Feeding Five Thousand People – Mark 6
The true identity of the Lord Jesus became an issue. Some people in his hometown thought that he was a carpenter. King Herod supposed Jesus was John the Baptist. Herod was superstitious and believed John had come back to haunt him since Herod beheaded John. The crowd that followed him were happy that he handed out free food. They were not interested in who he was as long as they were fed.
The Lord Jesus sent out the twelve and gave them authority to preach and drive out demons. From this experience they should have known who he was. When he walked on the water they thought he was a ghost.
Who is Jesus? This is the question every person will face one day. "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:9-11)
The Lord Jesus went back to Nazareth. The people in Nazareth were offended by his ministry. They said they knew everyone in his family. Who did he think he was? People today act like this still. It is especially heartbreaking when family and friends reject a man's ministry. The Lord Jesus could not do much because of the unbelief in these people. The Lord Jesus was unable to do much because of unbelief in people. This shows us that we should always walk in faith and completely cast ourselves upon God to intervene in our lives. We need to exercise our faith and reach out to the Lord Jesus expecting that he can help us.
The Lord Jesus commissioned the twelve disciples and gave them authority. He gave detailed instructions on what to bring and not to bring on their journey. They were in a ministry where they lived by faith in regard to provision. If their ministry was rejected the Lord Jesus told them to knock the dust off their sandals on the way out of town. Notice how specific were the Lord's instruction to his disciples in ministry. In the context of that specific time period the Lord gave them a list of things to do, not do, to carry, to not carry, and how to respond to rejection.
The Lord also wants to give us instructions for living the Christian life today. There are specific boundaries for ministry which we need to learn and adhere to in relating to people.
King Herod thought the Lord Jesus was John the Baptist reincarnated. We see this superstition of reincarnation is nothing new. All of these superstitions and fables we hear today are nothing new. Nothing is new under the sun. Unbelievers always find a way to pervert truth according to their guilty consciences.
Herod murdered John the Baptist. John was beheaded in prison because of the manipulation of seducing women.
The apostles report back to the Lord Jesus and he instructed them to take time off to rest. It was refreshing to see here how the Lord was as concerned for rest as he was for work. The Lord Jesus led them to take rest but the crowd followed them and they had little time for a break. The Lord Jesus had compassion on the crowd. They were like sheep without a shepherd.
The Lord Jesus challenged the disciples to meet the physical need of the crowd. They brought him some pieces of bread and fish. The Lord Jesus took the little they had, some bread and fish, and fed the multitude. Twelve baskets of leftovers were gathered after everyone was full.
This miracle of feeding five thousand was recorded several times in the gospel accounts. The Lord fed people with bread like he did with Israel in the wilderness. To Israel he gave manna from heaven. Here he fed the people with bread. The point is that the Lord himself is our provider. We are deceived if we believe we provide for ourselves. Any job the Lord allows us to have is a gift from him. The Lord assigns us our tasks. Let us work with all of our heart for the Lord and not for men. It is the Lord who rewards us for faithful labor. The Lord is our rewarder.
Hebrews 11:6, "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
Colossians 3:23-34, "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ."
The Lord Jesus instructed his disciples to take the boat and cross the sea. He sent away the crowd and sought isolation so he could pray. Later he went out to the disciples walking on the water. Peter's walking on the water is missing in the account of Mark. Perhaps this is because Peter was influential in the writing of this gospel account.
The crowd continued to find the Lord Jesus on the other side of the sea.
