when the breath of God from those four winds came into those dead bodies, their blood started pumping, their skin color was restored, but the REALITY was that they were dead bones.

When the children of God came to the crossroad of the read sea, God miraculously opened up their blocked road, and the walls parched up on both sides until every single one passed through. The REALITY was that it would’ve been impossible to escape from pharaoh and all of His armies, but when GOD!

There was a young man in scripture somewhere in the book of Samuel who was nothing more than a shepherd boy, and the Bible says that one day he went out into war with no armour, no shield, only a rock and a sling, and he destroyed an enemy of Israel. The reality was that David was overmatched, but when God showed up he was overpowered.

Connection:

When God asks a question, it is not based off what the circumstance is, nor is it based off what your eyes can see, but the answer is found in the one who asks the question!

Point Two: People don’t want to be accountable

Explanation:

There is still much tension in the text. It’s the same tension that we began with and it follows us now, the crowds are hungry. The people are hungry, Jesus is annoyed, Jesus is tired, The disciples are mad.

There is 5,000 men, counted. That’s not taking into account the women.

There are all of these people there, and they have nothing to eat, and no where to find food.

The disciples go to Jesus, filled with rage and uneasiness and tell Him to send these people home.

Instead of trying to figure out how they can work together in unison to make something happen, their request is send them home.

Instead of trying to come up with different evangelism tactics they tell the people, Go home.

Instead of trying to come together, pray together, lift up the church together, they look at Jesus, look at the people and say go home.

Application:

All week I asked myself why do people choose to walk away instead of helping people who are in need

Story of the man I helped in walmart

Helping other is hard to some because it requires stepping down in order to lift somebody else up, and nobody these days is willing to stoop down and minister others in service. They said Lord send them home!

We refuse to account for others, because it requires us to be accountable for them.

Point Three: The answer is always nearby

Explanation:

The disciples, much like us, spent time not realizing that the answer was among them.

The bible tells us that it was a little boy that Andrew found who gave him two fish, and five popeyes buscuits. Five pieces of barley, they found.

We are not told that it was a whole meal, but it was the meal of a little boy who, based on the bread, didn’t come from a wealthy family.

Whenever we read this text the natural inclination is to assume this was a big fried fish with buttered up Hawaiin roles but it wasn’t. This was 2 little sardines, with 5 loaves of bread. And because the meal was given to a little boy, one could assume this wasn’t all he was given, but it was all that he had left.

Maybe his momma gave him more, but throughout the day he ate the rest, and when he offered up what he had left over, somehow someway Jesus made it stretch to over 5,000 people.

And this is the part I get excited at, God doesn’t need you at 100% to use you! God doesn’t need you at full strength to use you. Maybe you’re like me t

Application:

And this is the part I get excited at, God doesn’t need you at 100% to use you! God doesn’t need you at full strength to use you. Maybe you’re like me this morning and you came here at about 75 percent strength, or maybe you’re at 5% strength, I got some good news for you. If you would just give Jesus your two little fish, watch him work a miracle.

If you would just give Jesus your five loaves, watch him make something shake!

But here it is, for Jesus to multiply what you have, you first have to give it to Him. There’s a scary word in the bible, the word is consecration and all it means is setting yourself apart for God. But that word also elicits a response from you that is similar to submission.

In other words, the miracle only happened when the little boy gave Jesus what he had left over. Some of us want the miracle without having to give up anything.

We live in an individualistic society where people are hyper-selfish and don’t think of others, but Jesus is calling us to far greater. If you want to see a miracle happen to others, it’ll require you giving up something that you hold on to.

Transition: As we end our normal service and look forward to communion may we be reminded that Jesus expects from our willingness, and only he can supply the increase.

Conclusion:

I often wonder what was life like for the boy who gave up his food for this miracle

I wonder if He became a local hero

Then I read the text and am reminded that in all of our sacrifices, only one person will receive the glory, and I am okay with that.

Final Challenge or Call to Action:

Jesus is calling for you to do something bigger than you

To live a purpose far greater than you could ever imagine.

But that requires from you, a willingness.