Jesus Tested His Disciples

Luke 9:10-17 (Holman Christian Standard)

Feeding 5,000
When the apostles returned, they reported to Jesus all that they had done. He took them along and withdrew privately to a town called Bethsaida. When the crowds found out, they followed Him. He welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and cured those who needed healing. Late in the day, the Twelve approached and said to Him, "Send the crowd away, so they can go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find food and lodging, because we are in a deserted place here." "You give them something to eat," He told them. "We have no more than five loaves and two fish," they said, "unless we go and buy food for all these people." (For about 5,000 men were there.) Then He told His disciples, "Have them sit down in groups of about 50 each." They did so, and had them all sit down. Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them. He kept giving them to the disciples to set before the crowd. Everyone ate and was filled. Then they picked up 12 baskets of leftover pieces.

WHAT WE CAN LEARN:

Jesus was motivated to teach and heal on this day, even though he was tired. He was motivated out of compassion for the people and a desire to meet their need. In the Gospel of Matthew, Matthew shares his account of the feeding of 5,000 and that Jesus had compassion for the people because "they are like sheep without a shepherd." (Matthew 9:36) Jesus wanted to teach his disciples the importance of having compassion for those in need. He was testing them to see how they would respond to the need of others.

Jesus first asked them, "What do you have?" When he asked this, he was prompting them to take an inventory of what they had so they could see how they could help. He wanted them to see that in their own power and strength to provide they would fall miserably short. In a sense he was saying to them, "Let's take what you have, give it to me, and I will multiply it." Until the disciples were willing to commit what they had to Jesus, he was not going to multiply it.

Jesus also knew that their compassion would grow through a personal encounter. He had the people sit down in groups of fifty. This allowed the disciples to minister to them in a more individualized encounter. Jesus sent the disicples out to feed smaller groups so that the vastness of the need would not overwhelm them. He was not calling each disciple to serve all the people but each to serve a smaller group of them. Jesus wanted the disicples to learn to listen to his voice and to go to those he called them to serve.

Furthermore, Jesus wanted his disciples to experience the power of multiplication. When we give to God as an offering, he provides enough for the need (often times with some left over). When Jesus fed the 5,000, he provided enough food for all the people to be satisfied. Then He told the disciples to collect the leftovers. He did this so nothing would be waisted, so the disciples would see that every need was met, and so each disciple would have a basketful of what was leftover. Jesus provided for the need and them had enough leftover for the disciples to be satisfied as well.

Jesus is God so he could have created bread and fish out of nothing. Since he didn't do that, he had a greater purpose in using his disciples. He told them, "You give them something to eat" and they did. They started with what they had, offered it to Jesus, and then saw what God can do with our offering to him.

We, like the disciples, often struggle with surrendering ourselves to God in ministry, in seeing the needs around us, in offering what we have to Him, and in relying on His power to do only what He can do.

What is God calling you to do? What inventory do you need to take? Will you listen to His voice and serve those He calls you to serve?