Bread from Heaven

This morning, I read in chapter 6 of the gospel of Mark about Jesus miracle feeding the 5,000 and was struck by some insights and gleaned also valuable insights from a discussion with my husband Dennis who pastors our church and is very gifted with understanding the Bible. So here goes!

At one point after taking and burying the body of John the Baptist whom King Herod beheaded, the disciples came to Jesus and told Him about all they had done and taught and Jesus invited them to “come aside to a deserted place and rest awhile.” But when “the multitudes” saw them depart, they followed them. Then verse 34 says, “Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.” He began to teach them and by the end of the day, the disciples said to Him to send them to nearby villages to get food to eat as they were in a deserted place and they didn’t want them to faint after so long.

Jesus wanted something different—He was ready to display His power. He said to them, “You give them something to eat.” After telling Him they could not afford that, He said to them, “How many loaves do you have, Go and see.” So, they brought Him 5 loaves, and 2 fish. After having the people sit in groups, He looked to heaven and blessed the loaves and broke them and distributed the loaves and fish. All ate to the full and they gathered left over fragments into 12 filled baskets.

In the next section, “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.” After struggling against a strong wind, in the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the water, and they were greatly afraid. He told them, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” So, they were greatly amazed and “marveled. 52 For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened.” Well, how interesting. I thought, “What is there not to understand about so dramatic a miracle as multiplying so little to feed so many? Is this not one of the greatest miracles there could be? And what does a hardened heart have to do with it?”

So, I talked to Dennis about it. He said something I never thought of. In the book of Exodus in the Old Testament, after escaping Egypt, the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. Early on, they complained to Moses they were hungry and why had he led them into the wilderness to starve? So Moses complained to God and God provided manna for the Israelites to eat. Manna was a flaky white substance that would fall with the dew and morning by morning, they would collect it and bake it into cakes. It was their bread. So just as they were in the wilderness, so too was this multitude in a “deserted place.” Just as God spoke to Moses, God’s shepherd of His covenant people, and gave the Israelites His Law, will, and guidance—His Word—so too Jesus gave these people a shepherd who taught them lost in their sin and ignorance, the Word of God and the laws of Christ.

So, this is how God fed the people with the bread of His Word in the Old Testament. Then I thought and added to Dennis, the parallel in the New Testament. In the gospel of John chapter 10, verse 11, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” In John 6:32-35, Jesus says, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world…I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and He who believes in Me shall never thirst.” The prophet Isaiah said in Isaiah 55:2-3, “Why do you spend money for what is not bread? And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance. Incline you ear and come to Me, Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make a covenant with you—the sure mercies of David.”

This covenant was described in the Last Supper in Matthew 26:26 with the disciples when, as they were eating, “Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” In the Old Testament, God provided for the physical sustenance of the Israelites but also gave them His Words as a guide for their souls. While the Law alone could not save all, (for Paul said the letter of the law kills, but the Spirit gives life) God provided the manna (the bread that came down from heaven) of Christ’s body and His Word as a guide for the salvation of their souls and now we receive mercy when we take communion in remembrance of the bread of heaven, His body, broken for the forgiveness of our sins. This is the bread which satisfies in Isaiah—the new covenant of the New Testament, bringing the sure mercies of David. “Hear, and your soul shall live,” He said.

Let us not be like the disciples terrified in the boat, not understanding about the loaves because of hardened hearts, still learning to understand that Jesus is in fact God. Let us understand that God has given us both His Word and His body for the very salvation of our souls. Let us understand and believe that Jesus is indeed God and not just a prophet or miracle working teacher. He is in fact God, our Savior, our one and only Hope for redemption.

If you do believe, let us have compassion just like Jesus did on the multitude who are lost sheep without a shepherd. Share the Word of God. Share the mercy bought by the bread of His broken body. Feed the multitude His mercies and Love. Just as He had His disciples feed the multitude, so too does He call us to show His compassion and give them bread to eat.

If you do not believe, I encourage you to consider the Word of God I have shared today deeply and see that God loves you so much He has more than fed your body but indeed has broken His own for the sake of your soul. As bread gives life to you in this world, so too does He, the bread from heaven, give life to your soul in the world to come. Thank You Jesus for the cross! Thank You for all You have done to save us! You are God and we will praise and worship You!