In Jason Dohm's sermon 'Feeding the Five Thousand,' he examines the miracle of Jesus feeding a large crowd with limited resources, a story recorded in all four Gospels. Dohm highlights significant time markers indicating a period of either six months or a year between Jesus' healing of a crippled man in Jerusalem and the feeding miracle in Galilee. The sermon emphasizes the continuity of the Gospel accounts and Jesus' compassion for the crowd, who sought him for miracles. Despite the crowd's motivations, Jesus taught and healed them, embodying patience and compassion. Dohm outlines seven truths from the Gospel of John, including Jesus' divinity, the abundance of his miracles, and his patience in testing his followers. The sermon underscores the themes of abundance and scarcity, demonstrating that Jesus' divine power can transform little into plenty. Disciples play a crucial role in distributing the miraculous provision, symbolizing their participation in God's work. The sermon encourages believers to trust in Jesus' claims and his sufficiency, urging them to ask for abundance for Christ's exaltation while being responsible stewards of resources.

The title of the sermon this morning is borrowed from the uninspired heading in my Bible. It's simply, Feeding the Five Thousand. It's been about 30 seconds trying to think of a more enrapturing title, but I came up empty. And so, since it's universally known as the feeding of the 5, 000, I guess we'll satisfy ourselves with that. The text opens with these words, after these things.

And we have A couple of time markers that will help us make sense of that. The first is in chapter 5 verse 1. So we're beginning chapter 6 this week. We go back to the beginning of last chapter. We see these words in 5 verse 1.

After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. So last chapter found Jesus in Jerusalem at a feast of the Jews. And while he was there, he healed a man who was crippled for 38 years, but he did it on the Sabbath which stirred controversy and the rest of the chapter is devoted to Jesus speaking to the people who were confronting him over healing this lame man on the Sabbath. In chapter 6, our text, verse 4, we read, Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. So if chapter 5, verse 1, the feast of the Jews, and we're not given what feast of the Jews it was, it just says a feast of the Jews.

If it was the feast of tabernacles or the feast of booze, which are the same thing by different names, then six months have passed. If it was the Passover feast, it's been a full year. So the commentators are pretty much universal that it's either the feast of tabernacles or the feast of Passover at the beginning of chapter 5. So we're talking about either half a year or a year have passed by. So when we see the opening words of our text after these things, don't think a day or two later.

It hasn't been days, it's been a period of months, maybe as many as 12 months. So the scene has shifted from the region of Judea, and more specifically Jerusalem, where the temple is, where people are going up to the feasts. So the scene has shifted from there to the region of Galilee, which of course is Jesus' home region. He grew up in Nazareth, which is a city of Galilee, and it's probably either six months or a year later. As we go to our text, let's ask the Lord for help.

Jesus, you are God. And it's on display so clearly in our text for all who have eyes to see. I pray that everyone who hears the preaching today would be given eyes to see the glories of Christ. Let us marvel as we see you doing things that no man can do, but that the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ has done. Oh, let Christ be lifted up and exalted among us today.

We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. So I'm going to be doing two things this morning. This is sort of the road map for the rest of our time. First, this is an account, a historical account that is recorded in all four gospels.

Matthew has it, Mark has it, Luke has it, John has it, And other than the resurrection, there's no other miracle that can make that claim. So the feeding of the 5, 000, being in all four gospels is very unique. Only the resurrection shares that honor. And so the first thing that I'm going to be doing in the sermon today is to pull together out of the fullness of all four gospels, the fullness of the account. Just pulling in tidbits from the other gospels that we don't have in John so we get sort of the full, rich, deep view of it.

Then secondly, I'm going to be giving you seven important truths which we learn. And I don't feel like any of them is a stretch at all. These are things that if you were just saying, hey, what are the important things that we learn from these texts? Probably the seven things and maybe more that you yourself would pull out of the text. So let's begin with the fullness of the account.

And if you're taking notes on the handout and you're filling in blanks, it's fullness, the fullness of the account. I'll be pulling from Matthew 14, Mark 6, and Luke 9. So these are the four places that we find them. Matthew 14, Mark 6, Luke 9, and here in John chapter 6. And I will have to say, as someone who preached through Matthew, so I'm no stranger to harmonizing accounts, that this particular historical account has amazing continuity.

In other words, sometimes there are challenges when you look at the account of the same event in the different gospels in understanding how what they say don't stand in contradiction to each other. Now, I've found in going through this loop many times in preaching through Matthew that with care and thought you can always satisfy a humble honest mind that these really don't contradict each other. But on the surface sometimes they seem to. But not really with this account. There's amazing continuity among the four gospel writers on what happened here.

Jesus crosses the Sea of Galilee. Now the Jordan runs through the Sea of Galilee. And Jesus grew up maybe ten miles from the Sea of Galilee. Nazareth isn't far from the Sea of Galilee at all. The Jordan runs into what is called the Sea of Galilee from the north, and then the Jordan emerges from what we know as the Sea of Galilee on the south side and continues along the length of Israel.

We call it the Sea of Galilee, but it's actually fresh water. You have this fresh water river running into it and out of it. It's 14 miles long and 9 miles wide at its widest point. It's about 150 feet deep at its greatest depth. The Gospel writer John here says that it's also known as the Sea of Tiberias, which is really interesting.

Tiberias is a city that was built on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. And it was built there by Herod Antipas in 20 AD. And so we think of AD as after death, but that's not really right. You start counting from Jesus' birth. Tiberias is a city that was actually built by Herod Antipas in honor of Caesar Tiberius during the lifetime of Jesus.

When he was somewhere around 20 years old. Tiberias was built by Herod Antipas. And it probably wasn't that prominent when Jesus was alive, and yet John writes his gospel decades, decades later, probably close to 70 AD. By that time it was a thriving city. So the Sea of Galilee actually came to be known, especially outside Israel, as the Sea of Tiberias.

So This is a tip that John says, the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Sea of Tiberias, is a tip that John expected his gospel to be read by many people outside of Israel. There are two events that come together at this time and neither of them are mentioned by John in his gospel, but they are mentioned elsewhere. John has sort of a compressed account. Other of the gospel accounts are actually longer and more comprehensive. And so these two events that come together aren't mentioned by John, but the first event is that John the Baptist has just been beheaded by Herod and Jesus has just been told that John the Baptist was beheaded.

So I'm going to now go to our parallel passage in the book of Matthew, Matthew chapter 14. Listen to Matthew chapter 14 verses 11 through 13. And this is speaking of John the Baptist's head being brought to Herod, this gruesome scene. Matthew 14 starting in verse 11. And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl.

This is Herodias' daughter who had asked at the prompting of her mother. And given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. Then his disciples came and took away the body and buried it, and went and told Jesus. When Jesus heard it, he departed from there by boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed him on foot from the city.

So that brings us into the account of John. John the Baptist had just been beheaded. Jesus had just been told. And it's clear from Matthew's account that Jesus was deeply affected by getting word that John the Baptist had been martyred. And he goes really to have time away.

He goes to a deserted place. It doesn't stay deserted, but he goes to a deserted place. So that's the first event that John doesn't mention, but is happening. There's a second event that is happening at the same time. The twelve disciples have just returned from the first time that they have been sent out to preach and to cast out demons and to heal the sick.

So the account of the feeding of the 5, 000 is here in Matthew chapter 14. If you go back chapters in Matthew to Matthew chapter 10, you get Jesus sending out the twelve, two by two, and He gives them very explicit instructions about what they are to do and not do. Very explicit instructions about what they are to say and not say. Where they are to go and not go. It's incredibly detailed in how Jesus instructs them.

He sends them out to preach repentance. He sends them out to cast out demons. He empowers them to cast out demons and to heal the sick. And they've just returned from having done that. So now listen to Mark's account, Mark's parallel account in Mark chapter 6 verses 30 through 33.

Then the apostles gathered to Jesus, this is after they've returned, Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught. And he said to them, Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest awhile. For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat, so they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. But the multitude saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to them." So this is where Mark's Gospel really spits us out to where we start in our text today in John chapter 6.

And Mark also mentions right before I read that John the Baptist had been beheaded. So you have the convergence, the coming together of these two events. John has a compressed account so he doesn't spend time and space on it, but these two things have just happened. Jesus has just gotten word that John the Baptist was martyred and the disciples have just returned from the mission that he sent them out on and he's taking them aside to a deserted place. The text here in Mark says that there were so many people coming and going that they didn't even have time to eat, and so Jesus takes them away to rest.

Back to John. It's clear why the multitudes have come. I look again at verse 6, because they saw his signs which he performed on those who were diseased. So did they want spiritual healing from Jesus? That's not what the text says.

Do they want to be taught by Jesus? That's not what the text says. Do they want to be taught by Jesus? That's not what the text says. The text would indicate more that they're out to see the circus.

They're out for the show. They've heard of the miraculous things that Jesus is doing in healing the diseased and the sick, and they want to see also. However, Jesus looks on them with compassion. Listen to Mark chapter 6 verse 34. It says that He was moved with compassion for them because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.

You might think that because they were miracle seekers, they just wanted to see the show, probably a lot of them, that Jesus would despise that. But actually as Jesus looks out on this multitude, he doesn't feel that way at all. He actually has compassion for them. He sees them as those who are sheep not having a shepherd. As a consequence, Jesus spends the day teaching and healing.

So here's another place where we get no sense of that in John's account of the events at all. But in all of the other accounts, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, it's clear that there was a day spent with this multitude and Jesus was teaching and healing. Listen to Luke 9 verse 11. This is from the parallel account in Luke's Gospel. Luke 9 verse 11 says, he received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God and healed those who had need of healing.

So they came to see healing and he actually healed those who needed healing and he spoke to them about the kingdom of God. He spent the day teaching them and healing them. When the day was almost gone, it's evening, one of the accounts says the day was far spent, the disciples urged Jesus to send the people away so that they can get food. They come to Jesus and say, send them out to the surrounding towns and villages so they can find lodging and food. This is not again in the Gospel of John, but it is in Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

In our account, Jesus simply asks Philip, where shall we buy bread that these may eat? This is verse 5 in our text. Now in the Luke account It says that they had gone into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. So in the other accounts, you don't know where on the Sea of Galilee they are, But Luke actually pinpoints the location. Listen again.

Into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. This is Luke chapter 9 verse 10. So They're not in Bethsaida, but Bethsaida would be the nearest town to this deserted place. This is a place that is associated with Bethsaida. By this description, If you've listened to the news about Israel for a period of years, you've heard the term the Golan Heights.

This is almost certainly on the Golan Heights. It's hills that rise above the northeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. In John chapter 1 verse 44, we learn that Philip was from Bethsaida. So Jesus asks Philip, where should we go buy bread for these people? And Luke pinpointed the location.

This is a deserted place belonging associated with Bethsaida and it's Philip that Jesus asks, you know the town, where do we buy the food? Now this question was not informational, meaning Jesus isn't trying to fill a gap in his understanding. Jesus doesn't need the information. It was designed to fulfill a purpose. Look at verse 6 in our text.

But this he said to test him for he himself knew what he would do. Jesus knew all along exactly how this was going to play out, exactly what he was going to do, exactly how this would end. But he asks Philip the question, not to get information, but to test Philip. Philip says it would take 200 denarii to give everyone in the crowd just a little bit of bread. So 200 denarii buys a little bit, just buys a sampling for this multitude.

One of the Gospel accounts said it was a great multitude. We get numbers later. Now a denarii is one day's wages for a field laborer. So if you needed 200 denarii for everyone to get a sampling of bread, you would need 8 months wages for a field laborer. So eight months pay, you take all of that eight months pay and you buy bread and everybody gets a sampling of it.

That's how big the crowd was. The sense that we get in Mark and Luke is that they have the resources for that if they want to. So it's not stated that way in the Gospel account. Philip just says, if we were going to give a little bread to everyone here, we'd need eight months wages for a day laborer. But the other accounts, the natural understanding of what the other accounts say is that they actually have enough money to do that.

So I don't know if you've ever imagined that Jesus and the disciples were sort of homeless single guys that went around and had no place to stay, had no resources at all. The gospel accounts really contradict that notion. Jesus did say he didn't have anywhere to lay his head, but we see him with a home base in Capernaum. We see him in Luke, that there were prominent women who actually were funding his ministry. He did have resources and he probably had enough resources to do just what's suggested here to take eight months wages for a day laborer and buy a sampling of food for the multitude.

Andrew, Peter's brother, has identified a little boy who has 5 barley loaves and 2 small fish. So first, a barley loaf would be what poor people would eat. People with resources like wheat bread. It's really true today by and large. Barley loaves are for people who don't have the resources to afford someone better.

So you have a little boy in the multitude who has five barley loaves and two small fish. But Andrew says, what are they among so many? There are 5, 000 men, that's identified in our text, but listen to Matthew 14 verse 21. Now those who had eaten were about 5, 000 men besides women and children. So John gives us the head count on men, But Matthew makes it clear that it's not only men there, there are also women and children, they're just not included in the count.

Commentators vary on their speculations, but you have numbers up to 20, 000 and it's not hard to do back of the neck in math to get to 20, 000. The text doesn't say 20, 000, so we'll just consider it 5, 000 plus. 5, 000 is hungry men. And then there are women and children also. J.C.

Ryle makes the observation that this is one barley loaf per thousand men and less than half a small fish per thousand men. So Here's less than half a small fish, you thousand go split it up. And five thousand men, five barley loaves. You thousand, you get this barley loaf. Which would have looked more like a pancake than a loaf of bread, or what the commentators say.

Verse 10, Jesus says, make the people sit down. In Mark chapter 6 verse 40, it says that they had been seated in hundreds and fifties. So there's a sense of organization and order brought to this. They sit down on the grass in groupings of hundreds and fifties. Jesus gives thanks in Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

It says that he looked up to heaven and he blessed and broke the loaves. In Matthew, Mark, and Luke the language is almost exactly the language used of the Lord's institution of the Lord's Supper. He looks up to heaven, he breaks and blesses the loaves. And then he distributes it to his disciples who distribute it to the people. Verse 11 in our text says that everyone ate as much as they wanted.

Everyone ate as much as they wanted. Verse 12 says, when they were filled. So you have people who have been there. Jesus has been teaching, Jesus has been healing the sick, the day is far gone, the evening has come, the people are without food, you have 5, 000 hungry men plus women and children and all of them eat until they are full. Jesus then has his disciples gather up the leftovers.

Collect up the leftovers and he says so that nothing is lost. This is verse 12. And they collect up 12 baskets full. So you have 12 baskets of leftovers and all the leftover baskets are full. What has happened here?

We started with five barley loaves and two small fish. We fed thousands of people, more than 5, 000 people, and we ended up with 12 baskets of leftovers. Outstanding. Finally, what has happened creates a buzz. Of course it creates a buzz.

Look at verse fourteen. Then those men, those five thousand men when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, this is truly the prophet who is to come into the world. So we don't know how the word got out. But this was not done just the disciples knew it. No one else really even knew where the food came from.

No, no, no. The men understood that something miraculous happened here. In fact, The first verse in next week's text says that they were ready to take Jesus by force and make him king. Everybody knows that they started with five barley loaves and two small fish, and that everyone ate somehow, and they ended up with twelve basketfuls of leftovers and that this was a miracle of God. Everyone knows that.

Okay, that's the merged Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John account of the feeding of the 5, 000. Seven important truths which we learn. And I'm really taking these from the Gospel of John. There were things that we brought in that I'm not even going to comment. I'm really commenting on only the things that we see in John's gospels here to keep the number reasonable.

Seven things that we learn, important truths that we learn from the gospel of John. Number one, Jesus has demonstrated that he is from God and that he is God. This is the big takeaway. Maybe we should just do number one and be done. Jesus has demonstrated that he is from God and that he is God.

There are some accounts in the Old Testament that are similar to this in many ways. We think of Moses and Manah. Moses declared what God was going to do, how God was going to feed the people for 40 years in a wilderness where they did not have the ability to raise crops, that every morning when they went out six days a week, they were going to find food on the ground, Just find it on the ground. God fed the people for 40 years that way. A great multitude of people.

And in fact, as we work our way through John chapter 6, we're going to see Jesus is going to talk about Moses and manna and what the real significance of that is. That he is really the fulfillment of that picture. So we're coming to that in John chapter 6. In 1 Kings chapter 17, We have the great prophet Elijah. And there are actually two instances in this one chapter, 1 Kings chapter 17, that are similar to this.

In one, Elijah has had to flee for his life and God has the ravens bring him bread and meat. We have no idea where the ravens got that bread and meat. It was God. Elijah has a brook, he has a water source, and the ravens bring him bread and meat. At the end of the chapter, there's a woman whose famine has come, the famine is severe, this woman is almost out of food herself, so when Elijah asks her for food, she really doesn't have an abundance for sharing, and he says, don't worry, the flour bin and the oil jar are never going to run dry.

And so she is able to feed the prophet Elijah on an ongoing basis somehow because she keeps using the flower but the flower never gets used up. She keeps using the oil but the oil never gets used up. That sounds a lot like what we have here in John chapter 6. In 2 Kings chapter 4, instead of it being the mighty prophet Elijah, it's the mighty prophet Elisha. Second Kings chapter 4.

And oddly enough there are actually two events in that chapter that are very much like this. In the first, Elisha tells this woman to borrow as many vessels as she can borrow. So she also is out of resources. She just has a little oil left in one small vessel. He says go borrow all the vessels she can.

She goes to her neighbor, she borrows all the vessels she can, and she takes her almost empty vessel of oil and she starts filling and she keeps filling and she fills them all to the brim. And Elisha says, more vessels, and she says there are no more vessels. At the end of that very same chapter, 20 loaves of barley bread are brought to the prophet Elisha and there is a hungry multitude and Elisha says give these 20 loaves of barley bread to the multitude and it said you wouldn't even feed this to a hundred warriors let alone this multitude and Elisha says give it to them they shall eat and have some left over. So it's very much in many ways like our text. Now what's the difference between what Jesus has done and does in the Gospel accounts, not just here but elsewhere, and those other instances that we see?

I think there are two fundamental, huge differences. Number one, the abundance of the signs. Count up all Elijah's signs, Isaiah's signs, Jeremiah's signs, Elisha's signs, Moses' signs, they put them next to Jesus and Jesus outsigns them. Jesus does more miracles than they do. Jesus has an avalanche of miraculous signs.

Secondly, the claims made. None of those Old Testament men who God raised up and did miracles through made the claims about themselves that Jesus made about themselves. You'll not find one of them claiming equality with God. In fact, they're ashamed to do more than say thus saith the Lord. Those are the men of the Old Testament.

Jesus claims without shame to be God. The Jews got it and the Jews killed him for blasphemy because of the claims that he made. Of course these things go together. The claims that Jesus made necessitated the abundance and greatness of the miracles he did. In other words, God was backing him up.

God his Father was backing him up in these claims that were either blasphemy or central truths that we have to build our lives upon. Again, listen to John chapter 20. If you're sick of this one, I don't care. John chapter 20 verses 30 and 31. And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples which are not written in this book, but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

All the signs, the greatness of the signs, the miracles, the abundance of the signs, the miracles, are God the Father backing up the claims of equality with God, of God the Son. To where we began all this, John chapter 1 verses 1 through 3. This is where this all started. But this isn't Jesus talking, this is the theological perspective of John the Gospel writer. Here's this theological perspective about Jesus.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made. All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made. You don't feed 5, 000 hungry men with five barley loaves and two small fish unless you can make something out of nothing.

Jesus didn't do this On behalf of God, Jesus did this as God. The men in the Old Testament did many things. They were told by God to do it. They did it as a representative of God. Jesus did this as God.

All things were made through Him. Nothing's ever been made that Jesus didn't make. He's displaying that here. He's showing his Godhood here. Where did John get this theological perspective from?

He was there. He saw this. Oh friends, believe Jesus' claims. We're going to come upon these fantastical claims in the gospels. Should you believe them or should you reject them?

You know what? If a person comes up to you and makes like claims to what Jesus says in the gospels, you should write them off as nuts. Why do we write Jesus off as nuts? Because He fed five thousand from five barley loaves and two small fish. He demonstrated that far from being all talk, he was practically all substance.

His claims didn't even match up to the signs and miracles that he made. Believe his claims about his identity. Believe his claims about his work. When he says he can make the foulest clean, His blood can wash you as white as snow. Believe Him.

Believe Him. Oh friends, believe His claims. He has proved Himself to be who He claimed to be. He has proved His work to do what He claimed it would do. It will wash you as white as snow.

Number two. Jesus is almost unbelievably patient in His dealings with us. Jesus is almost unbelievably patient in his dealings with us. I say almost unbelievably because we believe this is truth. So we should believe it.

But when you look at this, when you see a multitude coming out to the circus, how would you deal with this? I'd be so tempted to just dismiss the whole self-serving, self-loving lot of them. Jesus isn't like that. He looked out on them with a heart of compassion. He said, look at all those sheep without a shepherd.

I'll teach you. I'll feed you. I'll heal you. He spent his day doing that. When he went away to grieve over the death of John the Baptist and to be with his disciples and rest.

How patient he is in his dealings with us. People were chasing him because of his healings. But in spite of that he has compassion on them, he pities them, he teaches them, He heals them, He feeds them. Oh friends, praise God for His gentle, patient dealings with us. If He treated you as you deserve to be treated, this would be the worst day of your life.

This might be the last day of your life. He's so patient. He's so gentle. Our sins deserve for us to be mistreated, but you know what? He teaches us.

He heals us. He feeds us. Number three, Jesus tests His people to teach His people. Jesus tests his people to teach his people. He knew all along.

When he asks Philip, you're from Bethsaida, where can we go get food for all these people? He knew all along what he was going to do. He was testing him to teach him. He made them feel their lack in order to demonstrate his all sufficiency. Isn't this wonderful?

He teases out their lack. They might have not felt insufficient so he asked the question, where can we get food for this multitude that we're not even counting here? To demonstrate his all sufficiency. At the end they have to be wondering, is there anything you can't do? Oh friends, don't despise the tests.

The Lord Jesus is teaching us His all sufficiency. Don't despise the test. Some of you are in the middle of it. A bunch of you are in the middle of it. And I bet I don't know the half of what's in the room.

Jesus is testing you in a hundred different ways and it's easy to despise that. Oh God why? Why me? He's teaching you His all-sufficiency. He's teaching you that you can flourish and have joy even in the middle of this test.

Don't despise it. Drink in His all sufficiency. Let it feed your soul. Number four. A little in the hands of Jesus is more than he needs.

A little in the hands of Jesus is more than he needs. I think the five barley loaves and the two small fish are just symbolic. He could have started with zero as easily as he could start with five loaves and two fish. Oh friends, don't allow yourselves to worry about the apparent shortfalls. If there's anything that Jesus teaches repeatedly in the gospels, it's that he doesn't want his people spending their brains worrying.

We spend our efforts and our energies and our thoughts on other kingdom things because it's wasted. Worry is waste if you're under the shadow of his wings. Let me say it again. Worry is waste if you're under the shadow of his wings. Worry is waste if you're under the shadow of his wings.

The apparent scarcity is just that. It's just apparent scarcity. Don't worry. Just offer up the little that you have. Whatever it is.

Number five, God is the God of abundance, although he sometimes strategically uses scarcity. God is the God of abundance. He's not a stingy God. He's never lacking in resources. Although he sometimes strategically uses scarcity.

We see both in this passage. He uses scarcity. They start out in a position of overwhelming scarcity. One barley loaf to a thousand. Less than half a little fish to a thousand.

That allots nothing to the women and children. Overwhelming scarcity. They end in a position of overwhelming abundance. After everyone's eat, I can't eat another bite. The 5, 000 men and all the women and children are at I can't eat another bite They're they'll all eat as much as they want.

They're filled Twelve basketfuls left of leftovers John 10 10 Jesus says I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. And this is just one little category where Jesus shows off. That He has and is pleased to give abundance. I love seeing Jesus show off in the Gospels, don't you? Our King can do that!

Go ahead and show off. Exalt yourself by showing us the things that we couldn't even imagine that you could do. Jesus says, I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. God isn't cheap. He's not stingy.

He's never resource constrained. He can flood you with abundance and not be diminished at all. So you know when there's scarcity, he's using it strategically. He doesn't owe you an explanation or me. He's bringing himself glory.

We know that it's not because he's stingy. No way. Oh friends, don't be ashamed to ask for and expect abundance when what you are seeking is for the exaltation of Christ. Don't be ashamed or afraid to ask for abundance. Expect abundance when what you are seeking is for the exaltation of Christ.

How often do we have not because we ask not? Here's the answer to that question. We don't know. Why don't we know? Because we didn't ask.

May we not be a people like that. May we be less of a people like that. We are a people like that. May we be less of a people like that. We are a people like that.

May we be less of a people like that. Number six. Jesus doesn't waste the leftovers. This is curious to me. Is this curious to you?

If you're with a God man who can make it out of nothing and take almost nothing and feed thousands of people with more leftover than you started with, who cares about the leftovers? Good news! Meal prep is no longer on our list! And yet, when Jesus was with the woman at the well, he sent the disciples off to buy food. This isn't normally how they ate.

Was there a Power shortage in the Godhead? No. God normally works through the normal means of everyday life. Normally, He wants us to eat by growing food, harvesting food, shipping food, putting food, preparing food, cooking food. None of that is necessary.

God can make Fully formed food. Grown, harvested, transported, prepared, cooked, served. He can. He usually chooses not to. He says in verse 12, so that nothing is lost.

Oh friends, don't allow the endless ability of God to give abundance to be an excuse for waste. I think this is a really important truth in this text. Oh friends, don't allow God's inexhaustible ability to give abundance to be an excuse for waste. In other words, why do I need to be a good steward? He can make something of nothing.

Why does it matter if I use my time well? Why does it matter if I'm a good steward of the money that I have? Why does it matter if I let this opportunity go? God can send them another Christian. Well, that isn't exactly the point, is it?

It is true, but It's not the point. Jesus teaches us that even though God has an endless ability to give abundance, that's not an excuse for waste. He actually gathers up the leftovers. Number seven, finally. This is a fitting parable of where we fit in the work of God.

Think of this as a parable of where you fit in God's economy to save people, to do good to the world. Listen to what J.C. Ryle says. He's actually going to speak of ministers here and he has in mind preachers, pastors. But I want to broaden it and say that we are all ministers.

We are a priesthood of believers. All different members of the body. There are some eyes, some ears, some hands, some feet here. And yet all of us are working together as God's ministers in different ways to advance His Kingdom. Here's what J.C.

Ryle says of us as ministers. We have a lesson about the office of ministers. It was their work to receive humbly and distribute faithfully. His whole business is to receive the bread of life which his master provides and to distribute it among the souls among whom he labors. He cannot make men value the bread or receive it.

This is not his work. His whole business is to be a faithful distributor of the food which his divine master has provided and that done his office is discharged. What a wonderful outlook on our place in the work of God. It doesn't mean that we don't matter, but it means that our job is to receive humbly what we couldn't do ourselves. Any of us make something from nothing, no.

But he makes something from nothing and he puts it in our hands to distribute. So we receive humbly, we're humble because we know where it came from, that we didn't have the ability to gain it, came from God, doing what only He can do, and then we distribute faithfully. This is just our part in it. He's given us the privilege of co-laboring with Him to give spiritual food to the world. What a privilege.

Oh friends, receive humbly and distribute faithfully and then rest. Rest. The results are not ours. The results are not ours. God, thank you for this text.

For the times that we've become so used to the volume of your wonders in the Gospels, so that we read right over the top of this and we're not awestruck at what was done here and then a hundred other places in the Gospel accounts where you do something that we've never seen with our eyes in our lives. Cumulatively we've never seen one of these things. God, let us be in awe. Thank you for the truths that are right here on the surface in this wonderful text. Thank you for your word.

We pray that you would bless it to our hearing. You would use it to move us forward. We pray in Jesus' name, Amen.