| The late spiritual writer, Hans Urs Von Balthasar, in commenting on today’s Holy Gospel passage (Matthew 14:14-22) writes: “In the hands of the Master, ordinary means can be used to accomplish the extraordinary” Von Balthasar’s insight speaks directly not only of what Jesus did (the inexplicable miracle!) in feeding the multitudes with only five loaves of bread and two fish, it goes deeper into the meaning of Christ’s action, its significance, and its import for our lives many centuries after those hungry crowds looked to the Master for food.
Jesus’ disciples could only see what they didn’t have, — they saw their limitations, the impossibility of the task. Yet the Lord was perfectly clear when the disciples suggested that the crowds be sent away to go find food for themselves. Jesus flatly responded: “They need not go away. You give them something to eat.” Jesus made the crowd’s problem, the disciples issue. What seemed too big an issue to resolve, Jesus gave to His disciples to deal with. In so doing, Jesus made the crowd’s problem His own. His Eminence Metropolitan Anthony (Bloom), writing of the same passage, notes that: “A thousand men, women, children, and all they have is five loaves of bread and two fishes? And here is a challenge of Christ to them, and of Christ to us. Yes — in a way, God alone can perform this miracle; but not if we do not contribute with openness of heart, and with an open hand. He did not say to His disciples: Keep as much as you need for yourselves, and give the rest, your left-over to others. He says to them: Take all you have, and give it all…” Jesus enlisted his disciples in the miracle that He would effect. The question would become – did the disciples have the willingness and openness of heart to do as Jesus directed them? Humans are not God. We are finite and limited. There are many things we don’t know and many things we can’t do. Reality is bigger than we are. Life is a long and arduous journey. Each mile twists, turns, and may bring us circumstances bigger than or beyond our control. We cannot begin to meet all the needs we encounter. We cannot even meet all of our own needs at times. This is what the disciples were feeling as they faced the daunting task before them. The mountain seemed too high. The challenge seemed too exacting. They felt far from assured and confident. How could they make this happen for the Lord? Spiritual power, or the power of God, whatever you want to call it, is always available and ready to give us the strength we need. The apostle Paul wrote “In him who is the source of my strength, I have strength for everything.”(Philippians 4:13) The disciples were called upon to make that discovery, to realize that, as Von Balthasar wrote: “….Ordinary means can be used to accomplish the extraordinary.” How does this play out in our lives? What can we glean from Jesus’ words and actions in today’s Gospel passage – when life seems too big, too hard to handle? How can we make this Gospel real for us? I suggest five ways Jesus encourages us to persevere when things get rough. Jesus acted out of compassion. Jesus performed this miracle on the heels of facing great grief. He had just lost his beloved cousin and friend John the Baptist who had been killed at the order of Herod. Yet Matt. 14:14 says he had compassion on the people who had followed him, he had such great love, even in the midst of facing his own loss. He knows our pain and the struggles we face. He understands. He’s never too busy, or too distant to care. The problem is not big for Him! Remember the Psalmist’s words: “He is near to the brokenhearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Ps. 34:18 Jesus is bigger than any problem we face. When his disciples came to him with the problem, he instructed them to “give them something to eat,” v.16. In other words, he encouraged them to look for a solution, to take their eyes off the pressing problem and put them on the Answer. Jesus is still the Answer, to every problem we face today. In a world filled with darkness and fear, He is the only true solution for the troubles that surround us. He instructs us today to be salt and light, to feed, to show compassion, to do what seems impossible. Don’t be afraid — Greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4 Jesus asks us to bring Him all we have. He asked the disciples to give him what they had, v.18. The little boy gave all he had, 5 loaves and 2 fish. Offered it all up, though it seemed so meager. The disciples must have thought Jesus was crazy to even ask for it. Among 5000+ people, this would hardly feed even one family. But they still obeyed, they still brought it all to him. This truth remains: obedience and surrender to Christ paves the way for great things to happen. He desires our hearts to be fully yielded to Him, and great miracles can occur as a result. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Matt. 22:37 Jesus can bring blessing and life from brokenness. Jesus, worker of miracles, loving Provider, took what they gave and offered it before God. He gave thanks, blessed it, and broke it, v. 19. Such powerful words, because if we’ve walked through broken times, we know that however hard it is at the time, there’s also great blessing and power that can come through it. He offers our lives, broken pieces and all, and brings us before the Father. That’s the grace and favor that He alone can bring into our lives in the midst of dark places. And it was the very picture of what He was willing to endure on our behalf – the brokenness of the cross, and the blessing and power of the Resurrection. “While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Matt. 26:26 From His brokenness comes our wholeness. Jesus multiplies what we give to Him. And there was enough to feed all, which in reality was probably more like 10,000 – 15,000 people when you count all of the women and children too. It even says they were all “satisfied,” full, content. That’s a lot of mouths to feed on such a small offering of food. But with God, it was enough, it was more than enough. And surely in our lives, when we feel inadequate or what we have to offer seems so small, through Christ, it is enough. He makes it more than enough, v. 20. He is able to multiply our efforts, our gifts, our offerings, our talents and bring complete satisfaction to the deepest places of our souls. God and His Christ can do so much for you and with you. The key is that we allow Him to work in us, surrender our ego and self-centeredness. “He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” Eph. 3:20 Today’s Gospel passage is quite a familiar one to us all. Yet sometimes, if we’re not careful, such popular stories we’ve heard for so long can almost lose part of their significance in being so common. They can lose their power to change us, to remake us, to throw us that life-preserver when the storms batter our hearts and souls. We listen to the words but don’t really “hear” them anymore. Maybe because we’ve heard them so much. We need to truly “hear” them today! The ever-memorable and blessed theologian Fr. John Romanides, gives us the proper perspective when he writes: “The wonder on the mountain in that lonely place comes from the action of Jesus in feeding the multitudes. There is, however, an even greater wonder, one often gone unnoticed. It is the transformation of the disciples, their discovery that with God all things are possible, their new-found awareness that they could do what Jesus directed precisely because he directed that it be done. He is the power. He is the reason. He is the one that can change us also into compassionate, humble, and obedient ministers of the bread and word.” I pray that you receive the words of today’s Gospel with hope and confidence that you too can continue to be transformed into the compassionate and loving Jesus in your every day! Faithfully in the Lord, |
