Feeding the Multitude

Today we are crossing the halfway point in this journey through the seven miracles of Jesus that are recorded in the gospel of John. We have noted that all seven of these events take place in the first half of John’s gospel. And we have said that John arranges it this way so that all these events in the life of Jesus point us forward to the second half of John’s gospel which focuses mostly on the one week beginning at Palm Sunday and culminating in the Easter resurrection.

So far we have looked at the two miracles which took place from the small village of Cana in Galilee, and the healing in Jerusalem at the pool of Bethesda. If you remember from last week, we looked at the way in which the healing in Jerusalem set up an entire courtroom kind of scene which extends all the way through chapter 5 of John’s gospel.

This brings us up to the fourth miracle which we are considering today. It comes right around the corner from where we left off last week. But notice how John is again turning a new page in the narrative by taking us to a whole different time and place. This means that John is also turning the page to introduce for us another new theme into his gospel which—again—points us forward to see how these events are fulfilled in the week of Christ’s betrayal, crucifixion, and resurrection.

John 6:1–15 NIV

1 Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), 2 and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. 3 Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. 4 The Jewish Passover Festival was near. 5 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6 He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. 7 Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” 8 Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, 9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. 12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. 14 After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.” 15 Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.

near the Passover celebration

Let’s begin by reminding ourselves of the setting we see here in John’s gospel. Last week we saw Jesus in Jerusalem gathering there for the celebration of one of the Jewish religious festivals (John does not share in chapter 5 which Jewish festival it is). Now here in chapter 6 Jesus has returned to his home area in Galilee. And again John finds it significant to tell us that the event of this next miracle takes place within the context of yet another Jewish festival. This time it is near the Passover celebration. We will come back a little later on to find the reason why it is so important for John to note the particular Jewish festival in this story.

people follow Jesus to the east side of the lake

Here is what else we see in this story. Jesus is has gained an enormous following of people around his hometown in Galilee. John clues us in that this is tied to the miraculous signs of healing which Jesus has been providing. Jesus and his disciples have crossed over the sea of Galilee to the eastern shore. This is on the opposite side of the lake from Capernaum and the hill country where his hometown of Nazareth is located. At the outset here, it appears that Jesus is attempting to pull away from the crowds of people. But the people somehow track Jesus down and follow him to this remote place on the other side of the lake.

three sayings

where shall we find enough bread for these people?

five barley loaves and two fish - about two servings

This sets up the story for us. Jesus sees all these people coming to him. There are 5000 men; which means that with women and children the crowd could have been two or three times that size. Look at what Jesus does next in this story. It is interesting that John actually records very few words from Jesus. He asks one of his disciples about bread to feed all the people. This again is an important set up to the story so that we are all aware there is a notable scarcity of food in this place. One of the disciples, Andrew, discovers a boy who has five loaves of barley bread and two small fish. Just so we know how little food this is, barley loaves of bread would have been about the size and shape of a pita. And these tiny fish were likely already prepared in pieces that were salted and preserved so it would not spoil. The whole thing amounted to about two serving sizes.

have the people sit down

it is not only the miracle of multiplying the food which is important for this story, the setting and place where this happens is also important to the story

The second thing that Jesus says is an instruction for his disciples to have all the people sit down in this place where they are. John tells us that it is a grassy place. This is unusual for the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. The mountains on the eastern side of the valley were twice as tall as the mountains on the western side. It was a much more rocky and steep wilderness terrain. Yet in this desolate place Jesus settles a large crowd of people in this wilderness oasis of green pasture with enough space for all of them. If you are getting the sense from John that Jesus intentionally chooses this to be the place for this miracle, you are correct. It is not only the miracle of multiplying the food which is important for this story, the setting and place where this happens is also important to the story.

gather the pieces that are left over

the twelve baskets of leftover food is symbolically an indication that Jesus provides enough food for all of his chosen people

Next John tells us that Jesus says a prayer of thanks and begins to break up and distribute the food to the people. But John does not share detail about this. Apparently it is not important that we know exactly what Jesus said in his prayer or exactly how Jesus distributes the food among the people. After everyone has eaten, the final statement of Jesus in this story is an instruction for his disciples to gather up all the leftovers. And from this we discover that there is enough food left to fill twelve baskets. Once again, this is an intentionally important detail in the story. The number twelve is a symbolic number in the Bible. It is the number that represents God’s chosen people. There were twelve tribes of Israel in the Old Testament; Jesus shores twelve disciples in the New Testament. When we see twelve of something in the Bible, we should always be looking in the story for something that represents God’s chosen people. In this case, the twelve baskets of leftover food is symbolically an indication that Jesus provides enough food for all of his chosen people. He does not simply feed the 5000 who were sitting in that wilderness oasis on this day. John unfolds the story in a way which tells us that what Jesus is actually providing here for people will be given in enough abundance for all of God’s chosen people.

a story that points back

during Passover the people are in a remote wilderness place food is scarce Jesus provides enough for all of God’s people

Now then, let’s connect the dots in this miracle story and see what Jesus is really up to. Here are the details we pulled out of John’s version that are significant: it is during Passover, the people are in a remote wilderness place, food is scarce, Jesus provides enough for all of God’s people.

these people in Galilee are re-enacting the exodus scene by following Jesus out of the fertile and lush valley on the west side of the lake over to the desolate empty wilderness on the east side of the lake

Here in chapter 6 of John’s gospel, Jesus is pointing backwards to Old Testament Jewish history. This scene which unfolds in there few verses is a reliving of the exodus event when the people of Israel left Egypt. The Passover celebration was the annual time when all the Israelites would remember that event from their Jewish history. And in this particular setting, these people in Galilee are re-enacting the scene by following Jesus out of the fertile and lush valley on the west side of the lake over to the desolate empty wilderness on the east side of the lake.

Manna — for forty years the Israelites ate bread from heaven - here in this place Jesus gives bread to the people

And here in this empty wilderness Jesus brings to life another historical event from Israel’s past. When Moses led the people of God into the wilderness away from Egypt, the people were given manna to eat. For forty years the Israelites ate bread from heaven. And here in this place around Galilee, Jesus gives bread to the people. Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s provision for his people. Manna in the wilderness was enough to sustain the people of God for forty years. In this story Jesus gives bread in the wilderness with twelve baskets left over—symbolically enough to provide for all of God’s chosen people.

the people recognize the connection of this miracle to manna in the desert - verse 14

On an immediate surface level the crowd who followed Jesus to this place and experience this miraculous sign get it. They understand at least something of what is happening here. They recognize the connection of this miracle to manna in the desert. Look at how the people respond in verse 14,

John 6:14 NIV

14 After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”

The people there are saying, this is Moses! They recognize it; they see the connection.

a story that points forward

But the people there also missed something. What they fail to recognize is that it was not Moses who provided manna in the desert; it was God who provided manna. Their fixation with the prophet, with the free lunch, with this trip down memory lane to ancient history; it pulls the crowd away from recognizing that it is actually God himself who is providing bread for the people. This is clear in how how the story ends. In verse 15 Jesus gets away from the crowd and removes himself from this scene. Look at what John tells us about the reason why. John says that the people intended to make Jesus king by force. They all had insurrection and rebellion on their mind. They thought Jesus was the ticket to throw out Herod Antipas—the illegitimate king set up as a puppet regime under the control of Rome. The people caught just a glimpse of God in their midst, and then turned it into the completely wrong direction. They got just a taste of what Jesus has given, and then set about to force Jesus into their agendas and plans.

skip ahead to the very end of chapter 6 when this same crowd of people again finds Jesus back over in Capernaum teaching in the synagogue

If we were to skip ahead to the very end of chapter 6 when this same crowd of people again finds Jesus back over on the Capernaum side of the lake teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum, and we see just how badly the people fail to grasp the grace and salvation that Jesus has come to provide to a broken and hurting world. In the ending section of John 6 Jesus gives one of those famous ‘I am’ statements when the people come to Jesus looking for more bread. Jesus sets them straight about the lesson of manna and the picnic lunch they all had from Jesus the day before. He says in John 6:32,

John 6:32–35 NIV

32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” 35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

again, John is playing out for us a re-enactment of the exodus episode in the Old Testament in which the people of Israel grumble and complain instead of recognizing the abundant provision given to them by God

This is not the answer that the people wanted to hear from Jesus. In fact John goes on to tell us more than once in the following verses that the people began to grumble about this. Once again, John is playing out for us a re-enactment of the exodus episode in the Old Testament in which the people of Israel grumble and complain instead of recognizing the abundant provision given to them by God. Jesus goes on to explain the way in which he himself is the fulfillment of the Old Testament covenant and is now becoming the establishment of a new covenant of grace which God is providing to his people. And again, the people struggle to see beyond just the glimpse they caught the day before. John ends chapter 6 by making this clear. In verse 60,

John 6:60 NIV

60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

And further in verse 66,

John 6:66 NIV

66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

their desire was to make Jesus a king by force — they looked beyond the free lunch and saw a ticket to power and control

missing the point — a world which wants to make Jesus king by force

There is something woven into this miracle story for us yet today in the church. Those people in Galilee caught a glimpse of what Jesus was doing and made a few connections. And then quickly the people became sidetracked by grabbing onto an expectation of everything else that they thought Jesus could and should do for them. Their desire was to make Jesus a king by force. They looked beyond the free lunch and saw a ticket to power and control. Once Jesus made it clear to them that he was not about that agenda, one-by-one they fell away.

we seem to do our share of attempting to make Jesus king by force as well

Let’s be honest; we seem to do our share of attempting to make Jesus king by force as well. We tend to make our own little coalitions in an attempt to bend the culture wars in our favor. We have a history of our own ‘moral majorities’ who seem more interested in controlling the people of our society than they are in loving the people of our society. Back in the 2016 presidential election there was a candidate who visited Dordt University—a Christian Reformed Church community in Northwest Iowa—and told the crowd of mostly CRC folks who gathered there: “if you elect me as your president, Christianity will have power again.” Jesus did not come for that. Jesus did not come into the world in order to be made king by force.

getting the point — Jesus came into the world in order to save the world by giving himself as the bread of life

pointing ahead to the way in which Jesus himself will become the manna which spiritually feeds God’s people

Jesus came into the world in order to save the world by giving himself as the bread of life. Jesus did not come to take over the world; he came to give himself away for the world. In this miraculous lunch which draws back upon Passover manna, Jesus is also pushing us forward to a different kind of manna. Jesus is pointing ahead to the way in which he himself will become the manna which spiritually feeds God’s people. Jesus is giving us a glimpse ahead towards the cross. He is setting the scene which is to come later in which God will not just be the one who provides the manna for his chosen people; he will become the manna for his chosen people. Jesus does not just give the bread of life; Jesus is the bread of life.

Jesus says, “I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them”

the kingship of Jesus does not come by force; it comes by invitation

God is not looking for you to make him the king — God is inviting you to receive him as king

Let me close with this one last observation. At the very end of John 6 after all these followers turn away from Jesus there are only twelve left. Jesus says to them, “I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.” The kingship of Jesus does not come by force; it comes by invitation. God does not make it your job to make Jesus king over all. I am rather certain that God is perfectly capable of being king of the universe without my help. God is not looking for you to make him the king. God is inviting you to receive him as king.

Jesus backs away from all those misguided notions that people want to press upon him by force attempting to make Jesus into exactly the kind of king they want him to be. Instead, Jesus comes just as he is to be exactly the kind of king our broken world needs. And in so doing, Jesus extends an invitation to receive him in faith as king just the way he is. Because by grace, God receives you as one of his beloved children just the way you are.