The Lord's Provision

The Seventh Sunday After Pentecost

Jeremiah 23:1-6
Ephesians 2:16-22
Mark 6:33-44


Grace to you and peace from God, our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. (Romans 1:7)
Our Gospel lesson for this Sunday shows us the basic difference between our compassion and the Lord’s compassion. Our compassion rarely results into action. Do we not see this everytime we hear about and see dire news on the radio and on TV? And do we not see this everyday in our reactions to the various issues of everyday? For instance, if we see an accident or some act of terrorism on TV, don’t we all feel bad for the victims? Yes, we do, and yet so much of the time, that is the extent of our compassion. When we are on the street and see children sniffing glue, or begging, playing hopscotch with speeding cars and trucks on the highway, we most certainly feel pity for these children, but that is all. Rarely does our pity, our compassion, result into action. With the Lord, it is different. St. Mark tells us:
When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.
Like sheep without a shepherd. Meaning, that no one bothered to teach them, to guide them, to bring to them God’s Word. It could also mean that their lives were going nowhere. Do we not, at times, feel like this? A lot of times, we feel LOST. I myself feel this sometimes, that I am lost amid a great sea of doubt and indecision, and i feel that something is lacking in my life, but I can’t quite put my finger on it. And I know you’ve felt the same way at one time or another. So many times we are like the people who struggled to follow Jesus: we are like sheep without a shepherd. And often, we try to plug up this void, this uncertainty through our own efforts at seeking after meaning. Some try to find that meaning in drink, while others immerse themselves all the more into their work. Different means, desperate measure, but in the end, it all amounts to the same thing: we’re no better than we were. We still end up like sheep without a shepherd.
I have no doubt the disciples saw this too in the faces of the people that day. And it is likely that they too felt compassion. The thing is, they didn’t know what to do. But now look at the Lord. He doesn’t just feels compassion, he acts upon that compassion. He taught them many things, St. Mark says. In other words, the Lord responded to the needs of the people. He gave them His Word. The Lord respomds to our needs. He gives us His Word.
But all this teaching gives rise to another problem. We all know what happens in small towns when twilight descends. Farm animals are herded from the pasture back into the sheds, and stores begin to close up for the night. People young and old go into their houses, for darkness is coming.
And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, "This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat."
Again we get a glimpse of the extent of the compassion of the disciples, but, if we are to go by St. Mark’s report, the disciples’ suggestion seems to be logical. For to be able to feed five thousand, you need to prepare. A lot. You don’t just go someplace and ask people to sit for their meal. But apparently, the Lord knew what he was doing. But he answered them, "You give them something to eat." Could the Lord have been testing the disciples? St. John, in his gospel, thinks so: He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Maybe the Lord was testing the limits of the disciples’ faith, or the limits of their compassion. And they said to him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denariif worth of bread and give it to them to eat?" And once more, the disciples show their doubt in the Lord’s compassion, in his provision.
And so much of the time we are like the disciples. So many times we doubt the Lord’s compassion for us. How many times have I desperately asked the Lord for a mirace and get me out of a sticky situation, a situation, often, of my own making? And when nothing happens, i look sullenly at heaven, doubting his compassion, and ask, “Why did you forsake me?” “Why do you continue to forsake your church?” So many times, we doubt the Lord’s compassion.
And how many times have Kristi and I doubted the Lord’s provision in the midst of our need? Whenever Kristi and I find that we’ve come up short on our budget, we look at each other and say, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.” And yet, deep in our hearts, we have begun to doubt. Deep inside our hearts, our apprehension and fear ask: “Will the Lord indeed provide?”
And our doubt isn’t only on physical things. Oh no. Our doubt extends to spiritual blessings too. We doubt the Lord’s compassion and provision especially in the spiritual things. “Will the Lord truly forgive? O! But my sin is too great!” Is this piece of bread truly his body?” “Is is little cup of wine truly his blood?” The truth is, like the disciples, our hearts and our lives are steeped in doubt. Because of sin. Because we are sinners. And because of sin, it is only fitting that the Lord leave us in the middle of our doubt, in the middle of our sin. It should have been fitting that the Lord heeded the suggestion of the disciples then, and it is only fitting that the Lord send us away, for we doubt his compassion and provision.
GOSPEL
And yet, wonder of wonders, the Lord does not heed the suggestion of the disciples. Instead, he has a suggestion of his own:
And he said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see." And when they had found out, they said, "Five, and two fish." Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied.
Five pieces, and two fish. If you compare that to the number of people that needed to eat that evening, you’d say that those five loaves of bread and two fish were worse than nothing. But Jesus takes what the disciples have, which is nothing, and blesses it. And see what happens because of the Lord’s compassion, because of the Lord’s provision: And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied. And the blessing that the Lord bestowed that day to fill the physical needs of the people, he bestows upon us today to satisfy our spiritual need. There on the hill of Calvary, his body was broken, his blood was shed so that we who are steeped in sin might receive his blessing: grace, forgiveness, life. The Lord blesses what we have, which is nothing, and fills our souls to overflowing, because that is the nature of the Lord’s compassion and provision. His grace and provision is not merely enough; it is more than enough! It is overflowing! And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.
The people that evening witnessed a miracle, and we read about this miracle too. But there is a much, much greater miracle that the Lord did for us: he died on the cross so that we who cannot, by our own reason or strength, enter into his kingdom, may be recognized by God as his children. Because of the compassion and provision of his only begotten Son. And the miracle of the Lord’s provision is this: it is certain, it is abundant, it is more than sufficient for our needs. His Word, His Sacraments, are his provision for us – they are certain they are abundant, they are more than sufficient for the forgiveness of your sins.
When the Lord provides, it is always more than enough. This is most certainly true. This is most certainly for you.
May the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen. (Philippians 4:7)