The dilemma was how to feed some five
thousand plus people. Jesus and the
disciples had nothing, yet Jesus insisted that the people be fed. Thus, he poses the question to his disciples. Of course, any time people are faced with a
problem, a discussion breaks out.
Phillip laments that even “eight months’ of wages would not buy
enough” food to feed the crowd.
Andrew, maybe joking, flippantly suggests: “Here is a boy with five small
barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” It was a good conversation, and the only
plausible suggestion, so Jesus told them to have all the people sit down. Then he blessed the food and had it
distributed to the people. In the end,
there was more than enough food to feed the whole crowd . . . in fact, there
were leftovers . . . twelve baskets full!
It was proclaimed a miracle.
There are a variety of interpretations
of the story. Some prefer to think of it
as a kind of supernatural miracle . . . with a prayer and Jesus’ touch, a boy’s
meager lunch was able to feed thousands.
Definitely a miracle. Others
interpret it differently . . . it is still a miracle, but not quite the
supernatural kind. These interpreters
would insist that it is just as much a miracle because, following the child’s
example, everyone simply put on the table what they had brought. Everyone was feed. In a world where we are quick to hold tight
to what is “ours” and awfully slow to share, the latter would seem to be as
amazing an event as any.
How do you interpret the story? In the end, perhaps it is enough to simply
hear the story as a vivid reminder that there is enough. In Jesus’ presence there is always more than
enough. Enough food, enough space,
enough kindness, enough . . . well, you get the picture.
Since my ordination over 35 years ago,
and having served seven congregations, I am still amazed at the power of the
church potluck dinner. It seems that at
every breakfast, lunch, dinner, and cookout I have attended at church, there
never looks as if there is enough food to feed the crowd. And, after every one
of them, I have been amazed that there was plenty . . . in fact, more than
plenty with lots of leftovers to share.
I have never seen anyone go away from a potluck hungry . . . and, if they
did, it was not because of a lack of food.
Pretty miraculous stuff . . . there is
always enough. Because of this, I
probably lean towards the second interpretation of the story. Either way, you look at it, it was a
miracle. Yet, how often do we recognize
a miracle when it is taking place right before our eyes? In a crowd of over five thousand, how many
witnessed the miracle as it was taking place . . . or were they just content
with the simple enjoyment of a plentiful meal that they hardly noticed where it
came from?
Sometimes it is difficult to recognize
the miracle for various reasons . . . being caught up in the fulfillment of the
moment, like having food to feed everyone . . . or, maybe not quite believing
that it can be done—of not being able to see the potential and possibilities .
. . or, just being too busy to even notice.
In this story, we are reminded, that with Jesus there is always enough,
whether we recognize it or not. God’s
gifts are all around us and we need to become more adept at consciously
recognizing, receiving, and celebrating them.
Probably the main reason we fall short
of recognizing the miraculous is because we do not allow ourselves to even
imagine and dream because we are stuck in the idea of scarcity. We know the conversation of scarcity as
individuals, families, communities, and congregations. It is the one that proclaims that there is
“never enough” . . . never enough money, never enough people, never enough
youth . . . never enough. How often have
we shortchanged God and ourselves of the miraculous because we were stuck in
the rut of “never enough”?
I guess that is human nature. I think that we all fall into that trap from
time to time . . . as individuals and as a congregation. We beat ourselves before we have even left
the starting line. But, with this story
of the feeding of the five thousand, we are reminded that with Jesus there is
always enough . . . and, then some. We
have also heard other stories that are like this story.
At the first church I served there was
Brother Louie . . . Mr. Nelson . . . and elder emeritus and my next-door
neighbor. Brother Louie liked to
preached tithing for individuals and for congregations. He believed in tithing and its power based on
his own experience. He talked about in
the beginning of his marriage, he and his wife, would try to pay all their
bills and then give something to the church . . . them first, church
second. He said there was never enough
money and that the church always got the short end of the stick. Then he and his wife decided to take their
tithe out at the beginning and use whatever else was left over to cover their
life expenses. The two of them were
shocked . . . there was always more than enough, in fact, there were always
leftovers. He would say, “With Jesus
there is always more than enough.”
Another story . . . a story that should
be familiar to all of you . . . is when this congregation decided to start
tithing each month and use that money for mission and ministry within the
community and beyond. This was done at a
time when the congregation was scraping by, not much of anything in the bank,
and it was a struggle. The proposal was
a risk, yet the congregation agreed to start tithing. The end results? Well, the congregation is not scraping
by—there is a surplus of money in the bank, nearly twenty percent of the
congregation’s annual budget goes to mission and outreach, and there seems to
be more than enough. It is impressive.
With Jesus there is more than
enough. We see this truth in our
scripture reading this morning, and in the stories of individuals and this
congregation. Knowing this truth,
shouldn’t it become a part of our conversation of faith as individuals and as a
congregation . . . to embrace the possibilities, the potential, and the dreams
of what can be done through Jesus?
There is a whole world out there needing
to be loved . . . millions, upon
millions . . . even billions. How can we feed the hunger of so many? There is not enough money . . . not enough
people . . . not enough.
Remember . . . Jesus took the five
loaves and two small fish from the boy . . . he gave thanks . . . and, then he
distributed them the over five thousand that seemed impossible to feed. When the feast was done, the leftovers were
collected . . . twelve baskets full. No
one was hungry. And, to believe it all
started with five loaves of bread and two fish . . . with Jesus there is always
more than enough. Believe and see. Amen.
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