Quest 16

Mar 6

Ask yourself: What are my needs?

Only one miracle is recorded in all four Gospels prior to the Resurrection. It teaches us something about Jesus providing for our needs.

The Situation (Mark 6:31-32)

And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves.
Jesus was grieving the death of a dear friend. John the Baptist had been killed during King Herod’s birthday party (Matthew 14:13) - Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself.
The crowds ran after the boat for miles along the shoreline (Mark 6:33-34). There would be no rest for Jesus and his disciples. Jesus taught the crowds until late in the day (Mark 6:35-36).

JESUS CAN PROVIDE FOR YOUR NEEDS.

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

-- Philippians 4:19

1. JESUS CAN PROVIDE FOR YOUR NEEDS – IF YOU GET THE ORDER RIGHT.

He dealt with their spiritual needs before their physical needs (Mark 6:34).
The day after the Feeding of the 5000, the crowds gathered to Jesus, but he did not feed them again but taught them (John 6:26) - Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.”
The first day they had the order right – spiritual needs before physical needs. The second day they had the order wrong – physical needs before spiritual needs.
Jesus said to get the order right (Matthew 6:33) – “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

2. JESUS CAN PROVIDE FOR YOUR NEEDS - IF YOU DO YOUR PART.

“Since what I do won’t make much of a difference, I won’t do anything at all.” This was the attitude of the apostles (Mark 6:35-37).
- Jesus didn’t buy it (Mark 6:38).
- When you fall into that mindset, Jesus still doesn’t accept that.
A little given to Jesus is a lot in his hands.
- When this boy left his house with his lunch, he had no idea what his lunch would become (John 6:8-9) - 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?”
- A little faith packs a lot of power (Matthew 17:20) – “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
- What you do with little is an indication to God of what you would do with much (Luke 16:10) – “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.”

3. JESUS CAN PROVIDE FOR YOUR NEEDS – IF YOU RECOGNIZE HIM IN THE BROKEN BREAD.

Jesus took the bread in his hands and broke it (Mark 6:41). Don’t you think Jesus could have made 5,000 loaves of bread, one for each family?
Jesus had to be broken for your eternal life (John 6:53) – “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
Jesus broke the bread as he would be broken (Mark 14:22) - And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.”
Jesus broke bread and revealed himself (Luke 24:30-31) - When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him.
Hope was resurrected when he took the bread in his hands and broke it (Luke 24:33, 35) - And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem….Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.