For Dec. 11: Feeding of the 5,000
READ: Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-14
PRAY: Make a point of “blessing” your food at mealtime… does it make a difference to eat “blessed” food or not? Thank God for the ways He blesses you, and ask God to use you as a blessing.
DO: Take a piece of bread to a local park (hopefully on a warm day) and use it to feed the birds. Notice how many birds are fed through this one simple act. What will happen to the bread that’s not eaten? How will it continue to provide nourishment for even more?
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Remember a time when you were “really hungry”? What did you feel like? How did it feel when you were finally able to eat?
In what ways has God taken care of you and your family?
Has God provided for your needs? Can you tell the difference between your “needs” and your “wants”? How do you tell them apart?
How do you manage your “wants” and “needs”? Are there things in your house that you don’t “need” that others could benefit from more than you?
Why do you think that some people seem to have everything while others seem to have nothing? Is this bad luck, effects from bad decisions, punishment from God, or something else? Does God meet everyone’s needs? How do we know our needs, and if they’re being met?
Why does Jesus describe himself as the “Bread of Life” (John 6:35)?
I have been using http://www.biblegateway.com/
to keep up with my readings. You can look at multiple versions to compare.
That's an excellent resource. Some of the translations I look to most often are as follows...
From an academic standpoint:
New International Version
New Revised Standard Version
(you can find this at http://bible.oremus.org/)
Revised Standard Version
For more "contemporary" language or readability:
The Message
English Standard Version
New Living Translation
Because it's been used for so long by so many people, to get a sense of where a lot of cultural understandings have come from:
New King James Version
Young's Literal Translation may also be helpful to you... imagine your teacher in a second year high school language class choosing the most common words and as much as possible, without reordering the sentences for English grammar, offering you a word for word translation... it's a good resource when the translations differ greatly on a word and you wonder what the original language might have said.
Lesson 34 – Feeding of the 5,000
Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-14
Big Idea: God provides more than enough for all of us.
Historical Background (Adapted from The People’s New Testament Commentary, Boring & Craddock)
This is the only miracle story about Jesus recorded in all four Gospels. In fact, there are six accounts of Jesus feeding the people recorded in the New Testament (see also the feeding of the 4,000 in Mark 8:1-10 and Matthew 15:32-39)– many, if not all, pointing to the same historical event. As each Gospel writer tells this important story, however, they do so in a way that highlights different dimensions of their faith. For example, Matthew’s version of this story in chapter 14 follows immediately on the heels of King Herod’s deadly banquet, contrasting Jesus’ kingdom from earthly ones. Luke’s version is placed in between Herod’s question about Jesus’ identity and Peter’s confession, illustrating through Jesus’ actions who he is as the Son of God (cf. Luke 24:13-35, where Jesus is “made known to them in the breaking of the bread.”) In John’s version, this miracle is the sign that introduces Jesus’ “bread of life” narrative.
One of the greatest themes emphasized in the retelling of the feeding miracles is the Eucharistic connection, especially Jesus’ action of taking the bread, blessing, breaking and giving it recorded in Mark 6:41. Compare these accounts with the early Eucharistic liturgy recorded elsewhere in Scripture (Mark 14:22-25, Matt 26:26-30, Luke 22:14-20, John 6:48-58, and 1 Cor 11:23-25). In fact, John’s version of the last supper does not give any account of the institution of the Eucharist as the sacrament we celebrate today – instead, John includes all his Eucharistic material (reflecting early church practice) in the narration of this story (John 6:11-13). One such element is the distribution of the bread by Christ himself – a reflection of the living Christ’s presence as the one who offers the believer the bread of life in the Christian celebration of the Eucharist.
Application
We’re told that “all ate and were filled” (Mark 6:42). What is the significance of this for us?
Compare this event with Exodus 16:1-15. What truth can we discern about God from these accounts?
Imagine you’re the disciples. What’s going on at the beginning of these stories from their perspective? How might they have felt? How can the experience of the disciples inform us in our own living?
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