Because of his divine identity, Jesus provides the impossible

I’m not sure how much time you’ve spent reading the Old Testament, but it’s a fantastic part of the Bible that doesn’t get as much attention. I know, we like the New Testament because it’s often easier to understand. There’s a lot of direct commands like “love your neighbor as yourself”. That one is pretty easy. The Old Testament says stuff like “If you bring a grain offering you should pour oil and frankincense on it.” Not sure what we’re supposed to do with that one. Also the names in the New Testament tend to be easier to keep up with. James, Peter, Paul, and John are easier to read about then Belshazzar, Zaphenath-paneah, Melchizedek, and Maher-shalal-hash-baz.

But what you’ll find is that the more you read the Old Testament and become familiar with the language it uses, the more the New Testament will come alive. It will become so much richer. You’ll move from having a superficial understanding of who God is and how he calls us to live into a much deeper and grounded understanding of his love and his faithfulness.

This morning in our passage Jesus is going to tap into that Old Testament knowledge as he attempts to reveal his divine identity to the disciples. He’s going to provide impossible things that only God himself can provide and we’ll see if the disciples know their Old Testament well enough and are able to catch on.

Main Point – Because of his divine identity, Jesus provides the impossible

Mark 6:30-52, which can be found in your pew Bible on page 801

Prayer

Verse 52 has haunted me all week. I think today’s sermon would have been a lot easier to write if it wasn’t for verse 52. Because at first you might think to yourself, these are two completely different stories. First, Jesus feeds the 5,000. Second, he walks on water. They’re not connected. In fact most of us, including myself, may have forgotten that these two stories even occur next to each other. But then there’s that verse 52. Jesus walks on the water. The disciples are scared. And Mark, the narrator of our story, reprimands the disciples for responding the wrong way when they saw Jesus walking on the water. He says they had hard hearts. That’s the reason they were astounded. What did they do that was so wrong? How does he know that they have hard hearts? And Mark says this, “For they did not understand about the loaves.”

What? That’s the verse that connects this story with the previous one. The reason that the disciples responded wrongly in the boat, Mark tells us, is because they didn’t understand what Jesus had done with the bread. To make things worse, Mark credits their misunderstanding to having a hard heart.

The reason this verse has haunted me all week is because I don’t see the connection between Jesus walking on water and the bread. Just like the disciples, I don’t understand about the loaves. But I really don’t want to be described as having a hard heart. And I’ve been struggling all week to sort out what’s happening here. And I believe the disciples’ problem is that they failed to understand who Jesus is and therefore did not understand what he came to do. So let’s see who Jesus is and what he’s here to do in this passage.

Point #1 – Because he is a new Moses, Jesus provides bread in the wilderness (vs. 30-40, 42-44)

The absolute most important event that takes place in the Old Testament is the exodus. In the exodus, God saves his people from slavery in Egypt by sending Moses to deliver them. He sends ten plagues on Pharaoh, there’s a passover lamb, they cross the Red Sea and the Egyptian army is destroyed in the Red Sea. But the exodus isn’t over. God gives them his law at Mt. Sinai and he leads them into Canaan, the Promised Land. But along the way, they get hungry. What are they going to eat? If you remember, you’ll know that God provided a miraculous bread for them called Manna. It appeared on the ground like dew every morning and they gathered it up and were fed each day. They ate that bread every day for 40 years. And in that way, God sustained them throughout the duration of their exodus from Egypt to Canaan.

Throughout the book of Mark, Jesus has been trying to show his disciples who he is and help them understand what he came to do. But all along the way, they don’t get it. Jesus has been showing them he has authority over all things and that isn’t quite connecting. Now he’s going to show them that he’s here to accomplish a new exodus. Just like Moses went into the kingdom of darkness in Egypt and freed people from bondage, Jesus is entering into the kingdom of darkness to free people from bondage. To teach them this, he’s going to do some very Moses-like things to help them understand.

READ VS 30-32 (that word desolate place is the same word that’s often translated wilderness)

The disciples just got back from their mission Jesus sent them on and already they’re very busy with all the people and they can’t eat. Jesus tells them, “I’ll take you somewhere that you can eat - let’s go to the wilderness!” The disciples might be thinking, “Sure we’ll be alone there, but there won’t be any food.” And Jesus is just wringing his hands in anticipation “Oh this is gonna be good. They’re gonna see it now”. When he gives them bread in the wilderness, they’ll definitely recognize that he’s just like Moses and is beginning the new exodus.

READ VS 33-34

All these people are on the shore when they arrive. If they planned to be alone, that has failed. But Jesus isn’t discouraged. This is all part of the plan and the crowds are going to help him make his identity even more clear. And just to help us readers along, Mark starts dropping a few lines to get us thinking about Moses. He says that Jesus had compassion on them like a sheep without a shepherd. That’s not the first time in the Bible that phrase has been used. Moses was concerned about his people and used the same phrase. Look at Numbers 27:17.

Moses tells God that the people need someone, “who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd.”

So Jesus and Moses have the same concerns for the people here. Let’s read on.

Read VS 35-37

Two hundred denarii here are about 8 months worth of wages. It’s a lot of money. The disciples tell Jesus that there’s no way they’ll ever have enough food to feed all these people. Oh? Have we even encountered this problem before? Look at Numbers 11:21-22.

But Moses said, “The people among whom I am number six hundred thousand on foot… Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, and be enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, and be enough for them?”

I imagine Jesus having a huge grin on his face and trying to keep his excitement inside. Everything is falling into place. They’re walking right into his trap. They’ll definitely understand who he is in a moment.

READ VS 38-40.

Ok, now this is just overkill. Who is the only other person in the Bible who ever divided people up who weren’t soldiers into groups of fifties and hundreds? Did you guess Moses? Because yes, it was definitely Moses. Exodus 18:25.

Moses chose able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens

Have you ever played a prank on someone and you kind of have that little snicker where you’re trying to keep a straight face because they haven’t caught on yet? That’s what Jesus has right now. Let’s jump ahead to verse 42-44.

READ VS 42-44

Jesus did it! He fed everyone miraculous bread in the wilderness. But he’s not finished with his “show them who I am” game yet. We’ll read more in a minute

But what should we be making of this so far? If we want to respond rightly to Jesus, we need to understand about the loaves. We don’t want to have hard hearts. What does Jesus want them to see and want them to understand?

He wants them to see that he’s doing for them what Moses did for Israel. To state it very simply and to not over spiritualize it, Jesus provides for their needs in the wilderness. How did the Israelites get into the wilderness? They followed Moses there. How did the 5,000 get into the wilderness? They followed Jesus there. If following God’s leading brings you to a desolate place, he will provide for you. That’s the pattern we clearly see here. And what’s more important is that we don’t have to understand or predict how he’s going to do it. If you were an Israelite wandering into the wilderness with Moses, at some point you would have wondered how you were going to find something to eat. If you would have made 100 guesses about how God could provide for you, I’m certain that raining bread from heaven every morning would not have been one of them. When following God’s call our responsibility is to simply obey, not to predict every outcome.

So for example, if God calls you to adopt a child and bring them into your home, you’re probably going to start having endless conversations about whether or not this is feasible. Do we have the space? Do we have the money for an extra mouth? Do we have the energy at our age to care for them? Etc. And these are all reasonable concerns, but in the end if God is clearly leading you there, we don’t have to predict how he will provide for us. We simply trust that he will provide for us and he’ll do it in an impossible way. Where else might God be leading you? Perhaps, he’s calling you to give your car to a neighbor in need. Maybe he’s calling you to move across the country (been there). He might be leading you to the mission field. I’m fairly confident that every single person who has ever given their life to serve in missions has thought “I cannot predict how God will provide for me if I do this” and yet God provides every time.

He doesn’t lead people to the wilderness so that they can starve. Rather, because he is the faithful, loving God of the Bible. He always provides even when it seems impossible.

Jesus’ display of who he is is approaching its climactic moment and we’re hoping the disciples will finally get it. He’s going to show them who he is on the water, and if they understood about the loaves, then they will respond appropriately. Let’s see what happens next.

Point #2 – Because he is God, Jesus provides a way through the sea (vs. 45-51)

Read VS 45-47

It says Jesus “made his disciples get into the boat”. That is a bit of a soft way of translating it. The word could also be Jesus compelled them or even forced them to get into the boat. In some instances the forcing is even accompanied by threats. Jesus really wants them to get in the boat and get going without him. Why? Again, he’s setting them up so that he can display his glorious identity to them.

So here’s the setup. Jesus is alone on the land. The boat is in the middle of the sea. Now’s Jesus' chance. This next verse is the crucial one for us this morning. But before we read it, I know that most of you are familiar with this story. And you know all about how Peter walked on the water with Jesus and then he sank and then Jesus saved him. And all that is true and we learn about it from the other gospel accounts. But let’s just stick solely with the things that Mark tells us here because he only includes the things necessary for him to make the point he wants to make.

READ VS 48

It’s the fourth watch of the night that’s between 3-6am. The disciples are struggling against strong winds and can’t get their boat going in the direction they want. And Jesus comes to them walking on the water. Now because of this miracle every person in all of western civilization today is familiar with the phrase walking on water. 

Everyone associates it with Jesus because everyone knows that’s one of his miracles. The disciples however do not have that same background. They’ve never heard of a man walking on water. But that doesn’t mean that they’ve never heard of the concept before. Is it somewhere in the Old Testament? You bet it is. In the book of Job, Job is describing to his friends how completely unlike us God is. He’s entirely unique and no one can do the things that he can do. He says this in Job 9.

“He alone stretched out the heavens and walks upon the sea as upon the ground... He does great and unsearchable things, glorious and extraordinary things beyond number.” Job 9:8, 10

So Jesus, wanting to show his disciples that he is completely unlike any person and is uniquely God, makes the climactic moment of his revealing himself to his disciples to be him walking on the water like only God almighty can do!

But then in Mark we see this weird little phrase, “he meant to pass by them”. That’s odd. If he’s going to reveal himself uniquely and incredibly to his disciples, why would he just skip past them. The phrase “pass by” is yet another Moses reference. Guys, I’m serious. The whole New Testament is just verse after verse referencing the Old Testament. When Moses asked God to reveal himself in all of his glory, God agreed but said he would only show him part of it.

“And he said, ‘I myself will pass by before you with my glory, and I will proclaim my name, “Lord,” before you;’” -Exodus 33:19

When God “passes by” Moses, he’s showing him his glory. He’s walking in front of him so that his glory can be on display. So taking that same line, Jesus intends to be in front of the disciples, walking on water which only God can do, right after he made bread in the wilderness which only God could do. Certainly they’re going to recognize Jesus as God and fall down in worship before him. Let’s see what happens.

READ VS 49-50a

Aww… c’mon guys! Jesus sets up this whole thing and he spent the whole day and night trying to accomplish it. Certainly he will prove undeniably that he is God and that he’s here to deliver them from sin in a new exodus just like Moses delivered the people before. But nope. Instead they’re convinced he’s Casper and they’re scared. But Jesus isn’t easily deterred.

READ VS 50b-51a

He tries to encourage them “Take heart. It is I.” Every single time in the New Testament when you read the words “It is I” or “I am he” it comes from the lips of Jesus and he’s literally saying “I am”. “Take heart. I am” In the story of Moses and the burning bush. “I am” is the name God uses to reveal himself. So Jesus hops in the boat and basically says, “It’s me! God!” but they don’t get it. Still.

Alright before we wrap up the story, let’s take another break and consider what’s the point of all of this. Maybe Bible scholars love to think about all the Greek translations, the ancient names of God, and the Old Testament references, but that’s not me. I just want to know what God wants me to do.

That’s good. That’s a good impulse. The Bible is meant to transform us, not just be a bunch of random information. But in this story, Jesus is not commanding us to do something. He wants to transform how the disciples think about him.

Up to this point perhaps they just think of Jesus as someone who can do miraculous tricks and give them stuff. I’m sure that after having their bellies filled by all that bread he made, they’re really liking all the tricks Jesus can do. But Jesus is more than someone who’s just there to give us stuff. Unfortunately, that’s how so many people view Jesus. He’s this big guy in the sky who is supposed to give us money when we run out, heal us when we’re sick, help us when we’re tired, and keep us comfortable. But Jesus is showing, “Yes, I love to give things, but that’s not all I am.” I’m delivering you. I’m guiding you. I’m leading you somewhere. Again, think exodus.

What if Moses had shown up to the Israelites enslaved in Egypt and said, “I’ve brought you all a bunch more food!” “Hurray! What a great guy.” Or what if Moses showed up and said, “I’ve got bags of money for all of you” or “I’ve got medicine, none of you will get sick again!” “Hurray, Moses is the best” But where are the Israelites after that? They’re still slaves in Egypt! They haven’t been freed and brought into the incredible blessed land that God promises them. They need Moses to lead them out at all costs. They need to pass through the Red Sea and be taken to the Promised Land.

When Jesus shows up, he’s not here just to make more bread for people. He’s not here just to heal everyone’s sicknesses. He’s here to free them from their bondage and to lead them on a journey where he is with them every step of the way. He will provide for their basic needs as he leads them to that fair and promised land where their possessions lie.

Are we viewing Jesus in this way? Do we call on him as one who gives us more stuff or do we consider him the one for whom we abandon all of our possessions in order to follow him through the sea, through the wilderness, and into a beautiful glorious land to live in with him in his presence forevermore?

I’m hoping you recognize again how much more there is to glean from the New Testament when you understand the old. And since we’ve been doing a little bit of a “how to read your Bible class” this morning, I want us to lastly notice some of the connections that Mark makes within his own book. Our last point is…

Point #3 – Because he is the bread of life, Jesus provides true life (vs. 41, 52)

We’re just going to focus on two of the verses in our passage and see how they show up again in Mark’s gospel.

READ VS 41

There’s some clear actions I want you to take notice of here. He takes the bread. He blesses the bread. He breaks the bread. Then he gives it to the disciples. Now jump down to that final haunting verse of our passage, vs 52.

READ VS 52

Jesus is demonstrating something with the bread. But they don’t get it. Now keep these things in mind, I’m going to invite you to turn forward a few pages in Mark to chapter 8. Here Jesus does a nearly identical miracle to the one we just read. But this time instead of feeding 5,000, he feeds 4,000. Because he wants to give the disciples (and us I suppose) another chance to understand the bread thing that they missed the first time. Look at verse 6.

READ MARK 8:6

Notice those same exact actions. He takes the bread. He gives thanks for the bread(which is another way to say he blessed it). He breaks the bread. He gives it to the disciples. He’s showing them something again, hoping they don’t miss it this time. But what happens? Let’s read verse 16-21.

READ MARK 8:16-21

Do you hear Jesus’ frustration? “I broke the bread twice and gave it to you. And you still don’t get it? Your hearts are still  hardened?” Now as they say, the third time is the charm. So turn forward to one final passage in Mark 14. This is the night before Jesus is to be crucified and he’s sitting with his disciples at a meal we’ve come to refer to as “The Last Supper”. We’ll just read one verse and I think you’ll hear some familiar words. Look at verse 22.

READ MARK 14:22

Notice those same actions he did twice earlier. He takes the bread. He blesses the bread. He breaks the bread. He gives the bread to the disciples. And now as clear as he can possibly be he says, “This is my body”.  That’s what he’s been trying to demonstrate all along! That’s the thing that the disciples kept failing to see. He’s been trying to show them that the bread is his body. That his body would be broken. And that if they receive his broken body, they wouldn’t have simply full stomachs, but they would have full souls.

There were 5,000 people. That’s far too many needy people for one person to satisfy. Then there were 4,000 people. That's far too many needy people for one person to satisfy. In the wilderness, Moses had hundreds of thousands of people. That’s definitely too many needy people for one person to satisfy. But Jesus is saying, “Don’t you see? It doesn’t matter if it’s a thousand souls, a million souls, or 8.3 billion souls, Jesus’ body, his death, can satisfy every longing heart who comes to him, who takes of his bread, and is filled. That’s why in John’s gospel, when he tells the story of the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus says, “I am the bread of life. If anyone eats of this bread he will live forever”.

God designed our stomachs to crave food. If you don’t eat anything your stomach starts to rumble and churn and after a long enough time your need for food is all you can think about. And when you finally get some bread in you, you are satisfied and your hunger is relieved. And after you eat Jesus looks at you and says, “Do you get it? Do you understand about that bread, your craving for it, and your satisfaction in it?” And we don’t. So he lets us get hungry again, and at the next meal we have more bread and are satisfied, and Jesus asks again, “Do you get it? Did you understand about the bread?” And he asks us again at the next meal and the next. And every single time we are needy and then we are satisfied, he says, “That’s about me! I created you to crave bread so that you would recognize your need for me!”

Each of us has a longing in our hearts each day for something. We go to work. We come home. We enjoy some little distractions. We go to bed and we do it again. And there’s a quiet voice in our hearts that says, “Is this all I’ll do forever? Is there something that I’m meant for more than just passing the time until I die?” That’s the craving that God placed in you. That is your heart’s longing for the bread of life! And Jesus’ body was broken so that you could be free from the slavery of a meaningless life of distractions. The only place to have that craving satisfied is by asking him. “Jesus what would you have me do? Show me how I can be satisfied in you?” And keep praying earnestly for an answer. I won’t begin to even guess where he might take you. He’s always providing impossible things in ways we’d never predict.

The disciples thought Jesus was just a guy who could give them stuff and make them feel a little less hungry. But goes through incredible efforts to reveal his divine identity. He’s a new Moses who can provide impossible food in a desert. He’s God who can make pathways appear in the middle of the sea. And he’s the bread of life that can satisfy the deepest longing of their hearts and give them life. Do you recognize who Jesus is? Because he’s not just a guy who can give you some stuff. He’s God whose body was broken to save and satisfy your soul.

Prayer