Provision in the Problem
There are two moments in history that I would love to have had a front row seat to watch.
First would be creation. I would love to have been able to sit on my couch with some popcorn and see God set the universe and this world into motion with just His spoken word. To see the ocean being formed. The mountains rising from the ground. The trees. The heavens. And the animals. Seriously, I know He’s God and that He knows everything, but how He came up with all these different type of animals is beyond me. I would love to have been there when he created the hippopotamus. Or the lion, the birds, or the axolotl! I think God may have gotten a bit carried away with that one. BUT JUST TO BE THERE! To see LIFE where there once was NOTHING! That would have been amazing.
The second moment I would have wanted to experience would have been the feeding of the 5000. Yes, I know, it doesn’t sound nearly as dramatic as the first, but stick with me. This will lead us to where we are going. You are probably familiar with the story. If not go read John 6:1-14. We will wait for you.
So, my second moment I would have loved to have seen, if I could pick only 2, would have been this moment. This moment not to see the incredible crowds, and how they came from all over to hear Jesus. Not even to hear the words Jesus was going to say. And not even to see Jesus healing people. I picked this moment because, I want to know WHEN did the 5 loaves and 2 fish multiply? Did the disciples actually see it multiply? Did it multiply in their hands? Or was it like Tim Allen in the Santa Clause where the disciples would just keep reaching in and the bread and fish just kept coming?
But you know what. I don’t even think that’s the most important thing that happened in this passage. Even though that’s all we hear growing up and in our Bible studies is that 5,000 people were fed and that the fish and bread magically multiplied, that’s not the most important thing that happened that day. Yes the actual miracle is important; it is in those moments we get to see a glimpse of the power of God.
Yet, I think the most important thing in this story actually happened leading up to the feeding. Look back at verses 5 & 6.
Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do.
Now remember, the disciples have already been with Jesus for a while and have seen Him perform miracles. The disciples saw him heal Peter’s mother-in-law, they saw Him cast out demons, they saw Him heal a paralyzed man, they saw Him raise the widow’s son back to life, they saw Him calm a storm. THEY KNOW WHO HE IS. They know. They’ve seen His miracles first hand. And now Jesus looks to His disciples and is basically testing their faith. He might as well of just said “how will we provide? Do you not think I’m enough to handle this.” He kind of does say it but He does it in a Mr. Miyagi “wax on, wax off” kind of way.
And these dudes fail big time. He’s hoping they would just be like “Yo, Jesus YOU are enough to sustain them.” I find it interesting that Jesus first looked to Philip. Something you should know about Philip; Phillip was the practical one. He saw things as they were. Not as they could be. He sees 5000 people. Not the way they could feed them. He immediately says “nope. We can’t do it. Not possible.” Mark’s account of this same story tells us that the disciples actually, pretty angrily, told Jesus to send them away. Let them fend for themselves.
WHO ARE THEY STANDING NEXT TO?!
WHY IS THEIR FAITH SO SMALL?!
I feel like that’s how I live my life some times. Maybe most times. Perhaps you can relate. I want to walk with Jesus. I want to walk like Jesus. I sing praises to His name and lift my hands to Him on Sunday mornings. I claim that I believe in the God that can make the lame to walk, the blind to see, the dead to live. Yet when it comes to certain aspects of my life, I’m not willing to trust the my God is who He says He is. I’m willing to give Him certain areas of my life, but when it comes to the big things, like my finances, I want control. What does that say about my faith? What does that say about the God that I claim to believe in?
What if, perhaps, the impossible thing you are facing right now is meant to strengthen and mold you?
Why can I not, when staring down the faces of the 5000, or the loss of a job, or when I don’t get my way, or my kids are acting crazy, or something else that I’ve deemed impossible in my mind, can I not look to the ONE whom is walking with me through it all? Why is my God big enough to heal the sick, the lame and dead…but He’s not enough to work in my life, and He’s not enough to get me through?!
Check it. The problem in this passage was the people. Impossible to feed them. Cannot happen. The solution? One of those people. The provision was in the problem. The disciples would have never seen the provision if they had not of faced the problem. Our approach to these circumstances, the one we’ve deemed impossible, is to try and pray them away. We want the problem to disappear. Actually, let’s be honest, we would rather not face any struggles to begin with. We cannot fathom that somehow, maybe, perhaps that God’s provision, or His answer, could possibly be found in the problem.
What if, perhaps, the impossible thing you are facing right now is meant to strengthen and mold you into the likeness of Jesus Christ and for the unique purpose He has for your life? And sending away the problem just means you don’t get to receive the provision. So, instead of looking at your own 5,000 and questioning if there’s enough bread to go around, look to the Bread of Life and know that He has already provided an answer to your problem. You just have to look in the right place to find it.
