July 29, 2018 Sunday

“1 ¶  After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2  Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased. 3  And Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples. 4  Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. 5  Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” 6  But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do. 7  Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little.” 8  One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9  “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?” 10  Then Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11  And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted. 12  So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.” 13  Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. 14  Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” 15 ¶  Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone. 16  Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17  got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them. 18  Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing. 19  So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid. 20  But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21  Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.” (John 6:1-21 NKJV)

            John gives us a running list of miracles which while impressive may seem disconnected and forced together.  This would be true if it wasn’t for one phrase, “Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near.”

            The Passover connects and gives deeper meaning to these miracles and to a Jew connects Jesus with one of the mightiest works of God the Jews experienced and for Gentiles would give meaning and connection to an event they might have seen as meaningless to them.

Jesus sat with them – The presence of God was with the Jews through Moses and the miracles of the plagues.  We must remember that to the Egyptians these were horrific acts but to the Jews they were signs of God’s presence and power!  We might think this was terrible of God but compare this to all the evil treatment by the Egyptians for generations!  God also was directly with the Jews as they travelled!

Jesus set them free from diseases – Think of the condition the Jews were in after generations of slavery!  And as the plagues were happening to the Egyptians were happening the Jews were not affected!

Jesus fed the people – Until they reached the land God had promised every day except the Sabbath a daily allotment of food was provided!  The direct feeding by God is a reminder of what God does for all of us!

Jesus provided abundantly – There were more leftovers then the “seed” of the miracle.  A farmer will take a seed and plant it and it will produce not just enough to feed them but seed for the next year!  During the Exodus God provided enough each day and on the day before the Sabbath there was provision for two days.

Jesus was the expression of the glory of God – They could see and know God was with them!  God was not just a story told over generations but was with them and cared for them!  Through the miracles of Jesus they could see the loving character of God!

Jesus showed power over the water – Just as God parted the seas for the Jews to escape Jesus showed power over water!  The Hebrew word for the sea and ocean is similar to the word for chaos and sin. While the religions of the day required sacrifices to the god of water God protected them freely as needed!

            Without carefully searching for the meaning of how the Bible is written we can miss the deeper meaning which in itself is an expression of God’s love and provision for us!  Look and discover not just what God did but what God does for you every day!

            Do you think God is not with you and does not care about you?  Do you think all the good things you have are your own work?  Do you “Count your blessings” each and every day?

After what has been a very hard month God blessed me to be able to attend the family celebration of my 60^th birthday yesterday!  This was a sweet day because when I was 19 the doctors said I had three months to live!  Each day I do count my blessings and know each day is a true gift from God!  All I have, all I have been able to do and who I have become has been a direct provision and blessing from God!  Thank you My Lord and My Love!  I pray I have made you smile! At least some of the time!