When We Gather With Jesus

Central Truth: When we gather with Jesus, we find care for our weariness, truth for our souls, and provision for the work He gives us

Introduction

This morning as we gather as the church, each of us are carrying something no one else can see.

There are some here this morning that bring concerns of a medical report. Others here bring the strain of caring for someone at home. Someone else is discouraged over a child or a grandchild. Yet others here this morning are weary and worn from work. Or, some are simply anxious about your future.

Some arrived this morning eager to worship and others came by discipline and that is great. What a blessing, but you are just weary. Some of you are hoping you can find strength to face another week.

Interestingly, those things we carry are not immune from our church leadership. You can serve as a Sunday School teacher, one in our choir or our instrumentalist, our audiovisual team, a deacon, or yes, even I as the pastor, all hunger for, need something that only Jesus can offer.

The people who serve the Lord still need time with the Lord.

That is where we begin our study this morning. The apostles were sent out to preach and teach and to minister and there is a reporting back, an accounting if you will. They return to Jesus.

They have something to report. They get to share as the scriptures states, “those things they had done and taught.” As they come back, it must have been very obvious, the disciples needed rest and Jesus encouraged them to rest.

And, this morning, before the passage ends, they see something miraculous happen that could not have been accomplished by themselves.

As we look at these two scenes of old, I want us to consider this morning what can be accomplished when we gather with Jesus.

Turn in your Bibles this morning to:

Mark 6:30-44.

Mark 6:30–44 NKJV

30 Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught. 31 And He said to them, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. 32 So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. 33 But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him. 34 And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things. 35 When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. 36 Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat.” 37 But He answered and said to them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to Him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?” 38 But He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they found out they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. 41 And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all. 42 So they all ate and were filled. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. 44 Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.

Prayer

Message

You may remember that Jesus sent the disciples out two by two in Mark 6:7-13. In the writings of Josephus we learn that there were approximately three million people in the region of Galiee where the disciples ministered. There were six teams of two that went out in the region.

The scripture reveals that Jesus “gave them power over unclean spirits.” They were not to carry anything for their journey but sandals so that they could move about in ministry in the name of the Lord.

We are privy to read this morning what transpired when they returned to Jesus to share all about their ministry activities.

Firstly, this morning let’s understand that:

1. We Gather to Share the Work of the Lord v. 30

Jesus chose to carry the disciples to a deserted place to allow them time to share all the details of their journey. I can imagine there was such excitement as they saw the power of the Lord at work in and through their lives and I imagine they shared with great passion. For you see, they had witnessed great acts of God that God used them to administer in His name.

Mark 6:30 “30 Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.”

You might ask: what did they do?

Look back with me at Mark 6:12–13.

Mark 6:12–13 “12 So they went out and preached that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.”

I can just see them leaning over with excitement to share with Jesus all their stories of great transformation of lives they witnessed the change as they worked in the power of Christ on Jesus’ behalf.

Repentance

They had preached and saw people repent of their sins. They had seen some of the most starch sinners and scoundrels whose past just melted away and their hearts became tender as Jesus forgave them of their past and sin and the life, the vitality they enjoyed as they came to know Christ as Lord and Savior.

Cast Out Demons

Jesus instilled power in them that they could cast out demons. Can you imagine being an eyewitness to the change a man, woman, or child experienced when the demon was removed from their lives. They are sitting in their upright mind. They are totally at themselves and clothed and changed?

Healings

Jesus used them to be some small part in His Kingdom’s work by healing the blind, the lepers, those who were paralytic and to see as they wiped the oil on their bodies, people got up and walked, or they were mute and they talked. Oh the tears of joy for the recipient, but I imagine those disciples were tearful that God could use them as change agents in the lives of those lost around them. It had to be the most satisfying ministry.

There were other times they could not bring the healing that was called for.

There is a story in Mark 9.

Mark 9:17–18 “17 Then one of the crowd answered and said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. 18 And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.””

Mark 9:28–29 “28 And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” 29 So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.””

It had to be so refreshing for them to have godly success in the name of Jesus. And… there was an energy and synergy when they reported of all of their activity.

Notice with me in this section, vv. 30-31 that the disciples found renewal and rest by gathering with Jesus.

App.

One of the profound blessings we receive as we belong to the church is that we get to hear and witness what God is doing in one another’s lives. And...you never fully experience that transformation if you are not here and present.

We hear testimony week in week out of an answered prayer. Someone will share testimony of a meaningful conversation. One of our members share an opportunity they had to share Christ. We hear how a church member’s care carried a family through a tough spot.

Oh listen church, when you come to this place and you share the stories of repentance, the stories of spiritual healing, stories of your own revival through a God ordained encounter it brings refreshment and renewal to the body of Christ.

Acts 14:27 “27 Now when they had come and gathered the church together, they reported all that God had done with them, and that He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.”

Paul and Barnabas firstly gathered the church and reported what God had done with them.

A Testimony can turn one person’s experience of God’s faithfulness into encouragement for the whole congregation.

May I challenge you as I challenge myself to make room for that kind of sharing. In days of old, the church has made time for a Song night, for a prayer meeting, for Bible Study, but let’s prayerfully approach tonight as a testimony night.

Let’s assume tonight at the 5:00 pm hour when we have been studying the Psalms that we stated tonight we are going to have a testimony night. Could you do it? Would you do it?

Come tonight prepared to share a testimony as I will share teaching on a Psalm tonight. I hope I do not have time to share. I hope you would fill the whole time together sharing the goodness of God in your lives and how you have experienced Him at work in your life and around you.

These stories remind us that God is at work beyond the things we can see.

Jesus listened to their report, but He also made an account of their condition.

2. We Gather to Receive the Care of the Lord vv. 31-33

“Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest awhile.”

And, Jesus saw their need for rest. Mark spells out the conditions of the day. Jesus’ popularity had not let up, in fact with each passing day it ramped up. Verse 31 states that “there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.”

These men like Jesus had been serving others, but they were still human. They needed food and they needed rest. They needed time with Jesus.

Listen to the tenderness of Jesus’ invitation.

“Come aside.”

Jesus, the One who sent them to work is the same Jesus that invited them to rest.

Oh listen church, those people that serve you here in the church need rest to.

What can you do for your leadership that will offer them rest?

Physical weariness does not mean spiritual failure. In the course of accomplishing what Jesus sent them to do, they needed rest.

Psalm 103:14 “14 For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.”

Do you realize that it is one of our ten commandments to rest?

Exodus 20:8–10 “8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates.”

Oh listen church, we should reflect the care that Jesus reflected in offering rest. WE need to encourage one another, share responsibilities, and recognize when someone is carrying too much.

Well, as things go, the retreat did not unfold as might expect. The crowd saw where they were heading by boat and ran ahead to meet them when they turned into shore.

So, the promise here is that following Jesus doesn’t bring immunity form every struggle and interruption in life. This passage reminds us that as we serve Him, He will provide rest for our souls. Amen.

3. We Gather to hear the Truth of the Lord v. 34

Mark 6:34 “34 And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.”

Interesting how Jesus responded vs. how we might respond. He didn’t say, “really.” He didn’t say, the seminar is over, we need this break and we will see you first of next week. There was no sluff off of the people or saying “enough is enough”. No, not Jesus.

Listen, the Scripture states He was moved with “compassion.”

Compassion

Splagchnizomai—to have the bowels yearn, to feel sympathy, to pity.

Consider for some of you if you were called to speak up here and you get butterflies and anxious to speak in public. That feeling in the gut.

Jesus felt pity down to His gut over the people.

Why?

“Like sheep without a shepherd.”

What do sheep do without a shepherd? You might say they wonder and that would be accurate, but they ultimately die.

Sheep are not equipped to defend themselves against predators. Their survival depends upon their shepherd.

John 10:11 “11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”

Notice that Jesus does not describe the sheep defending the shepherd, but the shepherd defending His sheep.

Do you know that one of the few mechanisms that the sheep have is their flocking instinct.

A sheep separated from the flock is often more vulnerable than one surrounded by other sheep.

As we think about the church, listen:

Hebrews 10:24–25 “24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Oh listen church, the church is one of God’s provisions for spiritual encouragement, accountability and mutual care, one for the other.

Mark tells us that:

“Jesus began to teach them many things.”

Oh listen dear brother and sister, Jesus is interested in you having physical manna, He cares about your physical needs as we will see further. He finds it more of a priority to feed you the bread and offer you the water that you will never hunger or thirst again.

Jesus wants you to have direction in your life, to offer His truth and to be your Great Shepherd.

Oh listen church, one of the great blessings we have in church is to fall under the teaching of the Word of God. We need that so much more than others telling us “everything will work out alright.”

We need truth that helps us recognize sin, understand His grace, guidance in making wise, godly decisions, strength to endure suffering, and most importantly, to follow Christ as Lord and Savior.

The refreshment Jesus offers can come through a comforting promise from His word. And yes, sometimes comfort comes through loving correction that we need to hear and put our lives on the right path.

The Shepherd cares for His people by speaking truth to them.

Well, as the day grew late, the disciples saw a problem they could not solve.

4. We Gather to Take Part in the Work of the Lord vv. 35-41

Mark 6:35–41 “35 When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. 36 Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat.” 37 But He answered and said to them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to Him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?” 38 But He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they found out they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. 41 And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.”

The disciples recognized the need, but the best way to handle the need is to divert the need. They proposed “send them away.” They recognized it was late in the day and they recognized the people needed food, but had no idea of how that could be addressed but to sent them to the surrounding villages and let them buy their own food.

When they proposed to send the crowds away, Jesus responded:

“You give them something to eat.”

That command exposed their limitations. In JOhn’s account, we realize that the bean counter, Phillip said, Jesus, it would take 200 denarii to buy all these people bread. Jesus, that is a year’s wages and after all of that, they will be hungry in four more hours. That is just not feasible.

Note that Jesus did not ask them what they did not have, listen to what He asks:

“How many loaves do you have, go and see.”

In other words church, when God calls us to task for an assignment, He will provide what we need to complete the task.

As you know, they found a little boy who had two fish and five barley loaves. These were a pickled fish that were small and do not think of large loaves of bread as we get, but think of Pita bread made of barley.

Oh my goodness church, the need was enormous, the resource of food was small, but the Lord was present.

Jesus calls us to:

Bring what is Available

Let’s be careful to understand what this passage doesn’t teach. It’s not the fact that every small resource will become a dramatic miracle if we believe strongly enough.

What it does teach us that our resources to accomplish the task Jesus calls us to will be enough with God in it. Amen?

They did not have the ability to produce the miracle. They did have the ability to do what the Lord asked and the power to complete the miracle belonged to Jesus.

Oh dear church, may we never ever get caught up in what we lack, but may we get caught up in what Jesus can do when we are found obedient to the mission He calls us to.

We may at times wish we had more workers, more monies, new or better facilities, and those are real needs.

Our better focus is to ask:

What has the Lord already placed before us that we can put to use?

Does the Lord want you to use a listening ear, or to be willing to teach? Does the Lord want you to open your home to host a bible study? Maybe the Lord wants to use your vehicle to bring someone to church? Is He calling you to make time to visit or offer your voice in prayer?

Order Served The People

You notice that Jesus asked the groups to sit in fifties and hundreds. The arrangement helped serve an actual need. The organization was not the source of the miracle, but it had its place in the ministry.

Oh dear church, this is sound application for the church today. Thoughtful preparation can help us serve the people well.

Why do we have the Sunday School classes? So that we can put like people with like interest at the scholastic level so that we can teach them effectively the things of God.

We coordinate meals so families receive help. We promote arranging transportation so people can attend. We prepare worship so the congregation can participate.

Oh listen, good organization helps us put our care into practice.

Jesus involved the disciples

Jesus took the food, looked toward heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to set before the people.

They distributed out what Jesus supplied.

Imagine the privilege of carrying that food into the crowd. The disciples knew what had been available at the beginning. Now they were personally taking part in something they could never have produced.

This is the wonderful part of church life: the Lord allows us to participate in His work.

We cannot regenerate a heart, but we can share the gospel.

We cannot manufacture spiritual growth, but we can teach the Scriptures.

We cannot remove every sorrow, but we can sit beside someone who is grieving.

WE serve with what He provides , trusting Him for what only He can do.

5. We Gather to Witness the Provision of the Lord vv. 42-44

Mark 6:42–44 “42 So they all ate and were filled. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. 44 Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.”

Oh listen church, “so they ate and were filled.”

There is yet another accounting. We are given a measure of the magnitude of the miracle and the blessing the people received.

12 baskets full of fragments

5,000 men-possibly twenty thousand including women and children.

Matthew’s account reveals to us there were women and children present.

Oh listen church, the crowd experienced the miracle first hand. The disciples were co-laborers with the Lord to distribute the meal, gather the leftovers, count the baskets of fragments that remained.

Jesus had provided abundantly for the crowd.

What the Church Gets to Witness

We do not gather each Sunday expecting this type of particular miracle to happen, but we do get to experience the living Lord.

We get to see as a congregation the Lord working in each one of our lives.

We see one confess Christ as Lord and Savior and follow in believer’s baptism.

We watch the wooing of the Holy Spirit and watch the word begin to take root in one’s life that is lost. The list goes on and on.

We get to see more of the Lord’s work than we could see by ourselves.

Invitation

At the beginning of this passage, the disciples brought Jesus an account of their ministry. At the end of our time together this morning there was a new account to tell.

They were blessed with their time with Jesus. The crowd was refreshed with their time with Jesus. How about you this morning? Did you come hungry for refreshment from the Lord?

Perhaps you have been serving faithfully, but you come wearied this morning. Bring it to the Lord.

Perhaps you have been listening to many voices and you need to submit to the Shepherd’s teachings and recommit yourself to the study and the listening of His word.

And perhaps you know Jesus, but you have never trusted Him as Savior.

Oh listen dear guest, friend, dear church attendee, the One who fed this crowd would later give His life for sinners and rise from the dead. Oh listen, your greatest need is to find forgiveness and new life in Jesus Christ if you have never asked Him to come into your life and save you from your sins.

Come to Christ. As His people, let’s keep gathering around Him-ready to hear His word, care for one another, and take part in His work.

Let’s pray.