August 3, 2014
Enough is Enough
- Matthew 14:13-21
- Dr. Teri Thomas
Jesus has the ability to make me feel inadequate.
Sometimes I read stories of his ministry and I feel inadequate as a pastor.
Or as a disciple.
Or as a person of faith.
But this morning’s passage makes me feel inadequate as a hostess.
Last week I had a small group over for dinner.
I told them they had to bring their own beverages and their own dessert.
I took food from the freezer- using what I had on hand
but still made a trip to the grocery and the hardware store for a back-up tank for the grill.
I planned for 12 people even though I was certain there would be only seven or eight.
I ate leftovers all week.
I plan from worry
worry that I won’t have enough for everyone
worry that there is enough variety for everyone’s tastes
and allergies and special diets.
I love to entertain but I do tend to over-plan.
Jesus on the other hand acts from compassion, not worry
he acts on the spot-
with no planning, no list, no menu, no grocery run
he says- people are hungry- let’s do something…NOW
This story of Jesus feeding the 5000 is the only miracle that is in all four gospels.
Jesus and his disciples had just learned that John the Baptist was dead.
King Herod had him beheaded and then served his head to the Queen on a platter.
Jesus was dealing with personal sorrow and loss
he was disappointed, probably angry, maybe afraid
And he just wanted to be alone.
But the crowds followed him and pressed in on him
with their suffering, their pain, their needs
but instead of nursing his own wounds, Jesus tended theirs.
By the time evening came there were over 5000 people gathered.
The disciples had had enough
They thought Jesus needed a break and they sure could use one themselves.
Send them home, they told Jesus. Send them home to eat and then we can build a fire, relax, enjoy some quiet time and cook our fish and bread.
But Jesus had something else in mind.
Don’t send them anywhere. You feed them.
The disciples had 2 fish and five loaves.
They did not have enough.
They did not have enough food
they did not have enough help to serve all those people
they did not have enough time before dark
they did not have enough money to buy more food
they did not have enough faith.
They saw scarcity. Jesus looked at the exact same situation and saw plenty.
They had plenty of time
they had plenty of food
they had plenty of possibilities
So Jesus took the fish and the bread, he thanked God for the gift of plenty.
He gave the food back to the disciples and again told them to feed the crowd.
He could have fed them himself, but he didn’t.
This is not a typical miracle story.
Usually Jesus does the miracles,
this time he tells the disciples to do it.
Usually there is a sermon or a parable
or at least a comment about faith…not here
usually Jesus heals one blind man,
or one bleeding woman,
or calms a storm in front of only his disciples
but this time there is a massive crowd
and Jesus told the disciples to act…now
listen to the action verbs in this story
saw, ordered, took, blessed, broke, gave.
Jesus wanted the disciples (and us) to understand
the need is great- you can’t ignore it
you need to look at this situation differently
stop focusing on what you don’t have
and focus on your potential
Remember that what I can accomplish for God
depends not on how much I have or what I can give,
but rather on how much God gives by multiplying what I have.
Sometimes Jesus is asking us to simply give our nothing—
our little loaves and fishes—
and then to stand back
and watch Jesus teach a different kind of economy,
an economy grown by God’s abundance.
This is a challenging thought.
The God of Jesus knows no limitation.
Out of nothing, God creates plenty.
The economy of the kingdom of God is abundant
and knows no scarcity.
Jesus takes what the disciples have on hand
blesses
breaks
gives it back to them
they feed over 5000 people and have baskets full of leftovers.
How? Who knows?
Don’t know, but they did it.
God can use the ordinary to provide extraordinary grace.
We may not have everything,
but we have something.
Jesus challenges us to offer our something.
Trust God’s abundance.
That’s what makes us disciples.
Thanks be to God.
Amen.