Feeding the Five Thousand
John 6:2 A great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signs he did in healing the sick.
Actions speak louder than words. We don’t just want people in our lives that say nice things, we need people who do good things as well. But honestly, sometimes it feels like there aren’t many of them out there. Even though you’re surrounded by people at home, at work, wherever, you can feel quite isolated.
Everybody’s saying the right thing, but somehow those words aren’t connecting, they’re not making a difference.
Back in the first century, as Jesus wandered the dusty roads of the Promised Land, He developed a kind of rock star status. When Jesus came to town, he’d draw crowds of five thousand and more. The whole region would close down, as they went out into some large field to hear Him speak. Shops would close. Schools would close. Whole towns would empty out to go out and hear Jesus.
But they didn’t just go because He was an amazing preacher – and of course He was. He spoke with the sort of authority and wisdom that they’d never heard from their religious leaders. But honestly, the real reason they downed tools and sat all day in a field listening to this carpenter from Nazareth, was because of His deeds of power.
A great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signs he did in healing the sick. (John 6:2)
Jesus kept healing these people. Blind beggars who’d been sitting by the side of the road for years, and now they could see. The lame, now through Jesus they could walk. The lepers, completely healed able to join back into society. Tax collectors whose lives were completely turned around. An adulteress whose life Jesus spoke into with prophetic power.
Words are cheap; actions speak louder than words. And this Jesus He didn’t just come to speak with you, He came to do things for you. Amazing things. Powerful things. Things you could never ever do for yourself.
Jesus came to this earth to bind up your broken heart, to set you free from the chains that bind you. Jesus came to proclaim God’s favour to you and to help you live in that favour, to help set you free from your mistakes. Jesus doesn’t just say stuff and then leave. He’s in it for the long haul, to make a powerful difference in your life.
That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.
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