If you'll take your Bibles tonight and turn with me to John chapter 6. We finally completed chapter 5 and as we enter chapter 6 I can say at the very beginning it's a rich chapter and we'll be in it for quite some time. It's really a marvelous text. And I've already prepared the sermons that I plan on at this point preaching. So you can trust me at this point. I hope we will have a good time as we go through it. But it begins with the feeding of the 5,000. And so I want to read verses 1 through 14. John chapter 6, the word of the Lord. After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee or Tiberias. A large crowd followed him because they saw the signs which he was performing on those who were sick. Then Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near. Therefore Jesus, lifting up his eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to him, said to Philip, Where are we to buy bread so that these may eat? This he was saying to test him, for he himself knew what he was intending to do. Philip answered him, 200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, there is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are these for so many people? Jesus said, have the people sit down. Now there was much grass in the place, so the men sat down in number about 5,000. Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, he distributed to those who were seated. Likewise also of the fish, as much as they wanted. 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. Therefore, when the people saw the sign which he had performed, they said, ìThis is truly the prophet who has come into the world.î Well, chapter six opens with the words, after these things, which tells us that it's occurring after the things of the previous chapters. So it took place after the healing by the pool of Bethesda, although probably six months to a year have passed since the previous account. In the former account, that is by the Pool of Bethesda, John is referring to the rejection of Jesus in Judea. But now he's describing how Jesus is rejected in Galilee. So Jesus is continuing to grow in popularity. And multitudes are beginning to follow him. The text tells us in verse 4 that the Passover was near, which is significant because a multitude would have come to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast. And keep in mind, this is before there were many ways of entertainment. There was no television. no electricity, no video games, none of the things that occupy people in our generation, no football games, no sporting events as we know them today. So whenever there was something spectacular happening, it would often bring about a crowd. So there there's a multitude in Jerusalem anyway and Jesus's reputation was continued to spread and so as they hear that Jesus had gone to the mountain this multitude go to the mountain to hear him. It's also significant, it's the Passover, because the Passover reminded Israel of their deliverance in Egypt. And their mind was continually going to the captivity or the occupation of the Romans. And they're wondering how long will it be before God delivers us from our oppressors. And so this is the context of what's going on here in this text. They had followed Jesus to this remote area. It's far from the cities, far from provision. There were no restaurants like we enjoy today and they didn't have the resources if there were. And so they followed Jesus and there was nothing for them to eat. So in verse 5, Jesus looks to Philip and he points out the size of the crowd and basically tells him, how in the world are we going to feed such a multitude? John points out that Jesus is asking the question not because he himself had any concern about how the crowd was going to be fed. but he was teaching Philip. God often uses difficulties and trials in order to increase our faith. And so Jesus is increasing the faith of Philip. And so we have in this passage, this miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. It's the only miracle in the gospels apart from the resurrection that's recorded in all four gospels in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. But John's gospel is far more detailed in giving us the one that it was a time of testing for the disciples. And then second of all, that Jesus is the true bread that satisfies spiritually. And then the effect of the multitude or the effect of a miracle upon the multitude. All of these are from John's gospel. And over the course of chapter 6, we will look at these. There are several other things that we need to see in this account in the life of our Lord. So this is what I want us to look at tonight. Some of these points of significance as we understand the feeding of the 5,000. First of all, we need to understand that there's a multitude, many, many people have come to gather before Jesus. The scripture tells us there's 5,000 men. Matthew's gospel adds to this. There were about, this is Matthew 14, 21, there were about 5,000 men who ate besides the women and children. So if you consider that there are men and many of them have brought their wives and there would have been many children present, it would not be beyond the realm of reasonable conjecture. There were probably over 10,000 people there. You can imagine the size of the multitude gathered to hear Jesus speak. They came with great zeal and great passion. They wanted to hear this man. They wanted to participate and observe the miracles he was doing. But almost all of them left in unbelief. Can you imagine such a thing? They are before the Son of God. They are hearing him teach. They are witnessing his miracles. They are standing or sitting, I mean, directly in front of the Son of God. and they went away unbelieving. It shows the hardness of the hearts of human beings. They came to Jesus, but it was only a momentary zeal. It shouldn't surprise us, though, because most people today, we're a very religious people, and there are many, many people that come to Jesus temporarily, or for the wrong reasons, and it's not saving faith at all. And so this is really what we're seeing here. Just because someone comes with great zeal, just because there's a crowd that's attracted, does not necessarily mean they have all come to saving faith. So the question then is, why were so many coming? Why were they coming in such large numbers? What was the attraction as they came in as a multitude before Jesus? I can give us several reasons why they came. First of all, some were actually hoping that Jesus was the Messiah. Remember, their understanding of the Messiah was a political ruler, one who would be a king, one who would deliver them from their oppressors, most significantly their Roman Empire that occupied Judea. And so they were hoping for the coming of the Messiah. There are many signs. The time was ripe. They were looking for the Messiah. Sadly, they missed Him. He came to His own, but His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them He gave them the power or the authority to become the children of God. In verses 14 and 15, Therefore, when the people saw the sign which he had performed, they said, this is truly the prophet who has come into the world. So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take him by force to make him king, withdrew again to the mountain by himself alone. They really thought he was the Messiah. And so there was a multitude coming and According to John they were ready to take him as their king if necessary by force So some of them were actually believing that he was the Messiah Second of all there were many who were simply enamored By the miracles that he was doing and you can imagine to see a true miracle. I know we call many things miracles today But a true miracle is that which takes place that is absolutely contrary to the natural realm. A true miracle. And they were witnessing Jesus do it. Verse 2 tells us that they were coming. John 6, 2. A large crowd followed him because they saw the signs which he was performing on those who were sick. So they weren't interested in obeying Him. They weren't interested in truly following Him as Lord and King. They just wanted to see His miracles. It's the Passover. They've come for the Passover feast. They have some free time. And so there's a great deal of excitement in the crowd. They had heard much about Jesus. This had become a sensational event, and so they had come to hopefully see Jesus perform some miracles. But sensationalism is not necessarily a means of grace. You hear Churches advertising healing services and this service and that service and they really hype up their event. But sensationalism is not necessarily a means of grace. Thirdly, some had come because they had sincere personal needs. They were not just simply interested in seeing others healed. They had their own infirmities. and they were hoping to be healed. We have to take ourselves back 2,000 years. Imagine a time when there were no hospitals, none. Imagine a time where medical care was quite limited. Surgery in that day was, in many cases, butchery. There were no medicines. So there were individuals that today, and we have so many medicines today. The pharmacies stay quite busy today. And there are medicines today that can help us through many of the infirmities that would be lifelong suffering for people 2,000 years ago. You can imagine diabetics. You can imagine people with arthritis. No treatment at all. Hunched over with pain that was chronic and they suffered with it day after day after day. And here's a man that's healing. You can imagine that they would go to whatever end to come to this one who was healing. Verse two tells us that he is performing signs on those who were sick. In Matthew's account, Matthew 14, 14, when he went ashore, he saw a large crowd and felt compassion for them and he healed their sick. Luke 9, 11, but the crowds were aware of this and followed him and welcoming him. And he began speaking to them about the kingdom of God and curing those who had need of healing. So many of them had just come. They weren't concerned about their mortal soul. It was all physical for them, but they had a need and they knew that Jesus could solve their need. Some were fascinated by his words. They enjoyed good teaching, and they had never heard anyone teach and preach like Jesus. Mark 6, 2, when the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and the many listeners were astonished, saying, where did this man get these things? And what is this wisdom given to him? And such miracles as these performed by his hands. or Matthew's Gospel, Matthew 7, 28. When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one having authority and not as their scribes. So there were many that were absolutely spellbound by his teaching. They had heard him teach. Now they found out he is on the mountain, and they've come to hear him teach. Later in this chapter, Jesus would accuse many of them of following him just simply to be fed. In verse 26, Jesus answered them and said, Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek me not because you saw the signs, But because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Again, physical needs. And there are many today that follow Jesus because of some notion that he will be able to solve this physical issue, emotional distress, perhaps financial needs, perhaps physical infirmity. People follow Jesus for many, many reasons. But there's only one true reason to follow Jesus. It demands receiving him as your master and as the only source to have your sins forgiven. Eventually, most would forsake him. Verse 66, as a result of this, many of his disciples withdrew. And we're not walking with him anymore. So the first thing we see is there are many reasons why probably in excess of 10,000 people had come to gather before Jesus. The second thing we need to see here is that Jesus did do the miracle. He did feed the multitude, but he fed them in his way. And the point is this. God is able to work his will and his purpose in our lives, but he most often works through the use of means. And the means that Jesus selected, because he's sovereign over his actions, the means he chose was to multiply these fish and loaves. Now this multitude of people were in need of food. And again, Jesus could have used any means possible. When he's in the wilderness, you know, the wilderness temptation where Jesus had fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, and at the end of the 40 days, Satan came and tempted him. And Satan tempted him to turn the stones into bread. And he knew that Jesus could do it. And indeed, Jesus could have done it. Jesus could have taken all the stones on the mountainside and changed them into bread. And it would have been a small thing. Philip complained that the problem was their lack of funds. Maybe if they had the funding that then they could provide food. Philip says in verse seven, 200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little. Now, a denarii was equivalent to a day's wages. So what he's saying is that even if we had over a half a year of income, it wouldn't be enough to feed these people. But the question is, Does the God of all the earth who owns all things and who is the source of all things, is he in need of money in order to do his holy will? Don't forget at one point when Jesus had to pay the temple tax, he got the money from the mouth of a fish. Matthew 17, 27, go to the sea and throw in a hook and take the first fish that comes up and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and me." Jesus was not in need of funding. Jesus could have fed them supernaturally without the loaves and fishes. He could have caused bread to suddenly appear in their laps. And so he is sovereign over his actions. He's what we call the first cause of all things. In other words, if something happens, whatever it is, it's because he has determined it to happen. But he works through the use of means. I'm looking out at all the people here tonight. Here's Asa over here. Are you alive? You are. And are you here? You are. And God determined that Asa would be here in this third row. But in order for Asa to be here, His mom and dad had to meet one day, and God orchestrated that. He works through the use of means. He could just have Asa appear in the pew. But he doesn't work that way normally. If he works above the norm, above the rule of nature, then we call that a miracle. But most often God works through the use of means. God made the heavens and the earth out of nothing. We call that ex nihilo. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. There was nothing, and suddenly there was, because God is the source of all things. But it's interesting that God formed Adam from the dust to the ground as the rest of the animals. He didn't have to. He could have brought Adam into existence as he did the rest. But he chose to use the use of means. God brought plagues upon Egypt to deliver his people from the Egyptians. He didn't have to do that. He could have destroyed the Egyptians and immediately transferred Israel into Canaan. but he did not do it that way. Israel had to take dominion over Canaan, yet the battles were of God. So here, Jesus takes the bread and the fish to make more bread and fish. Again, he could have created from nothing, but instead he used the existing bread and fish to make more bread and fish sufficient to feed the multitude. God, by the way, works through second causes so often in our lives as we consider our own spiritual life. He used the use of the means of the preaching of the word to create faith within our hearts. That's the means that God used. He uses trials to increase our faith. How many of you want to have more faith? Is there anyone here, Christian, is there anyone that doesn't desire to have more faith, stronger faith, a more vibrant faith in the Lord? I mean, we all do. But do you want to go through the means that God most often uses to increase our faith? That is, trial, adversity, difficulty. John tells us here, he's teaching his disciples. He's instructing them that their trust and their faith in him might be increased. That's the most common way that God increases our trust in him. A.W. Pink writes, What happened to Philip is, in principle and essence, happening daily in our lives. A trying, if not a difficult, situation confronts us, and we meet them constantly. They come not by accident or by chance. Instead, they are each arranged by the hand of the Lord. They are God's testings of our faith. They are sent to prove us. Do we, like Philip and Andrew did, look at our own resources? Do we rack our minds to find some solution? Or do our first thoughts turn to the Lord Jesus, who has so often helped us in the past? Here, right here, is the test of our faith, and God does it countless times throughout our life. He's teaching us. He's done wonderful things in the past. He can be trusted. And then He brings a new trial on us today, and He proves our faith to see if we truly trust His ability to care for us and to aid us in our distress. The problem was not with the ability of Christ to provide. The problem was in the disciples' ability to believe. That's the issue, and that's what they were being taught. They were only, the disciples, they were only able to think in terms of what they could see. And faith, of course, is being able to trust in that which we cannot see. And they were only to think on the level of what they could see. Philip began calculating how much money it would take to buy enough food for the 5,000 people. His mind went to the marketplace, and the price of food, and how they could obtain enough money for the price of the food in order to feed 5,000 people. That's all his mind was able to comprehend. The other disciples began calculating how much food they had on hand. Andrew calculated that, well, this is what we have and it's not nearly enough. But faith looks beyond what is seen. Hebrews 11, 1, Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. The second thing that we need to see in this text is Jesus is using it not so much for the multitude, but for his own dear disciples to teach them and instruct them that he is able. Thirdly, we can see here that God mercifully provides our daily bread. It's interesting, in the Lord's Prayer, we are to pray, give us this day, this day, our daily bread. Notice we're not told, oh Father, would you provide me the resources I need for the rest of my life. It'd be nice, you know, instead of having to trust him for today, that everything is just displayed before you. You know exactly what's going to happen next year. Here's all the resources you will ever need. And you pray for it and then you say, oh God, thank you that you have provided. But we pray daily. and we look to him daily. And he gives us our needs daily. Now, notice the fare of the feast. There were no fleshly comforts. He commanded them to sit on the ground, on the grass. Verse 10 says, have the people sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. And although they were in the presence of a king, in fact the king of kings, this was no feast for a king. There was barley bread. Now barley was considered to some to be the poor man's bread. It wasn't very tasty. It was the poor man's bread. And the word translated fish here, apsarion, refers to the flesh of a fish. But originally, the word referred to a tidbit, Most presumed that it was small pieces of fish that you would eat along with the barley bread to help make the bread more palatable. Because again, it's the poor man's bread. It didn't taste very good. And so the fish was to help them as they ate the bread. And so they carried a few tidbits of fish to go along with the bread. And that's all they had. Fish. and bread. There was no wine provided. It was no feast. We have to presume that they drank water along with it. No utensils, no cups, no plates. They ate with their fingers. And the point is simply this. God is gracious to provide our needs, but he's really not interested in satisfying our lusts. There's a huge difference between our needs and our lust. Now, at the same time, God does give us richly all things to enjoy. He doesn't just give us barley and tidbits of fish. We have steak and donuts and peanuts and good things to partake of. God is a good God and gives us many rich things to enjoy. But the point for us as his people, we must not set our heart upon them. And so what we find here in the rich provision of Jesus in feeding the multitude, giving them their fill, It was common food. Again, he provides our needs but does not necessarily satisfy our lust. But they did eat until they were full, as much as they wanted. By the way, the error of the charismatics who focus on materialism is to truly not to understand the nature of the Christian life. We must not focus upon worldly wealth. Matthew 6, 19, do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy, where thieves break in and steal, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in or steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Or Paul's words to Timothy, 1 Timothy 6, 7, For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content." Thirdly, or fourthly, I believe, we can see in this feast the nature of the gospel. First of all, it was initiated by God. Jesus was in control of this event. He told them what to do. and how to do it. He determined how the multitude would be fed and in the manner that they would be fed. In verses 10 through 12, have the people sit down. So he commands the posture that they will eat. Now there was much grass in the place, so the men sat down in number about 5,000. Then Jesus took the loaves and having given thanks, he distributed to them who were seated. So he determined how they would be fed, the precise means by which they would be fed. And then when they were filled, he says to his disciples, gather up the leftover fragments so nothing will be lost. It was all his doing, his design, his plan, his purpose, his power. He did it exactly his way. The gospel has never been left to our designs, nor will it ever be. We are commanded, preach the word, and that is sufficient. And God was sovereign over the miracle. The increase comes from God. Again, verses 12 and 13, they were filled. And he said to his disciples, gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost. So they gathered them up and filled 12 baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, which were left over by those who had eaten. Notice that those whom Christ feeds are fed to the full. Verse 14, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give, I'm sorry, chapter four, verse 14, whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst. But the water that I will give him will become to him a well of water springing up to eternal life. Jesus provides abundantly. Verse 27 of chapter 6 here, Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him the Father hath set his seal. Verse 51. And I am the living bread that came down out of heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread also which I give for the life of the world is my flesh. For those who come to Christ will find him more than sufficient. they will find him abundant. John 10.10, the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy, but I come that they might have life and have it abundantly. Jesus is more than able to provide. But before, now we're still considering the gospel here, Before a man will look to Christ, he must be convinced of his own weakness and the weakness of his own resources and his absolute helplessness. He must come empty-handed. He must come admitting, I have nothing to supply. I will trust on you alone. The disciples understood that there was no place to buy food. And even if there was, they did not have the resources to purchase. Looking among the crowd, all they could find was five barley loaves and two fish, again, entirely insufficient. Now, it's difficult for us to really grasp this because we've never experienced it, not in our culture. And we... If we open our cupboard and we find something lacking, we get in our car and go to the store and purchase it. Now, there have been many late night trips to the store to buy milk, to buy bread. Perhaps in the midst of cooking your meal, you realize this spice is missing or you forgot to pick up this thing when you were at the supermarket. And so you climb in your vehicle and you go. And you have full expectation. If you came home right now, And if a thief had broken into your house and stole every bit of food out of your house, you wouldn't panic. You'd go, well, you know, call the police, write a report, and then go to the store and replace it. We have confidence. The supermarket shelves are full. Imagine a time when you were absolutely dependent from harvest to harvest, and they understood times of famine. Imagine a time where you could be without food, and there was no food to be had. This is the situation that we find here. They didn't have the means to purchase food, and there was no place to purchase it in this remote area. They understood what it meant, just how precious the commodity of food was. They were dependent upon harvest, and food was often in short supply. So they knew this situation all too well. there was not enough food and they were helpless to obtain more. And that's the picture that's set before us in the realization of our own helpless condition Jesus is then able to provide. As long as we're satisfied, as long as we have all of our needs met, as long as we are full of ourselves, we really have no need for Christ. And that's why the gospel is so easy to reject for many. But as soon as you recognize your helpless estate, that there's a need that you have, that your sin is consuming you, and that there's no way in the world that you can solve the situation yourself, then, and only then, the gospel will become precious. Well, God provides all of our needs in Christ Jesus. Love what Paul says in Philippians 4.19, but my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Jesus Christ. He provides richly and abundantly, but understand our greatest need is not the food in our pantry, not the health on our bones. Our greatest need is spiritual, and in this only Christ can supply. But he has accomplished this to the fullness. Notice that the multitude was fed abundantly And there was leftover, 12 baskets leftover, perhaps pointing to the 12 tribes of Israel, but wanting us to understand that in Christ, God has provided above and beyond the needs for his elect people. All fullness dwells in Christ. Or as John wrote at the beginning of this gospel, John 116, for of his fullness we have all received and grace upon grace. For those who look to Christ and Christ alone and confess that I have nothing, I need him alone. They will find him more than abundant and he will provide the need the bread of life The true bread that will be unto us eternal life. Let's pray Heavenly father. We thank you for our Savior his graciousness his richness Thank you for the excellence of his shed blood And we thank you that as we rest upon him. I we find the true bread of life. We find the water that wells up unto us and a spring of living water unto eternal life. And so, Father, thank you for our Savior. Thank you, Father, for your grace. Thank you for teaching us so richly in this passage that Jesus Christ is indeed sufficient. And we look to Him, our wonderful King, our great provider, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In His name we pray. Amen. You're dismissed.