Monday 13th February
Read John 6:1-15
“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.” (NIVUK)
The only miracle recorded in all four gospels (other than the resurrection) was the feeding of many people with little. As we spend the week considering this next sign Jesus performed let’s first consider what the people who were there thought was happening. Knowing that something miraculous had happened, after witnessing and consuming the evidence, they concluded that Jesus was ‘the Prophet who is to come into the world’ (v14). Although the sign pointed to something even greater than that – why might they think Jesus was a prophet?
One clue may lie in the many miracles performed by Elijah, then Elisha, in the time of the kings. After all, the Jews expected Elijah to return, and his greater protégé was Elisha. Consider the episode recounted in 2 Kings 4. “A man came from Baal Shalishah, bringing the man of God twenty loaves of barley bread baked from the first ripe corn, along with some ears of new corn. ‘Give it to the people to eat,’ Elisha said. 43 ‘How can I set this before a hundred men?’ his servant asked. But Elisha answered, ‘Give it to the people to eat. For this is what the Lord says: “They will eat and have some left over.”’ 44 Then he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the Lord.” (2 Kings 4:42-44) (NIVUK). The echoes include barley loaves delivered by a servant, an incredulous question and leftovers. John records this miracle using the same language and sequence as Elisha’s miracle. The people were not wrong to draw the conclusion they did. Jesus was the Prophet who was to come and this sign points us in that direction. It also points us to much, much more – and overflowing abundance. Jesus is much more than a prophet – Elisha fed 100 people with 20 barley loaves; Jesus fed more than 5000 people with just 5.
We constantly need to re-evaluate just how great Jesus is – he expands our categories beyond measure. How great is our King!
