Rev.
Stephen E. Stults
St.
Paul’s Anglican Church
March
6th, 2016
We have a wonderful
reading from the Gospel of John to consider today. It is one of the best known
of Christ’s miracles, and it confronts us completely with the enormity of Christ’s
Kingship. From it, we recognize our role
as humble penitents preparing for Christ’s Resurrection in our hearts and souls
at Easter.
The portion of the Book of
John from Ch. 2:1 through Ch. 12:50 has been called the “Book of Signs.” Christ performs seven signs that clearly
demonstrate both His divinity and His unique relationship to God the Father. Up
to the point of the feeding of the five thousand, he had performed three signs:
the changing of water into wine, the healing of the nobleman’s son, and the
curing of the paralytic at the Pool of Bethesda.[1] Each of these signs clearly point to His
Lordship over natural events, as well as the universality of his healing
message. This is clearly shown as the nobleman’s seeks him out, despite the
vast differences in their social standings.
The message is plain: Christ’s healing is meant for all, rich and poor.
Let us examine this
grandest miracle in all. Christ sees the multitude coming to him, numbering in
the thousands. He purposefully asks Philip: how were they going to feed this
vast crowd? Philip puzzles over this before admitting that "Two hundred denarii
worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a
little."[2]
Christ has the answer and proceeds to the solution, performing one of the most noted
events of all time.
There are at least three ways to view what happened on
that grassy plain. One view is that a
miracle occurred in the hearts of those listening to Christ. That is, the “selfish” shared their
provisions with the needy, and all were fed. Perhaps, but it is not likely…
Another view is that this feeding should be seen as a
precursor to the Holy Eucharist, in that each participant received a tiny
bit. This view is contrived and does not
do justice to the plain sense of Scripture, because the passage clearly says
that Christ gave to the disciples and they distributed to the people, “as much
as they would.” The Scriptures clearly
say the people were “filled”, not tantalized with a mere morsel. So, we discard this view.
The third view of this passage is that Christ performed a
genuine miracle. Christ, as God, took
gifts of his own bounty in the form of five loaves and two small fish, and
multiplied them beyond all measure. He didn’t,
like a magician, create an illusion that bread and fish appeared, but
actually multiplied them. The disciples distributed an immense amount of food,
completely satisfying the multitude. As such, this is the fourth great sign of
the Book of Signs.[3]
It is at this point that two great insights should become
apparent to us. The first is very
obvious, but is also very profound. This
is simply the contrast of Philip’s perplexity with our Lord’s serenity. Philip saw thousands of hungry people coming
to them and no solution in sight. Our
Lord saw a large flock of needy sheep (people) looking to Him the great Pastor
for instruction and sustenance. Our Lord
chose this instance to not only perform an act of mercy and pastoral care, but
also to manifest forth his glory.
Here then, is the simple and profound truth: how often do
we, in our human finitude, see an overwhelming situation and grasp helplessly
for a solution, when God, in His Omnipotence and eternal Wisdom, has already
prepared a solution? It’s been said that
God has a solution prepared for the faithful even before they see a
problem.
The other insight is to consider the very act of the sign
itself. Obviously, it demonstrates
clearly Christ’s absolute Kingship over all Creation. That is a given. As the
fourth sign in the Book of Signs, it is the greatest in magnitude. There can be
no doubt who is the performer of the great sign; thus, this miracle is for
those who see with the eyes of faith. It
is undeniable. As such, it is also the
only miracle, with the exception of the Resurrection, that is recorded in all
four Gospel accounts.[4]
That is a testament to its significance.
Yet, there is another great spiritual truth for us today,
that tells us about God’s magnificence and Man’s blindness. This great truth is that Christ, in
performing these mighty signs in John, did exactly what was demanded of Him by
the Scribes and Pharisees in virtually every confrontation he had with
them. Recall that these self-important
and pompous men demanded that Jesus give them a sign from Heaven in order to
prove his Lordship. Christ ignored these
requests from the Pharisees, knowing their source and motivation. He knew that even if He were to bring down
fire from Heaven, similar to Isaiah, it would have no impact, or even be turned
against him, as in the case where he was accused of casting out demons by the
chief of demons. Thus, he refused to honor their spurious request, instead
revealing His glory to the unlettered masses, or to specific individuals. Why?
It is very simple. The Scribes
and Pharisees were not called to hear the message. Their hearing would
not be mixed with faith. Thus, it would
not matter what Christ said or did, because these men, with a couple of notable exceptions, were not able to
believe.
Contrast that to those whom Christ did reveal Himself. These blessed sheep were called to
hear Christ and to acknowledge His Reality.
Perhaps not all of them were prepare to call Him God or even Messiah,
but many of them were. Many of them, such as Mary Magdalene, were able to see
Jesus as the Christ, just as are we. Somehow, through the mystery and
magnificence of God’s Grace, we are called, here, to receive this message of
hope and salvation.
Today’s Gospel gave us a message of bread, miracles and
signs. For us, today, it is a message of hope, love and salvation. That is, we hope, or look forward to, receiving
the truth of Christ’s Kingship in our hearts. We pray that we love Him as much
as He loves us, and finally, that this love be translated into eternal life
with Him. We pray that we experience the salvation that His love calls us into.
Beloved in Christ, if you grasp one message from
today’s Gospel, it is that of love. God
wants one thing from us, this Lent and for evermore. He wants our love. If we can love Him more than we love ourselves,
we will satisfy God with our love. That
is what He wants. This is exactly what he did for us on Calvary. He loved us to the exclusion of everything
else, even to life itself. He loved us
with a love that is profound and eternal. He offers us a love that is
ever-present, dynamic, and eternal. Not
only did Christ show this by providing earthly sustenance to a hungry crowd,
but he also allowed them to witness His Glory.
This He denied to the Pharisees and Scribes.
Let this knowledge be a light in your Lenten
Journey. Let it fill your heart with
joy.
For reasons only known to God, he has chosen us to
receive the most glorious of all messages.
The message is this: Christ is King and Lord. Christ is God Almighty,
who loves us with an everlasting and wonderful love that is meant for us, and
for us alone. Not for the high and
mighty, not for rich and pompous, but for us simple Christians.
To His everlasting glory, let us give thanks to the
Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, now and forever.
AMEN.
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