Sunday July 26,2009 John 6:1-21

Good Day, Our text for Sunday comes from the gospel of John. It is the feeding of the 5000 and Jesus walking on the sea. In the gospel of John they are the 4th and 5th miracles.

V1-2 Jesus traveled to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. The location would have been close to Bethsaida. This would have been a 4 mile trip by water. The crowds keep following him because he had been healing the sick. The crowds may have traveled about 9 miles by land to reach him.

V3 He went up a mountain to teach his disciples. Who else went up a mountain? Moses, in Exodus, traveled up and down Mount Sinai to speak with God and the people.

V4 It was the time of the Passover celebration. This would have brought many travelers out on their way to Jerusalem to partake of the Passover. The Passover celebrated Israel’s release from bondage to the Egyptians, their wandering in the wilderness and the events at Mount Sinai where God made a covenant with them. Remember that when they wandered in the wilderness God fed them with manna (bread) from heaven every day.

V5 As he was talking with his disciples he looked up and saw the large crowd coming towards him so he asked Phillip where bread could be bought to feed all of the people. Maybe he asked Phillip as he was from Bethsaida and would have local knowledge or maybe he was testing them as in the story in Mark the disciples had just returned from their first mission trip where Jesus had given them authority.

V6 Phillip immediately looks at the impossibility of the situation as a financial one. It would take the wages of six months of work to feed all of these people.

V8-9 Andrew, trying to be of some help, noted the presence of a boy carrying 5 barley loaves and two fish. In that time barley was the food of the very poor and it was held in contempt. The two fish would have been little and pickled. This was very little food to feed so many people; it would barely feed the boy.

V10 Jesus had the people sit down in the grass, so about 5000 sat down. Why mention the grass in this verse? The Old Testament prophets spoke of Israel as sheep with no shepherd. The people were looking for a shepherd (king) to lead them. What would a shepherd do? He would lead his sheep to grass so they could eat. Who had provided the grass? God had. This is an image of sheep desiring a shepherd and Jesus guiding the flock. He will have them sit down and will provide food.

V11 Jesus took the Barley loaves and gave thanks saying a blessing that would have been used in every home. “Blessed art Thou, our Lord, our God, who causest to come forth bread from the earth.” Just as God causes grass to grow from the earth, to feed sheep, so too does he cause wheat and barley to grow, to feed us. Jesus also divided the 2 small fish and everyone ate until they were satisfied. God had provided manna in the wilderness during the first exodus (Passover celebrated) and now was providing bread again in the new exodus. This new exodus was the coming of the Kingdom of God in which God would become Israel’s king.
Another feeding miracle had occurred in the Old Testament though. In 2 Kings 4:42-44the prophet Elisha had fed 100 people from 20 loaves of barley and had some left over. We have two references of prophets from the Old Testament, Jesus on a mountain like Moses and Jesus feeding people with a small amount of food like Elisha. The image of Jesus as a prophet is starting to emerge.

V12-13 The disciples gather up the left over food and it filled twelve baskets. Why mention 12 baskets left? Jesus had gathered twelve disciples around himself and they were to become the “new” Israel, his new “family”. Jesus, in claiming the title “Son of Man” had implied that he was the new Israel, he would rule the people and as followers of Jesus they too became part of the new Israel he was forming around himself. Jesus is using the events of the Old Testament to form a new story around himself.

V14 The people begin to see the prophet connection and start to get excited. They had been waiting for the new prophet promised in the book of Deuteronomy (18:15) and now they think they have found him.

V15 The people want to make this man their king. Ironically he is their king but not the kind they are looking for. They desire him because he feeds and heals them. Who wouldn’t want some one to be in a position of power that would feed and heal you? They want him for their own purposes. Jesus knows this and knows his kingship will be different. He needs time to show them what kind of king he is so he withdraws again to a mountain.

V16 The disciples get in the boat at evening time to return to Capernaum. Jesus hasn’t returned from the mountain so they set out by themselves for the trip. Since it is Passover, it is the time of the full moon. A full moon can cast quite a bit of light. Sometimes on full moon nights I look out the windows and am surprised at how light it is outside. It can even cast shadows that I can see. If you ever get a chance watch outside during a full moon do so.

V18-19 As they are rowing in the dark a strong wind comes up. On the sea, in a boat, at night, in a strong wind would be very frightening for them as it would for us. They have rowed 3-4 miles in this storm so they are almost there when they see Jesus walking on the sea shore coming towards them. (William Barclay – the Greek translation of the word epi tes thalasses is sea shore) They are terrified. Is it a ghost? Remember they believed chaos was under the sea and they didn’t like water very much.

V20 Jesus says to them “It is I; do not be afraid.” “It is I” denotes “I Am” the divine name of God told to Moses at the burning bush, by God in Exodus 3:14.

V21 They want to take him in the boat but before he can get in the boat grounds itself on the shore of the sea.

In an attempt to teach them who he is Jesus infers prophet and also divinity (I Am), but the disciples have to decide for themselves – who is this man? We too have to decide for ourselves – who is this man?