LITTLE IS MUCH WHEN GOD IS IN IT
John 6:1-13
By: Evangelist Frank Walker (Chesnee, SC)
(To Be Published In Upcoming Book Entitled "Sermons For Every Season")
Introduction:
The story of the five loaves and two fish is one of the most familiar stories in the Bible. A Sunday School Teacher had asked his class of small children which story they liked best in the Bible. A little boy spoke up and said, "I like the story where they loaf and fish." Each of us has our favorite passages and John 6:1-13 is certainly one I love to read. This is the only miracle that is recorded in each of the Gospel accounts in the Bible. You can read about this miracle in Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, and Luke 9:10-17. It is important to read each account to gain and garner a fuller meaning. After studying each passage, I have come to the conclusion that the lad played a vital role in this miracle. He gave his lunch to the Lord Jesus. The disciples questioned the Lord, but the lad simply gave his five loaves and two fish to the Lord. Everything we have belongs to the Lord, and once placed in His hands, it multiplies. Certainly, we discover in this passage that "Little Is Much When God Is In It."
Jesus took the loaves and fish, blessed them, and the multitude was fed. In addition, 12 baskets were left. Three thoughts we need to focus upon in this message.
I. THE SAVIOUR'S CHARACTER: (V2-6)
Verse 1 tells us, "After these things Jesus went over the seas of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias." Jesus was always on the move, doing His Father's will. Several things we need to look at.
A. His Person: (V2-3)
Verse 2 of this Chapter tells us, "And a great multitude followed him." The Lord had made His presence known, and now He and the disciples have gone over the Sea of Galilee. But they are not alone. The Bible says a great multitude had followed him. Many of them had witnessed the Lord's miracles and messages. They had never seen anyone like Jesus. I declare right this moment there has never been anyone like Jesus and there never will be. His peace, power, presence, and provisions is unmatched and unlimited. What a Mighty God We Serve! Jesus is worth following. Are you following Jesus? Every Christian needs to follow Jesus faithfully, fruitfully, and forever. The Lord hasn't called us to be part time followers. He demands
us to be full time followers. Can't you picture this large multitude following Jesus? Will you make a commitment right now that you are going to follow Jesus for the rest of your life. He has never led you astray. He has never let you down. We sing the song almost every Sunday, "I Have Decided To Follow Jesus." But, by the time many people get to their automobiles, they are talking about worldly and wicked pleasures, places, and possessions.
Verse 2 continues, "Because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased." Jesus had opened blind eyes, made the lame to walk, and healed many of them. But most of all, Jesus had saved their lost souls. That's why they wanted to follow Jesus. I have good news
for you. Jesus is still saving souls and performing miracles in this very hour. Are you in need of a miracle? Jesus has one just for you. Only trust Him as you pray to the Lord about what you need. Verse 3 says, "And Jesus went up into a mountain." Have you ever noticed how much Jesus enjoyed His handiwork? When you read about the Lord, He is praying in the mountains and preaching on the seashore. God has made the earth and all therein. He expects us to enjoy life. Verse 3 continues, "And there he sat with his disciples." How marvelous it must have been to sit down with Jesus! His disciples and others were able to learn and listen to Him. One day, saved people are going to be with Jesus forevermore. But we can still sit with Jesus in the Spiritual realm in the present. We can sit with Him in the following areas: Word (Bible Study), Worship (Church), Watch (Prayer), Witness (Telling other about Jesus), Will (Doing what God
has asked you to do), and Work (Laboring for the Lord).
B. His Passion: (V4-5a)
Verse 4 says, "And the Passover, a feast of the Jews was nigh." With that in mind, it is easy to
see why so many people were present when Jesus fed the multitude. They were going to partake of the Passover. Many of them had traveled a lot of miles. Verse 5 says, "When Jesus lifted up His eyes, and saw a great company come unto Him." The Lord had His eyes on that large crowd of people. He knew they were very hungry and need something to eat. My friends, Jesus has His eyes on you this very moment. He knows what you stand in need of and is capable to supply your needs. It stirred the heart of the Lord to see those folks hungry. Jesus had compassion on them and He has compassion for you. He paid your sin debt on the cross of Calvary! Every drop of blood was shed for every person. How often do you reflect upon His love for you? It would do us all well to daily contemplate His love for us. At this very moment you may be feeling low and lonely, but Jesus has compassion for you. He wants to put His safe,
steadfast, and secure arms around you, and let you know He cares for you.
C. His Perception: (V5-6)
Verse 5 says, "And he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?" Jesus was putting Philip to the test. I believe God puts us to the test sometimes to see how strong our faith is. Many of us fail the test because we don't trust the Lord as much as we should. Verse 6 says, "And this he said to prove him: for He Himself knew what He would do." The Lord knew the multitude had need of food, but He also knew how he was going to handle the situation. You will never catch the Lord off guard. He perceives all things and knows exactly what is going on in the lives of every person. But He also knows what He is going to do. This section should inspire our hearts. When you feel there is no way out of your storms and situations, the Lord knows what He is going to do. He is the only one who knows everything. Humankind thinks they know everything, but God is the only one who knows all. Some of you work with people and worship with people who think they know everything, but they don't. There
isn't anything for the Lord to learn. He is a Sovereign and Satisfying Lord. How would Philip respond to the Lord's question? We will find the answer in the next verse.
II. THE SERVANTS CONTEMPLATION: (V7-9)
A. Calculation: (V7)
Philip answered Him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one may take a little (V7). Philip failed the test. He failed to see the character of Jesus. He had already been around the Lord long enough to know that nothing is impossible with God. But Philip doubted what the Lord could do. Isn't this our failure as well? We know the Lord is powerful enough to do anything He pleases, but we display doubt when we don't trust Him. Philip should have said, "Lord, you are able and capable of supplying food for this large crowd." However, this wasn't the case. Are you presently facing some need in your life, but fail to trust the Lord? Hasn't God promised to take care of you and supply all your needs?
In addition, a mass of churches also fail to trust the Lord. When is the last time you heard this statement from a church leader? "We just can't afford to do that?" Churches need to learn to step out in faith and trust the Lord to supply the needs. If a church has need of something, the Lord will come through for them. The key is trusting in the Lord. Too, it concerns my heart that many Pastor's have expressed certain needs and ideas for church growth to the deacons and church leadership, only to hear them say we can't do that.
My friends, we should be reminded that Jesus is the Shepherd of the church and the Pastor is the under-shepherd. I'm not saying that things shouldn't be thought through and prayed about. It is mandatory that Christians and churches need to trust the Lord for everything.
B. Contribution: (V8-9)
Verses 8-9 says, And one of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto Him. "There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?" Even Andrew questions the Lord. He was saying that the five loaves and two fishes wasn't enough to feed the multitude. But Philip and Andrew were about to be surprised. Why? Because the Lord was going to use the bread and fish to feed everyone present. Each of us has a little bit of Philip and Andrew in us.
Five words have our attention in verse 9: There is a lad here. When Andrew began to survey the crowd, he noticed there was a young lad with five loaves and two fishes. This lad was willing to give what he had to the Lord Jesus. It was everything he had. That can't be said about too many Christians. They want to hang on to certain things and will not let them go. There are several truths to reflect upon concerning the lad's contribution. First, it was:
1. Small: (V9) How much did the lad give Jesus? He gave Him five barley loaves and two small fishes. Just because the lad's contribution was small doesn't mean it wasn't important. The bread and fish was known as poor man's food. It was everything the lad had. What a challenge that is presented to us in these verses! The lad realized that Jesus could use his lunch. God can use what you give Him too. Little is much when God is in it! God was all in this activity.
2. Sincere: (V9) The lad gave his food with a sincere heart. Even though
thousand's of people were present, the lad didn't look around to see if anyone was watching him. There wasn't any showmanship on his part. I fear that quiet too often many Christians want to be seen, especially when they do something for Jesus. My friends, when we do anything for the Lord or give something to the Lord it must be with a sincere heart. Are you sincere in what you do for the Lord Jesus Christ?
3. Significant: (V9) The lad's five loaves and two fishes was important to the Lord. That which you have is also important to the Lord. It may seem that your gift isn't important but it is. There's no telling how many people feel that their contribution to God isn't important. The lad and his lunch were important to Jesus. Likewise, you and your gift are significant to the Lord.
4. Sacrificial: (V9) When this lad gave his lunch to the Lord Jesus, it was everything he had. It is going to cost you something to serve the Lord. Is your gift to the Lord sacrificial? When God sent His son Jesus into the world to die for our sin, this was the ultimate sacrifice. You will never lose when you place everything you have in the hands of the Lord Jesus. A story is told of a little boy concerned that he didn't have anything to place in the offering plate at church. When the offering plate reached his hands, his heart was broken because he didn't have anything to put in it. Finally, he got up from his seat and took one of the offering plates from the usher. The little boy emptied out the money into another plate, sat the plate in the floor, and got in it. He said, "Lord, I don't have any money, but I offer myself to you." That is what God requires of us. He simply wants you. When the Lord has you, He will have everything else in your life.
5. Sufficient: (V9) Many people may look down on this lad's gift, but when they read the whole account they will quickly learn that his gift was just enough. He had faith in the Lord and God honored his faith. How much faith do you have in the Lord Jesus? Will you take this very moment and dedicate your all to Him? We will discover in the next few verses that God used the lad's contribution to feed thousand's of hungry people. Imagine what would take place in our world if each of us possessed this same attitude.
III. SAVIOUR'S COMMAND: (V10-13)
When the lad gave his lunch to the Lord, Jesus accepted it and gave orders to his disciples. Several truths we learn concerning our Lord's command.
A. Direction: (V10)
And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. Jesus is now set to do what He knew He was going to do. We focused on Verse 6 earlier and it told us the Lord knew what he would do. He knew there was a lad there and the amount of food he had. Jesus was in charge of the entire situation. Jesus commanded that the men sit down. In order for the Lord to perform this miracle each detail must be carried out decently and in order. It is always that way. But many times, we don't follow his orders or directions. For the most part, people don't like to follow directions. How many times have you purchased an item that required assembling, but you decided you didn't need the directions? Once you put the item together upside down you had to swallow your pride get the directions out, and start all over. We waste so much time and miss out on so many of God's wonderful Blessings because we don't follow His orders. Each day we wake up, we need
to get our orders from the Lord. Our prayer should always include the guidance of God. Christians have fallen flat on their faces because they didn't follow God's directions. Families have encountered difficulties because they failed to follow God's directions. Churches have missed out on God's will because of their failure to heed the directions of God! If you want God to perform a miracle for you, then it is important to acts upon His directions. When you contemplate on the problems in our society and reflect upon worldwide problems, it is easy to discover the reason for all of it. Failure to follow God's directions! Will you commit yourself to the Lord and tell Him you want to start following His orders and directions for your life? There were five thousand men present. The number was probably around 20,000, including wives and children. But our Lord was able to feed them all.
B. Dedication: (V11a)
Verse 11 says, And Jesus took the loaves; and when He had given thanks. Our hearts should rejoice because the Bible tells us Jesus took the loaves. He didn't reject it He received it! The lad had to be filled with joy when the Lord accepted his contribution. Jesus received what the lad offered and was able to use it. Jesus looked up to Heaven, dedicated and thanked His Heavenly Father for the food. What an example the Lord is setting for us in this passage. Jesus is teaching us the responsibility of dedicating what we have to God, while thanking Him for it. Everything you have belongs to God. Your companion, children, cars, clothes, time, talents, and treasures belong to Jesus. Have you dedicated everything to Him? Will you? The Lord is allowing us to use (borrow) things in this world for His glory. Jesus held up the contribution (bread and fish) and thanked God. How often do you thank God for what you have? Are you consistent in saying the Blessing over your food at home, or in public? Everyday is Thanksgiving Day for the Christian. How true that song is, "Thank You Lord For Your Blessings On Me." Each day it would benefit and Bless you to take time and thank the Lord for all he has done, is doing, and is going to do.
C. Distribution: (V11b-12a)
He distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down, and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. When they were filled. What a tremendous miracle this was! According to the Bible, the food multiplies in the hands of Jesus. Little is much when God is in it. If you will take what you have and place it in the hands of Jesus it will multiply. God is in the multiplying business. He desires for you to trust Him with everything you have, and place it in His hands. If you want to see God operate in a manifold and miraculous way, simply take what you have and place it in His hands. Each person ate as much as they wanted and they were filled. That leads us to another important truth we discover from this passage. It is the Christian's responsibility to distribute Spiritual bread. It isn't just a Pastor's responsibility or church leaders responsibility to share the Bible; it is every Christian's responsibility to share and distribute the
Bible. I wonder how many people leave church each Sunday, and they don't leave filled. It you are being fed at church you need to feast from God's table. Everything you need is on the Lord's table. You must have a desire and determination to dine from the precious Word of God. When you dine it allows you the opportunity to distribute God's bread. Some people don't leave the church filled because teachers and preachers aren't feeding them; but if you are being fed it is important for you to eat.
D. Declaration: (V12b)
He said unto His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost." What an abundance of food this was! All of them ate as much as they wanted and were filled. However, Jesus didn't want anything to go to waste. We live in a society of waste. How do you react when you hear about churches having food fights? That is a sin. Multitudes of people are dying of starvation and Christians sit back and waste food, not to mention sit back on God's money. Again we hear Jesus giving orders. He knows exactly what needs to be done and accomplished. Jesus had performed a wonderful miracle and He asked His disciples to gather the fragments. E. Delight: (V13)
Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten. The disciples carried out the orders from Jesus Christ. Are you obeying the Lord and carrying out His commands? They filled 12 baskets. This must have given the disciples delight. Imagine the look on the lad's face when he saw this. Nothing is ever lost when place in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ. Their cups were running over. Is your cup running over with the joy, peace, goodness, and mercy of the Lord?
CONCLUSION:
The lad puts many of us to shame because we are not willing to give generously as he did. It is a day the lad will never forget. His life was changed dramatically by witnessing this miracle. In reading this message has your life been changed in some spectacular way? It is evident that, "Little is much when God is in it." Trust the Lord right now as your Saviour lost person! Once you do, you can place what you have in the hands of Christ. But first, you must place your soul in His hands. Jesus is still working miracles like this today. He wants to work in your life as you give your all to Him.
