Picking up from yesterday’s post, Asking God about relationship.

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We get a picture of that compassionate God in our Gospel reading.

It’s a familiar story to many people. We talk about it as the feeding of the 5000, though it more likely is the feeding of the 15,000 or more, since there were whole families present beyond the 5000 men that one of the Gospel writers tells us about.

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John tell this story, each with different details. Sometimes we say, “See? The writers can’t agree. There is something wrong.”

As I think about this event, however, I think, “There is so much about Jesus that it can’t fit in one story.”

As we look at John’s account this morning, we’re helped to understand that the work that Jesus cares about isn’t the miracles he does. It’s about relationship with who he is.

• Jesus was with his disciples.
• There was a crowd of people
• Jesus fed the crowd
• Jesus left them.
• Jesus walked on water to the disciples.

There are five things I’d like to point us to in this story.

Jesus pays attention to people for different reasons than people pay attention to him.

The crowds showed up because of his miracles. He cared about their hearts. He could have condemned them for this, but he didn’t. He taught them, and then, when it was clear that they were not prepared to take care of themselves, he cared for them.

Jesus asks us questions, knowing already what the answer will be but giving us the opportunity to be involved.

Jesus turns to Philip and says, what are we going to do?

When we bring tiny amounts, Jesus can use them in miraculous ways.

Andrew brings the boy and his meal.

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Number 5 and more on Thursday. Tomorrow, we hear from Rich Dixon.