"The Feeding of the Four Thousand Encourages Us"

Sermon on Mark 8:1-10

Weekend of January 30, 2000

Saint Mark's, Watertown, WI

Pastor Karl Walther

The eyes of all look to you, O Lord, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open up your hands and satisfy the desires of every living thing. Amen.

God's Word for our special consideration this morning is the account of Jesus feeding the four thousand-- Mark chapter eight, verses one through ten:

During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance."

His disciples answered, "But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?"

"How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked.

"Seven," they replied.

He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people, and they did so. They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them.

The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. About four thousand men were present. This is God's Spirit-inspired Word of Jesus Christ.

Introduction: Epiphany Has Christ Appearing To Encourage Us

Dear fellow Christians-- whose lack of resources Christ always solves:

This January we have celebrated the Epiphany season of the church year. You probably recall that Epiphany means "appearing". And so, in the Epiphany season, we celebrate Christ's appearing as our Savior and the Savior of all. This Epiphany season we have celebrated especially that Christ appeared to encourage us.

Think about that for a moment. Four weeks ago we noted that the Christ-child appeared to aged Simeon and Anna to encourage them in their final days. Three weeks ago Pastor Jensen noted for us that Christ appeared to the Apostle Paul, in brilliant light and in baptism, to encourage him by taking his sins away and commissioning him for service. These last two weeks Pastor Werner reminded us how Christ appeared as an adult in his public ministry to heal many, especially a deaf-mute man-- and to encourage them.

Theme: The Feeding Of the Four Thousand Encourages Us

Today we have one final encouragement from Christ's epiphany. It's that:
* THE FEEDING OF THE FOUR THOUSAND ENCOURAGES US. As this account does so, we will notice that (1) LIFE POSES US PROBLEMS-- like it did the four thousand, that (2) CHRIST SOLVES OUR PROBLEMS-- like he did for the four thousand, and that (3) WE NOW THANK CHRIST-- for these blessings.

Part One: The Four Thousand Lacked For Food

God's Word to us today begins this way: During those days another large crowd gathered.

Those days were the last year of Jesus' ministry. It was a couple of months since Jesus ended his popular, year-and-a-half stay in Galilee. Since then he had traveled forty miles north to the seacoast to the pagan territories of Tyre and Sidon. Then he had traveled sixty miles to the southeast to the ten Greek-speaking cities, called the Decapolis. And now Jesus returned to one of the hills on the southeast shore of the Galilean Lake-- probably ten miles or so across the lake from his original headquarters.

It says that during those days, another large crowd gathered. That's significant. Just two chapters before this, only months earlier in the springtime, Mark reports the gathering of a crowd of five thousand families. Jesus fed them with five little loaves of bread and two small fish. And now, another large crowd had gathered-- again only about ten miles from there.

Well, it says: Since this new crowd had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days -- sparingly eating their provisions, then simply scrounging -- and now have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance"-- at least a day's journey, as I was describing to you before.

Appropriation One: Life Poses Us Problems

So, can you relate to this crowd of people? Can you relate to these four thousand families who found themselves without food and with a long journey ahead of them? Well, I submit to you that you can relate....

First of all, probably most of us at one time or another can say we've had reason to doubt our access to the necessities of life. I mean: haven't you ever had the bills pile up to such an extent that you really didn't know how you were going to pay them? Haven't you ever lacked money to such an extent that you really wondered how you were going to put food on the table? I've had that experience. And I expect that many of you have had that experience more often than I.

Secondly, though, I'm sure that all of us at one time or another can say we've lacked something. Maybe you've lacked for companionship; you've gotten lonely. Maybe you've lacked for affection; you've doubted your worth. Maybe you've lacked for excitement; you've gotten depressed. Maybe you've lacked for happiness; nothing could cheer you up. And if any of that is the case, this account is for you.

Part Two: Jesus Provided Food For the Four Thousand

So, we've lacked for nourishment or money, or affection or happiness. This crowd lacked for food. How did their problem get solved?

Well, the twelve apostles were no particular help at this point. We read: His disciples answered, "But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?"

Jesus must have been disappointed in his apostles. The reason he had brought this problem to the disciples was to recall for them how he had helped more people with fewer resources just a few months earlier.

And so, we read: How many loaves, and these would have been the size of dinner rolls-- "How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked.

"Seven," they replied. And then it must have dawned on them what Jesus was going to do.

It says: He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. For everybody to have had some space, they must have covered the hillside-- a couple square city blocks.

And it says: When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people, and they did so. Imagine the amazement as they did so-- seven little dinner rolls turning into four thousand big loaves of bread: is what it must have been.

They had a few small fish as well-- three or four or five of them, and probably what would fit in a person's two hands. He gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. Again, a few little fish turning into many thousands of them is what it must have amounted to. Just amazing!

So: The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. In other words, there must have been at least seven times as much left over at the end of this as there had been at the beginning.

And we read: About four thousand men were present. Matthew makes it clear in his account that this did not include women and children. So, there were apparently at least twelve thousand, maybe, and maybe as many as twenty thousand or more folks there.

Appropriation Two: Christ Solves Our Problems

Well, what's the message to us? My friend, the message is this. Whatever problem you've got today: whether lack of food or lack of money, or lack of companionship, affection, excitement, or happiness-- whatever problem you've got today, it's not so big that Christ can't keep you coping. Your problem is not so large that Jesus can't solve it.

Suppose you lack for food.... This is the Christ who had his servant David write: I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread. God will feed you! God, who will serve maybe twelve billion meals today -- God, who has served maybe two thousand trillion meals in the course of the history of this planet -- will that God not feed you through Jesus Christ?

Suppose you lack for money.... This is the Christ who had his servant, the writer to the Hebrews, write: Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." God will supply your needs! God, who has given present day people a net worth of (who knows?) six trillion dollars, maybe ten times that -- God, who has in the history of this world given people gifts (who knows?) the sum total of four thousand trillion dollars -- will that God not supply your need through Jesus Christ?

Or suppose you lack for companionship or affection or excitement or happiness.... This is the Christ who led David to write: If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. Will not that God always stand by you, set his affection on you, and cause that also to happen in flesh-and-blood if it's best for you?

Remember, this is the Christ who led David to write for your sake: Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Will not that God always calm and comfort you, and cause that to happen in flesh-and-blood if it's best for you?

It's encouraging, isn't it? God will supply all your needs! But how sure is all of this? Well, my friend, consider the cross of Christ. On the cross God gave you all the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ -- all the holy activities he carried out -- to qualify you to enter paradise. On the cross God removed from you all your sins -- all your worry, all your waste, all your grumpiness, all your greed, all your selfishness, all your sins -- to remove every barrier toward your entering glory. Surely he will take care of us here, too!

Part Three & Conclusion: We Now Thank Christ

It's quite an amazing assurance we have, isn't it? The next time you lack for anything: you needn't worry, you needn't complain, you simply trust Christ to supply what you need. And he most assuredly will!

So, why not be sure to thank Christ?

Be sure to acknowledge him at every meal, as you bow your head in prayer: thanking God for the food you are about to receive-- the way Jesus thanked his father for the fish and the rolls here.

Be sure to aid the Lord is his blessing of others, as you take some of what Christ has given you and share it with others-- the way the disciples happily distributed the food here.

And be sure to show the sort of zeal those four thousand families did-- so sure to hear God's Word that they didn't depart from Christ for three entire days: even apparently risking their lives to hunger: in their hunger for his Word!

So, have a great week-- as Christ cares for you! And see you next week-- as you thank Christ! Amen.

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his mercy endures forever. Amen.