Why Does God have Leftovers?

SBS

Prayer

Intro:  Being a minister’s kid has some real disadvantages.  One is that everyone in the church, particularly if it is a pretty small church, thinks that they can tell you what to do and how you should act.  Another one was Sunday Dinner.  That was the best meal of the week at our house.  The problem was that since my dad was a minister people often felt like they could just come over without being invited, or sometimes if some visiting person stopped by, dad would invite them, or a person who was down on their luck.  The problem was that we didn’t have enough food for those extra people.  My sister and I had very specific instructions on those days.  We were to take a very, very small helping of mashed potatos, a few collard greens, and no chicken at all.  That plate of chicken would go by us and we had to say, no thank you I don’t believe I would care for any chicken today.  At the end of the lunch if there was any chicken left over we could have some.  We would sit there hoping that the guest would not take seconds. Sometimes my sister would say, well I’ll go ahead and start clearing some of these plates out of your way, trying to save the last two pieces of chicken, and wouldn’t you know it.  The guest would say, well if no one’s going to eat those last two pieces of chicken I would hate to see them go to waste.  I don’t know if I’m goin to be able to get me any meal tonight.  There our chicken would go.  We would be left with a terribly unsatisfied feeling of what could have been.

Today’s Scripture is about a meal. It, however is a meal where no one goes away unsatisfied. In fact what Matthew wants to teach us is that

THOSE WHO DEPEND UPON JESUS WILL ULTIMATELY BE COMPLETELY SATISFIED.

1. THE COMPASION OF THE SAVIOUR.  V. 32
1. Remember that this word compassion is only used of Jesus or by him.
2. Recognize that he cares about physical needs.
2. THE CONFUSION OF THE DISCIPLES. V. 33
1. They were confused despite the past-this is different from the feeding of 5,000.
2. They were confused despite the person-Jesus had walked on water and calmed a storm right before this.
3. THE COMPLETENESS OF THE MEAL. VV. 35-39
1. The meal was complete because everyone had enough. V. 37a
2. The meal was complete because of the leftovers. V. 37b

                           i.      The number seven is a symbol of completeness or sometimes of perfection.

                          ii.      These baskets are not the same kind used in the feeding of the five-thousand.  They were bigger.

This was a meal the people never forgot. I had an uncle who was a little bit strange.  He had a lot of strange talents like being able to call gators right up to the shore.  After I told my mom that she wouldn’t let me go fishing with him any more.  One of the things that he used to always say was that he had leftover glass in his head.  I was with my brother and one of my sisters Friday and asked them why he always said that [bus hit stoplight globe came off and hit him in the head, someone running in, “they killed Herman they killed Herman]  he never forgot that.  Once you are satisfied by the King of Kings you never forget it.  You never forget it because you realize that there is another meal coming.  WHEN YOU BURY ME PUT A FORK IN MY HAND.  There is no satisfaction apart from Christ.