Daily Prayer Devotional for Women and Men | OnlinePrayerJournal

Pray

Read

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

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand 6  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[a] 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. Read full chapter Footnotes John 6:7 Greek take two hundred denarii New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Meditate

Consider

Think Further

The ‘great crowd’ approaching Jesus would need food—lots of it (v. 5). Demand far exceeded supply. The immensity of this pressing need, combined with the inadequacy of available resources, overwhelmed the disciples.

Philip was problem-focused. He concentrated on how to feed this multitude and his calculations were probably spot on: ‘more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!’ (v. 7). Andrew seems more solution-focused. Yet, having assessed the available resources—‘five small barley loaves and two small fish’—he despaired: ‘how far will they go among so many?’ (v. 9). Philip was daunted by the huge demand; Andrew was skeptical about the meager supply.

Jesus devised a little ‘test’ (v. 6), presumably to see if his disciples had learned to focus on the who rather than the where or how. Yet, despite having watched their Master perform many wonders, both Philip and Andrew failed to factor Jesus into the equation. In contrast to the disciples, who focused on what seemed an insurmountable problem, Jesus looked up to his Father with thanksgiving and trust (v. 11). Giving thanks is far more than an expression of gratitude for gifts; it is also recognition of the greatness of the Giver of all good gifts. Giving thanks was followed by giving out (distributing) the bread and trusting God to meet the great need. Philip only thought in terms of ‘a bite’ (v. 7)—a little snack to stave off those hunger pangs!—but Jesus provided not just ‘enough’ but abundantly (vv. 12, 13)! As Paul reminds the Philippians, God meets all our needs, not out of, but ‘according to’—that is, in proportion to—his great ‘riches.’2

Apply

Pray