INTRO
News flash: I like food! You know — with a dash of seriousness — it doesn’t take a master chef to see that I’ve had a love-affair with food for some years. I’m like a lot of Americans, I often eat more than I need, in order be “satisfied.”
A number of years ago, I went to weight watchers and lost a 45 lbs; and then I put it back on again. Anyway, the Weight Watchers gurus use to say, “Eat until your satisfied; then put down your fork.” Okay, this was Jason they were talking too.
Lots of us would ask, “What do you mean, eat until you’re satisfied?” What they were trying to say was, “Listen to your body. When it tells you you’re full —stop eating!” What’s interesting though, is the other side of the plate. If we’re not eating enough and our tummies are rumbling, then we need to eat some more. In the perfect world, we’d all eat the right amount of food that our bodies need, and have good health. That’s something I’ve been aiming for lately.
I’m trying not to eat too much, or too little, while also exercising quite a bit. I’m learning what it means to consume just the right amount of food and drink in order to live a healthy life. Much is the same in the spiritual world.
This morning, if you haven’t already guessed, we’re gonna look at what it means to be satisfied in Jesus Christ: both physically, and spiritually. So with that, please turn in your bibles to the Matthew 14:13–21. Let’s read it again to satisfy our hungry souls, and to feed those listening on the website. READ MATTHEW 14:13–21
JESUS PROVIDES
Okay, the first thing we see going here is that the crowds were following Jesus wherever he went. The day was getting late, the disciples wanted Jesus to dismiss the crowds so they could go and get something to eat. Then we hear Jesus’ reply, “You give them something to eat… and then came their retort: “We only have five loaves of bread and two fish.” They’re reply was understandable — in the flesh, but it was also an excuse — in the flesh.
What the disciples were essentially saying is “We don’t know how to feed the people; we can’t see beyond our limited understanding of the natural world.” From a human perspective, I think we can understand the disciples reply. Here’s the twelve, and they were looking out over the Galilean hillside, seeing thousands of people.
Matthew records that 5000 men were present that day, plus women and children. You know, some of the men would have been single, a few married without kids, and others married with children. The bible doesn’t give an exact number; we just know more than 5000 people were with Jesus and the disciples that day, and they were probably hungry.
Still, no matter how we split it, it can be difficult for us to envision dividing 5 loaves of bread and two fish — even if they were really big fish —5,000 ways. We can see why the disciples thought as they did; it’s just doesn’t seem possible in the natural realm. Still, Jesus doesn’t work in the natural alone; and the disciples knew that.
All this aside, there’s one other thing going on here too, one it’s good to see. The disciples didn’t want to feed the crowds, even after Jesus challenged them to do so.
In today’s language we could say that Jesus was the ultimate pastor; and the disciples — well, they were like the church in training. It’s kind of like they were saying to him, “Pastor Jesus, we don’t want to do the work you’re calling us to do. You do it, and we’ll watch.”
But look how Jesus responds: not with a rebuke, but with loving comfort and by getting the disciples to help him feed the crowds. What we need to see is that Jesus provided for the needs of the people, as the ultimate pastor, and encouraged and challenged the disciples to minister with him and feed the people with the miracle that he provided. This is how.
He provided in a three ways: physically — but satisfying the hunger of the people; pastorally — by satisfying them with loving comfort, grace, and fellowship; and lastly, by satisfying their hunger-pains to be forgiven. In all these ways, Jesus satisfied their hunger by providing what they needed the most. And the bible says that they all ate, and that they were all satisfied. But, what does this word “satisfied.”
THEY ALL ATE, AND WERE SATISFIED
The word satisfied we see here in the English, translates to means two things in Biblical Greek. The first way means to become full on food — like fish and bread. The people ate enough so that it filled their tummies. In fact, there was just enough left over that the disciples had to pick up the leftovers after the meal was done. Jesus provided enough food to fill the bellies of every man, woman and child there, plus a little bit more.
Okay, now the second way this word translates is this: “to experience inward satisfaction.” This takes satisfaction a bit deeper, and points to our attitudes, gratitude’s, and general outlook on life. So, what we’re seeing here is that Jesus also put spiritual food in their souls. That brings us to the second and third points.
Jesus filled their spiritual need; they were satisfied in him. They got enough from Jesus that they didn’t have to look elsewhere to fulfill their hunger, or their lack thereof. Allow me to divert for a few minutes with a comical tale that’ll help illustrate my point. I received this a few weeks ago, and it had me laughing so hard that I cried and about piddled my pants. This is titled, a new look at creation.
UNSATISIFED WITH GOD’S PROVISION
In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth and populated the Earth with broccoli, cauliflower and spinach, green and yellow and red vegetables of all kinds, so Man and Woman would live long and healthy lives.
Then using God's great gifts, Satan created Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Krispy Creme Donuts. And Satan said, “You want chocolate with that?” And Man said, “Yes!” and Woman said, “And as long as you're at it, add some sprinkles.” And they gained 10 pounds; and Satan smiled.
And God created the healthful yogurt that Woman might keep the figure that Man found so fair. And Satan brought forth white flour from the wheat and sugar from the cane and combined them. And Woman went from size 6 to size 14.
So God said, “Try my fresh green salad.” And Satan presented Thousand-Island Dressing, buttery croutons and garlic toast on the side. And Man and Woman unfastened their belts following the repast.
God then said, “I have sent you heart-healthy vegetables and olive oil in which to cook them.” And Satan brought forth deep fried fish and chicken-fried steak so big it needed its own platter. And Man gained more weight and his cholesterol went through the roof.
God then created a light, fluffy white cake, named it “Angel Food Cake,” and said, “It is good.” Satan then created chocolate cake and named it “Devil's Food.”
God then brought forth running shoes so that His children might lose those extra pounds. And Satan gave cable TV with a remote control, so Man would not have to toil changing the channels. And Man and Woman laughed and cried before the flickering blue light and gained pounds.
Then God brought forth the potato, naturally low in fat and brimming with nutrition. And Satan peeled off the healthful skin and sliced the starchy center into chips and deep-fried them. And Man gained pounds.
God then gave lean beef so that Man might consume fewer calories and still satisfy his appetite. And Satan created McDonald's and its 99-cent double cheeseburger. Then he said, “You want fries with that?” And Man replied, “Yes! And super size them!” And Satan said, “It is good.” And Man went into cardiac arrest.
God sighed and created quadruple bypass surgery. Then Satan created Cuts to the Health Care System, and yearly increased our premiums.
I thought you’d get a chuckle from that. In all seriousness though, there’s a couple of things going on here that’s good to see. In this little story, humankind is always on the search for more-and-more; we’re often not satisfied with that which God provides. Instead, we often want to gorge on things we don’t need, that in the end, never satisfy our appetite.
You know truly, as American’s, we’re often not spiritually satisfied with God gives, so we look elsewhere to find satisfaction with the enticing things of this world. All we have to do is look out from our four walls and see the thousands of people who’re starving for something, but they don’t know what that something is.
In reality, they’re starving for that which only Jesus can provide — spiritually speaking. Still, most folks say they don’t want Jesus, so they try to find satisfaction in bottle, on drugs, on food, in sports, at the lake or up the river, at the mall… the list can go on-and-one… anything but Jesus and the church. It’s ironic: as people, we want — no, we crave —spiritual satisfaction; but many won’t come to the one who can satisfy their hunger and thirst.
In some ways, I wonder if we’re partially to blame, because we like to say, Pastor Jesus, or pastor so-and-so, you do the work. You give the people what they need, I’ll watch as you provide. Still, to us, the Pastor of all pastors doesn’t rebuke; he simply pulls us into what’s he’s doing as the one who’s more than enough for all, and challenges us to feed his flock.
JESUS IS MORE THAN ENOUGH (TO SATISIFY OUR NEEDS)
Notice, Jesus says to his disciples, “Bring them here to me.” To us, he’s saying the same thing; but often, we want to resist. However, we shouldn’t, because Jesus Christ, the Pastor of Pastors, has already given us all we need. He gives us all the food and drink we want, and so much more. He’s brought us into this wonderful family and the kingdom of God through the forgiveness of sins and the sharing of a common meal.
Yet, sometimes we’re still not satisfied with Jesus provides, so we look elsewhere to try and fill our hunger, because we think we need more to fill our needs. And when that happens, we forget about those who are starving outside our walls, because we’ve become spiritually fat, and in danger of spiritual, cardiac arrest. Nevertheless, we can’t escape the reality that Jesus has called us all into ministry, and is commanding us all to “Bring them here to [him].”
You know, Jesus is more than enough to fill our needs. And, If he’s good enough for us, than he’s good enough for those who aren’t here with us this morning. Maybe those who aren’t here with us are people who’ve stopped coming for a while; maybe their members who walked away years ago; or maybe they’re friends, family, and neighbors that have never heard how they can truly be satisfied in this life.
Let me wrap up with this. I’d like to challenge you for the next five weeks to do a two, simple things. Number one, for the next month, allow this message to digest in your soul; and number two, think of one person who’s not satisfied with what life’s given them so far, someone who hungers for more, but doesn’t know what that more is. Here’s why.
The theme for this coming fall season is going to help us focus on those who hunger and thirst for spiritual satisfaction, and Jesus is calling us to bring them here to him, so they too can find satisfaction in him, just as you hopefully have already done so yourself.
