Redeemer Lutheran Church

1106 Shreveport-Barksdale Hwy

Shreveport, LA  71105

(318) 868-5778

Pastor Perry Culver

Come join the family

Jesus Never Stops Giving

This last Thursday was a crazy day for a lot of people. I was working on the sermon, listening to the radio, when the power went out in the North-east power grid affecting New York, Michigan, Ohio and other states. This perked my interest because I have represented the public utility industry from 1989-2000. I know that people want power immediately restored, but that is easier said than done. Once you shut a plant down, it takes a while before you can have it back online. Gas-fired steam plants are all over the place, but you can’t just flip a switch and have it up and running. It takes an average of twelve hours to bring a steam generator from a cold start to operating at full power. You have to slowly start the system and let the turbine generators warm up evenly so that all metal components in the generator expand at the same rate. The tolerances in the metal are minuscule and if one part expands faster than the other, these turbines spinning at a real high rate of speed will bump into one another and destroy the turbine. It takes about a year to overhaul a turbine. Many plants have 3 or more turbines with usually one turbine in a state of overhaul.

When the power went off, it left 50,000,000 people stranded. What were they going to do without electricity? How were they going to cool their homes? How were they going to eat supper?

I called my brother in Troy, Michigan, and found out that he was without power. Troy is a small town next to Detroit. Supper was coming up and they had to make arrangements. He was going to the garage to get the camping stove to cook supper. Well, 50 million people were without electricity and for the most part, most of them ate food and they are still alive today.

In today’s gospel lesson, Jesus feeds 5,000 hungry souls. This may seem insignificant in light of the feeding of 50 million, but it is even more miraculous than what happened last week. For whether or not we have electricity, can we feed 5,000 people from 5 barley loaves and two fish? NO! If there had been a McDonald’s two hills away, they couldn’t handle 5,000 people. Jesus uses the feeding of 5,000 as a teaching tool to teach 1) his disciples, 2) the people, and 3) us today. This story is included in all four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. It is a story designed to be heard over and over again. Why, because we need to continually hear it over and over again to be reminded to trust in Jesus Christ.

Scripture states:

Again, we have a "great" crowd following Jesus. As Jesus ministry expands, so do the crowds following Him. Scripture states that they were following him because they saw the miraculous signs he had performed on the sick. Jesus is using miracles to attract the people, but what they really hunger for is spiritual food. If you heal a sick person, they will still die sooner or later.

The reading also places the time frame near the Jewish Passover Feast. This would be the Passover Feast a year before he dies on the Cross. The Last Supper was a Passover Feast, so we know looking back that Jesus is about to begin His final year.

Jesus begins to teach through the feeding of the 5,000. It is important to know that Jesus already knows what’s going to happen. If you don’t believe me, listen again to the Scripture because it tells us so.

Jesus sees a great crowd coming. There are more than 5,000 people. This count does not include women and children. Jesus asks the question already knowing that they would not be buying any bread. He is making a point. He is showing them that they do not have the money, nor the resources to feed them. His rhetorical question is "Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?" There is no McDonald’s or Wal-Mart Superstore two hills away. He is showing them that they are "poor". Even if the food were available, they could not pay for it.

Jesus gets two responses, one from Philip and the other from Andrew. I Philip notes that they do not have enough money to buy the food. What little money they do have would only buy enough bread for each person to have a small bite. This surely would not satisfy a hungry stomach. Philip addresses the fact that they are too poor to pay to feed everybody.

Andrew responds differently, not by addressing the monetary shortage, but by addressing the food resources available. If you know you have company over at your house for supper, you walk over to the pantry and look at what food resources you have available. Andrew states in verse 9: "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?" Since this is the lunch of a young boy, the barley loaves were probably very small as well as the fish. Andrew is focusing on the facts that there is no way we can feed these people!

Jesus continues his teaching:

It is interesting that after Jesus has them sit down, he takes what little food He has available and "Gives Thanks". How many people still give thanks for the food they are about to eat. Most Christians do not give thanks for their meals. Sure you may do it at Church, but what about at home, or at a restaurant? I know my family still gives thanks and I’m sure some of you still carry on the practice. But… would we truly be giving thanks for the 5 small loaves and 2 fish, or would we be grumbling that all we have is the food from one lads meal. Forget there being more than 5,000 people, if your whole family was home, would there be grumbling if all you had was one "Happy Meal" from McDonalds for a family of 4 or 5?…. Jesus is teaching us!

The 5 loaves and two fish began to be distributed. What happens now is phenomenal, … no it is beyond phenomenal, it is miraculous!!!

Scripture states. "He distributed to those who were seated; likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted." From almost nothing, He creates something. From one meal, he creates over 5,000 meals. People did not eat just one bite, but they ate as much as they wanted! Why do we doubt the power of Christ? It is interesting that we get so amazed that he fed 5,000 from a small lad’s meal and forget that he created the whole universe not from 5 loaves or 2 fish, but NOTHING! Jesus is the creator. He created the universe. He created the wheat fields. He created the fish of the sea. He created you and me! Jesus cares about you. He will provide for you. He will feed you! He provides abundantly! Scripture states: When they were filled, He *said to His disciples, "Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost." So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.

He provides abundantly, so abundantly that they ate until they were satisfied and there was still food left over. When they gathered up the left over food, there were 12 full baskets. More food was left over than when they began! Jesus is the Bread of Life. His feeding is not just sufficient for a few, but for all. He feeds the 5,000, but His Word feeds the whole world. He met their physical needs, and … He also met there spiritual needs. The 5,000 recognized this. Scripture concludes: "Therefore when the people saw the sign which He had performed, they said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world." Today you have received spiritual feeding through God’s Word. We have a compassionate Savior who cares about ALL our needs. He created faith in the hearts of the 5,000 and he creates faith through His Word today. Faith in Jesus Christ is his gift to you. Jesus never stops giving.

AMEN!