I rejoiced with those who said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the Lord.” Psalm 122:1

Loaves of Bread and Giving Thanks

Lent 4 Laetare – Pr. Anderson sermon
St. John 6:1-15 “Loaves of Bread and Giving Thanks”
March 10, 2024 | Christ Lutheran Church

In Nomine Iesu
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Lord God, heavenly Father, by Your Son You fed five thousand men in the wilderness with five loaves and two fish: We beseech You graciously to abide also with us in the fullness of Your blessing. Preserve us from greed and the cares of this life, that we may seek first Your kingdom and Your righteousness, and in all things perceive Your fatherly goodness; through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one true God, now and forever. Amen. (Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary, by Veit Dietrich, p. 152)

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. (Rom. 1:7, etc.)

The sermon text for today is taken from the 6th chapter of the Gospel according to St. John. We read selected verses in Jesus’ name:

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?” He said this to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.
Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?”
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. 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.

These are Your words, heavenly Father. Sanctify us by Your truth, Your Word is truth. Amen. (Joh. 17:17)

In Christ Jesus, who feeds you with eternal food so that you will never hunger or thirst, and it gives you eternal life, dear fellow redeemed:

When I was finishing seminary, us seniors were tasked with delivering a sermon in Trinity Chapel. We were the first seniors to do it since the pandemic. It was very nerve-racking to be in front of all those people. You had your classmates, the Seminary faculty, the Bethany campus, plus all the people who were watching online. While Trinity Chapel can hold so many people, it doesn’t compare to the crowd that Jesus had sitting before Him. Over 5,000 people were on the grass, listening to His Word. That is more people than the town I grew up in. Jesus was accustomed to being in front of the crowds and having a variety of listeners. Many times, along with His disciples, Jesus would be preaching in front of His enemies. As Jesus taught these people, He was doing something special for them. He was providing for them. With some loaves of bread Jesus gave thanks and fed them all until they were full. Not only were their stomachs full, but they had also been eating from the bread of life.

The disciples did not understand what the Bread of Life was planning. After being asked some questions from their teacher, they might have been thinking how crazy He was. 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?” He said this to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do. Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” This is a reasonable response from Philip. This was over half a year’s wages, which the disciples and Jesus probably didn’t have, and even if they did, it wasn’t going to be enough. There is a little humor here in what Jesus is asking. Not only was the cost not going to be enough, but they were not that close to town. The disciples are not doing too well with Jesus’ test.

Keeping the distance in the group of people, the disciples located something. One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” Again, this is reasonable, the amount of food that they have does not come near to two hundred denarii worth of food. The disciples are revealing their faith in Jesus to help and it isn’t much. The disciples have already witnessed Jesus perform miracles. Thinking about Jesus and His power to provide went right out the window. The only thought is in the here and now. The crowd is far too large. We can easily point out their forgetfulness and their lack of faith that Jesus can provide.

Now it might be easy for us to point out the disciple’s flaws in this account, but we really shouldn’t be so hasty. Could we think on the fly like they were being asked to do? Their teacher was asking them for a solution to provide food for over 5,000 people. Here is this monster of a crowd sitting there in front of you. First, they were watching your teacher, and now they are watching you discuss what should be done about the situation. If we were in this situation, it might be easy to forget about the Teacher performing miracles already. Jesus had already provided for people when there was something needed. His first miracle was providing wine for a wedding that had run out. He made it appear in abundance.

Making food or wine appear isn’t the crux of the issue. It’s not even about if we have doubt that God can provide for such things. Jesus reveals to this entire crowd that not only He can provide for their physical needs, but He is the food that they should be always craving. Like the disciples, we can forget what Jesus gives us. To all who believe and listen to His Word, He gives life and Salvation. When situations arise in our lives, we will quickly focus on the things that are temporary. The disciples and the crowd were in a situation where they needed food. They were focused on that instead of what Jesus was truly providing for them. He is giving them food so that they will never be hungry again. God’s Word is all that we need to sustain ourselves. So as problems and situations arise in our lives that get us to focus on what is temporary, Jesus wants us to not look at the number of loaves, but that He has the loaves and gives thanks.

After failing the test, Jesus takes control like a teacher taking control of a very large classroom. 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. 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. We can’t even fathom the extent of this miracle. Not only did these five barley loaves feed this entire crowd, it’s not like they ate only a small piece of it. Every single person was able to eat as much as they wanted.

How can loaves of bread and giving thanks do all of this? The disciples now see it wasn’t about what they had; it is about who is going to do it. This is the man who was tempted in the wilderness to turn stones into bread so that He could eat. Instead, out in the wilderness, Jesus takes the bread, gives thanks, and He gives it to all of the people. He is the provider. This is what He wants the disciples and the crowd to see. As the devil tempts in the wilderness, it is Jesus who feeds Himself to all. He provides strength and nourishment for all the tough times because He went through all the tough times. His food gives life everlasting.

This life everlasting is an overabundance of what we deserve. When we are tested, it is easy to be like the disciples, and wonder how the world gets us out of this mess? Instead of focusing on how “we” can do it, we look at how Jesus does it. And when they had eaten their fill, He told His disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign that He had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” The Prophet gives His tell away as He gives thanks to His heavenly Father for the blessings the people receive. These blessings flow out of what Jesus can do, providing food for body and soul.

Jesus knows how hungry you are in this life. He knows that you are craving ways in which you can survive the onslaught of tests, trials, and temptations. The prophet Isaiah prophesied the same words of comfort that you receive in our text. “They shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them, for he who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them” (Isaiah 49:10). The Prophet, Jesus Christ, gives you the food that will always keep your stomach full. He takes the onslaught of tests, trials, and temptations on Himself to the cross, where you give thanks for what He has done. It is this spiritual food that nourishes you, giving you strength to survive the world and brings you into the life that will come after. Life that you know you have as you hear in His Word how death could not contain Him.

As Christ conquers even death, the world unfortunately would rather look for a temporary fix. Perceiving then that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by Himself. The devil wants the world to focus on an earthly king. If Jesus is turned into a bread king, then we could just make Him do whatever we want. He can make our problems go away. He could even give the stamp of approval on things that we want to do. Jesus did not come to be a bread king. He came to be eternal food. When there are days where we fall to the temptation and try to get Jesus to give us whatever we want, He brings forgiveness for those sins. That forgiveness is found in His body and blood. As the people were given loaves of bread and fish to eat, you receive the blessed food of Christ’s body and blood in the Sacrament of Holy Communion. Christ gave thanks, giving this Sacrament to His disciples and to you. The meal that you rely on Him fully. A meal that fills you up and brings eternal life.

This is the joy of being fed by Christ. This is food that nourishes the soul. In the miracle today, the world sees how Christ took care of those who needed food. He fed them with five loaves of bread and two fish. He took the loaves of bread and gave thanks. Just like taking this bread, He did the same thing when He took the bread from the table and gave it to His disciples saying “Take, eat, this is My body which is given for you. This do, in remembrance of me.” Like with the loaves of bread, the disciples and the crowd were getting much better food. The whole reason they were there was to hear what Jesus had to say. They were being fed by His holy Word. This is what makes this event special because the world sees where they get their food that makes them never go hungry. Food that comes from the bread of life. He feeds us in His Word and Sacraments, and one day in the future, He will feed us at the great heavenly feast. Amen.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forevermore. Amen.