FEEDING THE FIVE THOUSAND part B

GOD OF ABUNDANCE 

‘You give them something to eat’ – Mark 6:37

Now, at this point the disciples had presented the problem to Jesus concerning the large crowd that was with them. Jesus answered, ‘You give them something to eat’ – Mark 6:37. He said this to test them, since He already had in mind what He was planning to do.

To the disciples, this was something very impossible thing to do hence their reply, ‘That would take more than half a year’s wages! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?’– Mark 6:37.

So many times we’ve found ourselves in the same situation that the disciples of Jesus were at the time. We know very well the dreams and desires that God has put in our hearts, but we only fail to believe because we find the task very impossible. Just like the disciples of Jesus, we begin to run down the numbers, we bring in the statistics, the data and compare it with what we have and in conclusion we say, “That’s impossible!”

The mistake that people do is looking at things in the natural way, while God wants us only to believe. Very often we see impossibilities where God sees possibilities. The disciples did a quick calculation and found out that it would cost more than half a year’s wages for everyone to have at least a bite! But that wasn’t God’s intention. We may think of ways to just get by but God has an overflow provision in mind. We may see lack, but God sees abundance. The question is: What do you see? Do you see things in the natural or do you see things through God’s eyes?

Jesus then answered, ‘How many loaves do you have? Go and see.’- Mark 6:38

You may feel like you’ve lost everything, but God is asking you the same question He asked the disciples, ‘What do you have?’ Most of people would be thinking, ‘I got nothing, Lord’ or ‘I got nothing worth of value’. Notice this: God wouldn’t ask you ‘What do you have?’ if He knew that you got nothing. He is asking because He knows you got something worthy of multiplying and worthy of blessing and miracle.

I love the second statement that Jesus said to the disciples. Go and see. This is a challenge to all of us. Particularly whenever we feel like we got nothing to be grateful for or when life gets so hard that we feel we’ve lost everything. Go and see what the Lord God has blessed you with and whatever you find, present to Him. It is possible for God to use the little that you’ve got to break every barrier that stands before you.

As for the disciples of Jesus, they found five loaves of bread and two fish and they presented these two items before Jesus. Naturally, the five loaves of bread and two fish could not feed the five thousand people. However, God works through supernatural ways. With simple things that one would count as nothing, Jesus used them to teach show us the unlimited power of God, that He’s capable of breaking barriers that seems too big for us to conquer and also to bring glory unto God.

‘For with God nothing will be impossible.’ – Luke 1:37

There’s so much that we can learn from the miracle of feeding the five thousand which Jesus performed. It really doesn’t matter how far back you are in life, the little that you got left, or how big the obstacle seem to be in your life. What really matters is God’s Grace and blessings can still locate you wherever and in whatever state you are in life. Don’t put too much focus on the obstacle but focus on the power of the Almighty God who created the universe, the God who parted the Red Sea and made it stand tall like walls.

Jesus took the five loaves of bread and two fish and looking up to heaven he gave thanks to God and broke the bread. It is really significant to notice that He gave thanks to God then broke the loaves. I believe that God will sometimes use the simple things that we present to Him to break the barriers that seem impossible for us to conquer.

It is also important to note that after feeding the five thousand men, there were twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. What does that tell you? God works in abundance, and in overflows. When God goes to work He pours out so much blessings that there is not enough room to store it all.

It is my prayers that you would continue to believe in God, and hold fast to His promises and be able to witness His overflowing blessing in your life. As He promised in Hebrews 13:5- “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”