But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” Mt 14:16
In the feeding of the five-thousand, the disciples express their concern to Jesus for the crowds by suggesting that the crowds go into the village and get something to eat. It is a no doubt a heart-felt and pragmatic solution. But Jesus surprises them by commanding them, “You give them something to eat”.
But the reason that the disciples were suggesting that the multitude find food in the villages is because they themselves did not have any to share. Why then, would Jesus ask them to feed five to ten thousand people, when all they had among themselves was five loaves and two fish?
They therefore question his command by reminding him of their inability to meet the need with what they had. Jesus addresses their confusion by instructing them to bring all that they have to him. He then blesses the bread and the fish and breaks it and gives it to the disciples with instructions to distribute it to the crowd and all were fed and satisfied, resulting in a surplus of twelve baskets of leftovers.
It has been said, “love is like two fish and five loaves of bread, it’s never enough until it’s given away”. But it is only enough if what is given away is first given to Jesus and has his blessing upon it. We must bring our busy schedules, homes, food and kind intentions to Jesus and ask him to so bless them that they might be multiplied in reaching out to others.
He is the true bread that has come down from heaven that we must share with others. But he often chooses to share himself through our expressions of hospitality and serving in his name. If we can’t get our neighbors into our homes as friends, we can hardly expect them to come into the church and become family. I think Jesus hears all of our objections to his call to hospitality, and would have us bring it all to him. Would you ask him to bless you, break you, and send you out to invite others into your home and into your church to share the bread of life.
