Luke 9:10-17
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
10 On their return the apostles told him all that they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida. 11 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. 12 Now the day began to wear away, and the twelve 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.” 13 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 are to go and buy food for all these people.” 14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 And they did so, and had them all sit down. 16 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. 17 And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
This is the only miracle of Jesus recorded in all four Gospel accounts.
This is the most public miracle

I. Testifying and Resting

a. After anytime of great ministry endeavors there should always be Testifying and resting

b. Testifying—Tell the stories

When the apostles (apostolos) returned (hupostrepho), they gave an account (diegeomai) to Him of all that they had done - Luke now picks up where Lk 9:1-6+ had left off. Jesus patiently listened to everything they had to tell regarding their evangelistic campaign. This must have been quite a follow-up session! Perhaps we will hear some details from Peter, et all, in the future external Kingdom of God.
Robertson says they gave an account means “to carry a narrative through to the end. Jesus listened to it all.” Mk 6:30+ adds the apostles “reported to Him all that they had done and taught.(cf “went out and preached” - Mk 6:12+)

c. Rest—
Taking them with Him, He withdrew (hupochoreo) by Himself to a city called Bethsaida (ISBE note - see location above) - The idea of withdrew is to move away a distance from a place and so to retreat or retire. Mark explains one of the reasons Jesus withdrew - And He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.) (Mark 6:31+) Another reason is given by Matthew “Now when Jesus heard about John (HIS EXECUTION), He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself” (taking the disciples with Him as explained in Lk 9:10) (Mt 14:13+)

Bethsaida - (Bible places) meaning, “house of fish.” (or “fishing place”) The home of Andrew, Peter, and Philip (John 1:44 ; John 12:21), located on the northeast side of the Sea of Galilee.

II. When the Crowd Learned of it they followed him and the Hospitality of Jesus

a. The Crowd—5000 men + women and Children. Most likely 15000-20000 people.

b. Why??—
i. John 6:2– John says “A large crowd followed Him, because they saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick.”
ii. There were those with real needs.

c. Jesus’ Response
i. Welcomed Them
ii. Taught them of the Kingdom of God (the Gospel)
iii. He healed them

There will be many that come to us for many different reasons, but may we respond in the compassion and hospitality of Jesus.

III. We don’t outsource our responsibility!

You give them something to eat!”- The “you” is emphatic in the Greek, so that Jesus was stressing it was the disciples’ responsibility to care for the people’s needs, “feeding” them physically and spiritually. Give (aorist imperative) command to do this now. They commanded send in the aorist imperative and Jesus commands give in the same tense! What is Jesus doing here? Jesus challenged the disciples to meet the people’s needs. The disciples had been healing the sick and casting out demons, but now Jesus wanted the disciples to demonstrate faith in God’s ability to feed the crowds. This is a direct challenge to their faith - their answer showed that they were still thinking naturally and not supernaturally!
Mark adds “But He answered them, “You give them something to eat!” And they said to Him, “Shall we go and spend two hundred denarii on bread and give them something to eat?” And He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” And when they found out, they *said, “Five, and two fish.” (Mk 6:37-38+)
Matthew has “But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!” (Mt 14:16+)

IV. Logical response vs seeing Jesus is with them

a. Logical response is—
i. We have no resources
ii. We have not enough helpers
iii. There are to many to “feed” or help
The Disciples saw the limitations—Their feelings and logic is reasonable due to they really are inadequate and the needs are overwhelming!

The Fish and the loaves– we know from the other gospel accounts that there was a lad who had three fish and two loaves. What is this among 5000 men? (15000-20000 in total). This is totally INADEQUATE to feed them! But when Jesus is the head not only is he adequate there is abundance!

2 Cor. 3:4
4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant

b. Principal Jesus is teaching us:
i. We are not sufficient in ourselves to be able to claim anything has come from us!!
ii. HE has made us SUFFICIENT (ADEQUATE)
iii. When Jesus is involved there is complete adequacy and even abundance!

Applications/Take Aways:

• After a season of ministry there should always be testifying and rest!
• Be compassionate to people even when their motives are initially wrong for we are the ones called to “Feed” them!!

• Christ/Christ in us makes us ministers of the Gospel!

Our adequacy is not in intellect, resources and strategy, but in the mind and sufficency of Christ!

Our adequacy is not in what we have, but what we surrender!
D. L. Moody was a man whom God greatly used. Thousands of people both in America and in England met the Savior through his tireless labors. But humanly speaking, Moody was a very inadequate man. One of nine children, his father died when he was four. He had little formal education. All his life his grammar was atrocious. What little religious education he received as a child was in a Unitarian church. At 17, he left home to work in a Boston shoe store. There, a Sunday School teacher called on him and presented the claims of Christ. In the back of that store, Moody trusted the Savior.
He applied to join a church, but they turned him down and kept him waiting ten months because he was so ignorant of the Bible. He moved to Chicago where, after work, he began to go out into the slums and gather the poor children to bring to Sunday School. A businessman who knew Moody before he became famous told of the first time that he saw him. Moody had gotten permission to hold a meeting in a little shanty that a saloonkeeper had abandoned. The businessman came in a little late and saw this heavyset man holding a small black boy in his arms. By the light of a few candles he was trying to read to him the story of the prodigal son. He couldn’t make out many of the words and had to skip them. The businessman thought, “If the Lord can use such an instrument as that for His honor and glory, it will certainly astonish me!”
After the meeting was over, Moody told the man, “I have only one talent; I have no education, but I love the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to do something for Him. Pray for me.” Henry Varley, a good friend of Moody’s in the early days of his work, once said to Moody, “It remains to be seen what God will do with a man who gives himself up wholly to Him.” Moody thought about that and said, “By God’s grace, I will be that man.”