SHARING BREAD
35 By
this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. "This is a
remote place," they said, "and it's already very late. 36 Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding
countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat."
Mark 6:35-36 (NIV)
In our verses for today Jesus was
about to show His guys (and us) the folly of making and depending upon our own
proposals and plans sans prayer – a method we are all too prone towards. Our Lord was and is desirous for His
disciples - both then and now - to learn dependence upon Him – leaning into Him
with listening ears for direction - for without Him, He is fully aware, we can
do nothing of eternal value – go figure! Our Lord’s purpose is to be intimately
involved and present in all the affairs and details of our lives. He who is constant in the exercise of faith
and dependence upon the Savior will undoubtedly bear much fruit and keep from
much regretful sorrow. Things hastily done in the flesh apart from
His directing hand are often lamented. We
find in John our Lord speaking this Truth:
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me
and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 (NIV)
“A prayerless soul is a Christless soul.” Charles Spurgeon
The believer bears fruit in the
Branch alone - in His will and in His way.
Thinking and reasoning are very good companions but they are not to be
held in higher esteem than prayer in diligently seeking God’s way. Left to our own devises we often opt for the
easiest approach - the one with less trials and troubles - the one which caters
to our common sense yet that is not always the excellent path, the highest
ground. God is in the business of
conforming us into the image of His Son and He does it through a myriad of
ways. Most often our best times of
learning are through our trials and tribulations. Certainly Jesus was up front with us in this
as in all four Gospels we are told to deny self, take up our crosses – just as
He did - and follow Him. Interestingly,
it is the death to self which is the door way to abundant life. Our ultimate contentment, fulfillment and
abiding joy are found in Jesus’ way alone.
It is no wonder He tells us:
6 Jesus
answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6 (NIV)
“Peace comes not from the absence of trouble, but from the presence of God.” Alexander Maclaren
“Few delights can equal the mere presence of One whom we fully
trust.” George McDonald
The crowds following Jesus - depicted
in our verses today - were vast as well as famished and fatigued. They had left
their shops and homes, their callings and affairs and on foot sought the Lord
Jesus. They earnestly endeavored to stick
to our Lord like glue – running ahead and getting to the location prior to Jesus
and His guys even reaching the shore by boat.
They made haste because they wanted to be with Him – to hear His
teaching and feel His healing touch. They set a wonderful example for us do they
not? Do we have that great of a desire
to fellowship with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? Somehow they got it at a gut level - the
presence of Christ can turn our wilderness into a paradise.
“The world is far more ready to receive
the gospel than Christians are to hand it out.” George
W. Peters
Ever compassionate and kind to those
who willingly seek Him, Jesus looked upon these crowds as sheep without a
shepherd and that’s not a good thing.
Sheep are stupid animals. They
can be right at the water’s edge and thirst to death because they do not know
to put their heads in the water and drink.
They scare easy and refuse to lie down unless they are free from all
fear, tensions, aggravations and hunger and only the shepherd of the sheep can
provide such relief from these anxieties.
It is he that makes it possible for them to lie down relaxed, content
and flourishing. An agitated flock does
not do well. This of course is true for people too. That is why we all need the great Shepherd of
our souls. It is no wonder that we are
compared to sheep over and over again in God’s Word.
3 Know
that the LORD is God. It is he who made
us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Psalms 100:3 (NIV)
6 We
all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and
the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:6 (NIV)
“I remember two things: that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior.” John Newton
What I glean from this:
· Apart from
Christ I can do nothing of eternal value – nothing lasting. “Solid joys and lasting treasure none but
Zion’s children know.” John
Newton
· I am to
deny self, taking up my cross daily and following hard after Christ.
· I am a
stupid sheep that desperately needs my Shepherd.
