Mark 6

(Matthew 14:13-21; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15)

30-34 The twelve disciples (that is, apostles) returned from their preaching journey and reported to Jesus all that had happened. Then, because they were tired, they crossed the sea by boat, hoping to find a solitary place.⁴² But the crowds saw them leave and ran around by the shore, and were waiting for them when they landed on the opposite side.

But Jesus did not say, “I am tired.” He did not send the crowd away. The people were like sheep without a shepherd (verse 34), and Jesus, being a good shepherd (John 10:11), had compassion on them and began teaching them many things (see Matthew 9:36). He also healed their sick (Matthew 14:14).

35-37 The disciples began to worry about how all the people gathered there were going to find food in such a remote place. The disciples were always worrying about such things. They said to Jesus, “Send the people away.” But Jesus did not want to send the people away. He had a plan: He was going to use His disciples to feed the crowd. So Jesus said, “You give them something to eat.”

The disciples protested that it would take two hundred denarii—eight months’ wages—to buy enough food for that many people (2 Kings 4:42-44).

38 Then Jesus asked how much food they had with them. When they had found out, they said, “Five loaves and two fish.” The five loaves and two fish, in fact, belonged to a small boy whom Andrew had found in the crowd (John 6:8-9). So they gave the loaves and the fish to Jesus. That was the boy’s supper—hardly enough to feed one adult, let alone thousands.

39-44 Then Jesus performed one of His greatest miracles. Taking the five loaves and two fish, He divided them among the crowd. There were five thousand men there, and besides the men, there were women and children as well (Matthew 14:21). They all ate and were satisfied (verse 42).

Out of those loaves and fish, Jesus, the living God, created enough food to feed the entire crowd. With God nothing is impossible (Mark 10:27). But Jesus first took what the little boy had given to the disciples. In the same way, Jesus also asks us to give Him what we have. We may not have much. We may say, “I am poor; our church is poor.” But Jesus says: “Give me what you have.” And when we obey Him, when we are ready to share what little we have, He will take what we give Him and use it to do mighty works. Let us, therefore, not look at our own resources and say, “We can never feed all those people.” Rather, let us look at Jesus and His power. He is able to feed them. And when Jesus feeds people, they are satisfied.

Just as Jesus gave the crowd physical food, so He also gives people spiritual food. He offers us living water (John 4:10), and when we have drunk it we shall never thirst again (John 4:13-14). He offers us the bread of life, and when we have eaten it we shall never hunger again (John 6:35). If Jesus could feed over five thousand people with five loaves and two fish, He can certainly feed, both bodily and spiritually, everyone who comes to Him in faith. Jesus is not only the creator of all life (John 1:3); He is also the sustainer of all life, both physical and spiritual.

The feeding of the five thousand is not only a tremendous miracle; it is also an illustration of how the kingdom of God grows. It is a parable of missions. We need to ask the question: At what point did the loaves and fish begin to multiply? They began to multiply as they left the disciples’ hands. As the disciples began to give, they kept on having more and more to give.

Some Christians are like the little boy—they are providers. Other Christians are like the disciples—they are distributors. And out in the world are the hungry multitudes, waiting to be fed the bread of life.

Jesus, the Son of God, with whom is all authority in heaven and on earth, has chosen us to help Him feed the multitudes. He could do it by Himself, but He has chosen not to. He has chosen, instead, to use us. And as we give to Him our resources, our time, our skills, ourselves, He will use us to reach the hungry multitudes, and in the process He will enrich us beyond all imagining.

(Matthew 14:22-36; John 6:16-24)

45 According to John’s Gospel, when Jesus had finished feeding the five thousand, the people said among themselves, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world” (Deuteronomy 18:15; John 6:14). John says that the people wanted to make Jesus their king by force. But Jesus didn’t let them. He dismissed the people and withdrew by Himself to pray (John 6:15).

When Jesus saw that the people were about to try to make Him their king, He immediately sent His disciples away by boat to Bethsaida.⁴³ Jesus’ disciples also wanted Him to be a king. They didn’t understand yet that instead of becoming a king, Jesus must suffer and die. If He became an earthly king, He would have no chance to suffer and be killed, and thus God’s plan for man’s salvation would have been blocked. Therefore, Jesus didn’t want His disciples to remain in that place and listen to the crowd talk about making Him a king. So He immediately sent them away from there.

Satan had promised to make Jesus the ruler of many nations if Jesus would agree to worship him (Matthew 4:8-9). Again the temptation had come. Again Christ resisted the temptation. He was not to be an earthly king, but rather a suffering servant (Isaiah 53:3,11). His kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36).

46-47 Therefore, after sending away His disciples, Jesus then dismissed the crowd, and went into the hills to pray. His disciples, meanwhile, were in a boat trying to row toward Bethsaida. But the wind was blowing against them, and they were blown off course toward the middle of the lake.

48-50 At the fourth watch of the night—about 3 A.M.—Jesus came to them walking on the water. He was about to pass by them (verse 48). He wanted to test their faith. The disciples were terrified because they thought they were seeing a ghost. But Jesus told them not to be afraid. “It is I.”

Then, according to Matthew 14:28-31, Peter said: “Lord, if it’s you … tell me to come to you on the water” (Matthew 14:28). Peter was testing Jesus to see if He was real or only a ghost. Jesus said, “Come.” So Peter, at first full of courage, stepped onto the water and walked toward Jesus. But then his faith failed him. He took his eyes off Jesus, and began to look at the wind and the waves. Peter forgot that Jesus was Lord of the wind and waves (Mark 4:39-41). And he began to sink. But Jesus held on to him and brought him into the boat. Then Jesus said to him, “You of little faith … why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31).

We, likewise, whenever we take our eyes off Jesus and begin to look at our troubles, will surely sink. If we have faith in Jesus and in His promises, we shall not be afraid of wind and waves.

According to Matthew 14:30, after Peter had looked at the waves and begun to be afraid, he again turned his eyes to Jesus and cried out, “Lord, save me!” We, too, when troubles come upon us and we feel like we are sinking, can call out to Jesus, and He will hold out His hand and keep us from sinking. Peter did not try to save himself; neither should we.

51-52 The disciples were amazed. They had seen Jesus feed the multitude. They had just seen Him walk on water. Earlier, they had seen Him still the storm (Mark 4:39-41). But even having seen all this, they still did not understand who Jesus really was. When they saw Him on the water, they said, “It’s a ghost” (Matthew 14:26); but they should have said: “It’s the Lord.” If they had known that Jesus was God, they would not have been amazed at these miracles. They would not have been terrified. They didn’t know who Jesus was because their hearts were hardened (verse 52). They did not fully believe in Jesus. They were still men of little faith.

Nevertheless, Matthew writes that after Peter and Jesus got into the boat and the wind died down, the disciples worshiped Jesus and said, “Truly you are the Son of God” (Matthew 14:33). Finally they had begun to be aware of who Jesus was.

53-56 Here Mark gives a final description of Jesus’ healing ministry in Galilee (see Matthew 15:29-31). And all who touched him were healed (verse 56). Even those who touched the edge of His cloak were healed (see Mark 5:27-29).

According to John 6:22-24, the morning after the feeding of the five thousand, the crowd looked for Jesus. They had seen the disciples leave in the boat without Jesus, so they supposed that Jesus was still nearby. They still wanted to make Him a king.

But finally, when they could not find Jesus anywhere, they got into some boats that had come from the city of Tiberias,⁴⁴ and went across the lake in search of Him.