More than Enough
The Feeding of the 5000
John 6:1-14
Do you always feel that the promises of God to provide our needs are met in your life? Do you feel like God has and continues to meet all your needs?
Four ways Christ glorifies Himself through provision promise keeping:
1. The glory of Jesus in providing through current circumstances (vs. 1-7)
- Where is the glory of Christ in what seems like preliminary contextual details?
- His ascension up the mountainside: a place throughout the Bible known as a place of divine revelation
- His sitting posture: the posture rabbis and Jesus often taught in
- Jesus’ leading of the people to a remote place: the description of the location that was often where God provided miraculously for His people
- The nearness of the Passover festival: a special time in the calendar recorded in John each year where Christ’s identity as the promised Messiah was specially revealed
- A time of need in His people: an opportunity to show Himself as provider
How many times do we see the opportunity for God to provide in our lives as a reason to doubt God’s glory instead of a reason to see God’s glory? When the provision we’re looking for hasn’t come yet - do we see Christ’s glory in our lives simply because of who He is in our current circumstances?
2. The glory of Jesus in providing through small sacrifice (vs. 8-9)
- Andrew shows up in the wake of Phillip’s doubt and presents Jesus with what he found in the crowd – yet still doubts
- This isn’t the first time barley loaves have stretched beyond what they should in the hands of God
Do you doubt your usefulness to God because you feel like you don’t have enough resources to be useful? Do you feel like God’s shortchanged you of the gifts, time, talents, skills, or knowledge to be useful to Him? OR, are you unwilling to surrender to Jesus what He has given you? What has God already given you that you need to surrender so that He might be glorified?
3. The glory of Jesus in providing through miraculous multiplication (vs. 10-12a)
- Provision of place – there was plenty of grass in that place (10)
- Provision of plenty – they all had enough to eat (12)
- Don’t let the amazement of this miracle become familiar, stale, or old to you. Don’t rob it of its significance - this is truly a miracle - something only God can do. As Jesus broke the bread to distribute it, it multiplied in His very hands - a continual act of creation - bread was continually being called into existence which had not existed moments before. Do not let the greatness of this miracle pass you by!
Do you doubt the miraculous multiplication power of our God in your life? In your situation? Do you doubt what God might do with a little or even nothing to glorify Himself through meeting your need?
4. The glory of Jesus in providing through lots of leftovers (vs. 12b-14)
- Twelve baskets full of the leftovers were collected and returned as tangible proof that this wasn’t an illusion, sleight of hand, or misdirection
- The point of this miracle isn’t just a fancy, flashy feast, but to be a revelation of who Jesus Christ is – the true bread of life for all God’s people!
Do you find yourself fixated on the material needs or the majestic Saviour? Do find yourself focused on the leftovers given or the leftovers giver? Don’t leave here convinced Jesus is a prophet without listening to His Word. Repent of your sin and believe today.
Do you assess what you need in life based on what God hasn’t given you or what He has given you? How can you rest in trusting that God will provide what you need? And if He hasn’t given it yet - He’s going to, or you don’t need what you think you do because you have Jesus - the One who is truly all we need.
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