We have been carrying out a exposition of this gospel for some months now. Just wrapped up chapter 8 last week. And beginning chapter 9 this morning. Particularly verses 1 to 17. And I'll go ahead and read that passage as we begin Luke chapter 9, starting in verse 1. And he Jesus. called the 12 together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases. And he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. And he said to them, take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money, and do not have two tunics. And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave the town, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them. And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. Now Herod the Tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was perplexed. Because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen. Herod said, John, I beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things? And he sought to see him. On their return, the apostles told him all that they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida, When the crowds learned it, they followed him and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing. Now the day began to wear away and the 12 came and said to him, send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions for we are here in a desolate place. But he said to them, you give them something to eat. They said, We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we're to go and buy food for all these people. For there were about 5,000 men. And he said to his disciples, have them sit down in groups of about 50 each. And they did so and had them all sit down and taking the five loaves and the two fish. He looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, 12 baskets of broken pieces. Well, when I think about the place of this chapter and those events in the context of the Gospel of Luke, it was very natural for me to think about this time of year and the sorts of experiences that our young people are going through as they begin a new school year, a time of new learning. And any new beginning like that is a time of excitement. There is a good feeling of a fresh start Maybe also reconnecting with your friends that you haven't seen for a while or also meeting new friends. And there are often in schools, uh, whatever age really, uh, special activities that are designed to generate enthusiasm about starting over and being together and pursuing this school year together, building unity and spirit. We all know that that atmosphere doesn't last. You give it another week or two, and it'll be a different mood as people begin to settle into their routines. And those routines become a bit overwhelming, and people start looking more closely at the syllabi and recognize all that they have to get done within the next few months. And maybe they're thinking, this was not what I anticipated. This is not as exciting and as immediately satisfying as I thought. Well, if you put yourself in those shoes, you're beginning to get just a little bit of a taste of what's about ready to happen to the disciples. You think back on what we have considered so far in this gospel. It has been, a lot of it, very exciting, very vision-setting, very forward-looking. There's a freshness about the ministry of Jesus and his teaching. There's an amazing power and a display of God's presence through him as he's come to inaugurate the kingdom of God. And the disciples are a key part of that, who are chosen of the Lord to be his assistants and to move forward this exciting plan. And since Luke began to describe that back in chapter four and verse 14, He has been concentrating on, for the most part, very exciting events that took place in the north of Palestine in and around Galilee. We have been tracking Jesus in these experiences in Galilee along with his disciples. And if you just think back on the great variety of events that have taken place, it really is a stunning display of divine wisdom, of unlimited power, of moving compassion and all kinds of situations that Jesus went through and took his disciples through that make him so appealing and draw you to him and fill you with a sense of conquest and anticipation and excitement. And all of those stories, they culminated, didn't they, back in chapter 8, which we closed last week, and the series of three miracles that demonstrate Jesus' very broad authority. He is, first of all, the Lord of the storm, and with just a word from his mouth, calmed the Sea of Galilee. He is the conqueror of the darkness. And again, just through his speech, expelling the legion of demons from the demoniac. And last week we saw that he is the reverser of the curse. And we were, I hope, moved by how he dealt with that woman with the hemorrhage of blood and also raising from the dead the daughter of Jairus. That was kind of a climax in the story so far. Demonstrates just a little bit of the potential of the power of Jesus to bring in the kingdom of God and expel the forces of darkness. But very quickly, and by the time we get to the end of chapter 9, things are going to turn in a direction that these men were not expecting, and that was very confusing, and even crushing to them the more and more they realized it. Luke's focus is going to change sharply, both in terms of the geography, moving away from Galilee, and also in terms of the theme that he is developing, and the hinge in This part of Luke, if you look ahead at verse 51, you will see how things geographically begin to turn. It says, when the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. He's moving away from Galilee. He's starting on a journey. and he set his face to jerusalem and really he does not reach that destination until about ten chapters later in chapter nineteen inverse twenty eight along section which is all about you know there are a lot of things to take place it's all about jesus more and more approaching jerusalem and somebody says why did he have to change locales and why was this focus on Jerusalem so important? Well even more than the geographical shift is the the nature of his ministry which he begins to describe really for the first time to these men as you look at verse 22 of chapter 9. And he says to them, Luke 922, the son of man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed. And on the third day be raised as a first time, at least in the account of Luke. that Jesus talks in those what would've been to them such negative terms that were totally the opposite of what they would've thought about the kingdom of God. And he says it again and even more emphatically a little bit later in chapter 9 if you look at verse 44. And he's communicating, look, you guys really haven't got this. It hasn't really dawned on you what I'm getting at. He says, These words sink into your ears. Have you ever talked to your children that way? Listen to me. You don't get it. Has it really dawned on your consciousness? This is different from what you were expecting. This is hard news, but prepare for it. Let these words sink in. What words? The son of man is about to be delivered into the hands of men. That is not at all what these men were expecting. And if a first time reader of this gospel is not already familiar with the storyline of Jesus life, it's not what you would have expected either from the first eight chapters. Through these accounts recorded in Luke chapter nine, Luke is showing how the disciples are gradually being prepared for that upcoming and that disturbing journey to jerusalem that's just about to begin in order for them to start making progress on that journey and what it would mean for them these men they have to understand accurately and more fully who Jesus is and they also have to understand what it means to be a disciple of this Jesus and what that looks like practically speaking in your life only as they begin to grasp what I've just said what Jesus is getting at here is Only then would they be prepared for what lies ahead and what lies ahead for them, not just immediately in Jerusalem, but for the longer term after another surprise, the resurrected Christ leaves this earth and hands everything over to them and puts his work in their hands. That's the atmosphere. That's the nature of what's going on. It is a shift from all the excitement of the beginning of Jesus' ministry to now getting down to business as to the main reason he came and what this is going to mean for you, this preparation of them. And this morning, our text, what I just read there from verses 1 to 17, is a transitional passage that starts to develop those themes. And there are a number of different ideas that are going on here. And to encompass the fullness of it really, I need to have a general statement that hopefully is big enough to include it all. And so the title of the message this morning is Dimensions of Discipleship to Christ. These are certain ideas that Jesus is planting in their minds as a preparation for their upcoming journey of discipleship, dimensions of discipleship to Christ. And I'll be honest with you, as I've worked with this passage, you face this to some degree in every passage, but you always have to distinguish, right, between what was going on in the original setting and what Jesus was telling those people in their very particular circumstances And, and what of this actually is relevant and how is it relevant for us who are in such different circumstances? We're not on this kind of journey. Jesus has already died. He has been raised from the dead. We're not in exactly the same spot in the history of redemption. We don't have exactly the same job that they did, or at least the specific tasks that were given to them. And so we have to sort out. What of this is particular to their setting and what of this is more timeless in nature and that is, that is descriptive of anybody who is a disciple of Jesus at any time in whatever circumstance. I think there will clearly be timeless instruction for us as Jesus disciples. considering these dimensions of discipleship. First of all, in what we read there in verses one to six, we can derive this point that disciples participate in the mission of Christ. Disciples participate in the mission of Christ, their master. And you can think back through those verses one to six. They're being launched here on what we would call a short term mission trip, which I think that passage and a lot of other ones in acts validate the effort that often is made by God's people to devote special seasons for kind of short term efforts and broader spheres. And they normally operate and do what we call cross cultural ministry in some cases, particularly as you get into acts. And yet the point is not, all right, everybody let's go out and take a mission trip. So that'd be great too. I don't think that's the main or the only thing that we want to take away from this. This is just one example that is setting a pattern for what is going to become in a lot of different ways, short term, long term, vocational, non-vocational, An overall theme related to anybody who is a disciple of Jesus who wants to know what this looks like. Well, one of the things that it looks like is you, by following Christ, you are signing up for mission. That is part of the definition. Disciples participate in the mission of Christ. One of the reasons I can say that so broadly is when you get to the end of the gospel. And all this has taken place that Jesus is anticipating here. He launches them out on the same basic idea when he says, this is what the scripture said that the Christ should suffer, that the Christ should rise again, that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations. Going out very broadly across the world. Beginning from Jerusalem, you are witnesses of these things, which then Acts chapter 1, verse 8, also written by Luke, picks up on as the launching point for the story of the church and the exposition of how everything got off the ground in this mission and how everybody was involved in some way to carry the message of the gospel to the nations. And Jesus in Luke 24 makes another statement that is very reflective of the the point here in Luke 9, he says, Behold, I am sending the promise of my father upon you, but stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high. In other words, Jesus not only sends them out on mission, he gives them the resources they need to accomplish the mission He enables them and actually that's the first characteristic of their participation in mission that Luke chapter 9 makes. If you look at verse 1, he gives them power and authority. He doesn't just throw them out there and say, I really hope it goes well. I hope you survive. I hope you come back. I hope we see each other again. He actually commissions them as his own delegates. And he empowers them with what they need to be successful. When you read both from the gospels and later history, how much those disciples accomplished, it ought to be very clear that this wasn't because they were special, because they were really smart, because they were really spiritual. because they were really skilled what you walk away with is just amazement as i think i've shared the statement before from uh... a preacher who said with what god has to work with it's a wonder he gets anything and the gospels are so blunt about the failures and the inabilities of these men but it is just as clear about this other point that by God's power, these men are doing things way beyond their ability. And we don't want to take from this that we're necessarily going to be able to go around and cast out demons and cure diseases, but this is where a general point still stands, and that is the Lord empowers his disciples to do whatever it is in their lives and in their setting that he calls upon them to do. So he enables them. And in this mission, he also gives them a message. That message is described in verse two when it says he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. And what a great balance, right, between the spiritual and the physical, between the sort of a theological message that gets at that, which is eternal, but also a right concern connected with it to minister to people where they are and to do whatever you can in compassion to help with their material needs. I think we see that pattern reflected in the rest of the New Testament as well. One of the things I want to point out is the parallel between the statement in verse two to proclaim the kingdom of God. And when it describes them actually doing that in verse 6, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. Do you see that connection? They were sent out to preach the kingdom of God. And as they go out, it says they preach the gospel, which is really just one verb that means preaching good news. We don't want to divorce those two categories and say the kingdom of God is one thing and the gospel is something else that has nothing to do with it. And what it does really is to broaden our understanding of all that's included in the good news. When you think about the gospel, you may define it in very simple and kind of, and kind of personally oriented terms. And there's nothing necessarily wrong with that. Let me ask you, what is the gospel? You say Christ died for my sins, right? That's a biblical way. And that's a very important way of describing the gospel. First Corinthians 15, Christ came to the world, he died, he was raised again, and it was for my sins according to the scripture. And we could say that that is the heart of the gospel, or that's sort of the core of it. But when you read the entirety of scripture, that is not the whole of the gospel. Why did Christ save you from your sins? just to leave you there? Why did Christ give his life and rise from the dead? And is Christ in his saving work concerned about more than just me and the probably relatively few people in history who will actually receive this message? Or is there something broader going on? And what about the creation of God? Aren't there effects of the work of Christ for the entirety of creation that will be restored someday? And what you begin to learn, especially in the Gospels, is that Christ came, yes, to save you from your sins, but through that, he is reorienting you to God as your King. He is saving you from your sin so that he could put you under the authority of Christ as a willing and a glad subject to him, transferring you into his kingdom. And that's what he calls on you to preach. The king has come. And before his judgment comes, he is issuing terms of pardon. And if you will do what? If you will repent, turn from yourself, rule. Turn from your thinking and living as though you are your own authority. Turn your back on that and just cast yourself on his mercy and call upon him to deliver you. He will receive you, he will forgive you, and he will reorient you under his authority. And so the message is the kingdom. In carrying out this mission and preaching that message, there is as well provision that is made, which is what Jesus is talking about in verses three to four. And he puts them in a very, humanly speaking, vulnerable position. of having little of their own support and just going out there with hardly anything and just trusting the Lord to provide as he sends them out. Now, here again, I think we need to make some distinctions as to what is connected with the original circumstance and what is more broadly relevant to all of this. I don't think the point is All right, let's everybody go out on a mission trip and not raise any funds and hope somebody feeds us along the way. Sometimes God calls people to do that. In church history, he's called people to do that and things have gone remarkably well. But that is not necessarily a statement of his will across the board. And all you need to do that is to read, to see that is to read the book of Acts that God provided for his work in a lot of different ways. And sometimes people ask for money and sometimes they didn't. And sometimes people just went out with very little promise. And sometimes they, they were looking ahead of time to make provision. And sometimes they didn't work with their hands and totally relied upon the churches. And sometimes they got a job and worked with their hands. There's no one single way in which this works, but really whatever the circumstances that God happens to put you in, you're in the same position ultimately. And he's going to take you through all kinds of different experiences to make this point that you cannot rely upon your own resources, that he is the one who makes this happen. that he is the one who provides and that life as a disciple, carrying out this mission in whatever way he provides, you're really going to have to wrestle with anxiety and there are going to be plenty of situations where you're going to have to choose. I'm not going to worry about this. I'm not going to find my own way to solve this. I'm going to look to the Lord to be the one who provides. This is part of the mission experience of every one of us, no matter what the particulars may be. While the Lord's sending us out on mission, he enables us, he gives us a message, he provides for us, and then the question is gonna be, all right, well, what's the result of this? What's gonna happen as a result? And here again, the disciples' expectations have to be probably adjusted. Because right in the initial launching, speech that Jesus gives here he says verse 5 and wherever they do not receive you when you leave the town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them that statement wherever they do not receive you it implies that some people are probably going to receive you but it also allows for the very real possibility that some people aren't in other words the results are thoroughly mixed and this is part of what you're trusting the Lord about that you don't know ahead of time how people are going to respond to your ministry. It goes on to describes them, describe them as preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. And I'm sure that there were people who genuinely turned to the Lord and his kingdom as a result of that ministry. But it is implied as well that there were others who rejected. And that the disciples would have to face that hard reality that there would be for them rejection and suffering and persecution. And that despite that they needed to just keep going. They were called upon to preach and endure in proclaiming this message, no matter what the response may be. And somebody says, why would you be willing to live that kind of life? You didn't maybe know all that you were signing up for ahead of time. And things aren't panning out exactly how you thought. Why would you say, I still want to do this? Well, our first thought has been that disciples participate in the mission of Christ. And I think our second thought is going to help us with the motivation. Disciples are convinced about the identity of Christ. verses seven to nine, disciples are convinced about the identity of Christ. And what we're looking at here is a short passage about Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee at that time, that really seems to interrupt the storyline. You're wondering, okay, how did it go with their ministry, their little mission trip, and what happened as they come back and give the report, and what's going to happen to the disciples next, It's like he just cuts away over there to the palace and you're reading a few verses about Herod that seem to have nothing to do with this. And when you read it, it actually raises questions that aren't really resolved. Like apparently Herod's got something to do with this story, but from these verses alone, you don't know how this is all going to pan out with the ruling authority of that part at that time. And there's a bit of foreshadowing that's going on here. And it's not particularly positive. It actually cast a bit of a shadow over this whole thing. There is the reminder in verse nine that Herod beheaded John. And now he's thinking about who is this Jesus? Like, what am I, how am I supposed to deal with him? And what if he is a threat to me? You don't know exactly how that's going to turn out. Well. You got Herod in the back of your mind. You're going on in Luke, wondering how this is going to unfold, how it's going to be resolved. And you arrive at another verse. It seems kind of random in chapter 13, verse 31. At that very hour, some Pharisees came and said to him, get away from here for Herod wants to kill you. Where'd that come from? First I heard of that. At that point, Herod, if they're being truthful, has turned more negative. And now he's out to kill him. And Jesus has some pretty sharp words to say about that fox in the next verse or two. And then you find eventually how this wraps up when you get to chapter 23 in the story of the passion. And you learn that while Pilate is trying Jesus, Herod happens to be in Jerusalem visiting. And since Jesus is from Galilee, Pilate says, well, let's send him to Herod and see what he thinks. And it describes their, their interactions there in chapter 23. And it says that Herod had long desired to see him because he had heard about him and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. This man is curious. And he enjoys the prospect of seeing something really unusual happen. And Jesus using his miraculous power to wow him of all these stories that he'd heard. And yet Jesus says nothing and does nothing that way. And Herod just sends him back after some contempt and mocking and making fun of him by dressing him up like a King. He just sends him right back. And he is not impressed and he really is a part eventually of the, that, that whole interchange is a part of the condemning of Jesus in the end. But here in chapter nine, that's just kind of suspended. You don't, you don't know as a first time reader, especially how that's all going to pan out. What you're wondering is, okay. Kind of introducing characters here and developing these little storylines along the way but does that have anything to do with this overall story about the disciples? And I think it does. If you look at Herod and the different theories about Jesus that he is considering. It says that some say that this is John the Baptist come back to life. Some that Elijah has come back to the earth or that some other prophet has arisen from the dead. Actually, those are pretty commendatory things for anybody to say about Jesus. I mean, it'd be pretty radical if Elijah or John or some other prophet came back. I mean, that would be impressive that even on a human level, you're willing to consider that possibility. Those are actually pretty high estimations of who Jesus is. It doesn't say he's some charlatan, he's some fake, there's nothing to him, he's some crazy revolutionary. It doesn't say anything like that. These are actually pretty high views of Jesus. They all imply that there's something supernatural and divine And the fact is Jesus is a prophet. He described himself at least partially in those terms. So it's like these people were at least willing to consider that Jesus had something to say on behalf of God and Herod is entertaining these possibilities. And so it says, he sought to see him verse nine. That's really an interesting way to end this whole thing, because you would have thought that somebody as powerful as Herod. as many armies as he had and as conniving as he was. I mean, surely there would have been some way for him to corner Jesus or, you know, kidnap one of his disciples and find some way to get an audience with Jesus. But it says he sought to see him. Somebody pointed out he didn't say he sought to hear him, like he really wanted to listen to what Jesus had to say. He just wanted to be impressed. And I don't know how hard he tried. There is a spirit of curiosity here. A willingness to check it out, but that is as far as this man is going to go in his relationship to this Jesus. What about the disciples? The reason I'm going to connect this with them is because when you jump ahead, there's going to be some parallel statements about what the disciples say. And look with me at verse 18. Now it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him and he asked them, who do the crowds say that I am? And they answered, does this sound familiar? John the Baptist. But others say Elijah and others that one of the prophets of old has risen. It's like word for word what was said regarding Herod. Then he said to them, but who do you say that I am? And Peter answered the Christ of God. And my point is, Luke seems to be putting these two things together in order to contrast them. Herod's over here thinking about theories and kind of curious and interested in checking it out, but not trying very hard. These men over here, they're familiar with the theories. They've heard it on the street as well. But they've come to a conviction now. And their view of Jesus is even higher than that that the crowds are considering. And Peter comes to this bottom line confession, you are the Christ of God. Now, Peter has still a lot to learn. And his theology is not entirely right. And certainly his discipleship is not entirely exemplary. Jesus is going to have to correct a lot of their sort of self-oriented theology about the Messiah and how he would carry out his role. But nevertheless, They have taken a step considerably beyond Herod. And I think Herod here represents those who are just kind of checking Jesus out. And they're sort of curious. A true disciple says, I don't care what anybody says, this Jesus is the Christ. And I'm staking my life on that. And there are implications of that for me. Luke wants us to see the contrast between a sort of detached curiosity and a settled conviction of the identity of Jesus. Disciples are convinced about his identity. And so what is your view of Jesus' identity? Who do you say that he is? The Bible itself does not tolerate, does not allow popular views of Jesus that stop short of him being the anointed of God and ultimately God in the flesh. It doesn't let you posit that he was only a great moral teacher or that he was only a prophet or that he was only a miracle worker. And if you and I are convinced that he is more than that, that he is God united with human nature, that he has come to seek and to save the lost, even at the cost of his own life, then the Bible doesn't leave you options either as to what your posture going forward is toward Christ. It doesn't allow this big break between your theology, okay, he's the Christ, but what does that mean practically speaking? If Jesus is who he says he is, it's not just a matter of checking it off on a doctrinal statement. If you actually believe and are convinced that he is who he says he is, it totally transforms the whole direction of your life. Jesus is not a good luck charm. He's not somebody you sort of keep in your back pocket in case you need a little extra help along the way. He is Lord. Christ means he has been anointed of God to rule, to restore us from our rebellion, to bring us back under the authority of God. And if somebody is truly convinced of his identity, it determines the posture that the attitude of heart you have toward him. On a personal level. It really puts you in an all or nothing situation. It really demands a spirit of surrender, which is why Jesus goes around preaching about repentance so much. Given who he is. Disciples cannot live their lives with the attitude that we will follow him only when we like what he says. He's going to say some hard things. He's going to require from us some difficult things as a part of a discipleship. And the attitude of a disciple is, if he is who he says he is, he owns me. He owns me. And that doesn't mean that we never rebel. But what it does mean is that when, when we do rebel and the spirit deals with us about it and brings us to a crisis point, now, how are you going to respond to your sin? All right. That's going to be the acid test of what's actually going on in your heart. Is he your Lord or isn't he? When he challenges you about some area of self-rule, are you just gonna complacently go your own way and resist him forever? That does not bode well about your spiritual condition. How can you call Jesus Lord and treat him that way? It just doesn't make any sense. Disciples are convinced about the identity of Christ, and that changes everything about the direction of their lives. As we look to the end of this versus 10 to 17. Here is one of the lessons that we quickly learn when we begin to follow Christ. And that is that his ways are not our ways, and he doesn't operate in sort of customary fashion in this world. Our last thought here, our last dimension of discipleship, is that disciples follow the mysterious ways of Christ. In other words, Often the way he works and how he guides us is counterintuitive and doesn't make a lot of sense on the human level. Verses 10 to 17, disciples follow the mysterious ways of Christ. I'm getting that from the story of the feeding of the 5,000, which has all kinds of fascinating aspects to it. As you look back on Bible history, it reminds you of how God, Yahweh in the Old Testament provided for his people in the wilderness. That's what Jesus is doing here. As you look ahead and you compare the fact that he, he takes this bread and he gives a blessing and he breaks it and he hands it out as very similar wording to what he does at the last supper. Very similar wording to what he does with the disciples on the road to Emmaus and feeding them and they hope they have their eyes open. There are times in Luke when it talks about a great banquet of the Messiah when his people are going to be enjoying the blessings of his kingdom and sitting down at a feast and here he is doing that in kind of microcosm. There are a lot of fascinating things about this that are very impressive about the glory of Jesus Christ. But again, we want to tie it to discipleship. Do you realize that this is the only miracle that is recorded in all four gospels. And so it must be really important for all four of them to bring this up. And what is also unique about this is the way in which Christ carries out the miracle. I mean, I already mentioned miracles where he just said a word and bang, it was done all of a sudden. He could have done that here, like bang, and everybody gets a plate of Kentucky fried chicken fillet. right there in front right he could've done that but he doesn't choose to work that way he says alright you go make him you go give him some to eat and I'm gonna give you a little bit and you go out there and you feed them Christ is working miraculously through the disciples and that's the point that Luke is making in this context in bringing up this story that God's ways are mysterious and disciples are having to step out and into the unknown. I don't know how this is going to happen, but he gives me this little bit of food and I've got, you know, multiple groups of 50 or 5,000 men. And we read elsewhere that that didn't include women and children. You're talking about tons of people with this little bit of food. And so you can relate to why they struggled. They were overwhelmed by the circumstances, the large size of the crowd, the impossibility of feeding them. It makes you wonder why didn't they at least think now, wait, what happened back just a little bit ago and the calming of the storm. And I mean, Jesus has done some pretty cool things. Probably he could take care of this, but no, they're, they're focused on the material. They're focused on the immediate. They're thinking on the human plane. Jesus forces them to think on a higher plane by actually just pushing them out there to minister these people in a setting where there's just no way that this could happen if it was just them. It struck me as I was reflecting on this, this is like George Mueller on steroids. I mean, you know the story of George Mueller. He's got these orphans and there's no food on the table. And he says, all right, let's pray and thank the Lord for the food. And the food shows up on the doorstep, somebody dropping it off, right? This would be like George Mueller after praying, taking an empty plate and passing it to the kid next to him and say, now, you know, pick up the food, put some on your plate and eat it. Not just praying and waiting. It's actually this little bit in this case, this little bit is going to feed all these thousands of people. forcing them to take a step into the unknown. You know, liberal people who deny the supernatural have for decades watered down the story as though the point was, well, when All these people saw that this little boy shared his lunch, and that the disciples were sharing. Then they took out of their satchels what they'd been hiding, and didn't tell anybody about it, and started sharing. And because everybody was nice to their neighbor, there was food enough to go around. I mean, literally, people have stood in pulpits and preached that in this country. And that is only not what it says, but it misses the whole point. This is about the glory of Jesus and his amazing power to do supernatural things through flawed and weak vessels. There is no explanation about how he did this. It simply says that he prayed and as a result, all of them ate and were satisfied. And beyond that, that there were exactly 12 baskets of food left over. And there are 12 of these men who are struggling with their faith. And the story doesn't give any commentary. It doesn't make any application. It just says, and what was left over was picked up, 12 baskets of broken pieces, and on to the next little story. The reader is left to ponder the significance of what is taking place there, and of the 12 baskets, and to draw conclusions. And what are the conclusions that we are supposed to draw? about disciples by faith following the mysterious ways of Christ in the process of serving him in the world. Here are some conclusions as we close. I think we ought to infer from this that following Christ means following him into situations that don't make any sense to us and that are humanly impossible. And if you've never been there, just wait. This actually seems to be a pretty regular teaching method, like just shove you into the deep end and telling you swim. Part of what it means to follow Christ is follow him into situations that don't make any sense and that are humanly impossible. Number two conclusion. Following Christ will require stepping out by faith in his character and his promises, not by sight of circumstances. They didn't know ahead of time how this was all going to take place. It required just a humble submission saying, I believe that you're going to work this out, so let me start handing out food. Now. I have one other thought here, but I need to qualify first what I've said. Please don't take from this that somehow the Lord is promising us that, for example, you shouldn't work to provide for your family because after all, Jesus can work miracles. or that I don't have to be responsible and I just need to pray and everything's going to just bang all of a sudden and I'm going to be flooded with money and food. Remember, particular circumstances, general principle. What's the general principle? I don't know how God may choose to work. You may get a windfall of a million dollars. Be wonderful if you did. Just pay for us to build a new building first. You may get a windfall, but that's not the point. The point is that however the Lord chooses to work, these experiences of stepping out into the unknown are going to result in a deeper and a fuller revelation of his glory. Which is why the very next passage is, you are the Christ. You are who you claim to be. That experience clinched it for them and brought them to this deeper understanding of who Jesus was. It was through A really weird and mysterious set of circumstances and the Lord working in some pretty unconventional ways. Following Christ in those experiences results in a deeper and a fuller revelation of his glory.