3 Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 5 Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” 6 He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. 7 Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 9 “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people SIT down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were SEATED. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. John 6:3-11
Can you imagine the scene? There's probably about ten thousand folks milling around this field, hungry and anxious to hear Jesus preach. When they saw that all he had was 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, I'm sure there were many mockers and doubters in the crowd. Whats interesting is what Jesus did, and what John highlights in his gospel. It's noted that he only fed those that were seated.
Jesus told the people to sit down. In verse 11, it goes on to say he distributed the ones who were seated. Have you ever thought about that?
Place yourself at the scene. Thousands up thousands of people there.. probably hot depending on the time of year. Here was this man who taught with authority unparalleled to another. Maybe he gave some more instructions when he told the disciples to have them sit down. Maybe the disciples told the people he was going to feed them. We aren't told all that happened, but what we can infer from what happens is that the people who sat down trusted and possibly had faith in Christ (not necessarily saving faith...). I can imagine there was probably a group of people standing off to the side and back mocking, saying things like "who does this man think he is? There's no possible way he can feed all of us." Some folks probably walked away in complete unbelief. And yet most sat. And those that trusted the Lord, they were the ones given the meal that day.
So whats the point? How does this apply to us? Great question, I'm glad you asked! Where do you see yourself in your walk with Christ? Are you seated before him, believing he will meet your needs even though all you see is 5 loaves and 2 fish and your needs are infinitely bigger than that? Or are you standing on the side, watching others have faith in Christ, maybe even mocking for their unreasonable faith. Or maybe you have just walked away, not even giving Jesus a chance to meet your current needs.
I encourage all of us to examine our lives. Are we seated at the Lords feet, waiting in eager anticipation? If not, what do we need to do to get there? Do it! He's waiting to provide for your every need!
