Title: Five Barley Loaves and Two Fishes
Contents 1. After that, Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee in Tiberias.
2. A great crowd followed them, because they had seen the signs He did to the sick.
3. Jesus went up the mountain and sat there with his disciples.
4. Just because the Jewish festival, the Passover, was near
5. When Jesus lifted up his eyes and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread to feed these people?"
6. He said this to test Philip, knowing what he was going to do.
7. Philip answered, Two hundred denarii would not be enough for each to receive a little.
8. One of the disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Jesus,
9. There is a child here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But how much is it for so many?
10. Jesus said to them, “Let these people sit down.” There was a lot of grass there, and people sat down, about five thousand people.
11. After Jesus took the bread and gave thanks, he distributed it to those who were sitting, and gave the fish as they wished.
12. After they were satisfied, Jesus said to his disciples, "Gather up the leftover pieces, so that nothing is wasted."
13. When they gathered, they ate five barley loaves and filled twelve baskets of leftover pieces.
Today's text is the fourth miracle introduced in the Gospel of John. It is the miracle of five jars and two fish, with twelve baskets remaining after 5,000 people ate with five barley loaves and two fish.
1. “Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming to him, and he said to Philip, Where shall we buy bread to feed these people? … “(5) This was to test Philip’s faith.(6) Philip said, “… Two hundred derarions of bread are not enough even if each one receives a little bit” (7). If it is 200 delarions, one delarion is the daily wage of a worker, so 50,000 won each is 10 million won. He just sat down and counted. But Andrew said, “There is a child here who has five barley loaves and two fish… “(9) He just said that the present situation is like this.”… … But what would it be to all these people?” It is not for me to judge whether it is useful or not. Once it is put into the hands of the Lord, then it is God's work.
2. “Jesus said to them, ‘Let these people sit down.’ Because there was a lot of grass there, people sat down, about 5,000 people.” (10) There were 5,000 people, but there were only five barley loaves and two fish. But Jesus said, “… … After taking the bread and giving thanks... … ” - “Congratulations” means thank you. How can gratitude come from a situation where there is not enough? But this is a real thank you. And Jesus gave future thanks. He knew what God would do and gave thanks in advance. Gratitude is a miracle. Also, Jesus did not end with thanksgiving. It's a small thing, but I made it to share with people. It's okay to eat alone, but how do you share it? In the world's calculation method, if one is given away, it is lost and if it is divided, it is damaged, but God's calculation is not. The more you share, the more it grows.
3. “After they were satisfied, Jesus said to his disciples, Gather up the leftover pieces, and let nothing be thrown away.” (12) Here we are taught not to neglect God's grace. God has given us health, material things, life...etc. Don't waste it, use it to serve God and your neighbor. And each crumb was a symbol of good fortune. When the pieces were collected and the twelve baskets overflowed, people said, “It is a miracle of God! would have thought Here, these crowds followed Jesus and received grace, their stomachs were full, and their baskets overflowed. They say, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world” ? He was the Messiah we had been waiting for for hundreds of years and tried to make him king. Then Jesus fled. This is because Jesus did not come to be the king of the world, but to take up the cross.
Jesus healed the sick, found the marginalized, and gave bread to the poor, but more important than this is the fact that he himself is the Bread of Life. Bread sustains life. Without Jesus, life cannot exist.