June 5, 2014
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

Direct Action

Please see the links to our EXTRA Bible Study notes at the bottom of the page.

Opening Prayer

Merciful God, how great and wonderful are Your works. Wisdom, power and love flow from You. I bless Your name.

Read John 6:1-15

For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.

[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.

Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright &copy 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.&reg Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Reflect

The daily challenge of Christian discipleship is to allow our actions to be directed by Christ, rooted in him, rather than by external expectations and pressures.

Jesus was back in Galilee in a scene familiar from the other Gospels. The feeding of the five thousand is the one miracle recounted in all four Gospels–though only John tells us of the boy with his lunch, and only in John will the miracle lead into Jesus’ claim to be the bread of life. The other distinctive feature here is the crowd’s response: they see Jesus as a possible candidate for the prophet whom Moses predicted in Deuteronomy 18:15, and so a potential king. They intend to force him to fit their plans rather than reorientate their hopes and expectations around him and his teaching. Jesus withdraws before they can try.

Once again he is acting as the Father’s Son, letting only the Father direct his actions and priorities. Note the balance in his ministry between time alone with the Father, time spent teaching and training the disciples, and time given to his public ministry to the crowds. When he is in Galilee, crossing the lake provides a way to secure time away from the crowds, although they follow persistently. Neither the crowd’s view of their own needs, nor their capacity to misunderstand his ministry, nor his disciples’ view that the situation was impossible, are allowed to control Jesus’ actions. His ministry is genuinely for the disciples and the crowds, but he can only serve them if he lives and acts as the Father directs.

He is obedient because he trusts the Father. The miracle takes place as he gives thanks (11,23), just as he will do on a later occasion outside Lazarus’ tomb, knowing that the Father “always” hears him (John 11:41,42). His ministry to others was rooted in obedient faith in the Father. So our ministry in his name must be rooted, also, in obedient faith in him.

Apply

How did Phillip limit what God could do in this situation? Is there some seemingly impossible task you feel God wants you to do? See Luke 1:37.

Closing prayer

Mighty God, You can take whatever I offer You and multiply its effectiveness beyond my wildest dreams. Continue to work Your Kingdom purposes through me.

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