When Jesus Asks for the Impossible
John 6:1–9
John 6:1–9 (ESV)
After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 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 worth of bread would not be enough 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?”
1. There is never a need too insignificant for God to see
John 6:5 (ESV)
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?”
The question is never: What do I think God sees?
The question is always: What does God see?
2. There is never a problem too big for God to solve
John 6:5–6 (ESV)
He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do.
The question is never: How do I solve this problem?
The question is always: What is God’s plan to solve this problem?
“Our Lord still surveys the needy world with compassion, just as he surveys the micro-world of our personal affairs. He is not without plans. He ‘already has in mind what he will do’ in our time and generation.” - BruceMilne
Mark 6:35–37 (ESV)
And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”
Galatians 5:25 (ESV)
If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.
3. There is never a person too small for God to use
Mark 6:35–37 (ESV)
And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.”
The question is never: What should they do?
The question is always: What does God want me to do?
Someone Else Syndrome
