Christ: Questioner, Provider, King
September 8, 2024 Speaker: Martin Slack Series: The Gospel of John -2024
Topic: Sermon Passage: John 6:1–21
Jesus: Questioner, Provider, King
John 6:1-21
We’re looking at John’s gospel, and over the last few weeks we’ve been looking at the controversy
surrounding one of Jesus’ miracles, on a sabbath, in Jerusalem. But now, beginning with chapter 6, Jesus is on the move: v1 - ‘After this [after all the debate and argument] Jesus went away to the other side of the sea of Galilee.’
But what becomes obvious is that if Jesus’ miracles were controversial to some, like the religious leaders, they were clearly attractive to others. Verse 2: ‘And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick.’
And that crowd sets the stage for the one miracle, outside the resurrection, that’s recorded in all 4 gospels. Which should give us pause. Because if Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all thought what follows mattered, then it clearly matters, not just for them, but for us. And the question is: Why?
Well, we’re going to look at Jesus follow up teaching on this next week. But today, I want us to see three things about Jesus from this episode: That he’s the Questioner; he’s the Provider; And he's the King.
Christ the Questioner
Now, we live in a time when crowd sizes have become strangely controversial! But they were here too. At least, there’s debate as to how big this crowd was. Because in v10 John says, ‘So the men sat down, about 5000 in number.’ But if that’s just the men, and you add women, and children, there may have been anywhere up to 20,000.
And in his commentary, John Calvin, the great reformer, makes the point that a crowd was not what Jesus came away for. Because what the other gospels make clear is that in coming out to the hill country, what John calls, v3, ‘up on the mountain’, the Golan Heights, Jesus was wanting a quiet spot, to escape the crowds and controversy of Jerusalem and spend time alone with his disciples. But what he gets is a crowd the size of a town.
Now what are you like when things are not going the way you want or you’re not getting what you want, or others are torpedoing your plans, or how you wanted to use your time? You see, as Calvin points out, Jesus wanted quiet and his Father sends him a crowd. And yet, there’s no hint of resentment or frustration in Jesus’ response.
Verse 5: ‘Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?”’
So, rather than being wrapped up in his own wants, Jesus sees their need and moves to meet it. And in his gospel Mark tells us why, ‘He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd’ (Mark 6:34). So Jesus steps in to be their shepherd.
But did you notice how he does it? By asking Philip a question: ‘Hey, Philip, where are we going to buy bread for them all?’
Now do you remember the terror of oral exams? Or being sat in a class-room, and the lecturer is firing off questions, and you’re dreading being next in line? So why does Jesus pick on Philip? Is he the guy sat at the back, nodding off?
Well, no. John told us back in chapter 1 that Philip was from Bethsaida. Which is around these parts. He’s a local. So this is like Jesus saying, ‘Phil, you’re from here, where’s the best boulangerie?’
Except it’s more than that isn’t it? Because in v6 John says, ‘He said this to test him.’ And it’s not a test of his local knowledge.
You see, John tells us, v6 again, that 'he himself [Jesus, already] knew what he would do.’ So if the disruption of our plans, or our wants, can ask questions of us - so too can situations that seem hopeless. Because this is a test of what’s going on in Philip’s heart when he is faced with a need beyond himself; with circumstances, and a situation, he can not possibly solve by himself.
So if it’s a test for Philip, it’s a test for all of them, isn't it? And for us. Because if this is a one question examination paper, John’s already given us a clue to the answer Jesus was looking for. Verse 4, ‘Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand.’ And what did Passover celebrate? How God had delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt, and sustained them in the desert with… what? Manna. Bread.
So what was the answer Jesus was looking for? ‘Where are we to buy bread to feed them all? Nowhere. There’s not a boulangerie within a million miles of here that can meet this need. But, Jesus, it’s Passover, and in the desert God fed a far greater crowd, so we can trust him - Jesus, we can trust you - to do it again.’
But how does Philip respond? How would you have responded? Verse 7, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” In other words, ‘Feed that number of people Jesus?! It’d cost a fortune! And even if we had the money they’d all just get a scrap!’
But coming to his rescue, does Andrew do any better? Verse 8, ‘One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother said to [Jesus], “There is a boy here who has five barley loves and two fish, but what are they for so many.”’
So both of them are thinking in terms of logistics, and scale and finance, and supply and demand, aren’t they. They’re thinking in terms of the market, and business, and what’s humanly possible. And their conclusion is, We can’t do this.
You see, the difficulties we face in life ask questions of us don’t they? In fact, through them God asks questions of us. Like, when you’re not getting what you want, what does your response to that tell you about what your heart is wrapped up in - what’s most important to you? Or, when you’re faced with a situation that seems hopeless, that you seem powerless to change, or when your inability or lack, or deficiencies are being brought home to you hard, to what or to whom are you looking? What are you trusting in, or hoping in?
But of course, Philip and Andrew are right, aren't they? This is an inconvenience. And they don’t have the money. And these rolls and fish are not enough.
They’re right, but they’re only partially right, because they’ve left Christ out of the equation.
Christ the Provider
Verse 10, ‘Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.”’ And if you’re tempted to think what follows is the stuff of fairy tales, look what John adds: ‘Now there was much grass in the place.’ It's one of those unnecessary eyewitness details you find in the gospels that tell you it’s not made up and John was there, and it's Passover, spring time, and the grass hasn’t yet been frazzled by the sun.
But then, v11, ‘Jesus… took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted.’
So Philip’s two hundred denarii - 7 months salary - would have given them a scrap. But from 5 barley loaves - the bread of the poor - and 2 fish, Jesus gives them a feast. And so what God did in the desert, Jesus does in the field.
But maybe you still think this is fanciful. Well that’s an issue CS Lewis, the Oxford professor addresses in his book Miracles. And he would ask you, why do you think this fanciful when God does something similar every year at harvest? And he uses the same argument Augustine used when he preached on this passage: that every grain of seed a farmer plants is just such a miracle, only on a smaller scale. Because from a few grains of seed comes a field of wheat to feed a town. And so can not the God who multiplies a handful of seed into a crop multiply a few loaves into a feast?
And when he does, he’s not stingy is he?
You see, I don’t know what influence you have on your friends but one of our friends in the UK says I’ve had an influence on her husband - for the worse! Because he used to be really generous, and carefree with his money - until he met me. But now she says he's always looking to cut costs and save money, and turn down the heating, and buy things on Temu. ‘You’ve made him stingy!’, she says.
No one could accuse Jesus of that, could they? Because it’s not just that everyone had as much as they wanted, it’s that Jesus supplied more than anyone could possibly want. And he tells the disciples to gather up the left overs and v13, ‘They gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments.’ So, as one theologian puts it, ‘after all have been satisfied there is more left over than there was at the beginning.’ That’s not stingy, that’s lavish.
And if in the desert God fed the 12 tribes, and here Christ feeds a multitude and 12 baskets-full are left over, the message is clear, isn’t it? Christ has enough, and more than enough to feed the people of God. That he’s the one who can fully and finally satisfy your hunger. A hunger deeper than just physical.
You see, if I were to ask you ‘have you ever eaten in McDonalds?’, 90% of you would admit it, and the other 10% would lie. But there have been times when Su and I have given in to that temptation, but as we’ve staggered back to the car feeling sick, we’ve wondered why did we do that?’ You see, there are some meals that you can eat that leave you felling worse off than before. But there are also some meals that leave you feeling hungry and unsatisfied.
But what if Jesus providing this feast is not just telling you that he has power to meet their physical hunger but your inner, spiritual, heart hunger? Because when Jesus teaches us to pray he says, ‘pray, Our Father in heaven… give us today our daily bread.’ Look to God with expectant and thankful hearts for your daily, physical needs.
And yet, when he was tempted by satan, in the wilderness, to make his hunger - his physical need - the most important, pressing thing in his life, he quoted back Scripture, saying, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matt 4:4).
Which means there's a hunger bread cannot answer. That to really live is not have all your needs, or wants met. Whatever the advertising industry tells you. Because they tell you, buy this car, use this hair product, take out this health insurance and you’ll have the perfect family with four blond kids, you’ll have men turning their heads every time you walk past, and in the case of health insurance in one advert running at the moment, you’ll have a beautiful and pregnant wife whose abdomen you can stroke. You’ve just got to change provider.
But as Paul Tripp, the American pastor and author, says, ‘Ultimately life is about what we look to to fill us.’
So what do you look to for satisfaction in life? For that feeling that life is good, and you’re full? Maybe you’re hoping to find it in a soul mate. Or in travelling and seeing the world. Or in creating the perfect family and perfect home. Or in your career.
But if Ozempic is the latest wonder drug, mimicking your body’s signal that you’re full, what can do that for your heart? No drug, no travel, no career, no possessions, no relationship, can ever do that, is there? Or why the need for more?
But through this miracle Jesus is saying, but I can. You see, you can go to the banquet table of relationships or possessions or leisure or travel or reputation and it may fill you for a bit, or like a McDonalds, it may leave you feeling sick. Or, Jesus says you can come to him and be satisfied. Of course, like many of us do, you can run between the two - trying to have the best of both tables, of both worlds, and end up happy in neither. Because if Jesus questions Philip, through Isaiah God questions us all, ‘Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and you labour for that which does not satisfy?’ (Is 55:2)
Instead, as you see this crowd lying back in the grass full, and as you watch the disciples filling their baskets, Jesus is saying ‘It’s me who can satisfy you’
The danger is you come to him for what you can get. One of the things we love about Switzerland are the 24 hour cheese dispensers. Other countries have Coke and crisps, Switzerland has cheese. Don’t have enough fondue? Well you just need to go to the fromage-o-mat, stick in your coins and you’re sorted. And the danger is, we can see Jesus meeting needs and think, ok I’ll come to him for a better marriage, or to become a better person or to get a better job. And I’ll stick in my spiritual coins and he’ll give me what I want.
But what the rest of the passage tells us that we dare not treat him like that. That we come to him for him, not for what we can get. That it’s he who will satisfy us, not the things he might give.
Christ the King
Verse 14, ‘When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”
And when the people of Israel were still being fed with manna in the desert, Moses said: ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you… it is to him you shall listen.’ (Deut 18:15-18). So this crowd is seeing Jesus doing what Moses did, providing them with food, and he’s speaking God's word to them in ways that not even Moses had done, and they’re thinking, he’s got to be the Prophet Moses foretold. He’s got to be Moses mark 2.
But remember, it’s also Passover, and the celebration of God leading his people to freedom. So it’s not just the grass that’s growing high, so are their feelings, so is their nationalistic zeal. Because if ancient Israel was enslaved by Egypt they are enslaved by Rome. And if Jesus is Moses mark 2, then surely, like Moses, he can too lead them to freedom.
You see, when Jesus saw them ‘as sheep without a shepherd’, he was referring to a prophecy made hundreds of years before, that Ahab, king of Israel, would be killed in battle and as a result, the prophet says, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd.” (1 Kings 22:17). So Jesus is not looking at them and thinking ‘they’re like a flock without a shepherd, they’re a church without a pastor.’ He’s thinking, ‘they’re an army without a general, they’re a people without a king.’
But now, in Jesus they’ve found one, and they intend to make him one, by force. Because whether it’s their physical hunger, or the physical oppression they’re under, they think it’s those needs being met that’s the way to life.
So how does Jesus respond? Verse 15, ‘Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.’
And as he withdraws, the disciples also leave, v16, ‘When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing’ (v16-18).
And you probably know what that feels like, don’t you? Because it’s not just those times when you’re not getting what you want, or you’re experiencing the lack of something, that ask questions of you. It’s that you can face the presence of things, things you don’t want, things you wish weren’t happening, things you wish you didn’t have to face, things you dearly wish were absent, like challenges in your relationships or at work, or health or financial issues. And life can feels as rough as this sea, and the wind is strong, and stuff is being thrown in your face, and it feels like you’re trying to row through a storm. And where’s God? He seems absent: and Jesus had not yet come to them.
But then he does come. Verse 19, ‘When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened.’ Now, in the Daily Telegraph, a UK newspaper, this week, there was an article entitled, ‘Awe is our most mysterious emotion – and could hold the key to the meaning of life.’ And in it the author describes how we feel awe looking at and experiencing the natural world. But we can also become acclimatised to it. So, the author says, we try and manufacture it in ways that mean we can experience the danger of nature, but still survive - like going white water rafting, he says.
Well, here is Jesus walking on the white water. Αnd it’s not a river, it’s the sea. And he’s not struggling against the elements like the disciples in the boat, pulling on the oars with all their strength. He’s walking.
And when they see him, they’re frightened. They’re awestuck. Not by the power of nature, but by the One who can tread it underfoot. You see, to the ancients, the sea was the place of chaos; the place of darkness seething under the surface, ready to break out; the place of Leviathan, the untameable monster. And yet here is Jesus walking over it. Walking over the darkness and the chaos and the threat, and treading it all underfoot like a walk in the park. At the first Passover, God divided the Red Sea so the people could walk across, as on dry ground. But here is Jesus walking on the water as on dry ground. No wonder they’re afraid.
But look how he calms their fear: v20, ‘He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Then they were glad to take him into the boat.’ Now, when he says, “It is I.” it’s literally, εγο ειμι, I AM. And that could be a normal way for someone to introduce themselves, ‘hey it’s me’. But it was also the way God first announced himself to Moses at the burning bush: I AM WHO I AM. The only self-existent one. The only self-sufficient one. The only One from whom everyone and everything else takes existence, including the surging sea.
The only One who can satisfy your deepest needs and calm your deepest fears. You see, the crowd were not wrong, were they? Is Jesus the Prophet like Moses who was to come? Is he the shepherd king, come in the line of David? Yes he is. But he is far, far more. He’s the One who sent the prophets, whose Spirit inspired the prophets, whose words the prophets spoke, and whose coming the prophets foretold.
And he is the king. The King over every king. King over storms and king over chaos. King over hunger and king over lack. But he will not claim his throne by force, or conquer Rome by spear and sword. Instead, he will come under the sword of Rome’s justice, and at the cross he received in his side the wound of the spear. Because it’s not just bread he gives, this king gives himself. And he went hungry that you might be filled, he thirsted that your thirst might be quenched. He walked through the far greater darkness of God’s wrath, that you might have no fear.
You see, to paraphrase CS Lewis, it’s not that the crowd’s desire for bread, or for a king, were too big, it's that they were too small. And if you come to Christ for what he can give you, you’re aiming much too low. Because it’s himself he gives. So come to him and be satisfied. Invite him into the chaos or dark places of your life, and let him bring peace: It is I, do not be afraid.
More in The Gospel of John -2024
February 9, 2025
The Grip of Death and the Power of ChristFebruary 2, 2025
I BelieveJanuary 12, 2025
When Hearts are Cold