Exodus 24:1-11 John 6:1-21
Dining in the Wilderness
As a young high school student, I really struggled to understand the antiquated language of Shakespeare’s plays, much to the frustration of our English teacher. Then in a moment of inspired desperation, our teacher decided to show us a movie of Macbeth and suddenly the play, that had been impenetrable and indecipherable, came to life revealing to us the beauty and the grandeur of the tragedy.
Years later, when the tables were turned and I was the teacher trying to open the magnificent genius of the Bard, I too used film to unlock the minds of my pupils. Interestingly, while most of my students were enthralled with the visual productions of the plays, there were a few who, for reasons of their own, remained unimpressed and, as a result, they did not gain much from this exercise. For them it was just too much of a hard slog.
Those who decided that these works of art could and should be understood, and who were a little more determined to unlock the treasure trove of brilliance in these works, delving deep into the meaning of words and images long since lost in the evolution of the English language, they were rewarded with a richness that has served them well over the years.
Now I think the same could be said about many parts of holy Scripture. We tend to struggle with the language, especially idiomatic speech like metaphors, similes, ironies, personifications, antithesis, alliterations, puns, and word plays, as well as descriptive pictures that were firmly anchored in that particular culture at that particular time, like fantastical creatures such as dragons and multiheaded beasts, but also more simple things like bread and wine, the movements or collapse of the sun, moon, and stars, and, in this case, flesh and blood. While the narrative bits seem easy enough to understand, even the best of us sometimes find ourselves bewildered with words and images so foreign to our own modern thought and culture that we are tempted to simply skip over those bits. And then there’s the problem of trying to describe the infinite and divine in terms of the finite and non-divine…
Now, I think our Gospel text for today is one of those hard to comprehend passages. Jesus wanted to communicate something so far beyond the level of our ability to comprehend that he resorted to using an object lesson to explain what theologians have named a glorious mystery. Once again, we have many levels in John’s retelling of this story that provide biblical depth and a contextual connection with the whole divine drama of God’s dealing with his people. We must always remember that the Bible is one story that provides an internal interpretive grid by which we make sense of the whole.
Much in John’s Gospel requires a familiarity with Old Testament terminology, a fair knowledge of the Exodus, and an ability to engage in a bit of intertextual cross-referencing. This specific chapter is no different. The passage itself ought to be studied as a whole, but for the sake of brevity and clarity, we will examine it in sections.
Now, the whole of Jesus’ life appears to have been a re-enactment of the life of Israel, such as his beginning in the Promised Land, his sojourn in and return from Egypt, his crossing of or baptism in the river Jordan, his testing in the wilderness, and so on. And as the Exodus was one of the primary features of Israel’s narrative, we should not be surprised to see several references and allusions to that event in this story about the feeding of the multitude. (Please note here that the text says there were about five thousand men present, indicating that if one counted the women and the children as well, the number of people would be far higher…hence my reluctance to call this the feeding of the five thousand.)
John tells us in the opening verse that Jesus had moved from Judah (where we last saw him confronting the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem) back to Galilee, where he crossed over to the north-eastern shore of the Sea, somewhere across from Capernaum, probably close to Bethsaida. John indicated that by this time Jesus had quite an impressive following, but that their following was based on the miracles Jesus had performed, not necessarily his teaching. Maybe not the best of reasons to follow Jesus.
As we have seen before, Jesus was not a people pleaser, and he was not impressed with crowds. No, rather he was impressed with conviction and commitment…something Church growth specialists ought to learn from him. At times it seems like Jesus made it especially difficult for people to follow him, and we will see him do that once again in this story.
In the previous passage, the leaders turned against Jesus because he declared that their religion was not based on the Scriptures, but rather on their own extra-biblical traditions and misinterpretations and misapplications of the Scriptures. In this passage, Jesus was once again revealing his deity, but this time to a crowd of people who were so thunderstruck by what they saw that they seemed oblivious to their own spiritual needs.
But this crowd appeared to be more of a challenge to Jesus than the leaders. Indeed, this story demonstrates that it is sometimes easier to deal with those who are clearly against you than those who are convinced that you are both walking in the same direction when, in fact, you are not. The leaders wanted to kill Jesus while this crowd wanted to crown him King, but both were not prepared to submit to the requirements for entry into the Kingdom.
In verse three, John tells us that Jesus went up on the mountain and sat down with his disciples. Now I think the whole passage is shot through with Exodus imagery…the Passover, crossing a sea, the wilderness, the miraculous provision of bread, going up a mountain, and so on…but here I believe John was wanting his readers to recall the meeting of God with Moses and the elders on Mount Sinai in Exodus 24. While the rest of the Israelites remained at the foot of the mountain, verse 11 of Exodus 24 tells us that Moses and the elders wne thalf way up the mountain where they “saw God, and they ate and drank”. This was just prior to the inscribing of the Law on the tablets of stone. Up until this point in the story of the Exodus, the people were following the pillar of cloud and of fire mainly because of the miracles...the ten plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, the provision of water, manna, and quail…but throughout this epic adventure, when the going got tough, they complained and wanted to turn back. John informs us that this crowd in John 6 was also following Jesus because of the miracles, but, as the story unfolds, they too complained and, indeed, as we shall see later, they did turn back…like many of the Israelites during the wilderness wanderings.
The miracle of the feeding of the multitude in the wilderness shows that Jesus is the same God who fed the wandering Israelites in the desert. However, it is this miracle that, once interpreted by Jesus (we will look at this in the Sundays ahead), would serve as a watershed in his ministry. From this time on the crowds began to fade away and the true followers of Jesus began to emerge.
Like the crowds, there are still many disillusioned people who follow Jesus for a time…perhaps because of what they saw or because of what they experienced…but when they are left with nothing but his word, they turn back. “I tried Jesus once,” they might say, “but he didn’t work for me.”
Every relationship has its trials…the times when we must reassess our commitment to the cause. And our relationship with God is no different. When life throws us a curve ball do we trust him to take us through the darkness even though we might not have the strength to take one step further? When the promises of Scripture don’t line up with what is happening in our lives do we choose to focus on God’s never-changing character rather than on what we may perceive to be indifference, callousness, heartlessness, or even a betrayal?
We know this story so well that we sometimes don’t stop to think about what a test this must have been for the disciples. What would you say if you were Philip and Jesus asked you to feed a multitude? Of course, Jesus wasn’t looking for some mathematical equation. You can’t calculate something only God can do. No, he was looking for simple trust and dependency. You see, we are all dependent on God…your very next breath is not guaranteed…but we are all too reluctant to admit that, aren’t we? And the disciples were no different. Like Andrew, our contributions seem laughable. Five small barley loaves and two small fishes commandeered from one small boy. And yet, it is when we give what we can to our God that we are confronted with the fact that nothing is impossible for him. The whole point of this “test”, if you will, is for the disciples (and us) to come face to face with our own inadequacy.
It is also interesting to note that Jesus used those who at first had expressed grave doubt in the possibility of the fulfilment of his request to distribute the multiplying loaves and fishes. As such, they became the instruments through which the miracle was realised. This is such a great image for us who have been called to make disciples of all nations. The Great Commission has always appeared to be formidable and impossible…how can so few, reach so many?
Well, as in this story, the key is to know who is with you, isn’t it? While it is true that God has chosen to work out his purposes with and through us, we must never forget that he achieves his goals because he is God…he does what he does despite our frailty and our failure. This was a lesson the Israelites largely failed to learn in the wilderness…they repeatedly missed the divine possibilities because they focussed on human improbabilities. And it is possible that in his recording of this story, John wanted us to see that we are, in many ways, still wandering around in the wasteland of this world, struggling to believe that God can provide a table in the wilderness and that he can use us to reconcile the world to himself.
This miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes caused the crowd to make the right connection. “This is truly the Prophet,” they said, “who is come into the world.” As you no doubt know, this is an allusion to the prophecy of Moses in Deuteronomy 18 concerning the coming Messiah. But what they did next revealed that while they made the right connection, they failed to come to the right conclusion, basically because they saw Jesus as little more than their personal cash cow. The only reason they followed Jesus was because of what they got out of the relationship. And they wanted more.
It is so easy, at this point, to scoff at this crowd, isn’t it? But can you remember the last time God didn’t give you want you asked for? How did you respond?
But before their rude awakening, they wanted to make him their King…a king who, like so many world leaders today, would be voted in for what he could do for the people or, conversely, voted out should he prove not to live up to their expectations. Of course, if they had understood who the Messiah was, they would have realised that Jesus was a King, but a King of far more than what they wanted to make him.
But Jesus will not be a King of a company of leeches. He is the King of those who, like him, are humble and selfless servants. He is the King of those who love him for who he is, not for what he can give. And so, he turned away from these fickle would be subjects and retreated to the mountain to commune with the Father. Just as an aside, it is interesting to read this account alongside the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness where bread, signs, and authority at also present. The temptation for Jesus to take a “short cut” to his enthronement is evident in both passages.
Be that as it may, at this point I think it might be helpful for us to slip on the disciples’ sandals for a moment as we watch Jesus walk away from what we thought he would have wanted…or, at least, what we wanted him to want. Who is this man who works such great miracles and yet refuses to be enthroned? Bewildered and confused, we get into the boat, and we start to row back home. But then, to add insult to injury, a storm suddenly comes up and we find ourselves, in that dark night, tossed about physically, mentally, and spiritually. Keep in mind that they had just seen him lose the support of both the leaders and these would-be followers.
Now, we know that the disciples had only acted out part of the play and that they had not, as yet, read the final act, but they did not know that…and so they rowed against the wind in turmoil. Until, out of the darkness, Jesus appeared once more…walking on the very water that was threatening to drown them…and once more, the revelation of God in the Exodus story came crashing back into their lives. The words “It is I” in some translations is, in the original Greek, simply “I AM”. The same words first spoken to Moses at a time when the great prophet was hesitant, if not reluctant, to obey God’s call on his life. “I AM, do not be afraid.”
Moses faced impossible tasks. The disciples faced impossible tasks. We face impossible tasks. Like them, we also struggle to understand. Sometimes God seems to ask us to do the inconceivable. Sometimes God seems to act differently to the way we would think he ought to act. Sometimes God seems to be absent when the storms of life threaten to pull us down into the depths. Sometimes God seems to expect us to go on nothing more than promises…nothing more than a belief that, if he did it before, he can do it again…nothing more than an assurance built on the sure foundation of trust in his Person and not on the crumbling ruins of reason.
The first half of the play had ended…but half a play is unsatisfactory. The stage had been set, the characters introduced, the plot began to unfold, but the story remained incomplete and thus incomprehensible. The disciples needed the closing act…but that would only come the following day. For one night, they would be left to ponder these things on their own, and once they had reached the end of their finite reasoning skills, they would be ready for the final unveiling of the truth.
Who is this one who steadfastly resisted compromise at all costs? He would not submit to the misinterpretations of the elders to gain the respect of the authorities. He would not submit to being elevated to a position of leadership by popular demand. What does this mean for us who claim to follow him? How does this change our relationship with him? Does he do our bidding, or do we do his? Must he conform to our image, or must we conform to his?
As we will see in the weeks ahead, the crowd walked away once they realised that he was not about to do what they wanted him to do…once they realised that he was not about to be what they wanted him to be. Yes, his Word may at times be as difficult to understand as a Shakespearean play, but if we truly believe that he has the words of eternal life…if we truly believe that he is the holy one of God…then we too will press on and follow him even though we might not always grasp the plot or anticipate the conclusion.
Holy Communion reminds us that Jesus has made for us a highway in the wilderness…it reminds us that as the sacrificial Passover Lamb of God, he has invited us to dine with him at a table of spiritual sufficiency and to drink from an overflowing chalice…it reminds us that the great I Am is always with us…it reminds us that there is no cause for fear when the one who can cause molecules to multiply, who can walk across a storm tossed lake and who can calmly bring the vessel to its destination…there is no cause for fear, when he is with us.
Shall we pray?
© Johannes W H van der Bijl 2023
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