Sunday Sermon

"What Is Needed"
[Mark 6:30-56]
April 9, 2006 Second Reformed Church

John the Baptist had been buried, and the disciples, who Jesus had sent out two by two, came back to Him to tell Him what they had taught and what they had done among the people of Israel. And then Jesus told the disciples that they should rest -- they should take time to refresh themselves in a quiet place.

While Moloch and Baal and Asherah and every other god was crying out, "more, more, more," Jesus said there "is a time to keep silence, and a time to speak" (Ecclesiastes 3:7b). Ours is the God Who knows us and cares for us such that He said, "six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work,..." (Exodus 20:9-10a). He also calls us, now, after His Resurrection to rest, "on the first day of the week" (Acts 20:7a).

Many people were coming to Jesus and the disciples, but He knew they were tired, and they hadn't had time to eat, so He sent them away, into a desolate place to rest and prepare themselves for the work that they had coming. And Jesus says the same thing to us today, "You don't have to accomplish everything right now. Take a break; rest and prepare yourself for the crowd that is coming. Rest is necessary."

Do you take time to rest? We need to take the time we need each day and each week to bring ourselves back and to ready ourselves for the good works that God has set out for us. God does not want us to go non-stop -- it's not healthy for us. And we need to be mindful of each other, that we are not expecting others to run at a pace that does not allow them time to rest. Rest is a gift from God that we must all receive and allow others to have it.


Jesus sent the disciples off to rest, but the crowd recognized them and ran after them on foot. Every one of them wanted to be healed and taught and cared for by Jesus and His disciples, and they ran so fast they got to the desolated place before the disciple's boat arrived. And Jesus took pity on them -- they were desperate -- they were like sheep without a shepherd, so Jesus began to teach them, and He taught them hour after hour, and they listened.

What do we think of the desperate, the disillusioned, the disenfranchised? Do we pity them? Do we look at those worshiping false gods and pity them? Do we see those who are pursuing things that will never satisfy and pity them? Or do we pass by on the other side of the road? Do we just say, "God bless you and be at peace"? What or who makes your heart break? And what are you doing about it?
The disciples came to Jesus and told Him that night was upon them, as if He was unaware, and they told Him to send the people away -- they had been with Him all day, listening to Him preach and teach, and now they ought to get something to eat. The crowd had been so wrapped up in what Jesus was saying, that they didn't notice that they hadn't eaten -- have you ever been doing something that you were so excited by, so enraptured with, that you forgot about food -- that you forgot it was time for a meal? Jesus is that way: knowing Jesus is worth more than food. If you haven't had the experience, pray God that there will be a time when listening to Jesus' Word and studying it finds you forgetting about your sandwich. If we are in love with Jesus, there will be times when we suddenly realize that we have forgotten to eat, because we have been so involved with Him.

Jesus told the disciples, "You feed them." And the disciples responded, "Right, we're going to go back with two hundred days' worth of cash and buy this crowd bread." But Jesus said, "No, how many loaves do you have?" And they told Him, "Five and a few fish." That is more than enough for the God of the Universe, and they should have known it They would have known how the prophet Elisha met a man from Baal-shalishah who had twenty loaves of bread and a sack of fresh ears of corn, "And Elisha said, 'Give to the men, that they may eat.' But his servant said, 'How can I set this before a hundred men?' So he responded, 'Give them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the Lord, "They shall eat and have some left."' So he set it before them. And they ate and had some left, according to the word of the Lord" (II Kings 42-44).
Jesus held the bread and fish up to heaven and praised God and prayed, thanking Him for His bounty, and He broke the bread and broke the fish and began filling baskets and told the disciples to distribute them to the people sitting on the grass. And they went around and fed the people -- we're told there were 5,000 men, so it is not unreasonable to think there were about 15,000 people there, if we consider that there could have been an equal number of women and children. And once the 15,000 had been fed, the disciples came back to Jesus with twelve baskets full of bread and fish.

Do you doubt that Jesus can provide for our needs, as individuals and the church? Perhaps we have not always gotten what we wanted, what we thought we needed at a given moment. But the Scripture tells us that if we do not have, it is because we do not need it to accomplish God's purposes. God gives each of us what we need and He gives us more and more.

Paul wrote, "For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from who every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith -- that you, being grounded and rooted in love, may have the strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen" (Ephesians 3:14-21).

Immediately after these things happened, Jesus sent the disciples back to the boat and told them to sail, again, and He would get rid of the crowd. Once Jesus had sent them away, Jesus went into the mountain to pray. Prayer is necessary.

Why do we pray? To change God? To give Him information? To point out His mistakes? Of course not. We pray to align ourselves with the will of God. Prayer changes us. We pray to align ourselves with the will of God. But we have to take time to pray -- alone and with each other -- because that is the example of the Scripture. Our prayers don't have to be fancy or "perfect," whatever that means. But we have to pray. We need to pray that God would help us to understand, that He would lead us, and that He would provide us with all that we need. Prayer is necessary for our health and life: do we pray? Do we take advantage of our prayer time on the fourth Tuesday of the month? Do we gather at other times, or suggest other times to pray? Let us become a people of prayer that are becoming more in line with the Mind of God by His Grace.

While Jesus was praying, a violent wind came up upon the Mediterranean, and the disciples were struggling about mid-way across the sea to sail into the wind to get to Bethsaida. And Jesus walked out across the sea to the disciples, and when they saw Him, they thought He was a vision of some sort and they were shaken to their core, but Jesus said, "Take courage It is I Do not be afraid " And Jesus got into the boat and the storm stopped. But they were still afraid. And the Scripture tells us that they still didn't understand what the bread meant, and their hearts had hardened.

What a sad state of affairs. Those closest to Jesus just didn't get it, and that lack of understand lead to fear. And that's true for us, as well, it is the things we don't understand that we fear, and it is when we don't understand the place of Jesus as God and Lord of the Universe that we fear. For, if we know that Jesus is God and Lord of all, and He is our God, what would we have to fear? We are not a people without hope. Yes, we suffer and mourn loss, but ultimately, we have hope. We know what happened that first Easter morn.

Horatio G. Spafford sent his wife and three daughters from England to their new home on the mainland. They took the first ship, and he was to follow shortly. But a storm rose up and the ship his wife and daughters were on sank, and his three daughters were lost at the bottom of the sea. Surely he mourned their loss, but he did not fear, because he had a sure hope. He made the voyage across the sea to be reunited with his wife, and as he sailed across the deep where his daughters had died, he wrote these familiar words, "When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll, whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, 'It is well, it is well with my soul.'"

Is it well with your soul? Do you know that Jesus is the Lord and God of all? If you do, then you will come to receive whatever comes from His Hand and not be afraid, but, instead be satisfied in Him.

They crossed to the other side of the sea and landed at Genesaret and they docked, and when they disembarked, they were immediately recognized, and the people rushed to Jesus with their sick, bringing them on their mats -- on their beds, if necessary. No matter where Jesus went, the people ran after Him and sought salvation from Him. Action is necessary.

The word that we translate, "begged," is a word the indicates that these people not only begged Jesus with words, but they pressed against Him, they got in His Face, and they would not leave Him alone until they had touched and been healed -- saved.

And we remember from the woman with an issue of blood who was healed when she touched Jesus' robe, Jesus did not have a magic robe. No, Jesus healed her and He had compassion on those begging Him for healing. Jesus had compassion on them, and He has compassion on His people. Jesus has compassion on us. Look at where we are, who we are, and think about where we could have been. If we understand how much worse off we could be, we can understand how much compassion Jesus has shown us -- how much He has blessed us. Do you realize how blessed you are? Do you understand the enormity of the compassion Jesus has shown to you? Merely consider what He suffered, willingly, for you.

James wrote, "If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says, 'Go in peace, be warmed and filled,' without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?" (James 2:15). What can you give of your abundance? What's holding you back?

The crowd persisted after God's Will and they received results, and so shall we. If we are about God's Will. If we seek after God and His Kingdom, we shall receive it.

To live the Christian live, action is needed, prayer is needed, and rest is needed. Each at the right time and in the right amount. As we live the Christian life, we learn that Jesus has compassion for His own, He is the Lord and God of the universe, and He provides for all of our needs.

Even on that first Palm Sunday, we see Jesus having compassion on Jerusalem, crying for them and their sin as He prepared to ride in. We see the crowds recognizing Him as the One True King of Israel as they threw the palms and their cloaks down to make a path of comfort as they welcomed the new King into the city. And we see Him providing for our needs, in His Life, through the horrific events the week of the crucifixion, and then as He rose from the dead.

Let us pray:
King Jesus, we come before You as people who have not taken the rest You give us. Forgive us and teach us to love a holy rest. We come before You as a people have shuffled You off to the corner, rather than bowing before Your Throne. Forgive us and humble us that we might be right witnesses to Your Majesty. We come before You as a people who say "it's not my job." Forgive us for shirking our duty to You and Your creation. Make us understand that You have equipped each one of us and given us good works to carry out in Your Name. Increase our trust in You and make us compassionate towards each other for Your Sake. In Jesus' Name, Amen.