The crowd of over 4,000 people were with Jesus for three days. They were hungry for God’s Word and so, Jesus fed them with the Word of God. He satisfied their hunger by preaching and teaching the Word of God. At the end of the three days, the people were then hungry for food and so, Jesus fed them with bread and fish. It was a wonder miracle. Jesus satisfied their hunger with food.
We, as believers in Christ, have a physical life and a spiritual life. Our physical life has to do with the body, with food and clothing. Our spiritual life, on the other hand, has to do with faith, forgiveness, life and salvation.
We will learn today that God is the source of both our physical and spiritual life. He feeds both the body and the soul. In the Lord’s prayer, we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” And we pray, “and forgive us our trespasses.” Jesus not only forgave the paralytic his sins, but Jesus also healed his body. Jesus cares about our eternal salvation by giving us the Gospel and Sacrament but He cares about our body giving us food and drink. We are dependent upon God feeding both our body and our soul.
Let us first look at how God feeds us with His Word. Then we will look at how God feeds us with daily bread.
Again, the crowd of over 4,000 people were with Jesus for three days. They were hungry for God’s Word and so, Jesus fed them with the Word of God. He satisfied their hunger for righteousness by preaching and teaching the Word of God.
It must have been a wonderful Bible Study. It must have been like a three-day retreat with Jesus. They were so focused on Jesus and His words, that they lost sight of their need for food.
We live busy lives. We have to go here and there. Yet, it is very important for us to relax, to listen to God’s Word, and to study it. It is very important for us to put aside work or pleasure on Sunday morning and to worship, to hear God’s Word preached, and to receive the Lord’s Supper. We hunger for God’s Word and Jesus feeds us with His Gospel in Word and Sacrament. Martin Luther said in the Small Catechism regarding the Third Commandment, “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.”
At one time, Jesus was hungry having fasted for 40 days and 40 nights. He was hungry for physical food. So, the devil tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread. But Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt 4:4). Bread for the body is important, but the Word which proceeds from the mouth of God is absolutely necessary. God’s Word teaches us who God is and what He has done for us and for our salvation. We learn from God’s Word what to do and what not to do. We also learn how to love the neighbor. God’s Word also washes away our iniquity and it refreshes and restores our soul. It satisfies our hunger for righteousness.
Jesus once gave a warning saying, “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life” (Jn 6:27). Bread for the body is important, but bread for our soul is absolutely necessary. Earthly bread costs money, but Christ our heavenly bread is free. Daily bread is temporary, but Christ satisfies our hunger permanently. He provides bread that lasts forever. Therefore, focus on the food which endures to everlasting life, namely, the precious Gospel of our Lord. The most important food is Jesus and His righteousness.
Jesus said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added to you” (Matt 6:33). The crowd of over 4,000 people sought Jesus first. They listened to Jesus’ preaching and teaching. Then bread and fish were added to them. So also, for us. Seek first the kingdom of God and the righteousness of Christ, then food and clothing for the body will be added to you.
Jesus also said, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me shall never hunger and he who believes in Me shall never thirst… Whoever eats my flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day” (Jn 6:33-35, 54). Jesus is our bread of life—our source of eternal life. Martin Luther once called the Lord’s Supper, food which nourishes and feeds the soul. Just as Manna preserved the Israelites for forty years in the desert, so also, the Lord’s Supper preserves our soul on our journey to heaven.
So, the crowd of over 4,000 people were hungry for God’s Word and so, Jesus fed them with the Word of God. He satisfied their hunger by preaching and teaching the Word of God. So also, for us. We are hungry for God’s Word and so, Jesus feeds us with the Gospel in Word and Sacrament.
Let us now, look at how God feeds us with daily bread.
The crowd of over 4,000 people were hungry. They had nothing to eat. There were no restaurants or grocery stores nearby. There were no vending machines. The people were so far away that if they were to travel in order to buy some food, they would faint on the way.
Who made the mistake of not bringing enough food? Do we blame Jesus for not planning ahead? Do we blame the people for not packing enough food?
When things don’t go your way, are you quick to judge and to condemn God and others? Do you blame others in order to make yourself look good?
What should the crowd of over 4,000 people have done? Should they have left Jesus’ Bible study early in order to get food? No! If they would have gone to get food, then they would have skipped out on Jesus’ precious Word. It was wrong for Martha to worry about the food. She should have sat at the feet of Jesus listening to His Word, like Mary.
What should the people have done? Should they have complained to Jesus about the lack of food? Nowhere in our text do the people complain about the lack of food. They trust in Jesus. Perhaps Jesus’ preaching and teaching had a positive effect on them whereas they now have faith that Jesus would provide food for them.
After God delivered the children of Israel from slavery in Egypt, they were hungry. And so, they complained to God. Yet, God had mercy upon them. He fed them with manna and quail.
When you suffer from various trials and tribulations, do you complain to God? Do you turn to God in prayer, or do you try to solve your own problems? Do you worry? Are you filled with anxiety?
In our Holy Gospel for today, we learn that Jesus directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. He took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people. Then, he took the fish and blessed them. As the disciples passed out the bread and fish, a miracle happened. The bread and fish multiplied enough to feed everyone.
The bread and fish were a free gift for the people. They didn’t have to work for it. Jesus freely gave and the people freely received. Jesus satisfied their physical hunger by means of bread and fish.
Today, God doesn’t drop manna and quail from the sky for us to eat. He doesn’t miraculously multiply enough bread and fish for our needs. Rather, God uses the farmer to grow the food. He uses the truck driver to deliver the food. He uses workers at the grocery store or at the restaurant to provide the food. He gives us employment so that we can buy food. In other words, God works through people for our good. God works through you and through your various vocations for the sake of the neighbor. God cares about you and the neighbor.
God is the giver of all good gifts, and we freely receive. Everything we have is a gift from God – our clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home. Even faith, the righteousness of Christ, forgiveness of sins are gifts from God given to us freely without any work on our part.
Dearly beloved in the Lord, do not make the things of this world an idol. Do not think that the things of this world will bring you complete happiness and contentment. The things of this world cannot give you everlasting peace. The things of this world cannot satisfy your hunger and thirst for righteousness.
Jesus had compassion on the crowd of over 4,000 people because they have been with him for three days and had nothing to eat. So, Jesus provided enough food for the people.
However, Jesus’ greatest act of compassion for you was when he willing went to the cross in order to bring you salvation. Jesus was poor, so that you can be rich with his righteousness. Jesus was stripped of his clothing and was nailed to the cross, so that you can be clothed with his righteousness. Jesus took your sin upon himself, so that you can be forgiven. Jesus bore the wrath of God in your place, so that you can be reconciled with the Father. Jesus died so that you can live. On Easter morning, Christ rose from the dead. He defeated death and the devil and has come alive.
Just as Jesus freely gave the crowd of over 4,000 people an abundance of food without any work on their part, so also God in Christ Jesus freely gives you grace and mercy, forgiveness and righteousness without any work on your part.
This morning the menu is not bread and fish, but it is bread and wine along with Christ’s body and blood. We don’t need a full course meal. Just a small wafer and a sip from the cup will fully satisfy our hunger and thirst for righteousness.
So, are you hungry? Yes, your soul is hungry, and God gives you the righteousness of Christ. Psalm 107:9 says that God “fills the hungry soul with goodness.” Are you hungry? Yes, you hunger for food and God gives you your daily bread.
God is the giver of all good gifts. We receive them, and we give Him thanksgiving and praise. Everything we have – both of our body and our soul – are gifts from God. Thanks be to God. Amen.
