Kingdom Math 101

The disciples are excited about all they had done and taught. They’re eager to tell Jesus all about it and compare notes. Maybe you recall kids crashing through the door after a tournament, tired but full of stories of victory and near misses. Same thing here: The disciples have stories to tell, adventures to describe, and the thrill of saying: “You think that was something? Let me tell you what Thomas and I did!”

It wasn’t working. The crowds make it so you can’t hear yourself think! Jesus is so swamped with people, he and the disciples couldn’t even eat, never mind debrief!

They loaded a boat and headed to a quiet place. They were retreating: Alone-time with Jesus and his disciples in a remote place. Great idea! Sign me up!

Maybe you’ve heard how frenzied fans pursue their heroes. It happened to Jesus. People followed Jesus to the pier and watched Jesus’ crew shove off. Either not much wind or the apostles weren’t putting full effort into the oars. Young men could keep up running along the shore. Those less fit could follow the strung-out crowd.

By time Jesus and his disciples landed and got out of the boat, a crowd was waiting for them. More people streamed in from all the towns. So much for a solitary place.

You know how this feels:

Kids are in bed. You’ve got popcorn and a comforter ready to watch rom-com with your spouse. Press “play” seems to activate first cries: a baby to nurse, a toddler to cuddle …

Night out to catch up with siblings. Phone rings: a friend interrupts with a crisis. She pours her heart out ...

You care about kids and friends but having them interrupt time you’ve blocked off for yourself is tough to swallow.

That’s the situation Jesus and disciples face. Yet when Jesus sees the large crowd, his heart melts with compassion for them. He compares them to sheep without a shepherd. It’s an OT phrase, describing God’s people without leaders or with unfaithful leaders. It fits.

If you’re reading through Mark’s gospel with us, Herod Antipas’ banquet is fresh in your mind. Big birthday bash with booze and dancing. When promised a reward for dancing, Herod’s stepdaughter wants John the Baptist’s head on a platter. B/c of his guests and promises, Herod can’t refuse.

Remember: Key Question for Mark: Who is Jesus?

Is Mark setting up a comparison between Herod’s Antipas’ banquet and the feast Jesus provides in the wilderness?

Is Mark letting his readers compare King Herod to Jesus the Messiah?

The crowd evokes compassion from Jesus. He gives up his plans with his disciples and teaches the crowd.

Meanwhile the disciples watch as shadows grow. It’s late in the day. People gotta go home for supper. There’s no food here. No Tim Hortons as far as the eye can see. Mark describe it as quiet, solitary, remote place: 3X wilderness.

When the disciples present the problem to Jesus, his response is surprising. “You give them something to eat.”

Jesus has deep compassion for the people. Not just their growling stomachs – these people have just chased Jesus along the shore, following a boat around the lake so they could hear Jesus teach and bask in his compassion, his care, and the breath of heavenly air that accompanies Jesus. They want what Jesus is offering. They want to come and see . . .

But the disciples are stuck on ordering dinner. They do some quick math. Bread for 5000, delivery to remote place, add a tip, and you’re looking at 200 denarii – wages for 200 days labour. Let’s call it 27,500 CAD today.

Disciples’ question: Is Jesus really telling us “to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?”

That’s one approach to take. But the disciples seem to forget the experiences they’re bursting to tell Jesus. They’re reunited after preaching repentance, driving out demons, and healing the sick.

They seem to forget they didn’t dig the teaching and miraculous signs of their mission trip out of their own pockets. They preached, drove out demons, and healed on Jesus’ authority. Earlier in the chapter:

Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits. Mark 6:7 (NIV)

Disciples sent on Jesus’ authority. The goal is not a magic show. They’re sent out to deliver a taste of the coming kingdom of God. Their mission has the flavour of Jesus’ victory over illness, hunger, and evil powers.

Jesus feeding 5000 men from 5 loaves and 2 fish is connected to the celebration of the LS. I don’t just mean that like the people sitting in 50s and 100s so the disciples could distribute the food, we’re sitting in orderly fashion so that the elders can distribute the bread and cup efficiently too.

The feast in this remote place is what happens when God’s people experience the closeness and compassion of God.

It’s connected to the way God provided food in the wilderness for the Israelites in Moses’ day.

It’s connected to Elisha feeding 100 people from 20 loaves of barley bread in 2 Kings 4.

The compassion and providence of the Lord breaks through in power. People glimpse God’s providence and compassion characterizing life in the kingdom of God.

The cool thing is that Jesus’ disciples are ambassadors of that kingdom. Jesus’ disciples have authority to proclaim the kingdom, to let people experience Jesus’ victory over sin and evil, and to get a taste of the renewed creation where and abundance of food can be enjoyed. That’s how the feast with Jesus in the wilderness on a remote beach is related to the LS.

Coming to the LS is an admission that we’re hungry and thirsty for communion with God and long for a place in God’s family. It’s not our stomach growling for food; it’s our heart moaning for God’s compassion and grace. It’s an appeal for God to provide the grace and reconciliation we don’t deserve and can’t pull out of our own pockets.

On our own, we’re cut off from God and from others. Sin is a barrier b/t us and God in all his goodness and majesty. That’s why Jesus came into the world. He’s the only one that can atone for our sin and cleanse us from disobedience so we can experience the closeness with God and others that we long for. Jesus’ victory on opens the way for us to come to the table with the confidence of Ps. 23:

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely your goodness and love will follow me

all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:5–6 (NIV)

When we come to the Lord’s table, the bread makes us think of Jesus’ crucified body. The cup reminds us of Jesus’ blood, shed for the forgiveness of our sin.

In Mark’s gospel, the cross is where Jesus wins his victory over sin and death and evil. Jesus’ resurrection and the empty tomb are an assurance that we have life with Jesus and for Jesus.

All the benefits and blessings of faith in Jesus are conveyed to us by God the HS as we eat the bread and drink the cup. It’s a sacred moment, the mysterious work of God, feeding and sustaining our faith.

All around us, we experience people who are hungry for what Jesus offers. Sometimes it is literally food. Deacons get these phonecalls all the time, esp. at the end of the month. As ambassadors of God’s kingdom and servants of Crosspoint, the deacons offer help.

Sometimes it’s the brokenness of evil forces – the lies of the evil one, pulling us far from family, friends, and ultimately from God. Elders and other believers explain the gospel, speaking the truth from God’s word about sin, salvation, and God calling and equipping us for service.

Ill health . . . mental illness – in medical field and as friends and family, you offer encouragement, compassion, and appeal for God’s presence and help in prayer.

In these situations, Jesus turns to us as his disciples and says, “You give them something to eat.”

Like the disciples facing the incredible task of feeding 5000 men in a remote place, we don’t work with our own resources.

It’s amazing math:

Disciples + best efforts ≠ food for 5000

Disciples + Jesus = food for 5000

It’s part of our job, our calling as agents and ambassadors of the kingdom of God. We get to reflect Jesus’ deep compassion because the powers, politics, and institutions of the world . . .

It takes a human to give compassion, to feed the deep hunger in our culture for hope, grace, and love. This is not something you can pull out of your own pocket – although admittedly some people find it easier than others because that’s how God wired them.

If you are a disciple of Jesus’, the HS gives you power and Jesus gives you authority to represent the victory of Jesus over all evil and all brokenness. You are an ambassador for God’s kingdom, a breath of fresh air in the gloom of a world stained by sin and disobedience. By your care and compassion, you can give people a taste of the kingdom of God.

 There’s an invitation on the wall above the doors to the sanctuary. It’s an invitation every time you step through the doors: “Come and see.”

But there’s also a reminder over the doors to outside. “Go and tell ...” Go and tell the good news of Jesus’ victory. I want you all to be able to explain what Jesus has done for you, what Jesus has done for the world.

But Sometimes actions speak louder than words. Go and tell what God has done by acting compassionately, by giving people a taste of God’s love and mercy.

Maybe the kingdom of heaven will break through with miraculous healing, food, or driving out evil spirits. Even if no miracles happen, you represent and embody Jesus’ victory and have been sent on mission to bring hope to the world by faithfully pointing – in word and deed – to Jesus’ victory and the coming kingdom of God.

You had a taste of the kingdom from reading the Bible and participating in the Lord’s Supper. Let Jesus’ victory flavour your words and actions. Go out there and give them heaven!