Ep 321 – John 6

In John chapter six, we have the feeding of the five thousand – a very familiar story to most of us. By this time in the timeline of Jesus’ ministry, He has become a very popular figure. He is attracting large crowds, due to His growing reputation as a worker of miracles. News has gotten out that He heals the sick and performs miraculous signs. The rumor mills are churning out all kinds of information regarding Jesus, both true and false. And before long, He finds Himself being pursued by everyone from the merely curious to the deathly ill. He is attracting thrill seekers as well as God seekers. And one day, surrounded by a growing crowd made up of all kinds of people, Jesus issues a challenge to His 12 disciples. He presents them with a seemingly impossible conundrum that tests not only the limits of their financial resources, but their faith. Within the crowd that day were all kinds of people, each hungry for something. Each had a need, including the 12 disciples. And Jesus is going to address the root problem behind their need. It was not physical in nature, but spiritual. The healings and miracles were attracting crowds, but that is not what Jesus came to do. He had not come to provide temporary relief from illness or a short-term solution to hunger. He was the bread of life. He was the sin-forgiving, eternal life-giving, righteousness-providing Son of God.