Calvary Presbyterian Church
The Rev. Debra May Cerra
July 26, 2009

John 6:1-21 (NRSV)
After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias. 2 A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. 3 Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near. 5 When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?" 6 He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. 7 Philip answered him, "Six months' wages 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 among so many people?" 10 Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they sat down, about five thousand in all. 11 Then Jesus 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. 12 When they were satisfied, he told his disciples, "Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost." 13 So they gathered them up, and from the fragments of the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets. 14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world." 15 When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself. 16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. 20 But he said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." 21 Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.

“The Power of Jesus”

This morning our reading from John is the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand. This miracle is recorded in all four of the Gospels. Each writer tells of the huge crowds who heard that Jesus was near and gathered around him. The Gospels describe how Jesus fed the multitude that surrounded Him – five thousand people who had assembled out in the countryside – far from any marketplaces or their homes.
The Gospels of Mathew, Mark, and Luke portray Jesus as having compassion for the hungry and concern that the people were without a shepherd. But John’s Gospel has a different slant. John’s message is about Jesus teaching the disciples not to underestimate His power. It is about the disciples realizing Jesus’ amazing authority, compassion, and love.
John tells us that the huge crowd that followed Jesus was “attracted by the miracles they had seen him do among the sick.” (2) The people knew about Jesus and they wanted to be in His presence. They wanted to hear Him speak and see His power at work. But they were far from home and had little or no food to eat.
Knowing the needs of the crowd, Jesus said to His disciple Philip: “"Where can we buy bread to feed these people?" You see, Jesus already knew how this could happen but He wanted to stretch Philip’s faith. But Philip did not have an answer for Jesus. Instead he said: “Two hundred silver pieces wouldn't be enough to buy bread for each person to get a piece.” (5-7)
When Jesus asked Philip to find a way to get food for the assembled people, Philip immediately saw it as an impossible task. You can almost hear him whining: “Two hundred silver pieces wouldn't be enough to buy bread for each person to get a piece.”
Many times we respond like Philip. When an opportunity or situation or need arises in the church or our community we feel overwhelmed and go on the defense. We cry: “You want me to do what?” or whine: “I can’t do that?” or complain: “How do you expect me to do get this done all by myself?”
But Philip’s negativity did not deter Jesus. Neither did Peter’s brother, Andrew, when he commented about the meager meal of the young boy: "There's a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But that's a drop in the bucket for a crowd like this," (9) Ignoring both comments, Jesus just said, “Make the people sit down.”
Jesus used the situation as a teaching moment for his disciples. He didn’t rebuke Philip and Andrew for their lack of faith. Instead, He showed them how He could feed five thousand people with five loaves and two fish. “He [Jesus] took the bread and, having given thanks, gave it to those who were seated. He did the same with the fish. All ate as much as they wanted. When the people had eaten their fill, he said to his disciples, ‘Gather the leftovers so nothing is wasted.’ They went to work and filled twelve large baskets with leftovers from the five barley loaves.” (11-13)
Indeed, the people were touched by Jesus but their response was based on the miracle He performed for them. The crowd’s response was superficial – a mindset of “What’s in it for me?” rather than an awe over the compassion, care, grace and love of Jesus. The crowd wanted to use Jesus rather than allowing Jesus to use them.
The multitudes were eager to support Jesus when He gave them what they wanted. He had healed them and fed them so they were ready to make Him their leader. They were satisfied for the moment and enthusiastic about what was still to come from Jesus.
Can’t we say the same about ourselves? We want Jesus to bring us comfort when we face times of sorrow and difficulty. We want Him to impart peace when turmoil strikes. We want Jesus to give us freedom from the grasp of depression and despair. And when Jesus sees us through, there is nothing as wonderful as our Lord.
Yet, when Jesus comes to us with a challenge to serve, with a need to give some effort on our part, with the offer to carry our cross with Him, we turn away. If we were to truly examine our hearts, we may find that we, too, love Jesus for what we can get from Him more than what we can do for Him. Is our prayer, “Lord, give me strength to do what you want me to do” or is it more like “Lord, give me strength to do what I want to do”?
Friends, when we say “yes” and get involved in serving the Lord, it’s amazing just how satisfied we can feel. Many times we think we’re just answering a need or helping out or giving some time. But Jesus sees it differently. When we reach out to serve in His name, Jesus reaches out to us and blesses us with joy and satisfaction. He feeds our souls, giving us a sense of fulfillment and gratitude.
Last week 8 people from Calvary traveled 6 hours to Lexington, Virginia. We weren’t sure what we’d be doing – just that we’d be working with Habitat for Humanity. Sunday evening, before climbing into our new beds, we prayed that the Lord would use us and that we could make a difference even as we served Jesus.
Monday morning, after coffee and cereal, we pulled up to the jobsite to find a four foot high block foundation sitting in the middle of the lot with piles of foam board and lumber, sand and gravel around the parameter. With little experience in building a house, we looked like a motley crew of Yankees descending on a barren plot of land in Buena Vista, Virginia.
It wasn’t long before we realized a portion of what our week would entail. Putting down footing drains, tarring foundation, insulating, mixing cement, raking, shoveling gravel, setting sills, setting floor joists, building a girder, nailing down OSB decking, digging footing, setting pilings for the back stoop, and pre-fabricating corner posts for the exterior and interior walls. Even as a glazed look came over our faces, we began to question, “Are we in over our heads?”
Joe Reinhart, Habitat’s Construction Manager put us at ease. “Remember, all volunteers are always on time,” he announced through his smile, “and we’re not here to win a race but to work at a steady pace.”
You know, Joe was right! Each day brought a sense of accomplishment, a feeling of achievement. We did some things the hard way; we did some things the right way. And the work got done.
As each group of Habitat’s “regular” volunteers joined us, they asked questions like, “Where is your church?” and “Why did you come to Lexington?” We were also thanked – for coming, for working, for caring, for sharing. And each evening, before tucking our tired, achy bones into bed, we talked about others who had served the Lord in different ways: Noah and Ruth of the Old Testament; Mother Teresa who worked with the poor of Calcutta, Millard Fuller who founded Habitat for Humanity, and, or course, the ultimate servant, Jesus Christ.
Our last night we talked a bit about our mission for the week. What had been our our goal? Did we meet it? Were we successful? One by one we shared our week’s journey – our stiff joints and blistered fingers; the jobs we did and the things we learned, the people we met and the places we saw. We talked about the homeowner, Heidi, and the incredible surprise that she not only knew where Riverton, NJ was but had grown up in South Jersey and had lived in Cinniminson.
Using our strength and the Lord’s power to do what the Lord wanted us to do, our mission had been met. We built a strong foundation that will support a home for Heidi and her son. We built friendships that will last. And we built on our relationship with the Lord. We learned that when we reached out to serve in His name, Jesus reached out to us and blessed us with joy and satisfaction. During our week in Virginia, Jesus fed our souls, and gave us a sense of fulfillment and contentment. We, a motley group of Yankees from Riverton, NJ, made a difference for the Lord. Using the mighty power of Jesus we “fed” the people of Lexington, Virginia a fine meal of God’s love even as we were fed by that same love. That’s the amazing power of Jesus at work!
Oh, and by the way, there’s always room for one more to serve the Lord. So join us next year on the Adult Mission Trip. We promise: you won’t be disappointed!
Amen and amen.