Breakfast with the Word: Tuesday After Epiphany
Mark 6:34-44
As we go through the week of epiphany, the church gradually teaches us about the personality of Jesus.
Gradually the church is teaching and letting us know the mission of Jesus, who He is and what He can do for us. The gospel text today, simply reveals the type of person He is.
Therefore, when we go in His presence, or when we decide to have an encounter with Him, we should always know who we are going to meet.
Sometimes, when we come in the Lord’s presence, or when we have little challenges, we think that He is heart hardened.
So, in today’s reading, we have to know truly the type of person that Jesus is through His encounter with the crowd.
In essence, whenever we decide to meet Him we do not have a double mind about who He is.
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Jesus and the Crowd.
In today’s reading, As Jesus steps ashore, He sees a large crowd, and He takes pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. Then, He begins to teach them at some length.
Then when it was getting late, some of his disciples come up to Him and ask Him to dismiss the crowd because they are in a lonely place. It is getting late, so it could be so risky to keep the crowd there by that time.
They ask Jesus to send the crowd away so that they can go to the farms and villages round about, to buy themselves something to eat.’
Instead of sending them away as they request, He replies, ‘Give them something to eat yourselves.’
They told Jesus that what they have is only two hundred denarii, then ‘Five loaves of bread and two fish. Instead of sending the crowd away, He demands that the people sit on the green grasses, then He feeds them.
In this Gospel text of Mark 6:34-44, as Jesus sees the crowd today, He does these five things: 1. He had compassion on them for they were like sheep without a shepherd
2. He teaches them at a great length.
3. Jesus did not send the crowd away even when His disciples pressured Him to.
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4. He ordered them to sit on the green grasses. Then
5. He feeds them. This is Jesus for us.
When We Go In His Presence.
The crowd today experience the mercy of Jesus. They encounter His love and care.
They discover that He could not abandon them at the time of their need. So, at the point of our needs, let us know that He is always there for us. This is Jesus for you. We have to know this if we truly desire to know who He is and have an encounter with Him.
Also, the crowd also encounter His peace when He asks them to sit down. The crowd also were taught by Him personally. Then the crowd was fed. This is Jesus for you.
Therefore, when we come in His presence, we must encounter the mercy and compassion that only Jesus can give.
When we come to pray before Him, we do not see Him as that One that takes time to answer prayers. We do not see Him as that person that does not listen to our prayers.
In essence, when we come to His presence, we do not see Him as that One that is so heart-hardened, or that God that keeps a list and the scores of our pasts waiting for a day to punish us.
We have to know that the heart of Jesus is the seat of mercy and compassion. He cannot but have mercy.
Therefore, Jesus does not hate you. Even when the apostles wanted to send the crowd away, He refuses. This is Jesus for You.
Therefore, in the presence of Jesus are the abundance of grace, mercy, wisdom, words of eternal life, peace, calm mind, and daily nourishment. The crowds experienced these today.
He cares for You.
Through the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus shows us that He truly cares for us. He cares for us in our weak, painful and lonely times. Jesus is always there for us in our moments of lack and difficulty.
He is ready to welcome us to Him when others have abandoned us. When others do not care for our safety and provision, Jesus is always available to fill those gaps.
Therefore, He shows Himself to be sensitive to the needs of people who are in search of Him. He cannot just remain indifferent to the needs of those He meets on the way. Jesus feels compassion when He sees the great crowd that has been following Him “like sheep without a shepherd” (Mk 6:34).
This is Jesus for you. When we understand this about who He is, we are ready to go.
Therefore, let us know the type of person that Jesus is, as He is constantly revealing Himself in this week of epiphany.
Give them Something to Eat.
When the apostles intend to send the crowd away, Jesus makes an implausible proposal to the apostles “You yourselves give them something to eat: (Mark 6:37).
Therefore, Jesus is not only worried about spiritual bread but also about their bodily food. This is Jesus for you. He is always deeply concerned about our welfare, especially those who remain in search of Him and make themselves available to Him. One thing about Him is that He loves us more than we think.
Give them something to eat is also a command, Jesus made to His apostles on what they would do to the crowd. He is telling them not to forsake the physical needs of the people.
Therefore, He is also telling us to care for our flock both spiritually and physically. So, We have to do the much we can to feed the hungry and save the lost.
May He be with you today dearest in all your challenges today Amen.
Jesus our good shepherd continue to feed us with spiritual food in Jesus name Amen