Read John 6:1-21.

Note: Verse nineteen tells us the disciples rowed a distance of “about three or three and a half miles,” which is the equivalent of about five or six kilometers.

Introduction⤒🔗

Glenn Hack still remembers the winter in Milwaukee when his family ran out of food. He was five years old that morning in 1930 when his mother set out bowls of cold oatmeal and a pitcher of hot water to pour over it because there was no milk in the house. After breakfast Glenn’s father announced, “We’re out of food. Now we are going to pray for lunch.”

Even at five years old, Glenn remembers thinking, “How is Dad going to get food by praying in the middle of the living room floor?” Glenn was given the assignment of watching his younger brother while his father and mother and four older siblings knelt in prayer.

As Glenn watched his younger brother, he also watched the hands of the clock. To his astonishment, when the hands of the clock reached noon, two men appeared at the front door. Between them they held a big washtub filled with sacks of groceries. On their faces was a bewildered look as they inquired, “Does anyone here need food?” In a matter of fact manner, Glenn’s dad answered, “We were just praying for lunch.”

Then the two men told their story. They worked for a Milwaukee rescue agency. Three nights ago one of them had a dream in which he saw a building with a number on it, but not the name of the street. The next night he had the same dream. Since that time, they had been driving the city for twenty-four hours, looking for that building; the very place where they now stood!¹

Once again, our Lord proved Himself to be an all-sufficient Savior. The Lord Jesus Christ, who demonstrated His sufficiency to the hungry multitude beside the Sea of Galilee, and to a needy Milwaukee family in 1930, is the same today and forever: the all-sufficient Savior. Because the Lord Jesus is the all-sufficient Savior, we should trust in Him with confidence at all times and under all circumstances.

Trust the Lord Jesus to Meet the Needs of Your Life←⤒🔗

Suppose you received five thousand unexpected guests for dinner; furthermore, suppose you were out of money and all you had left in the house were five loaves of bread and two frozen fish. What would you do? That scenario pretty much corresponds to the situation we find before us here in the sixth chapter of John. Jesus and His disciples have crossed the Sea of Galilee to a remote desolate region in order to provide rest for His weary disciples (Mk. 6:31).

But it proves to be impossible for Jesus to escape the multitudes. When they learn of His whereabouts they flock to Him, even to the desolate region on the far side of the Sea of Galilee. According to John 6:3, Jesus and His disciples had ascended a grassy hillside for some much-needed rest and refreshment. But when He sees the crowds gathering, “he had compassion on them” (Mk. 6:34), and “he welcomed them” (Lk. 9:11).

As evening approaches, the question arises, “How are all these people going to be fed?” The disciples’ suggestion is that Jesus should send them away, let them go to the surrounding villages and fend for themselves (Mk. 6:36). Jesus replies, “There is no need to send them away; you give them something to eat” (Matt. 14:16).

Having indicated that they can handle the situation themselves, Jesus now instructs His disciples to take stock of their resources. He asks Phillip, “Where can we buy bread for these people?” Phillip replies that two hundred denarii, (equivalent to about eight months wages), would not be enough money to purchase enough food for this great multitude (Jn. 6:5-7). Phillip is emphasizing the fact that even if there were some place to purchase food, they lacked the money to do so. Jesus now instructs Andrew to scout around and report back with his findings. Upon returning, Andrew informs Jesus that all that is available is five loaves of bread, (the size of small biscuits), and two small fish.

Having effectively demonstrated the complete lack of human resources and the inability of His disciples to personally handle this crisis, Jesus now personally addresses the situation. Jesus is in complete control. John 6:6 informs us that Jesus knew all along what He was going to do; there are no surprises, no dilemmas, no crises for the Lord. Jesus takes charge of the situation. Mark 6:39-40 states that Jesus commanded the multitude to recline on the grassy hillside in an orderly fashion; He stills the crowd so that they will not panic and reassures them with His presence and commanding word. Jesus provides for the need of these people. Sometimes He does so miraculously, as in this present instance. Sometimes He does so in a more providential manner, as in the case of the Milwaukee family referred to in the Introduction.

When you look closely at this incident, this is what you find: Jesus demonstrates that He is the Good Shepherd who is both willing and able to care for His sheep. In Mark 6:34 the people are identified as “sheep,” and out of compassion for them Jesus becomes their Shepherd. In Mark 6:39 we read that Jesus commands the people to recline upon “the green grass,” where He feeds them; this brings to mind the words of Psalm 23:1-2a, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not be in need. ²He makes me lie down in green pastures.”

Because Jesus is the all-sufficient Savior, we can trust Him to meet the needs of our life. As a Christian, this is our confession: “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not be in need” (Psl. 23:1). As a Christian, this is our confidence: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Phil. 4:6). As a Christian, this is our privilege:

...we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses... ¹⁶Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Heb. 4:15-16

Trust the Lord Jesus to Combat the Stratagems of the Devil←⤒🔗

Following this miraculous provision of bread for the multitude, Jesus immediately compelled His disciples to get into the boat and depart (Mk. 6:45). Upon giving them this command, He personally dispersed the crowd and retreated up into the mountainside to pray.

We often times fail to perceive the devil’s subtle stratagems and, consequently, we fall prey to them; but not so with the Lord Jesus. Jesus saw what was developing in the minds of the multitude. Jesus’ miraculous provision of bread in this desolate place reminded the people of the bread miraculously provided for Israel in the wilderness. John records that shortly after this incident of the feeding of the five thousand in the wilderness, the people remind Jesus, “Our forefathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat"” (Jn. 6:31).

The people are further reminded of God’s prophecy through Moses that the LORD will raise up a prophet like Moses: “I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him” (Deut. 18:18). They correctly identify Jesus as the prophet who is coming into the world: “After the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus did, they began to say, 'Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world"” (Jn. 6:14). But they mistakenly think that He will deliver them from the military and political power of Rome in the same way Moses was used by the LORD to deliver Old Testament Israel from Egypt. Jesus discerned that they “were about to come and take him by force, to make him king” (Jn. 6:15). No doubt their intention was to march Him into Jerusalem at the time of the Passover, which, John informs us (Jn. 6:4), was approaching, in order that He might lead a glorious insurrection against King Herod and the Roman authorities.

Furthermore, Jesus recognizes who was seeking to employ all of this for his own diabolical purpose. Here was another effort of the devil to seduce Jesus from following the course His Father had assigned to Him. Here was another effort to seduce Jesus into becoming a popular military and political leader, saving His people from the tyranny of Rome, rather than enduring the cross in order to save His people from the tyranny of the devil and the righteous judgment of God. Here was another effort of the devil to foil God’s plan to redeem His people from their real enemy (the devil) and their real plight (their sins and the judgment to come). Note Luke 4:13, which informs us that following the three temptations in the wilderness, “the devil...left him until an opportune time.” This present instance following the feeding of the five thousand proved to be such an opportune time. But the Lord Jesus is able to discern the stratagem of the devil, and He does not succumb to his evil wiles. He turns His back on the multitude and their ill-conceived plan to make Him king, resorting to His Father in prayer alone on the mountain top.

Because Jesus is the all-sufficient Savior, we may trust Him to combat the stratagems of the devil as he seeks to short circuit and defeat God’s good purpose for us. We must be alert to the spiritual dimension of life and the spiritual conflict taking place in this present world, as the Apostle Paul informs us, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12).

We must be faithful and wise to seek the LORD’s counsel in the decisions and the living of life: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean upon your own understanding. ⁶In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths” (Prov. 3:5-6). We may always be assured of our Lord’s intercession on our behalf, we hear Him pray to His Father: “My prayer is not that you would take them out of the world but that you will protect them from the evil one” (Jn. 17:15). May we be diligent to personally petition the Lord for His protection and deliverance, in accordance with the way in which He teaches us to pray: “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (Matt. 6:13).

Trust the Lord Jesus to Sustain You in Times of Crisis←⤒🔗

When we left the disciples, they were bewildered and confused. Only with great reluctance and after considerable hesitation, did they finally respond to Christ’s command to launch their boat.

Their instructions were to sail to Bethsaida (Mk. 6:45), which was a short distance up the coast; there they were to pick up Jesus and then cross the sea back to Capernaum.

But by now darkness has fallen and Jesus has not yet arrived, so the disciples decide to head straight for Capernaum, as we learn from John 6:16-17, “When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, ¹⁷where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them” (Jn. 6:16-17).

As they are in the process of crossing the lake, they once again find themselves in a crisis situation. It was now dark, the sea was rising because of a strong wind, and they were encountering a gale that was threatening to drive them off course; and this time Jesus was not with them. They did not know where He was or what was happening.

But Jesus again proves Himself to be the all-sufficient Savior. Mark 6:48a informs us that He saw them in their distress. From the mountain, through the darkness, He saw them in the midst of the windy sea. In Psalm 139:11-12, the Psalmist testifies, “If I say, 'Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,' even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you” (Psl. 139:11-12).

Then Jesus came to them, walking on the water (Mk. 6:48b). There is no obstacle or circumstance that can separate us from our Savior or cut us off from His presence, as the Apostle Paul testifies to the church at Rome:

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ... ³⁸I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom. 8:35,38-39

Mark goes on to report that Jesus desired to pass by them (Mk. 6:48c). As the N.T. commentator, William Lane, remarks:

The reason that Jesus came to his disciples across the rough sea about 3:00 A.M. was that he had seen his disciples exerting themselves against a strong wind that blew presumably from the north or northeast and drove them off their course. [Lane is referring to Mark's comment in verse forty-eight: “Seeing them straining at the oars, because the wind was against them, at about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the water.”] Lane goes on to say: Because the text stresses that Jesus' coming to his disciples was the direct result of his perceiving their distress, the explanation that “he meant to pass by them” seems enigmatic, if not alien to the context.²

As Lane explains, what Mark means when he writes of Jesus, “he desired to pass by them,” is that the Lord Jesus desired to pass by His disciples in the same way that He passed by Moses when He hid him in the cleft of the rock:

Then the LORD said, 'There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. ²²When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. ²³Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.' Ex. 33:21-23

As we learn from verse eighteen, the LORD’s “passing by” Moses in this manner was in answer to Moses’ request, “Please, show me your glory.”

According to Lane, it is possible that Mark also intends for us to see in this incident, and the way he presents it, an allusion to the words of Job: “he walks upon the waves of the sea...If he goes by me, I will not see him; and if he passes by me, I will not recognize him” (Job 9:8, 11). But, Lane continues, unlike the experience of which Job testifies, in this present instance Jesus intended to reveal Himself to His disciples. The Lord Jesus desired to use this moment of crisis in the lives of His disciples as an opportunity to reveal to them His glory as the sovereign and faithful God, the God who is ever-present and ready to come to the aid of His people.

As with His disciples, the Lord desires to use times of crisis to show us His glory, if we will trust Him to do so. Consider how the Lord Jesus used the death of His dear friend Lazarus for the express purpose of revealing His glory. On that occasion, He said to Lazarus’ sister, Martha: “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” (Jn. 11:40)

Because Jesus is the all-sufficient Savior, we may trust Him to sustain us in times of crisis. Consider the testimony of a Christian couple who went through the trial of the death of their daughter:

We thank God for making His loving presence known to us in unmistakable ways during the hardest week of our lives. He was there in the midst of our pain and fear. He was there as we prayed and wept. And He was there to welcome Katherine into heaven.

He upheld us through His Word, providing just the right Scripture at the right time. He was present in the lives of friends and family who called, visited, prayed, sent meals and cards and money, and ran errands. He showed His love through doctors and nurses who went beyond ordinary care to grant us compassion.

He gave us the strength to go on, a step at a time. He gave us the joy of our daughter and the love of a Heavenly Father. And He continues to give us the certainty of seeing Katherine when we too enter the place He has prepared for us.

In spite of our time of crisis, fear, and pain, “because of the LORD’s great love, we are not consumed” (Lam. 3:22).³

Conclusion←⤒🔗

Oftentimes we fail to appreciate the sufficiency of the Lord Jesus Christ; the fact that He is able to meet our every need and care for us in every situation. May the Lord grant us to increasingly learn this blessed truth: The Lord Jesus is the all-sufficient Savior upon whom we can rely with confidence at all times and under all circumstances.

Discussion Questions←⤒🔗

1. Why does a large crowd follow Jesus to the desolate region on the east side of the Sea of Galilee (cf. Jn. 6:1-2)? When evening approaches, what does Jesus do for them (cf. Jn. 6:10-11)? If the Lord Jesus showed such kindness to this self-seeking crowd, how much more will He show His kindness to us who are His disciples? Note Jn. 1:16; Psl. 23:6,

Sometime after this, Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, (that is, [the Sea] of Tiberias). ²A great crowd followed him, because they saw the signs that he had performed on those who were sick. Jn. 6:1-2

Jesus said, Make the people sit down. Now there was plenty of grass in that region. So the men sat down; they numbered about five thousand. ¹¹Jesus took the loaves, and after giving thanks, he distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. Jn. 6:10-11

And from his fullness we have all received, even grace upon grace. Jn. 1:16

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. Psl. 23:6

2. Even though He knew what He was going to do, what does Jesus ask Philip (cf. Jn. 6:5); why did He do so (cf. Jn. 6:6a)? How does Philip reply (cf. Jn. 6:7)? What does Jesus want Philip to see about the situation they are facing? What does Jesus want Philip to do? What does the Lord Jesus want us to understand? Note Jer. 32:17; Phil. 4:19,

When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, he asked Philip, Where can we buy bread so that these people may eat? ⁶Now he said this in order to test him; for [Jesus] himself knew what he was going to do. Jn. 6:5-6

Philip answered him, Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each one to have [even] a little bit. Jn. 6:7

Two hundred denarii is equivalent to about 8 months’ wages.

Ah, Lord God! Behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm; there is nothing too hard for you. Jer. 32:17

My God will meet all your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Phil. 4:19

3. How does the crowd respond to the miraculous provision of bread with which Jesus has fed them? See Jn. 6:14; cp. Deut. 18:18. Upon correctly identifying Jesus as the promised prophet, what do they now attempt to do? See Jn. 6:15a. Do we ever expect the Lord Jesus to inaugurate an earthly kingdom; doing so by either pleading His support for the success of a conservative political agenda, or claiming His support in an effort to bring into existence a utopian society of socialistic equity? What does our Lord tell us? See Jn. 18:36. Does this mean that, as Christians, we should not stand up for justice and righteousness? Note Zech. 8:16-17; Psl. 82:3-4 But where should our focus be? Phil. 3:20,

Now when the people saw the sign that he had performed, they said, Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world. Jn. 6:14

The LORD promised Moses, I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And it shall be that whoever will not hear my words, which he speaks in my name, I will require it of him.Deut. 18:18

Jesus answered, 'My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now my kingdom is not from here.' Jn. 18:36

These are the things you shall do: Speak each man the truth to his neighbor; give judgments in the gates for truth, justice, and peace; ¹⁷let none of you think evil in his heart against your neighbor; and do not love a false oath. For all these [are things] that I hate, says the LORD. Zech. 8:16-17

Defend the poor and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and needy. ⁴Deliver the poor and needy; free them from the hand of the wicked. Psl. 82:3-4

...our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. ²¹By the power that enables him to bring everything into submission to himself, he will transform the body belonging to the present state of our humiliation, so that it may be conformed to his glorified body. Phil. 3:20-21

4. What does Jesus do when confronted by the crowd that would make Him king? See Jn. 6:15; note, also, Mk. 6:45. Did the Lord Jesus discern the scheming of the devil in the crowd’s ill-conceived plan? Note Lk. 4:5-7; also, 4:13. As Christians, shall we not be eternally grateful to God that our Lord Jesus rejected the devil’s fallacious offer and accepted His Father’s will?

Jesus, perceiving that they were about to come and take him by force in order to make him king, withdrew again into the hills by himself. Jn. 6:15

Immediately, he made his disciples get into the boat, in order to go on ahead [of him] to [the village of] Bethsaida, while he sent the crowd away. Mk. 6:45

Then the devil, taking him up on a high mountain, showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. ⁶And the devil said to him, 'All this authority I will give you, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. ⁷Therefore, if you will worship before me, it shall all be yours.'Lk. 4:5-7

Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time. Lk. 4:13

5. While Jesus has retreated into the hills to pray, what became of His disciples? See Jn. 6:16-18. How does the Gospel of Mark describe Jesus’ response to their peril? See Mk. 6:48. What time was it when Jesus saw His disciples in distress? What does this reveal about the Lord Jesus? Note Psl. 34:15. As His disciples, what comfort and assurance does our Lord Jesus Christ give us? See Heb. 13:5b; Psl. 23:4,

When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake; ¹⁷they got into a boat and headed across the lake for Capernaum. It was now dark and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸And the waters grew rough because of a strong wind that was blowing. Jn. 6:16-18

Seeing them straining at the oars, because the wind was against them, at about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the water... Mk. 6:48

“The fourth watch of the night” is 3 a.m.

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry. Psl. 34:15

He himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' Heb. 13:5b

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Psl. 23:4