Matt 14:13-21 "Jesus Feeds '5,000'"

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Please turn in your Bibles to Matthew 14. From the end of Matt 13 to mid-chapter 16, opposition to Jesus persists, yet Jesus steadfast love persists…healing, ministering, teaching…unwavering grace to people who were opposing Him. Thus, the theme of these chapters is “The Grace of the King.”

Matt 14:13, where we pick up today... marks the beginning of Jesus Third Year of Ministry.

Jesus’ First Year / Year and a Half of Ministry has been called, “The Year of Preparation” where we observed Jesus’ baptism, temptation, first miracles, early conversations with Nicodemus, the woman at the well, and the calling of the Twelve Apostles to follow Jesus…to name a few highlights.

His Second Year of Ministry, “The Year of Popularity” is where Jesus’ fame boomed. The multitudes flocked to Him, and people were excited. But, the religious leaders did not like His break from their traditions…so, they plotted against Him.

Jesus gave 3 great discourses in this second year....

“The Sermon on the Mount”...

“The Kingdom of Heaven” discourse (the Parables), and...

“The Missionary Discourse” to the Twelve Apostles as Jesus sent them out.

The second year ended with the death of John the Baptist.

Jesus’ Third, and final, Year of Ministry, “The Year of Opposition” is where tensions mount. Jesus righteously fails the expectations of the people to be a political messiah, and the Religious leaders plan to kill Jesus. Despite opposition... Jesus continues to teach, preach, and heal (thus “The Grace of the King”)…and His eyes focus on His disciples... to equip them for ministry…to take the Gospel to the world.

To help you understand where we are chronologically, a few weeks back we looked at Jesus’ teaching on the Parables...

Right after the Parables, Jesus performed a number of miracles that Matthew accounted for in Chapters 8 and 9.

Jesus calms the storm

He heals two demon-possessed men, a sick woman, raises Jairus’ daughter...

Heals two blind men and a mute man.

And then, He heads back to Nazareth, which we looked at last week. Jesus was rejected in his hometown for the second time, and He “marveled at their unbelief.”

After this rejection at Nazareth, Jesus was on the move...Mark 6:6 records, “Then He [Jesus] went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.” (So, immediately Jesus travelled through various Galilean cities teaching…no doubt about the Kingdom of Heaven).

Then, according to Mark and Luke, Jesus gives “The Missionary Discourse” and sends the Twelve to “preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.”

News of all these ministry happenings reached the ears of the Governor of that area…Herod Antipas the Tetrarch, who beheaded Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist…Jesus’ forerunner…the “friend of the bridegroom.” And, Antipas is trying to make sense of who Jesus is…so he sought to see Jesus.

And, that’s where we pick up today…Jesus is back at the lake…the Sea of Galilee...likely in Capernaum. The Twelve Apostles just returned from the short term local mission, and Jesus receives word that Antipas is seeking Him.

The title of today’s message is “Jesus Feeds 5,000.”

Let’s Pray!

Matt 14:13 “When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities.”

V13 begins “When Jesus heard it...” When Jesus heard what? Not about the death of John, which could have happened 2 years prior to the feeding of the 5000, but what we read in Matt 14:1-2…regarding Herod Antipas.

When you look at the context Matt 14:1-2 is in real time, Matt 14:3-12 is a literary flashback…a re-telling of the past... how Herod Antipas beheaded John.

Matt 14:1-2 reads, “At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the report about Jesus and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.”

And, now Antipas is having superstitious thoughts about John and Jesus, and wants to see Jesus…and you get this full picture when you read each of the Gospel accounts…I encourage you to invest in a resource called, “A Harmony of the Gospels”…a book that lays out each of the Gospel accounts side-by-side.

According to Mark and Luke, people were taking notice of Jesus...”His name had become well known.” People were trying to make sense of who Jesus was…they said He was a prophet, or Elijah; Herod Antipas superstitiously and likely haunted by guilt, suggested that Jesus was John the Baptist resurrected with power, so Antipas “sought to see [Jesus].”

Now, if the man who murdered your cousin…now wanted to see you and was having some paranoia…how would you respond? Probably just like Jesus…you’d get out of Dodge. This was not fear based…Jesus knew God had appointed a time for His death…this was wisdom on Jesus’ part. Sometimes it’s just good to avoid trouble.

And, that’s what Jesus does…He departs to a solitary place…avoiding Herod. I imagine the emotion of what Herod did to John the Baptist was stirred within Jesus as well...

And, at the same time, the Twelve Apostles return from their local missionary journey...Luke 9:10 tells us, “And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.” Mark 6:31 records, “For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.”

There’s a lot going on at this time…the crowds were huge, so much so the disciples didn’t even have time to eat...amazing ministry activity, but very tiring. Couple this with the fact that there were murmurings about who Jesus is... and a crazy ruler seeking Jesus out…because of all these things, Jesus takes time for rest…thus they go to a deserted place where no one else is…at least that is their intention.

And, this speaks to my soul. If Jesus took time for rest, we should too as well. Sometimes it’s good to hit the pause button and take time for rest…to get away with family and close friends…It’s permissible…It’s advisable....It’s biblical.

The first mention of rest is Gen 2:2 where God models rest for us…Gen 2:2 states, “He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.” God didn’t need to physically recharge…He is Spirit, but intentionally He paused…and sometimes we need to pause as well. Exo 31:17 tells us when God rested this seventh day He “was refreshed.”

I have a lot going on right now…I work full-time, I’m Pastoring, I’m moving, I’m a Dad…there’s a lot going on, but in the midst of all the busyness…I’m going on the Men’s Retreat…to rest…to be refreshed. To sit at Jesus’ feet and be poured into and spend time with my son and my friends.

Make sure you take time to pause in your life as well. Make a plan to be spiritually refreshed. Not just a vacation, but a time to be spiritually refreshed. Men…there’s still time to sign up for the retreat.

I love in Matt 11:28-29, Jesus’ invitation and promise of rest, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

You will not find rest in the world…true peace…true rest is found only in Jesus.

This week my rest was disturbed when I found a love note from the City of Fort Wayne on my 5x10 trailer parked in front of my house…$100 parking ticket. No warning…just a ticket. I learned that you can’t park an unattached trailer on the streets of Fort Wayne. The grade of my driveway is too steep to not bottom out, and I’m moving. Quite the dilemma. So, I called Traffic Enforcement, and I was advised to hook the trailer up to my vehicle. Quite the frustrating event.

And, while my rest was been disturbed, I reclaimed some of my rest and some of my peace by praying. I prayed with my family and asked the Lord to soften the hearts of my neighbors…to give them compassion on a family that’s moving…and to stop the wiles of the devil…and giving it to Jesus worked.

What do you need to give to Jesus this week? What pressure, problem or circumstance do you need to pray and ask God to help you with? There is nothing too big for God.

Well, back to Matthew. I’d love to share an account of Jesus and His disciples resting at this desolate place…having a time where they were refreshed, and as we read through the text…you get a sense the Disciples longed for this, but it didn’t happen…not in this scene.

Because, we read, “...when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities.”

When the multitudes heard “it”…"it” being that Jesus was departing.

Mark 6:33 records, “But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities.”

John 6:2 tells us… “...a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased.”

And, as they run through the cities…you can just imagine the crowd growing. People ask, “What’s going on? It’s Jesus…He’s on a boat heading this way...” And, more and more from the cities follow. Lot’s of excitement!

Now, there is some debate amongst scholars as to which direction Jesus travelled. Most scholars agree Jesus was in Capernaum (on the North Central coast of the Sea of Galilee), but did He travel East or West from there? And here’s the confusion...

Luke 9:10 tells us, “He [Jesus] took them [the disciples] and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.” Lk 9:10

Bethsaida is a city East of Capernaum…take a look at this map. A couple things to note:

First, the distance from Capernaum to Bethsaida is not that far…maybe an hour and a half walk. So, don’t think the people were trekking all the way across the Sea...it was not difficult for the people to track Jesus’ movements as He sailed. Jesus didn’t travel all the way from one end of the sea to another…just a few miles on the northern coast, but which direction?

And that’s the second thing to note... when you look at this map, you see the traditional site of the Feeding of the 5000 not to the East, but to the West of Capernaum…

The traditional site is called Heptapegon (meaning “seven springs”) also called Tabgha, which is about 2 miles west of Capernaum...

There is a Roman Catholic church at this site called the “Church of the Multiplication” or the “Church of the Loaves and Fish.”

But, didn’t Luke 9:10 say Jesus took the disciples to Bethsaida…and clearly (on the map) Bethsaida is to the East of Capernaum. Was the Catholic Church built on the wrong location? Not necessarily.

Mark 6:45, which chronologically occurs right after the Feeding of 5000, records, “Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.”

So, if they were in a deserted place belonging to Bethsaida…why would they now travel to Bethsaida? Most scholars think there was another Bethsaida to the West of Capernaum…called “Bethsaida of Galilee”... which you see on the 2nd Map.

John 12:21 makes note of this city, “Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee...”

So, there may be some legitimacy in the location of this traditional site…Tabgha…the Church of the Multiplication.

But, listen…you have to be a really big Bible nerd to even care about details like this, and I want you to know I’m pretty sure I’m a Bible nerd because I toiled trying to understand this detail.

And, You’re welcome…because I know you were just losing sleep trying to figure out how on earth is the traditional site to the west when on a map Bethsaida is clearly east…well now you know!

And, while it’s interesting (at least to me)... and while other scholars like Calvin and Hendriksen have debated on the geography... where this event happened is a minor detail…what and why this event happened...the importance and meaning of this event carries much more significance.

And, this event is significant…There are about 10 events that appear in all four gospels, and 8 of them are in the final week of Jesus’ life…the Feeding of the 5000 is one of the rare occurrences recorded in all four gospels prior to Jesus’ final week... and the only miracle recorded in all four gospels prior to Jesus’ last week.

So, let’s dig in...

Matt 14:14 “And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.”

Why is it that when you go to be alone with the Lord, the phone rings, the kids fight, the neighbor knocks, the dog begs to go out. Jesus and His disciples were heading to a deserted place, but this great multitude followed them.

I I just keep thinking this would be a good Southwest commercial for the disciples… “Wanna get away?” That’s what they were trying to do!

But, look at the heart of our Lord…He wasn’t bothered, “…He was moved with compassion for them...”

This phrase “moved with compassion” appears 5x in the NT and 3x in reference to Jesus’ feelings about the multitudes.

“Moved with compassion” is one word in Gk. splagchnizŏmai. Thayer’s defines this word as “‘to be moved as to one’s bowels’ (for the bowels were thought to be the seat of love and pity).”

Today, we say ‘my heart was moved.’ That’s the modern equivalent.

Mark 6:34 tells us why He had compassion… “because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.”

And, who is Jesus? Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11). Heb 13:20 describes Him as “…the great Shepherd.” 1 Pet 5:4 states He is “the Chief Shepherd.” And, as our Shepherd looked upon this multitude of “lost sheep,” He was moved with compassion for them.

So, what did Jesus do?

Matthew said Jesus, “…healed their sick.”

Mark records He, “…began to teach them many things.”

Luke states He, “…received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.”

And, though Jesus was seeking rest…there is obviously a divine re-direction, and Jesus handles it with perfect grace.

Sometimes you may be going in one direction, even as led by the Lord, and then He re-directs, and may even call you into more intense ministry during the re-direction…causing you to trust Him more…to be more obedient.

It’s important to be flexible…to be like Jesus when other people are disturbing your rest…be flexible…exhibit grace…and God will empower you to do great ministry as Jesus did here.

The miracle of the Feeding of the 5000 is not just about 5 loaves and 2 fish…and feeding a multitude. It’s also about the grace that Jesus exhibited towards this multitude, despite the fact that they interrupted His plan for solitude.

No doubt the four soils…the four hearts of the Parable of the Sower were present here. Unbelievers, Shallow hearts, Carnal or Unfruitful hearts, and good soil.

No doubt some of these people had opposed Jesus prior…and despite all of this…Jesus taught and healed them.

The Grace of the King is a miracle often overlooked in this account, but His grace is a miracle indeed.

So, we have seen what to do…to be like Jesus…now let’s look at what not to do...

Matt 14:15 “When it was evening [Luke says, “When the day began to wear away”; Mark says, “When the day was now far spent”;…I like those descriptions], His disciples [The Twelve] came to Him, saying, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food.”

It’s late in the day. Upon coming back from their missionary journey The Twelve were planning on going off alone with Jesus to recharge in a deserted place, but the multitudes followed them, so Jesus taught and healed them.

The disciples are likely spent…and if we are honest…who would we be more like in this account? Jesus or the Disciples? I’m an introvert…I am recharged in solitude. After a long day of ministry with a huge crowd of people, I have no doubt in my mind what I would want...

But, sometimes God wants to stretch us a little further. And, as the Twelve request Jesus to “Send the multitudes away…” to “buy themselves bread” (as Mark records)…to “lodge and get provisions” (as Luke records)…Jesus stretches their faith...

Matt 14:16-17 “But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” 17 And they said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.”

Jesus is indeed stretching the faith of the disciples here. John 6:6 records why Jesus gave this impossible command to the disciples, “But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.”

Jesus is testing their faith. Do they understand who Jesus is? They should…they have been following Jesus for about 2 years, and seen countless miracles. They should know he is the source, solution, provider and nothing is too big for him?

We will see later, they ultimately fail this test.

And, while Jesus is testing the Disciples, He already has a plan and solution. John said, “He Himself knew what He would do.”

Jesus already has it figured out…He knows He is going to multiple the little into a lot and feed everyone. He already had the solution. He knew what He would do.

Whatever you are going through in life…look to Jesus as your source…He already has a plan and solution.

The disciples, however, take Jesus quite literally…not perceiving this as a test, and it’s interesting to hear how they respond to Jesus...

Mark records the disciples saying, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?”

John adds, “Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little.”

A denarius was a Roman silver coin equivalent to a day’s wages. 200 days is a little more then 6 1/2 months. This would buy a lot of bread, but Philip does some quick math and concludes it’s still not enough…not even for each person to have just a little. Even if it were enough, there’s no guarantee there would be enough bread in the surrounding villages to feed this many people. This is a hopeless situation.

John 6:8-9 records, “One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9 “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”

Andrew, who typically appears in the Bible bringing people to Jesus (a great ministry) brings this young boy to Jesus, but still doubts...”what are they among so many?”

But, this boy seemingly volunteers his lunch…five barley loaves (which is what the poor ate) and two small fish (presumably salted fish). But, the disciples determine it is not enough. They counted the cost…the price is too high....the task too great. It’s beyond them.

But, this boy offers his lunch. In various verses, like Mk 10:15, Jesus talks about the necessity to “receive the kingdom of God as a little child.” What we call ‘child-like faith.’

Mark 10:15 reads “Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

The disciples lost sight of this here. They looked around and all they saw was the problem…Just like we will read next week…Peter walks on water until he saw the great wind, and then he sinks.

The parallel between these two accounts really hit me this week…the disciples see only the crowds…Peter sees the storm…both fail.

The disciples make the same mistake twice… looking at too many people…too big of wind…and not enough focus on Jesus. That’s where they fail. And, isn’t that the same mistake we so often make when we face big problems in life?

So, learn from this. Your situation at work, your situation at home, your health problem, your financial issue, the problem with your kid…it’s not too big for Jesus to handle. Keep your eyes on Him.

And, when we get to that place of surrender in life where we realize, “I can’t do it.” That’s exactly when God shows up.

Look at me…I was a drunk. My wife was so tired…she wanted to leave me, and my Pastor’s wife said, “No…you pray for him.” My wife put me…a hopeless situation in God’s hands and in one moment on Aug 5th, 2012…God changed my heart and delivered me from drunkeness....and called a drunk into ministry.

No situation is too big for Jesus.

So, let’s see what Jesus does here...

Matt 14:18-19 “He said, “Bring them here to Me.” 19 Then He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass [Marks states “green grass” and John “much grass”…not a bad place for a picnic]. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes.”

I see three significant applications here…what a rich study…so many life applications.

First, Jesus said, “Bring them here to Me.” Huge crowd and only five loaves and two fish. The solution came by giving what little they had to Jesus. By putting the little they had into Jesus’ hands…great multiplication occured.

Give what you have to Jesus and watch Him multiply it. You think you can’t minister or serve… “I’m not smart enough…not read enough…not spiritual enough...” Nonsense. You just put that life in Jesus’ hands and watch what He does with it.

Five loaves and two fish was insufficient to feed a crowd this size, but you take five loaves and two fish and add Jesus…and that’s the math of a miracle.

My limited resources plus Jesus…that’s abundance.

Second, God commands order…V19 “He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass.” Luke 9:14 records, “Then He said to His disciples, “Make [imperative] them sit down in groups of fifty.” 15 And they did so, and made them all sit down.”

1 Cor 14:40 closes that chapter stating, “Let all things be done decently and in order.”

In creation we see order in how He created…a sequence of days…authority given to mankind. In the trinity there is order…submission to the Father. In a family there is order…the church has order. And, in this miracle of the Feeding of 5000, Jesus commands things to be done orderly.

1 Cor 14:33 “For God is not the author of confusion but of peace...” -or- in some translations, “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace...”

It was good that Jesus commanded order here…can you imagine the people asking the disciples, “What’s Jesus doing?” … “Well He has a couple sardines and some cupcakes…He’s going to feed you all.” They would have rioted. Order is necessary.

Third, He took the loaves and fish, looked up to heaven, blessed and broke them. Jesus looks to the source of all miracles…God. He could have looked to Himself, but He was submitted to the Father…and modeled for the Disciples prayer over provisions.

Jesus prayed over this meal. John records He “gave thanks...” It’s always good to pause and thank God for provisions…for a meal before partaking. It’s not a mandate, and should not be a ritual… Don’t pray out of obligation… “Thanks for the food Dude.” Be sincere.

Take a moment to sincerely thank God for the provisions you have. We take for granted 3 meals a day and snacks in between. Give thanks.

Notice...Jesus blessed and broke the them. I don’t want to get too symbolic, but isn’t this what He has to do with us sometimes as well? Before the miracle is seen in our lives, He must break us. Trials and sanctification are a breaking down process where God is conforming us to the image of His Son (Rom 8:29)…

Eph 4:22-24 states, “...put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.”

One we are broken of that old life of the flesh, miracles happen in our lives.

Finally, notice Jesus involves the disciples in the blessing. He “…gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes.”

Jesus could have just rained manna down from heaven, but instead He involved the disciples in the miracle.

We live in the church age where God has seen fit for us to be the “Light of the world...”

In Matt 5:14 Jesus said, “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Jesus not only involves us, but He has called us to be the distributors of His blessings to the world, so “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matt 5:16

Well, wrapping up...

Matt 14:20 “So they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments that remained.”

Jesus and the disciples fed the huge crowd…John notes, “…as much as they wanted.” This word filled in V20 in Gk. chŏrtazō (And, no…that’s not a coffee drink…that’s a Cortado…different spelling).

By def. chŏrtazō means “to gorge, to fatten.” This was a feast, and I guarantee these were the best barley loaves and small fish these people ever had. Remember when Jesus turned water to wine? The master of the feast noticed they saved the best for last.

When Jesus puts His hands on something…you know it’s going to be good.

Also, notice they took up the fragments. In John’s account, he notes Jesus saying, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.”

God is not wasteful, and nor should we be either. We are to be good stewards of our resources, because they are God’s anyways.

And, in the surplus there are twelve full baskets remaining. Twelve baskets…twelve disciples. “The laborer is worthy of his wages.”

Jesus did not forget about the Twelve. He takes care of His own. He is the good Shepherd.

Matt 14:21 “Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.”

Verse 21 is one of the verses mentioning 5000 men. This is the reason this is called the Feeding of the 5000, because there were 5000 men, but add in the women and children and this crowd was easily 15-20 thousand people.

And, this Feeding of this great multitude…this was a test. A test that Jesus put before the disciples to trust in Him…and the disciples failed.

In Mark’s Gospel, at the conclusion of Jesus’ next miracle… “Jesus Walks on Water,” Mark 6:52 records, “For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened.”

The disciples hearts were hard to the reality of His miraculous power even after being with Jesus for 2 years.

We should all be encouraged by this failure of the disciples…because we too fail in these same ways at times. Looking at the problem at hand…instead of the hands of Jesus.

And despite us... look at God’s abundant grace towards us.

Worship Team Come.

Regarding the Feeding of the 5000…one scholar noted we have a picture of the perishing world, the powerless disciples, and the perfect Savior.

The Grace of the King is clearly seen in this miracle by His continued love and guidance for His disciples; and by his love for the multitude...

Jesus was moved with compassion for them, not by moved by doubt because of them. God’s got it all under control…put your cares in His hand this week.