Give them To Eat

[00:00:00] This audio sermon is provided by AnabaptistSermons.com and may be freely copied and distributed. You may not sell or edit this sermon. Our prayer is that you would be blessed by this ministry. This morning I would like to direct your attention to the book of Luke and pick up our study there, Luke chapter 9. Luke chapter 9 beginning at verse 11. [00:00:38] Last time we looked at this passage, we were discussing the need and example of the Lord, instruction of the Lord in terms of rest, relaxation, The need to come apart from our daily grind and rest a while We pick up our study at verse 11 And just to give us some background [00:01:10] The disciples had been out ministering in the cities and towns, countryside They had come and given a report The Lord had taken them aside to a deserted place And now the people find out where they've gone and pursue them. Verse 11 And the people, when they knew it, followed him, and he received them and spake unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing. [00:01:44] And when the day began to wear away, then came the twelve and said unto him, Send the multitude away, that they may go into the towns and country round about, and lodge, and get vittles. For we are here in a desert place. But he said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they said, We have no more but five loaves and two fishes, except we should go and buy meat for all this people [00:02:14] for they were about five thousand men and he said to his disciples make them sit down by fifties in a company and they did so and made them all sit down then he took the five loaves and the two fishes and looking up to heaven he blessed them and break and gave to the disciples to set before the multitude and they did eat and were all filled and there was taken up fragments [00:02:48] that remained to them twelve baskets. This is the word of the Lord and let us ask the Lord to speak to our hearts through it. I feel burdened to emphasize an aspect of this passage [00:03:18] that may be a little different from how we normally look at it, though I'm sure that some of these thoughts are common as we come to this portion of the feeding of the 5,000. We commonly dwell on the miracle part, and that is important. This is our Father's Word. This is an account of what God the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, did in multiplying the loaves and the fishes [00:03:56] to feed a large crowd, 5,000 men plus women and children. And we do not intend at all to minimize that great miracle. But I believe there are some aspects here that we sometimes don't think so much about. First of all, there's the aspect of ministry. The Lord has just sent the disciples out into the communities. [00:04:34] to do his work. They came back and gave a report. And then he took them aside to rest a while. And now he is going to illustrate some additional principles of ministry. It is not just going out and doing ministry. [00:05:09] It is not just coming back and giving a report. It certainly is not resting all the time. The first point that I would like to mention about ministry is that ministry for all of us, Not just the ministers, so-called, but for all of us. The command of the New Testament in 1 Peter 4 is to be instant, in season, out of season. [00:05:48] To always be ready, whether it's convenient or not, to minister. And so here in a time of rest, being in a deserted place is what the terminology is. Take them to a deserted place. Here in the midst of that come the crowd. Does the Lord send them away? No. [00:06:23] Does the Lord say, we are in recess? No. The Lord ministers to them. I have gone through some changes in my life as an individual. I like to have things all lined up in order. Though I don't do very well at that, those of you who know me really well. [00:07:00] And schedule is one of those things. But I have learned, as many of you have and as the rest of you will learn, if you haven't, that ministry does not go by a schedule. If you have scheduled your day tightly and there is no time to minister to someone, [00:07:33] you will find that that is the exact day that someone will come by or call all and need you. And if you turn them away because of your tight schedule, you are disobedient to the Lord. As you look at this in human terms, [00:08:09] they had had a very concentrated time of ministry. They had given a report. They were taking a breath. And here come the people walking into that situation. Humanly speaking, we would say the Lord should have sent them away. Say, come back in five days or whatever. But no, he ministers to the people. And so we should be ready to never have such a lock-stepped schedule [00:08:43] that we cannot reach out to people in need. We need to always be approachable even when it's not convenient for us. And that's what the Timothy passage means as I understand it. In season, out of season. The terminology, whether it's convenient or whether it isn't convenient [00:09:17] Be ready to minister And so this event is in fact Ministry 101 in the Lord's Classroom Send them out, bring them back, give a report, take them to rest Rest is interrupted by more people, more needs. And that is the life of the obedient, sensitive believer. [00:09:55] Always open to minister to people. Now, the other thing that I would like us to notice, and this is, in terms of my burden, the major thing. And that is what the Lord did for these people. If you'll notice again in verse 11, [00:10:26] people when they knew it followed Him and He received them. That's what we've just been talking about. He received them, even though it wasn't humanly convenient. He received them and spake unto them of the kingdom of God and healed them that had need of healing. This matter of the kingdom of God. What do you suppose He talked to them about? [00:10:59] Well, if you look through the Gospels, you'll get a pretty good idea. There will be some difference of opinion on one aspect of the kingdom as to whether or not it was meant to be literal. A king, the Lord, ruling the earth. I believe it was and it will be. However, I am sure that was not what he was talking about here. [00:11:38] He was talking about the issues of daily concern for these people. These people had undoubtedly been taught rules and regulations. For that was what the leadership of that day was into, the religious leadership. [00:12:09] They were into rules and regulations for the most part. They had been taught those, and yet these people had come up empty, and they were seeking the rabbi Jesus to give them something that they had not had before. And so I believe that a part of what he was saying would have been in line with some of the other things that he had been saying and would say as his ministry goes on [00:12:41] as to what the kingdom of God is like. He has talked to them already, not perhaps these same people, I know, but perhaps some of them, in the earlier chapter about the seed and the soils, the sower, and we talked about the soils together, and the fact that those that grow and prosper and bring forth fruit [00:13:22] are those that understand deeply and fervently the truth of God. That the seed is the Word of God, it's sown, and those who grow and bring forth fruit are those that God claims. So undoubtedly, built on that foundation and the other foundations in the Gospels about this matter, [00:14:03] the Lord was teaching these people. He was teaching them about being fed by the very Word of God. About having more of Jesus. about the things that really matter. You'll notice that it says, and he healed those that had need of healing. That wasn't the first thing in this passage. [00:14:37] Though it was very important in illustrating who he was and the power that he had over illness. I believe the Lord was teaching them about the things that really matter. Now there are groups of Anabaptists who start in Genesis and preach all the way to Revelation in every sermon. [00:15:09] We frown on that and perhaps we should. On the other hand, I would recall with you what it said of the Lord when he met with the disciples after the resurrection. It says he began at Moses, and he went through all the Scriptures, teaching them the things concerning himself. So, while I wouldn't advocate the idea that we should preach all the way through the Bible, [00:15:47] it is true that we should be revealing or allowing God to reveal through the Word the very person of Jesus Christ in all the Scriptures. That is the task of anyone who teaches. I believe it was a part of what the Lord was doing here. And I'd like to just think with you for a few moments in that way. [00:16:17] If you start with a creation, if you start with a creation in the fall, You have man tested. You have man in an ideal, Edenic circumstance, falling. And from that we learn something in addition to Adam's sin. [00:16:51] We learn that if everything could be perfect, And we could be without a sin nature, again, as Adam was in his creation. We would fail. In other words, man at his best eventually turns to sin. [00:17:22] We won't go through all of the periods of the Old Testament, but let's think about the law for a moment. Some would say that man can be improved by regulation. I would readily admit to you and with you, I trust, I realize that children reared without regulation are a blot on society and the church and the family. [00:18:12] On the other hand, you do not make children better by regulation. Children will still sin, given regulation. So as you think of the Old Testament law, again, the people repeatedly turned away from God. they repeatedly fell into sin regulation as detailed as it was did not improve man so what do we learn from that just what I was saying while regulation has its place in the home in the school even in the church [00:19:12] It does not make anybody better in the sight of God. And it will not prevent sin. You say, well, we don't have regulation. We do. If we didn't, we'd come at some of us at 6 a.m. and some at 6 p.m. and some at 12 and some at 3, some at 9. Yeah, we have regulation. We just don't have as much as some others. [00:19:45] You can't live without some. So, we still have to come to the point that regulation does not improve a man or a woman spiritually. Let me jump ahead now to the New Testament times. These people came from leadership, religious leadership that was, in the Pharisees and others, pretty committed to regulation. [00:20:32] And yet they seem to have come up empty. And the Lord, it says, teaches them concerning the kingdom of God. Does the kingdom of God include the law of Moses? Yes, in a way it does. It's predicated upon it, at least. What did Christ do as the central figure in the kingdom of God? [00:21:07] He fulfilled the law in every point. Was he frowning on the law? No. He was simply teaching that the law does not genuinely, thoroughly change a person. The problem with the Pharisees was not their regulations, as tedious as that may have been, and it was. [00:21:43] The problem with the Pharisees, as the Lord pointed out again and again as he spoke to them concerning the kingdom of God, was that their heart was far from God. And they were attempting to improve mankind by regulation. They were attempting to please God by regulation. At no place does the Lord say that the law is wrong. Nor does He condemn the Pharisees for their regulations. [00:22:18] What He condemns is their hypocrisy, Is there wrong hearts? The Lord also condemns lawlessness. So what am I saying? Is the law wrong? No. Will the law save anyone? [00:22:51] No. Must you practice the Old Testament mosaic ceremonial law? No. Is it bad? No. The issue is a heart issue. And those who are lawless, who flee the law because of a bad heart, continue to have a bad heart in their lawlessness. [00:23:29] And so the Lord was giving them something to fill the void of an empty legalism. He was giving them Himself and teaching them the things from the Scriptures concerning Himself. and so he was to say I am the bread of life the one that feeds on me [00:24:00] has life the law brings death because it convicts of sin, you see but I offer life heart life vibrant life The issue is not regulation or non-regulation. The issue is, is our heart right with God? [00:24:31] Have we fed on the bread of life? That is the issue. And that is the question. The Pharisees were driven by a form, a form of rules and regulations. Christ calls us to be driven by Him. And when we are driven by Him, we will live above the law. [00:25:05] I don't mean above the law in that we can disobey it. I mean in a higher level. So as we think about the sorts of things that would be included in his presentation of the kingdom of God how that it was not in fact a kingdom that was going to defeat the Roman Empire how that it was in fact a kingdom of the heart [00:25:37] A kingdom where Christ reigns, a kingdom where new life from the heart is the issue. Not whether you pick wheat on the Sabbath, but where a relationship with Jesus Christ is the issue. Now, looking on into this passage, I believe that we see what he has likely been saying illustrated. [00:26:15] The disciples, because of their concern for the physical needs of the people, become very worried about how these people are going to be fed. They are in a deserted place. No Walmart super centers nearby. and no money to buy if they had them. [00:26:55] How are we going to feed this great multitude of people? How are we going to provide the sustenance necessary for them to walk out of here and get on about their business? And I say that the disciples missed the point at this juncture. We usually, as I say, dwell on the miracle, and it's a great miracle. It's very important, and you ought to know it and understand it and appreciate it. [00:27:31] But I'm thinking that the disciples were concerned about the wrong point. Here they were receiving the word of life, food for their souls, the things that really matter. Time was not of the essence. Physical food was not the issue. Where the people were going to stay the night physically was not the issue. [00:28:05] spiritual food, feeding on Jesus, coming to know him personally, establishing a relationship with him. That was an issue. Where they were going to spend eternity, that was an issue. The other things were pale. But you see, the disciples made them major. And I think that was a part of the lesson that the Lord taught in the Mary and Martha case. Were the disciples wrong in wanting to feed these people? No. [00:28:39] Was Martha wrong in spending her time in the kitchen getting this meal ready? No. Those were important too, but they were not the main thing. The main thing was to sit at the feet of Jesus and feed on Him. And so the disciples' worry was a bit misplaced. And the Lord illustrates that in what He does. [00:29:18] And you'll notice the text again. Verse 13, He said unto them, Give ye them to eat. They said, We have no more but five loaves and two fishes, What was the command of the Lord? Give them to eat. I don't want to over-spiritualize this, but I believe that the Lord was saying something a little more directly than we sometimes think. [00:29:52] Where had the disciples just been before their report? Been out into the highways and byways, the towns and the villages Doing the work of the Lord, ministering to people and their needs Could it be that the Lord was suggesting that the physical food is not the main thing here? I think that's what he's suggesting In fact, he does provide physical food for them [00:30:23] as the Lord provides. But I think the main issue was teaching concerning the kingdom of God. And it is almost, can I say, secondary, as great a miracle as it was to feed them real physical food because the real spiritual food was before them in the person of Jesus. [00:31:00] That was what was important. Now what does this mean to us? I think it means this. We need to concentrate on learning more of Jesus, on feeding on Jesus, on giving out the good word concerning Jesus. That does not mean that we do not provide normal physical hospitality. [00:31:36] We should do that. But if that is all we do, we are no better than the Pharisees. Sharing Jesus, ministering to people with Jesus is the main thing. [00:32:07] Now you go to someone who is starving and tell them to trust Jesus and talk to them about Jesus. And it may be difficult for them to hear you until you give them something physically to eat. I understand that and that is important. On the other hand, we as a people and we as Americans have often felt that it is enough to give people physical food. [00:32:41] And that amounts to little. Most, if not all, of you have heard me share the account which occurred in my childhood Good. When the United States of America with a major surplus of wheat that was stored in ships with nothing to do with it, and men were hired to move it and aerate it and all those sorts of things to keep it from spoiling. [00:33:21] And it was finally decided that it would be a good thing to do something with this wheat instead of simply paying to have it aerated and cared for. And so several shiploads were given by our government to the government of India so that the people who were actually starving to death would have something to eat. And that was done. [00:33:59] And it was later learned that the people of India actually ate less than 10% of that wheat. The rats ate the rest. Why? Because the important thing was not presented. [00:34:32] And we don't expect our government to present the important thing. But the important thing was not presented. The problem of starvation in India of that time was a spiritual problem. You dare not kill any animals because they may be a relative according to their religion. [00:35:05] And you cannot control pests because they may be relatives in a reincarnated state. You see, the problem there was not lack of grain. The problem was spiritual. We tend to address the things that we can see with our physical eyes. And hence churches get involved in all sorts of programs. [00:35:43] Whether feeding programs or other programs. Even counseling programs. And most of these things are good in themselves. But unless they address the hard issues, they are like sending wheat to India in the 1950s. Let us understand that the Lord was presenting first things first. [00:36:21] He was saying, Kingdom of God. And he was presenting himself as the bread of life. He was calling people to feed on him. And feeding the 5,000 out there from the bread and the fishes, as great a miracle as it was, was secondary. So let's not be taken with just what the disciples were taken with on this occasion. [00:36:56] Let's not be taken with just the physical needs, though they do need to be handled and they do need to be addressed. We are not suggesting for a moment that they don't need to be. But let's be taken with the thing that really matters. If we are merely sending wheat to India in the 1950s, we are no better than the Pharisees. But if in fact we are presenting by life and word the Lord Jesus Christ, that will matter for eternity. [00:37:42] So when the Lord says, give them to eat, I wonder if He was not actually saying, give back to ministry, brothers. But whatever the case, He did do the miracle. Their faith was stretched, and the hand of God was magnified. So I don't want to belittle the miracle at all. Not at all. But I think there was something behind the scenes that was bigger even than this miracle in the feeding of the 5,000. [00:38:20] So I ask us, have we as a people merely exchanged one form for another? You know, non-form is a form. have we merely exchanged one form for another or are we looking at the heart of the matter which involves the very heart of Jesus and reaching out to our fellow believers [00:38:51] and to the lost with the gospel of the grace of God what about the heart These people lingered not to be fed and apparently not just to be healed otherwise healing would have been first on the list. These people lingered to know personally the kingdom of God. Let's concentrate and focus on that as a church family this week [00:39:28] and the weeks and months and years ahead should the Lord tarry reaching out to people and to each other with the kingdom, the message of the kingdom of God. Let's pray. Thank you, Father, for your word, for the opportunity to read this old, old story again and marvel at the power and majesty of the Savior. And help us also to see that we are called to do more than merely address physical and emotional needs, as important as they are. [00:40:16] Help us to understand the message of the kingdom of God. the importance of that message to all people and give us grace and the desire to spread that message in love by grace across the world. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.