1 During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, 2 “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.”
4 His disciples answered, “But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?”
5 “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.
“Seven,” they replied.
6 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people, and they did so. 7 They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. 8 The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 9 About four thousand were present. After he had sent them away, 10 he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the region of Dalmanutha.
The best (read: most telling) part of this scripture to me is the absolutely density of the disciples. They saw the feeding of the five thousand; saw it with their own eyes. And yet, when they end up in nearly the exact same situation and Jesus again questions them about what they should do, what do they say? “But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?” HELLO. *knocks on heads of disciples* How can you possibly ask that, people? It seems so silly. Have you forgotten so soon?
Well, in a word... yes. Just like we do. We see God's power in full-blown action. We see the way he answers prayers and how he can truly do immeasurably more than all we ask or think. But send one little trial our way, and oh how quickly we forget. How fast we begin to rely on our own power, or doubt his ability to hear us.
In this respect, we are all the same. "Remember Pearl Harbor" or "Never Forget 9/11"... we want them to be true, but the truth is that as we go back to our normal lives, forget we do. God help us never to forget the incredible things he has done for us.
Mark 8:11-13
11 The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. 12 He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to it.” 13 Then he left them, got back into the boat and crossed to the other side.
I love the thought of Jesus sighing deeply. I don't love the fact that he was frustrated, but I love how that sigh shows him as so very human. He's beginning to tire of this world and dealing with people that just don't get it. I wonder: does this world make us sigh? Or have we acclimated ourselves to the point where things don't affect us anymore? I'm not encouraging us all to become a whimpering bunch of negative nellies, but I do think we need to be more attuned to the evil the world throws at us. I'm afraid we're like the proverbial frog in a pot... the very fires of hell are heating this old world up until it's barely recognizable as the beautiful thing God created, and we Christians have become so used to it that we're boiling alive and don't even know it. Sad times.
Those Pharisees could worry the horns off a billy goat, but the good news is that we know the end of this story. Hint: the Pharisees aren't around anymore. He wins in the end. ;)
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