John 6:1-15 Jesus the Creator

The feeding of the five thousand is the only miracle that is recorded in all four gospels. It clearly had a great impact on the twelve disciples at the time. It is a disaster for some teachers to suggest that this was really just a ‘miracle of human kindness’. They have suggested that the people responded to Jesus’ teaching about ‘loving their neighbour’ and consequently shared what food they had with others. Others have tried to explain this event away by suggesting the story was inspired by an account in Homer’s Odyssey where Telemachus and Athena found a crowd of 4,500 who sat down in groups of 500. Such views completely undermine the clear intent of the text, the effect this had on the disciples as well as the subsequent teaching that Jesus based on this miracle – that he is the ‘Bread of Life’ that is given to a needy humanity.

“I AM the Bread of Life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” John 6:35

The Lord fed his people when they were in the wilderness after leaving Egypt so it should be no surprise that the same Lord fed his people when he came to earth.

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. John 6:1-15

The whole point of John’s gospel is to convince readers that Jesus is indeed the Lord of the universe and he unashamedly records a selection of his very impressive ‘miraculous signs’ to convince people of this. He would have no time for any who try to explain these signs away.

“Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” John 20:30-31

The main reason for this miracle being recorded is to confirm who Jesus is – the Messiah, the only Son of God, who gives life to his people. When Jesus saw the crowd he realised that their greatest need was to recognise who he was so he emulates the miracle the Lord had performed for his people during the Exodus. Then God had compassion on His people and gave them ‘manna’ to eat.

This is clearly a historical account. It occurred on the ‘far shore of the Sea of Galilee’. It occurred when ‘the Jewish Passover was near,’ that is in early spring. Specific details such as the ‘five small barley loaves and two small fish’, the role of Philip and the full ‘twelve baskets’ all help to substantiate this as a factual miracle. A great crowd witnessed the event and some would still be alive when John’s gospel was publicised. All the gospel writers present this as a supernatural miracle. Even Jesus’ opponents recognised that he ‘could perform miraculous signs’.

Creator like God

The Bible teaches that God is the creator so what better way is there for Jesus to substantiate his claim to be the creator, who everyone should follow, than by creating. Surely this is the main lesson Jesus wants both the crowds and his disciples to be clear about. He wants them to see beyond the sign to what is signified. We will look at this in more detail when we come to the concluding section of this chapter where Jesus describes what his being ‘the Bread of Life’ means.

Just as the world was created in stages when ‘God said’, so in this account we read that Jesus first said a prayer of thanks.

Compassionate like God

Besides having creative power Jesus also wants to show that he has the character of God. The large number of people coming to see Jesus and his disciples resulted in them all becoming tired and hungry. Mark’s version of this story tells us,

“Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.’ So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.” Mark 6:31-32

One mark of a great leader is that he recognises and deals with the needs of his team. The problem with popularity is that people will not leave you in peace, and when they saw Jesus leave, crowds left their towns and ran ahead along the shore so that when Jesus landed they received another warm welcome! Mark tells us of the reaction of the tired and hungry Jesus,

“When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.” Mark 6:34

Mark makes it clear that Jesus’ prime concern is the spiritual state of the people in the crowd, they were ‘like sheep without a shepherd’ and yet the shepherd has now appeared. They needed teaching and essentially they needed to recognise that He was their Messiah. Their eternal destiny depended on that.

It is striking how often the word ‘compassion’ is associated with Jesus. He has ‘compassion’ on the crowds before giving food to both the 5000 and the 4000 (Matthew 14:14 and 15:32; Mark 6:44 and 8:9). This concerned their hunger, their illnesses and their spiritual needs. He also had ‘compassion’ on the leper (Mark 1:41) as well as the widow of Nain as she was burying her son (Luke 7:13).

In three of his parables Jesus also uses the word ‘compassion’. The king had compassion on his bankrupt servant and forgives him his debt (Matthew 18:21-35), the good Samaritan had compassion on the robbers’ victim (Luke 10:25-37) and the Father has compassion on his prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32).

Compassion is a characteristic of God so it must be a characteristic of Jesus Christ. Repeatedly throughout the Old Testament we read that God is compassionate. When the Lord meets Moses on Mount Sinai, he introduces himself with these words,

“The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished . . .” Exodus 34:6-7

The Lord is so patient with us all,

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.” Lamentations 3:22

God’s people, who have been given this self-same Spirit of God will therefore demonstrate this same characteristic of genuine compassion for people’s physical, social and spiritual needs.

A lesson for the disciples

Besides clarifying who Jesus is, there was more for the disciples to learn from this episode. Jesus watched as his frustrated disciples try to solve the problem of feeding the multitude with totally inadequate resources, but "he had already in mind what he was going to do” (John 6:6). He wanted to teach them a lesson in trust and obedience.

John briefly mentions the role Jesus gives to the disciples but this is expanded in the three Synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke. The disciples had to sit the people in groups and then distribute to them the bread and fish Jesus had divided.

“Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people.” Mark 6:41

This models the role of God’s people – to present to all people the message about Jesus, that has been given to us. Jesus is the Bread of Life that all need.

We can also see certain steps we must take in solving our own problems:

1. Start with what you have. Andrew found a boy who had a small meal and brought him to Jesus. Clearly the boy was willing to give up his lunch. God nearly always begins where we are and uses whatever we have.

2. Give what you have to Christ. Jesus took the simple meal and blessed it. He then divided the bread and fish and gave the pieces to the disciples, who passed these onto the multitudes.

3. Obey what He commands. As Jesus ordered, the disciples had the people sit down in groups. They distributed the broken pieces and discovered that there was plenty for everybody. We, Christ’s servants, are simply distributors of what he has given us. If we give what we have to Him, He will bless it and give it back to us for use in helping others.

4. Conserve the results. After the people had eaten their fill, twelve baskets filled with pieces of bread and fish remained. One basket for each disciple. Doubtless this was not to ensure there was no litter or food debris left behind but to remind his disciples to carefully assess whatever they have been involved in.

Practical ways to proclaim our faith

There was also another lesson in this story. It is significant that Jesus publicly thanks his Father in prayer before breaking the bread and fish. He did not miss an opportunity to remind those around him that it is our heavenly Father we need to thank for all that we receive.

There are many traditions Christians have practised over the years to help keep our Lord in open view.

Some Egyptian Coptic Christians have had an interesting way to proclaim their faith in Jesus - they have small tattoos made on their hands, arms or even forehead. This practice started during the Roman times to indicate the Christians’ determination to uphold the faith in spite of the persecution and torture they faced. It was also a constant reminder of and association with the Christian martyrs who had died under the Roman cruelty. During the Arab conquest such tattoos helped to distinguish the Muslim conquerors from the native Christians and has persisted as a proud display of Christian Coptic identity.

Amish Christians value their old-fashioned style of living partly to remember the faith of their Dutch ancestors. Jews are characterised in the press with their large black hats, beards and characteristic clothes. In fact these ‘Charedi’ are only a minority of the strictly Orthodox Jews, but they do make the point that they represent their religion. Catholic priests, monks and nuns are encouraged to dress uniformly to distinguish them from the laity and as such they do, by their presence, make a statement.

Traditions are important to keep our faith in Jesus in public view. In Old Testament times God told his Chosen People that they must make him the priority of their life.

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.” Deuteronomy 6:4-9

In other words, all their lives were to be centred on pleasing the Lord. They are to keep bringing the Lord’s wishes into their conversations. They must ensure that they pass on the faith to the next generation. Jews have taken the command to tie God’s commands on their hands, foreheads, door frames and gates of the city literally with their ‘mezuzahs’ on their door frames (Hebrew ‘mezuzot’) that they touch as they go in and out and the prayer boxes Orthodox Jews put on themselves when they pray.

What is important is that all people do with their hands, all they think of, all that goes on in their homes and in their cities, should be under the authority of God.

What does this mean for us today in modern societies. Christians have been chosen to represent the Lord Jesus so surely we should do something to distinguish ourselves from the mass of people who disregard God.

Privately it is vital for Christians to have a daily time when we commune with our Lord by studying his Word and praying about the issues we face. Such discipline is the mark of a disciple.

Clearly the way that Christians live both in our homes and in public is vital. We have all been given the Spirit of God so that we may live as Christ lived, with a genuine compassion for others. This will show in what we do, as well as what we say. Christians will want to talk about the Saviour of the world with others, they will want to invite them to hear the Bible, God’s Word, being taught. How attractive it is when Christians in the public eye find ways to talk about the Lord Jesus and what he means to them. It is similarly attractive when individuals find ways to talk to their friends, family and those they meet, about the Saviour they love.

Other traditions that are important include openly praying before all meals (when we thank our Lord for his grace!), regularly attending our church services even when we are tired, making it clear from what people can see in our homes that we are committed to the Lord Jesus and taking up opportunities to invite people to come and hear God’s word being read and taught. Reading the Bible on a train or in public is another way to make a stand. Others will put ‘fish’ stickers on the back of their cars. A ‘fish’ has been a Christian symbol since very early times as the Greek for ‘fish’ is ‘ichthys’. This is an acronym for “Iēsous Christos, Theou ‘Yios, Sōtēr”, which translates into ‘Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour’.

Summary

This miracle of the feeding of the five thousand reminds us that Jesus is our Lord, who created us. He demonstrated the compassion of God. We, his followers have been given the self-same Spirit of God so that we may represent him today. The church is His body in a very real sense.

We urgently need find ways to keep the Lord Jesus in the public eye, to demonstrate how attractive he is, so that others may find the salvation he offers. We, like the early apostles, have a vital message to share. Our message about Jesus Christ is world-changing – or should be. When and Silas were teaching the gospel in Thessalonica they taught unashamedly about Jesus,

“This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” Acts 17:3

The result was that ‘some were persuaded’ (Acts 17:4). There was also much opposition, the crowd shouting,

“These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also.” Acts 17:6

How we desperately need this same Spirit of God to be seen in his church today.

BVP