An Appointment with Christ: the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish (Mark 6:30), Part 7

On this occasion, we are going to conclude this lengthy study of Chapter 6 of the Gospel according to Saint Mark, beginning with verse 30, where we see the multiplication of the loaves and fish, this well-known miracle of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have gone through a great many profound biblical teachings, and today we are concluding by looking at the miracle itself.

The crowd is hungry, the day has passed, night is approaching, and the disciples say to our Lord Jesus Christ, “Lord, send them away now; they need to go and buy themselves food.” The Lord surprises the disciples by saying, “You give them something to eat.” The disciples are horrified and say, “How is it possible for us to feed such a large crowd?”

The Lord sends them out among the crowd, and the disciples discover that they have five loaves and two fish—an utterly, ridiculously small amount with which to feed such a large crowd. But the Word says that the Lord then takes those loaves and tells the disciples in verse 39: “And He commanded them to have everyone sit down in groups on the green grass. And they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke the loaves and gave them to His disciples to set before them. And He divided the two fish among them all, and they all ate and were satisfied. And they gathered up twelve baskets full of the pieces and of what remained of the fish. And those who ate were 5,000 men, not counting the women and children.”

What a wonderful passage, what a wonderful conclusion to this account that we began some time ago. The Lord takes the loaves and fish and tells the disciples, divide the crowd into groups of one hundred and then into groups of fifty. I imagine that as the disciples carried out the task the Lord had entrusted to them, they must have been angry and felt unsure because they were thinking, “This is crazy. Why are we dividing all these people into groups when all we have are five loaves and two fish?” They were afraid of looking ridiculous. Perhaps they feared the anger of the crowd when the crowd discovered that there was not enough food for everyone.

I believe the Lord had them do this before performing the miracle because He wanted to strengthen their faith. You know, many times there will be situations in our lives in which the need will be so great and the resources so small that our tendency will be simply to lament, remain inactive, and freeze in fear, doing nothing and allowing the problem to continue. But many times God wants us to venture out in faith, to take a small step, and then to see the Lord begin to work and open the sea before us.

If we wait for conditions to be favorable, we would never pray. Many times we need to begin in faith, knocking on doors, taking steps in the Lord, and seeking a solution. We must never be paralyzed by life’s limitations. Let us not become so obsessed with our problems and their magnitude that we sit in a corner wringing our hands and lamenting our difficult circumstances. God wants us to venture out in the name of Jesus to do something, to seek a solution. He wants us to be active, dynamic, enterprising people who do not allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by problems but who venture out in the name of Jesus, believing that as we make the effort, the Lord will provide the solution. That is why the Lord Jesus Christ tells us that He has not given us a spirit of cowardice, but of power, love, and self-control.

We have power in Christ Jesus. The apostle Paul says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” No matter how serious the situation is, no matter how grave it is, no matter how overwhelming the problem may seem, God wants you to venture out in the name of the Lord to conquer a giant, to destroy the problem afflicting you. In the name of Jesus, tackle the problem, pursue the solution, and the Lord will give you the answer.

I think of the passage about David and Goliath: Goliath was a tremendous giant, a man who stood almost eight feet tall, an experienced warrior. Not one warrior in Israel dared to confront this Philistine giant, but a small young man with no military training believed in the power of God and dared to confront the giant. With nothing more than a sling and a stone hurled in the power of God, in the name of God, he struck the giant on the forehead and brought that mighty warrior down. And that image of a small young man bringing down a giant is a symbol of the power within every believer to bring down any problem that may arise in his life. In Christ Jesus we are more than conquerors, but we must not look so much at the problem as at the powerful Christ who is above the problem.

God said to Joshua, another person in the Bible, “See, I command you to be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be discouraged, for I will be with you wherever you go.” If only we could always maintain that posture of faith, refusing to be defeated by the magnitude of our problems and instead saying in the name of Jesus, “I will overcome, I will move forward, I will have the victory—not by my power, but by the power of God within me. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

Earlier, the apostle Paul says, “In all these things we are more than conquerors.” But that posture of faith, that posture of finding our sufficiency in God, is necessary. Christ sent the disciples and told them, divide the crowd, believe, start planning now, because the miracle is coming. And then the Bible says that once the crowd had been divided into groups, the Lord took the five loaves and the two fish, raised His eyes to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, gave them to His disciples to set before the people, and divided the two fish among them all; and they all ate and were satisfied.

What a wonderful picture of what happens when we act in the power of God. For you are not the one who performs the miracle; Christ performs the miracle. When you obey, follow the instructions of the Word, and act according to the principles of the Kingdom of God, then God can work on your behalf. The Lord Jesus Christ took the five loaves and the two fish and, using the power of God and entrusting His need to the Father, received authority and power and multiplied them. It was a creative miracle: He created food for 5,000 men and God knows how many women and children.

And so, my brother, Christ wants you to tackle the problems and limitations of life. God wants to use you as an instrument of His grace. Many people have only enough energy for their own problems—and not even enough for that—but God wants you to have enough strength and power in your life not only to bless your family, bless yourself, and solve your problem, but also to have the strength to bless others. It all depends on your acting in the power and wisdom of Christ Jesus. He is able to multiply loaves and fish and to do great and mighty things, if only you believe in Him, cling to Him, use His power, and place your faith in the grace that flows from Him. He is sufficient not only to feed a crowd, but also for loaves and fish to be left over. It says that a great deal remained; it says that they gathered up twelve baskets full of the pieces and of what remained of the fish. There was not only enough for the crowd, but food left over as well. When God performs a miracle, He does it perfectly; He does it superabundantly.

God is powerful enough to meet any need in your life and to make you an instrument of His grace. Oh, may God help us to have that faith in the powerful Christ. God bless you!