Blessed to bless others
Written by Senior Pastor Ndayiragije-Misigaro Joel, February 27, 2023
Matthew 14:19 "And He directed the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he spoke a blessing. Then He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people."
INTRODUCTION
It was a small gesture, but it meant the world. The crowd that day was stunned not only by Jesus's lavish giving but also by his never-ending concern for and love for his followers. That Jesus could feed such a large crowd from such meager means is a reminder of his power and the possibility of abundance that is available to all who put their faith in him, even in the face of apparent scarcity. This life-altering experience exemplified what Jesus meant when he said, "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Through this humble act of kindness, God's kingdom was made manifest as a present reality, showering people with signs of divine abundance, grace, and hope.
The event was a powerful example of how faith works and how miraculous things can happen when you put your trust in God.
It was a miraculous demonstration of how the lives of those who put their faith in God and turned away from the temptations of this world could be transformed. That day's events were a powerful reminder that God's grace and love are available to anyone who puts their faith in him and a powerful demonstration of the power of faith.
Elements can be crafted here, and doing so will teach us a great deal.
A. BLESSED
In this place, Jesus did something very surprising. And yet, I want us to focus on the blessing: "Blessed are faithless, for they shall behold the glory of God displayed in mighty displays."
The question of why Jesus blessed the food before handing it out to the crowds arises. Jesus' actions demonstrated that, with God's favor, we can create value out of obscurity. He showed that it is possible to accomplish more than is humanly possible by seeking God's blessing and living by his will.
Jesus showed that the blessings we get from God when we accept and follow His will are better than anything we can get on our own. The miracle of Jesus feeding 5,000 people shows that God can take care of us even though we don't have a lot of money or skills, as long as we trust Him, do what He says, and do what He wants.
When a man is blessed, nothing else can happen to him. By doing so, Jesus taught us that we must first seek God's blessing before we can achieve anything good. This is a profound truth to keep in mind: When we submit to God's will and live according to His plan, the seemingly impossible becomes possible. The world we live in presents us with constant challenges, making this idea all the more relevant.
Before starting anything, it's important to remember how important it is to ask God for His blessing. Confidence and serenity in the face of life's challenges can be ours when we take Jesus' teachings to heart and put our trust in God.
With God on our side, we can accomplish anything, no matter how difficult it may seem at first. Maintaining our trust in God as both our protector and the source of our success is crucial as we work to improve our lives. Verse 27 of Matthew Then He took the cup, poured out a blessing into it, and said, "Drink from it, all of you."
Those of us who believe in God can take heart from this encouragement to stick with any endeavor until it is completed successfully. If we give our lives over to God and trust that He will lead us through the tough times, we can keep pressing forward in our pursuit of happiness. For my Christian life to be a blessing, I need to stretch myself and leave my comfort zone to grow and help others.
If we follow Jesus' example, we can have faith in God even when things seem impossible to get through. It is a privilege to have God as a source of wisdom and strength in our lives.
By doing so, we show not only our belief in God's omniscience and omnipotence but also our profound gratitude for the privilege of carrying out God's will and making a contribution to His overall plan.
As we put our faith in God, we can face the future with optimism and assurance, knowing that God is watching over us and guiding us toward our true calling.
Jesus was glorified so that He could become the blessing we required, and that blessing is available to us if we let it in. God granted him the strength to endure the cross for our benefit.
The crucifixion of Jesus should remind us of how much we are loved and how much we need God. Putting faith in God is crucial to our development as spiritual beings.
B. BROKEN
Jesus took the bread and broke it to represent the frailty of life and the vulnerability of faith. Then, to remind them that he was always going to be there for them, he blessed some bread and gave it to his disciples. By putting our faith in God, we can move forward with the assurance that He will protect us and guide us as we pursue our goals.
Once we've been broken from our human frailties, we can serve others and be the blessing He promised we would be. When we acknowledge the fragility of our lives and our faith and hold on to Jesus' words of promise, we can rest assured that God is with us always and will help us turn our weaknesses into strengths that we can use to bless others.
Pride, success, security, arrogance, comfort with this life on earth, and anger are all parts of me that need to be broken.
To be the blessing God has called me to be, I have to admit that these things are bad for His work and let myself go through a big change on the inside.
If we can accept our brokenness and use it to reach out and serve those in need, we can tap into a greater power that is available to Christians, and we can rest assured that God will turn our darkest hours into moments of hope.
As we give God our hurts, He will change our lives to fit His will, and we can look forward to the bright future He has promised with confidence.
We can learn to accept our brokenness and transform it into something beautiful, honorable, and anointed by the Holy Spirit that will bring glory and honor to the Lord if we put our faith in Him. God can use our weaknesses and imperfections to bring Him glory, and our brokenness can make us stronger, more focused on God's mission for our lives, and an example to others.
Mark 14:22 At the meal, Jesus took bread, said a blessing over it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, "Take it; this is My body." Jesus shows us that even our weaknesses can be used for His glory as he breaks bread with his disciples.
We can learn from this that accepting our brokenness as part of God's divine plan will make us better examples of faith for those around us. Jesus' willingness to sacrifice Himself for the sake of others is symbolized by the phrase "broke it," which serves as a reminder that our own lives can have greater meaning and bring praise to God if we are willing to sacrifice for the benefit of others. By eating with His disciples, Jesus showed us how important selfless love is and how important it is to act in line with that principle. In accepting the shattered state of our lives with grace, we show selfless love and grow in our knowledge of God's will for us.
Mark 14:22 records that Jesus "took bread, gave thanks, and broke it, saying to the disciples, "Take this; this is My body."
When Jesus broke the bread, it was a sign that He was willing to be broken for us and take on the pain of the world so that we could be free from it. Jesus' model of selfless love helps us to accept the brokenness of our own lives and grow in our appreciation for God's call to a life of humility and service.
We need to reach a place where we give what we have; we can't give what we don't have, but we can give God our brokenness and receive the hope and joy that come from selflessness. By sharing a meal with his disciples and breaking bread with them, Jesus showed his willingness to give selflessly and sacrificially despite the brokenness of our lives.
To follow Jesus' example of selflessness and sacrificial love, we must freely give our time, energy, and resources to those who are less fortunate. This act of sacrifice inspires us and serves as a reminder that, when we are at our weakest, we can find the fortitude to build a more peaceful world by turning to God. This act of Jesus' self-giving love demonstrated his willingness to demonstrate sacrificial love, and it should serve as a model for how we are to interact with others and share what we have. Through mutual affection, we can further Jesus' message of peace and joy, which he first preached at the Last Supper.
John 6:51 The heavenly bread has come in the form of myself, a living person. If a person eats this bread, he will never die. "This bread is The flesh that I will give for the life of the world." Jesus' identification of the bread as His flesh emphasizes accepting this doctrine and partaking of His body, which grants believers eternal life.
Jesus' words here stress the importance of accepting His flesh and partaking of the bread that represents His body and blood if one is to have eternal life.
So, Jesus's statement about His flesh is a key part of the Christian faith. It shows how important it is to eat His body and accept His teachings to have eternal life, to take communion as a sign of salvation, and, most importantly, to have faith in what He has said.
C. GIVEN TO
Mark 14:22: "..and gave it to the disciples, saying, "Take it; this is My body." Jesus' act of breaking the bread was symbolic of His willingness to be broken for us—to take on the suffering of the world so that we could be liberated from it By demonstrating sacrificial love, Jesus showed us how to surrender to the brokenness of our lives, which in turn leads to a better understanding of how God wants us to live humbly and selflessly.
We need to be at the point where we give what we do have in us; unfortunately, we cannot give what we do not have, but we can open our hearts to God's grace and mercy to receive hope and joy that come from self-giving This simple act of breaking bread and giving it to his disciples demonstrated Jesus' willingness to give sacrificially and selflessly, despite the brokenness of our lives We need to emulate Jesus’ example of selflessness and sacrificial love by giving sacrificially of our time, energy, and resources to those who are less fortunate than us.
This demonstration of selflessness sets an example for us to follow and reminds us that in our darkest moments, we can turn to God for strength to create a world of peace in the face of adversity In those moments, we are then able to receive the hope and joy that come from self-giving, the same kind of love that Jesus gave when he broke bread with his disciples and shared it with them This act of Jesus’ self-giving love showed his willingness to demonstrate sacrificial love, which should serve as a model for how we are to interact with others and share our resources.
By showing love for one another, we can work together to spread the peace and joy that Jesus first demonstrated at the Last Supper.
John 6:51 "I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. "And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh." Jesus' declaration of the bread as His flesh emphasizes the importance of accepting this doctrine and consuming His body, which gives believers eternal life Through this statement, Jesus emphasizes that to gain eternal life, one must be willing to accept His flesh and consume the bread as a representation of His body and blood Therefore, Jesus's declaration about His flesh is a crucial part of the Christian faith, as it emphasizes the importance of consuming His body and accepting His teachings to gain eternal life, taking communion as a sign of salvation, and, most importantly, having faith in His promises.
CONCLUSION
John 6:27 Don't toil for food that spoils so quickly, but rather for the eternal life that the Son of Man can provide. This is because the Father, God, has personally approved him.
This verse is a powerful reminder that we shouldn't put our attention on things that won't last.
Pursuing what is valuable in God's eyes and focusing on the eternal is what we should be doing. Every Christian should look at his or her life and how it shows faith regularly to ensure that he or she is following God's commands and not their own and that they are making good use of the gifts God has given them.
Ready to accept Christ into your life? To have faith that God is with us in all that we face requires that we first acknowledge our dependence on Him and the good that He can do in our lives. With such confidence, we can show others God's mercy and grace and give them a reason to hope.
John 6:53 Therefore, Jesus declared, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves."
Believe in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and He will change your life and fill you with His love, grace, and hope. As a result, we can have the confidence to share the same message of hope and love with others so that they, too, may find eternal life in Jesus.
Do you feel prepared to accept God's gifts so that you, in turn, can bless others and be a blessing to the world? Do you feel prepared to receive God's grace and study how to become a channel of His love and mercy for the benefit of others?
With this knowledge of God's might and kindness, we can be equipped to share His grace and love with the world. To help those in need, we can draw on our knowledge of God's grace and mercy and our experiences. A change in your life will have a ripple effect on those close to you. Accepting God's grace and mercy can help us see the plight of those around us and around the world with new eyes. Can you identify with the problems of those around you? Be the change you want to see in the world and the change you want to see in others.
