There are thirty-seven miracles recorded in the four Gospels, and the feeding of the 5,000 (20,000 counting the women and children too!) is the only one recorded in all four Gospels. It is set shortly after Jesus had heard about John the Baptist’s beheading by Herod. In his sadness, Jesus had gathered His followers to talk and pray together; the crowd followed. Jesus, even in this time of grief, had compassion on them and decided to use this moment as a test for His followers:
Jesus asked Philip, where can we get bread to feed the multitudes of people? Andrew informed Jesus about a boy with five barley loaves and two fishes. He had faith enough to bring the food to Jesus’ attention. The boy had faith in giving up his food. Jesus blessed the food, broke it into small pieces, and the disciples passed it around – the food kept multiplying. Even after everyone had their fill, twelve full baskets remained.
After what the followers of Jesus had just witnessed you would think they were utterly trusting: yet as we read, their testing continued:
The disciples got a boat to row to Capernaum and the lake became rough and nighttime fell. They had to row hard against the wind, were 3 or 4 miles out, not making any progress, getting more nervous in the increasing power of the wind. Seeing a figure walking on the lake coming nearer to them, they were scared senseless. Jesus was walking on water. As he got nearer, perceiving their distress, He said, ‘It is I, do not be afraid‘. Relieved, they helped him into the boat.
That must have been monumental for His disciples: Jesus joined them in the midst of their rough ride. It says that as Jesus got on board, they were instantly transported to the other side. What a day! Jesus met their needs and 20,000 others, soothing their fears and giving them the greatest extreme speed crossing of their lives!
I want to summarise what these miracles can mean for us today:
- Jesus comes with power to rescue even when the situation seems impossible.
- He meets our basic needs and pours out blessing upon blessing.
- He reminds us He is with us in the tough times by getting into the middle of the situation.
Each day, we all have choices to place ourselves into His hands, be fed by the Bread of Life, in our hearts, minds, body and spirit. He will never fail us once we trust in Him.
Yet, as followers, we can learn to have compassion for others, those who are hungry, homeless, in prison; those burdened by failings, ignorance, separation and confusion.
Throughout our lives, we know winds begin to blow and unsteady us: whatever life throws at us, whatever we feel about issues or injustices within today’s world, looking to Jesus, we are forever in His hands. He is in the boat with us and that means we are in the safest place in the entire universe.
(Reflection written by Ruth Fabby)
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