Stay Sweet
John 6:1-15
John 6:1-15
1 After this, Jesus crossed over to the far side of the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Sea of Tiberias. 2 A huge crowd kept following him wherever he went, because they saw his miraculous signs as he healed the sick. 3 Then Jesus climbed a hill and sat down with his disciples around him. 4 (It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration.) 5 Jesus soon saw a huge crowd of people coming to look for him. Turning to Philip, he asked, “Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?” 6 He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do.
7 Philip replied, “Even if we worked for months, we wouldn’t have enough money to feed them!”
8 Then Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up. 9 “There’s a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd?”
10 “Tell everyone to sit down,” Jesus said. So they all sat down on the grassy slopes. (The men alone numbered about 5,000.) 11 Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed them to the people. Afterward he did the same with the fish. And they all ate as much as they wanted. 12 After everyone was full, Jesus told his disciples, “Now gather the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted.” 13 So they picked up the pieces and filled twelve baskets with scraps left by the people who had eaten from the five barley loaves.
14 When the people saw him do this miraculous sign, they exclaimed, “Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!” 15 When Jesus saw that they were ready to force him to be their king, he slipped away into the hills by himself.
Jesus noticed a crowd of people looking for Him. He asked Philip where they could buy bread to feed everyone, but Philip told Him that wasn’t an option.
However, Andrew brought Jesus what they did have: five barley loaves and two fish. With only that, Jesus fed five thousand men (up to 20,000 including women and children).
After this miracle, the people wanted to make Him their king, but He slipped away before they could.
In the gospel of Matthew, we see that, just before this event, Jesus found out about John the Baptist’s death. Grief struck Him. He felt the need to isolate himself in a boat in the Sea of Galilee for a time.
Matthew 14:10-14 — 10 So John was beheaded in the prison, 11 and his head was brought on a tray and given to the girl, who took it to her mother. 12 Later, John’s disciples came for his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus what had happened.
13 As soon as Jesus heard the news, he left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot from many towns. 14 Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
We see that even the Son of God felt hurt in a very real way when He lost someone near to Him.
Then we see the example Jesus gives us. That a healthy heart sees people with compassion even when hurt. He still cared for the people when He fed them.
When we’re grieving, we can do one of three things:
Hurt others
Hide from others
Help others
With Jesus as the example, we know that taking some time to seek His face, asking Him what He’s trying to teach us, and then helping others is the best choice.
God never said that this life would be easy. In fact, He told us there would be trials and tribulation. But He also promised us a hope for a better future and to one day live in His presence if we stay focused on Him.
The deepest hurts, if processed properly, can help you find the heart of God.
Because sometimes God allows us to go through things that will teach us something about Him in a very unique way. And when we find His heart, we grow more content.
In that, we can stay sweet.
Which brings us to the pastor’s key: “Jesus demonstrated a heart to feed people, but He clearly taught us that He offers more than bread alone. The goal of a Christian is to discover what that means and share it with others.”
If you woke up this morning, it’s not too late.
Grace & peace,
Michelle Kampmeier
**Note: This series of posts on the book of John come from notes and previous writings based on my church’s sermon series on this book. Check out the playlist for all of the sermon videos by clicking here.