“But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” And he said, “Bring them here to me.”
Matthew 14:16-18 ESV
There’s something about this exchange I like. Jesus asks his disciples to do something that, to them, seems impossible. But Jesus asks them to do it. Their response seems like a logical response following the request. They look at what they have in the natural and say, “we only have five loaves and two fish”. But Jesus then responds, “Bring them to me”. Jesus is about to do what cannot be done by human logic or reasoning. From 5 loaves and two fish he’s going to make it possible for his disciples to feed a great crowd of over 5,000 people.
Jesus has asked us to do the impossible. CORRECTION: Actually, he asked us to do something that is very possible but seems impossible. Yet, what he asks of us is only possible if done with him and for him. When Jesus said, “you feed them”, he wasn’t asking them to do something they couldn’t do, though they needed to remain dependent on God through his Son Jesus to get the job done. With Jesus, the task was completed. All who ate were satisfied.
I’m going to make a statement that some will disagree with me on. Everything Jesus asked the disciples to do will correlate with what he asks us to do today. Everything from overcoming sin to raising the dead. Some things you’ll be led to do by the Spirit, some things he’s already called you to do through his word – such as love your enemies and forgive those who have sinned against you. I’ll include this in there, “heal the sick” and “proclaim the Gospel”.
Guess what, you are not meant to do any of these things alone but all of us who have been saved are called to observe “all” that he commanded his disciples. Don’t believe me? Revisit the great commission in Matthew 28. Jesus said, “teach them to observe all that I commanded you”. He also followed this by saying, “and I will be with you to the end of the age”. He is with you and me as Christians even to the end of the age.
We the church make many worldly reasoned and logical excuses not to do the things he’s called us to do. This is especially true when it comes to the gifts. But consider this; A man who has a pure heart operating in gifts and pointing to Jesus, is he more effective in cultivating honor and glory toward God than a man who makes excuses and lacks faith. Let’s stop with the excuses and stop being the Lord of our own lives. Instead, let’s trust the word of God. One who is growing in humility and purity is also positioning themselves to grow in the gifts. It’s two-fold. Some grow in humility and righteousness, but not in gifts. And God absolutely loves them. But these gifts are given to us for a purpose, his purpose. So let’s not neglect his gifts or his purpose.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12 (Jesus’ words)
Go read it in context, even better. May you be blessed and may his word enrich your faith to believe, not as you may have been raised to believe, or how a person expects you to believe, or how you want to believe – but how Jesus through his word leads you to believe. Dare to believe Jesus at his word. Let Jesus, as your Lord, be the author of your faith. And may God bless you and me with eyes that see clearly the call of the Gospel and his word of truth.
