Jesus Provides

There is a difference between what the world offers and what Jesus offers today.
Water is maybe the best illustration. There are two types of water: salt water, and fresh water. And this world has a lot of salt water. Oceans full. There is also fresh water – but you got to look for it. Now they look pretty much the same, except the salt water is normally more wavey. And when we are filled with a thirst as big as the one that is in our souls, it is so tempting to drink from the oceans of salt water that the world offers. But it is deadly. The more you will drink the thirstier you will be become. It only leads to more dehydration – and you will need more, until it kills you.
And you know what it is is… the stuff that you drink that doesn’t help. That has left you with moments of pleasure but hours, days or years of regret, and emptiness.
There is only one that will satisfy. Jesus. He is enough. He is sufficient. He cares for you. Not just spiritually, but physically. He does everything. And this is something we learn throughout our lives. Also, today.
The disciples need to learn the sufficiency of Jesus just like Israel needed to learn it, just like we need to learn it.

Jesus Provides
1. Jesus Provides Rest
2. The disciples forget that Jesus Provides
3. Jesus provides food.

Jesus Provides Rest
10 On their return the apostles told him all that they had done.
The Apostles had just been sent out by Jesus, to call his people out of exile. Out of darkness. Out of Slavery - and declare kingdom of God is here. The kingdom of Heaven has come to earth.
They had been sent out without provision and were provided for on their journey as they preach the kingdom. Everything that they needed had been cared for just as Jesus had promised. And now he takes them apart to Bethsaida.
And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida. The words are very poignant – he takes them apart – apart from the world to be with him. He not only withdrew. But withdrew apart.
Why did Jesus take His apostles here? Luke does not tell us Matthew says it was to pray. It was also likely they rested. Also, the apostles simply needed rest.
This is something we need to hear in our busy lives… we do so much but somehow our souls feel empty. We need rest. There is a kind of emptiness that does not come from rebellion. It does not come from laziness. It comes from carrying what needs to be carried. It comes from showing up again and again, and then realizing that your heart still feels flat when the day is over. That kind of emptiness can unsettle a person.
A lot of people live inside that tension quietly. They keep functioning. They keep answering messages. They keep going to work. They keep handling bills, conversations, errands, expectations, responsibilities, obligations, and daily pressure. They keep trying to become a better version of themselves. They keep trying to be patient, faithful, honest, and emotionally stable. They may even keep praying. But under all of that motion, something keeps asking a question they do not know how to answer.
Why do I still feel so disconnected from my own life. Why does everything feel like effort without any deep sense of direction. Why am I empty. Why do I keep moving and still feel like I am standing in one place inside. Why does it feel like I am doing everything I know to do and still not touching whatever purpose is supposed to feel like.
There is a reason the heart starts to ache in a season like that. Human beings were not built to live only by output. We were not made to carry obligations without connection, movement without meaning, and effort without any deep sense of belonging inside our own lives. Even strong people start to fray there. Even responsible people start to wonder how long they can live on discipline alone. Even sincere believers can begin to feel lost in the middle of their own obedience.
And he took them apart to a town… Jesus was often alone… he was often alone with his disicples. Teching them their value is not in their prodection. Teaching them it is one thing to be seen by men another to be seen by God. Teaching them its ok to have quiet days.
. And the best place to find rest is with Jesus. A desolate place with Jesus is better than a rich land without him. Jesus is the provider. We need to have time with Jesus to engage the world. We need to be alone with him. To not feel loneliness even when we are around people.
The disciples forget that Jesus Provides
But lo and behold a large crowd comes.
11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing. The crowds find him. And what does he do – he does not turn them away but welcomes them. He shows his heart is open to these crowd. There is always room at Jesus table. He can provide for the 12, but he can provide for millions more that come to him. For you and men.
He received them and gave them all they needed. , the people needed truth and He spoke to them, verse 11. The people needed healing, so He healed them, verse 11. And the people needed food, so He would then feed them.
Isn’t Jesus compassionate? He meets the peoples needs. He does not say come back Sunday – I am kind of in the middle of something. No he welcomes them. He cares for them.
He’ll never turn you away when you go to Him. He said, “The one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out” (John 6:37). So, we see His compassion and His mercy upon the crowds. If you are here for the first time or the 100th time, Welcome! I pray that hear you feel the embrace of Jesus. The compassion of Jesus. But we forget the often…
12 Now the day began to wear away, and the twelve came and said to him, “Send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions, for we are here in a desolate place.”
We find ourselves in a "desolate place" with "hungry crowds." What the bible is trying to do is to get us to think of the Exodus, when God led his people for 40 years through the desert to the promised land providing for their every need. There God provided food everyday. What would happen here?
But the disciples are probably not thinking of the exodus. They are not even thinking of the last story where they were provided for as they taught, and healed. No, just like us they were forgetful about Gods goodness in the past and were living with worry about the present. what do the 12 disciples do? They are thinking about a massive hungry crowd, and what they should do about it. They wonder about food and drink, not much different as the Israelites of old.
Remember he said, “take nothing for your journey (9:3)” Now instead of remembering that Jesus provides, they tell Jesus to send the crowds away so that they can provide for themselves.
We should not be too quick to judge. This is the attitude of the world. Go take care of yourself. We forget the past, wand worry about the present. And we spend most of our lives having to learn the same. Jesus is enough. We run into new and unknown circumstances as well. A new period in life, a new struggle in the family, new conditions at the workplace, and we don’t always think back on how Jesus has taken care of us in the past, we just can imagine how we will get through this thing.
13 But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” Can you imagine the look on their faces! But… but… what!? You want us to give them something to eat? You do realize, Jesus, we are not exactly rich tv evangelist that can just go about handing out freebies!?. Jesus, you obviously don’t know the balance sheet.t Jesus do you see how many people are here. But Jesus…
BUT Jesus… They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.”
Jesus was serious. They could hardly believe it. It says there was 5000 men, so we can safely assume a crowd far bigger if you include the women and children. Just imagine asking the Suster hulp to have food ready for 20000. That is 50x the size of our church.
They had two options, either share what they had, They had barely enough to feed a small family. Or go into town to pick up food (for which they didn’t have money) They are incredulous. The option they didn’t think of is to ask Jesus. To pray.
This provision is simply not possible for the disciples. They don’t have the resources. They cannot do it. This is the point. We cant.
And instead of saying But Jesus… we need to pray, “Lord Jesus – provide what we cannot provide ourselves.” What he commands he gives the power to do. As Augustine said, “Command what you will, and give what you command.” Every disciples should know this. With the command comes the strength to obey the command. And what is the command – feed the sheep.
Here is application for every pastor. Feed my sheep – this is what they were called to! Its seems like an impossible task. This is what the Lord is commanding these disciples. Feed these lost sheep.
Trust is a very hard thing when it does not look like you have the resources. It does not take much trust in God for you to make decisions based on how much you have in the bank, based on your own strength, and talents, and energy.
But the question can God provide with nothing? Can God provide when our hands are empty? Can Jesus really provide everything we need for body and soul even when it looks there is nothing left? When we are empty. When we are out of strength, resources?
Jesus Provides
And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 And they did so, and had them all sit down. He organizes the crowds into small groups and asks them to sit down. The table is being prepared, the children gather round to receive food from the provider. Jesus is acting as the host, and organizer. This is his meal, and he will provide. When all is prepared, the groups are all seated in their different places, he takes the bread.
, “And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them.” Jesus knew where all things come from. Every good and perfect gift from the Father. And he prays for the food and gives thanks for it. He gives thanks for the little that he has in his hand. God does the rest. You see sometimes we wait to give thanks till God comes through. But Jesus is not giving thanks for the miracle, but for the fives loafs and two fish. This is what the Lord has given – and with this he will work. Sometimes we need to use the little God has given. Giving thanks for that, and trust him for the rest.
Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.”
Notice first how Jesus does not give directly to the crowd, but rather the disciples are the ones taking what is Jesus and giving it to the crowd. And every time they come back to Jesus, there is more. The verb here is “he continued to give to them.” So, in a sense while Jesus performs the miracle, the disciples provide the food for the Crowd, just as Jesus asked them to do. They minister to the people through his power and provision. This is exactly the lesson he wanted them to learn in 9:3.
Second notice that this is about life. We can so quickly jump the Spiritual meaning, or deeper meaning. But lets just pause at the simple truth.
Jesus feeds hungry people.
He cares about people that are hungry here and fills them with food. This is not some kind of spiritual bread and fish. This was real bread. Real fish. When he teaches us to pray for our daily bread, he is teaching us to trust him for the potatoes, bread, pasta, pizza, or burgers, and even the salad, and beans that we put on the table. That those things are a gift from him. Thank him for the braai this afternoon. Or soup. Or whatever you eat. It’s a gift. He physically provides for those who come to him by faith. He cares about our bodies. That is what we confess. in Lords Day 1, “that body and soul I belong to Jesus.” Or Lords day 46 that we can expect all we need for body and soul from Him.
And he does not just provide the bare minimum; he provides in abundance. To overflowing. 17 And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
It reminds me of the words of Ps 23, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies, you anoint my head with oil my cup overflows.” It is a picture of abundance. You pour till the cup is full, God pours till it overflows, in the middle of a desert. He takes "nothing" (the disciples' empty hands) and turns it into "more than enough" (the 12 baskets). The manna in the old Testament was just enough for each person, while Jesus provision has leftovers. Someone greater than moses is here beloved!
Dear church Jesus is enough in life and death. Physically and Spiritual. But in order to provide physically forever – he must also provide the bread from heaven, which gives eternal life. And that is what he does. He provides bread. Real bread. Real food. But he also gives himself. Which is also real bread unto eternal life. He provides physically for the sidciples, but he also gives them himself so that they might share him with the world. And my prayer is that you would be eating his word now. That it would satisfy you.
Trust him. Follow him. He will lead you to the promised land. He will bring you home, and on the way, he will give you all you need for the journey.
One day in the fall of 1874 in a flat in Manhattan, a blind woman answered the a knock on her door, she felt some folded paper being pressed into her hand by someone who left without a word. It turned out to be ten dollars. The woman had not had money to fully pay the rent and so had prayed for the Lord to supply her need. And here it was. Her name was fanny Crosby, and she wrote,
All the way my Savior leads me,
What have I to ask beside?
Can I doubt his tender mercy.
Who through life has been my guide?
… for I know whate’er befalls me,
Jesus doeth all things well.

Jesus provides still today. Maybe you find yourselves in a desolate place, and the need is so great that you cannot imagine filling it. Have you gone to Jesus? Have you gone to the only one who can fill that hunger, who can provide?
Amen.