Mark chapter 6, which I believe is one of the most amazing chapters in all the Gospels.
! Especially in relation to the Galilee and ministry of Christ, Galilee is a small region.
It's only about 50 miles north to south and about 30 miles east to west, but it is an impactful area in the Gospels.
There's probably about 200 small towns and villages scattered throughout that area,
but the surrounding areas, those are tight and densely populated,
but the surrounding areas are farms and pastures.
At the time of Mark chapter 6, Jesus had been ministering there about a year,
and He would not be there much longer.
He would soon move on to Tyre and Sidon,
and Sidon and Tyre are on the Mediterranean coast up north of Galilee,
unmarked on this map, possibly even beyond the map a little bit,
north on the Mediterranean.
It was the land of the Gentiles.
And after spending some time there, He would come back through Galilee,
enter into the Decapolis area region,
and then in chapter 10 of Mark, He heads toward Judea,
before His decisive move toward the cross in Jerusalem.
So that's the setting of Mark chapter 6.
Now, there's three reasons why I believe this is possibly the most amazing chapter in all the Gospels.
One of them is Jesus was ineffective in His own town.
That amazes me that some were changed, but few were changed because they did not believe.
That's pretty amazing to me.
The second thing that amazes me about this chapter is the great movement that took place
when He sent out the 12 apostles two by two.
powerful things happened throughout the Galilean region.
He sent His apostles to preach and to minister, and that's what they did.
He gave them authority to do it,
and with that authority, they preached repentance.
They preached the kingdom.
They healed the sick.
They cast out demons.
They had a major impact in that area.
And by the way, 11 of them were from that area,
which again is pretty amazing to me that those 11 apostles had a powerful, effective ministry in the area in which they were raised,
but yet Jesus was ineffective in the very town that He was raised in.
But that passage tells us that it was an exhaustive measure.
The Gospels tell us that.
Not only that, not only was their ministry effort exhausted, but it was exhausting
to the point that Jesus knew they needed time away.
But our passage today tells us they didn't get the rest they needed.
Not that night.
And the third reason why this chapter is amazing to me is the miracle that takes place.
Now, if you've been to Sunday school, what we used to call it,
and you've been to church long enough,
you probably know the story of the feeding of the 5,000.
And my prayer has been that familiarity would not take away from you learning possibly new truth from this story.
Don't get to the end before we get there, please,
because I'm firmly convinced that God has some things to show us today in a pretty familiar story.
But I'm telling you, I hope that that familiarity don't steal the truth of it because it is amazing.
Listen, there are only two miracles in the Gospels that are mentioned in all four Gospels.
One of them is this miracle.
The other is the resurrection of Christ.
So this stands out.
This is a big one.
And it was so impactful that after this, they tried to force Jesus to become king.
They wanted him to take over.
Not only can he provide for us, not only is he the master teacher,
not only does he relate to where we are, let's take on Rome.
He's our king.
Let's force him to be king.
That's the setting for Mark 6, beginning in verse 30.
And it says this,
The apostles returned to Jesus and told them all that they had done and taught.
That's when he sent them out.
And he said to them,
Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.
For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.
And they went away in a boat to a desolate place by themselves.
Now many saw them going and recognized them.
And they ran there on foot from all towns and got there ahead of them.
When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd.
And he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.
And he began to teach them many things.
And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said,
This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late.
Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages
and buy them something to eat.
But he answered them,
You give them something to eat.
And they said to him,
Shall we go and buy 200 denarii worth of bread
and give it to them to eat?
And he said,
How many loaves do you have?
Go and see.
And when they had found it,
they said,
Five and two fish.
Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass.
So they sat down in groups by hundreds and by fifties.
And taking the five loaves and the two fish,
he looked up to heaven and set a blessing and broke the loaves
and gave them to the disciples to set before the people.
And he divided the two fish among them all.
And they all ate and were satisfied.
And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish.
And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.
The impact of the apostles being sent out and being used so effectively
caused the people to follow them all the way to the shore.
When Jesus tried to get them away in a boat,
the people saw them leaving.
And the people saw them traveling.
And they hurried on shore.
Some of them ran as far as eight miles to get to Jesus and his men as they landed.
And what happened next is miraculous.
What this story teaches us is not only the miraculous power of Christ,
but it also teaches us some truths about Christ.
Truths that we need to remember when we're hungry.
Truths we need to remember when we're desperate.
When we're empty.
When we're tired.
Truths we need to remember when we're overwhelmed.
Four truths from this account about Christ.
One is, he cares deeply.
Jesus knew firsthand the need of rest in ministry.
Being all things to all people in the hope of reaching some,
as the apostle Paul put it,
can wear you out.
And Jesus was well aware of that.
He cares for our well-being.
He cared about the apostles' well-being.
And he strived to get them away from the action after intense and productive ministry
and get them the needed rest.
He cares deeply.
What were they?
When they were not able to get that rest
because they had flocked immediately on shore by a lot of needy people,
how did Jesus respond?
Well, verse 34 tells us,
when he went ashore,
he saw a great crowd
and he had compassion on them
because they were like sheep
without a shepherd.
He saw their needs.
He had compassion on them
because he cares deeply.
And in that compassion,
the first thing that he gave them
was exactly what they needed the most
because the rest of that verse says,
and he began to teach them many things.
Luke tells us that he taught them
about the kingdom.
Now, if you want to understand
what he teaches
when he teaches about the kingdom,
the greatest way to find a summary of that
is in the Sermon on the Mount
in Matthew chapter 5 through Matthew chapter 7.
You'll see very similar messages,
very similar stories
and very similar message
in the Sermon on the Plain
that Luke talks about as well.
So these were redundant themes
that Jesus used from time to time
to teach kingdom truths.
He told them through stories.
He shared with them
how the law of old,
how it applies,
not only physically
in the way that you think,
but how it applies mentally
in our lives as well.
And he gives great application
to what it means
to walk with the Lord
and what it means
not to walk with the Lord.
That's what it means
by teaching the kingdom.
Not only that,
but he taught the gospel.
And the reason why I know that
is because he came
to proclaim the gospel.
He taught them on their level.
He taught them in illustrative ways
that they could understand.
When sheep were in the field,
he would tell a story about sheep.
When you saw the wheat growing in the field,
he would tell a story about wheat.
He spoke to where they were
and understood exactly what they needed
because he cares.
He cares deeply.
When the apostles recognized
all these people
were in desperate place,
he didn't send them away
as the apostles suggested
for him to do.
He didn't leave them
to fend for themselves.
He cared deep enough
about them
to do something about it.
He saw them as sheep
without a shepherd.
Now, personally,
I don't know a lot about sheep.
I'm not a sheep farmer.
I ain't spent a whole lot of time with them.
But I have read about them a lot
because Jesus talked about them a lot.
And I wanted to understand them more.
And I will tell you,
sheep without a shepherd
are going to die.
They will not find the pasture
that they need
once they eat up what they got.
They'll die.
They need help
because they can't fight off the enemy.
And they are easy prey
for any predator.
And so they're victims
often of that.
And when they get knocked down,
they can't get up.
They need help
getting up.
They can't help each other up.
And
when they get dirty,
when they get buggy,
when they get thorny,
they need somebody
to clean them up.
They can't clean their own wool.
Somebody has to care for them.
Somebody has to lead them.
Somebody has to lead them to water.
And Scripture's clear
that
we're like sheep.
And
Christ is our shepherd.
And I am thankful today
that He will lead us
and He will feed us
and He will stand us up
when we fall down.
And He will clean us up
when we get dirty.
And He will protect us
and He'll be right there for us
because He cares
for us.
He cares
deeply.
But it won't stop there.
Another truth
that this accountant
shares with me
is
He provides
sufficiently.
Instead of sending them away,
He tells them
to feed them.
John chapter 6
tells us
that He looked at Philip
and asked
where are we to buy bread
so that these people can eat?
Now listen.
The Gospel of Luke
tells us
that they were outside
of Bethsaida.
And Bethsaida
was a small
port village,
a little fishing village.
Very small.
Maybe a couple
hundredfold.
There are no remains
of Bethsaida.
No ruins there
at all.
which tells us
how small
that it was.
You've got
thousands of people
here.
Bethsaida's
McDonald's
could not handle it.
The walkthrough,
they didn't have a drive-through,
would not have been able
to handle it.
Where are we
going to
find this?
There was nothing
in that town
that could feed
thousands.
Christ knew that
and Philip
said eight
months worth
of wages,
get this,
eight months worth
of wages
would not feed
this many people.
And all they
could come up
with was a
boy's lunch.
Scripture says
it was five
barley loaves
and two fish.
Now those
loaves
are not those
big sour
dough loaves
that all you
ladies are making
now since you
attended that
class.
Fellas,
how's that
working out
for you?
I'm still
paying $10
a loaf.
But anyway,
who can let
me go home
with them
today?
They were
small loaves.
like a biscuit.
And these
fish were not
tuna.
They tell me
tuna can weigh
as much as
1,000 pounds.
No,
these were
very small
pickled fish.
Often used
as a relish.
Let me put it
in our terms.
The boy had
sardines and
crackers is what
he had.
Now,
I'll tell you
that
I got enough
rednecks in
here to say,
man,
that sounds
good.
It's good
lunch.
Until they
begin to share
with somebody
else.
And that
changes
everything.
That ruins
a fishing trip,
brother,
when you got to
share your
can of sardine.
this is all
they had.
But I want
you to hear
me.
All they
had was
enough in
the hands
of the Lord.
It reminds
me of
2 Kings
chapter 4.
Elisha,
the follower
of Elijah,
that got a
double portion
from him.
God used
Elisha in
such powerful
ways.
And a lady
came to him
and said she
had nothing.
But her
debt was so
deep that she
was going to
have to sell
her two sons
into slavery
to pay her
debt.
And Elisha
asked her,
he said,
what do you
have in your
home?
And she
said,
all I've
got is a
single jar
of oil.
He said,
well then go
to all your
neighbors and
collect as
many empty
jars as you
can find.
So they
did.
And he
said,
when you
get all
those empty
jars,
he said,
go into
your house
and shut
the door.
And as a
family,
take that
jar of oil
and pour it
into an
empty jar.
And when
you fill that
jar,
pour it
into another
one.
And when
you fill that
jar,
pour it
into another
one.
And then
pour it
into another
one.
and then
pour it
into another
one.
And then
sell that
oil and
pay your
debt.
It
happened
just like
Elisha told
her that it
would happen.
God always
provides
sufficiently.
God cares
deeply.
He
provides
sufficiently.
a third
truth from
this text
is this.
He
orders
purposefully.
I want
you to
get this.
Verse 39
and 40
says this.
Then he
commanded
them all
to sit
down in
groups
on the
green grass
so that
they sat
down in
groups by
hundreds
and by
fifties.
Now,
I want
to get
something
straight.
How many
people were
there that
day?
Because what
scripture says
is 5,000
men.
Okay?
We're
going to go
deep in the
language here.
Okay?
In the
Greek language
that word
for men,
you know
what that
means?
Men.
That's what
it means.
It don't
mean people.
It is
distinctive.
It means
men.
And I
want you
to see
what Matthew
14,
21 says.
It says,
and those
who ate
were about
5,000
men
besides
women
and
children.
So,
in that
culture,
what was
prominent in
that culture
would be
that those
men,
most of
those men
brought their
wives.
And most
of those
wives brought
their children.
children.
And so,
you had
a lot
more people
than 5,000
people.
At least
10,000
people.
Upwards to
15,000 to
20,000
people.
Some have
estimated as
much as
25,000
people.
Most
people.
And Mark
tells us
that he
told them
to sit
in groups
of 50
and 100.
Now,
I want you
to imagine
20,000
people
sitting in
groups of
50 to
100.
That means
that there
were 200
to 400
groups of
people
there
that day.
He is
bringing
order
to the
chaos.
Tens of
thousands of
people
crushing
each other,
jamming
together
dangerously
to get
to Christ
and to
see what
they can
get from
him.
Because,
be clear,
these are
not faithful
people.
They are
wanting
people.
What can
you do
for me
now?
somebody
told me
they went
to the
George
Strait
concert
last
night
and
they
live
about
25
minutes
away
from
the
stadium
and
they
got
home
an
hour
and
a
half
later.
Okay?
Got at
2.30 in
the morning.
That's
why your
pastor didn't
go to
George
Strait.
Okay?
Because
Sunday
was coming.
That's
chaos.
Leaving
that place
is chaos.
Can't
even see
the final
song
if you
want to
go
home.
know?
It's
chaos.
Nothing
wrong
with it.
It's
chaos.
As
they
chaotically
clamor
together,
he
says,
sit
down
orderly.
You
know
why?
And I
want you
to hear
this.
We
don't
serve a
God of
chaos.
1
Corinthians
14
verse
33
says
this,
for
God
is
not
a
God
of
confusion,
but
of
peace.
God's
not
chaotic.
And let
me just
give you
a clue.
When
things get
chaotic,
God's
not in
it.
It's a
sign.
It's a
sign.
When I
see people
make sporadic
decisions that
are not
wise,
go from
one thing
to another,
it's
not
God.
Mark that
down.
Remember
that.
When
everybody's
in a
hysteria
about
everything,
God's
not
in
that.
God
commands
them to
sit.
And you
know what
they did?
They
sat.
And by
them
sitting
in those
groups,
it made
aisles for
them to be
able to
distribute the
food they
needed to
be able to
distribute.
Well,
what is
God telling
you to
do in
the midst
of your
chaos?
And the
question is,
when He
says it,
and you
sense His
calming voice
speaking to
you,
what do
you do
in response
to that?
There's
always purpose
behind His
order.
None of
the gospel
accounts say
that they
ask,
why should
we do
that?
They
sat
down.
It's a
trait of
the Lord.
when the
world was
without form
and void,
and by the
way,
the word
form there,
without form,
means literally
chaos.
When the
world was
without form
and void,
you know what
happened?
He spoke
and order
came.
When the
storm raged
wildly,
chaotically
on the sea,
Jesus spoke
and the
storm
stopped.
In the
midst of
your chaos,
remember
something,
God orders
purposefully.
He does
it for a
reason.
It's not
simply to
exert the
sovereignty and
authority of
God.
It's to
bring order
water in
the midst
of our
chaos.
One more
truth I
want you
to see.
He
satisfies
abundantly.
It says,
and they
all ate
and were
satisfied.
It does
not say
everybody got
a nibble.
satisfied.
It says,
Jesus
satisfied.
Fellas,
that word
there for
satisfied is
the same
word they
use when
they put a
bag around
an animal's
head that's
full of
feed and
they eat
the bag
full of
feed.
It is the
same word
that's translated
in the book
of Revelation
gorged when
it's talking
about the
feast.
several
years ago,
me and
a friend
began day
hiking the
Appalachian
Trail in
Georgia.
And we
did it over
several years.
We only
could do
it.
I lived
in Mississippi
at the
time.
We could
only do
it once
a quarter,
maybe every
six months
or so.
Sometimes we
skipped a
year.
And one
guy that
does it all
the time
said,
man,
it's like
y'all
starting over
every time.
And he
said,
yeah,
you're
right.
Feels
like it
when we're
done.
We did
all of
Georgia
except for
the last
eight miles.
And the
problem with
the last
eight miles
is when
you get
the last
eight miles,
you're nowhere.
You're eight
miles from
anywhere.
And we
just never
want to
do 16.
We did
13 one
time in a
day and
we paid
for it.
So we
did eight,
10,
12 miles
every time
we went.
12.
And I
read this
story and
I realized
that when
I began
to study
it and
realized that
they had
traveled eight
miles to
get to
Jesus,
running and
working to
get to
Jesus.
And they
were worn
like that.
I thought
about the
eight miles.
That was
kind of a
minimum for
us.
The eight
miles when
we would
hike.
And again,
it took us
70 miles,
so it took
us several
times and it
went over a
few years.
And I'm
a binge
and purge
guy,
you know,
so some
days I'm
watching what
I eat and
some days I'm
not and all
this kind of
stuff.
And so there
were days when
I would watch
my chloric
count and
there were
days I
wasn't eating
many carbs
and all that
kind of stuff.
And I
remember one
time pulling
up to a
fried chicken
place when
we got
done.
There's a
Zaxby's that
if you hike
that area,
you go by
that Zaxby's
every time.
And that
became the
place where
we would
stop to
eat after
we had come
off that
trail.
He was
trying to
figure out
what I
could eat
and all
that.
He said,
as many
calories as
you burn
a day,
eat whatever
you want
to.
And we
did.
And every
time we'd
stop at that
restaurant or
whatever restaurant
we'd stop at,
we'd gorge
ourselves,
we'd eat.
Why?
Because I'd
burned 80,000
calories or
whatever it
was, you
know?
That's the
word that's
used.
God
that's what
the men
did.
That's what
the women
did.
That's what
the children
did.
And they
were satisfied.
God
satisfies
abundantly.
The
apostle Paul
told it this
way.
He said in
Philippians 419,
and my God
will supply
every need
of yours
according to
his riches
and glory
in Christ
Jesus.
Jesus told
us that
he came to
give life
and to
give it
more abundantly.
And I
want you to
see how
abundant
that it
was and
that it
is.
Verse 43
says this,
and they
took up
twelve
baskets full
of broken
pieces and
of the
fish.
Twelve
baskets.
Now that's
not a big
basket.
it's the
equivalent to,
some of y'all
will know what
I mean when I
say this,
to a lunch
pail.
If you
don't know
what that
is, a
lunch tote.
Okay?
Insulated.
With a
fifty dollar
mug.
That's
what it
is.
And there
were twelve
of them.
Does that
number ring a
bell?
How many
men were
serving the
group with
Jesus?
Twelve.
They all
took out
takeout
and went
home.
and it
was
precisely
enough.
Because I
told you
that God
orders
perfectly.
His
precision
is amazing.
He
satisfies
abundantly.
So
remember,
he cares
deeply.
Don't you
ever doubt
the love
of God?
Don't
you ever
doubt it.
He
sees us as
sheep without
a shepherd.
He cares
for us
deeply.
He
provides
sufficiently.
Never have
a doubt.
I like the
way the
first Peter
five,
seven says
it in the
New Living
Translation.
Give all
your worries
and cares
to God
for he cares
about you.
what's
worrying you
today.
Give it
to God.
If he
can feed
an arena
full with
a boy's
lunch,
what in the
world are
you concerned
about?
He
orders
purposely.
When God
speaks order
in your life,
listen to
his guidance.
He's
right.
He
satisfies
abundantly.
He
satisfies
every need.
Every need
we have.
By the
way,
he is
our
greatest
need.
And if
you've
never
given your
heart and
life to
the Lord
Jesus
Christ,
that's
where it
starts.
That's
where that
more than
enough kind
of relationship
starts.
Sometimes I
ask questions
about that to
people.
I say,
have you
ever given
your life,
have you
ever become
a Christian?
I've
been a
Christian
all my
life.
You
know what?
I feel
like I've
been married
all my
life.
That's a
good thing.
But the
reality is I
hadn't
been.
There was a
starting point.
October 28,
1995 was
the starting
point.
if you're a
Christian today,
it's because
there was a
starting point.
If there's
never been a
starting point
in your life,
you've never
surrendered to
Christ.
And the
reality is the
greatest need
that we have
is the Lord
Jesus Christ.
greatest need
that we have
is to ask
him to forgive
us of our
sins and to
come into our
life and to
change us.
To empower us
with the spirit
of God to be
able to rely
upon him for
all things.
To give him
not what we
got, but to
give him who
we are.
It satisfies
our greatest
need.
It's the
starting point.
You don't
have to know
the date and
the time for
it to be
sufficient, but
you better have
a date and
time for it to
be sufficient.
It has to
have a starting
point.
It don't come
by church
attendance.
It don't
come by
baptism.
It don't
come by
holding
leadership
positions.
It comes
by surrendering
your life to
Christ.
If you have
done that,
have you ever
made that
public?
Have you
ever told
me bye
bye?
Jesus said,
if you're
ashamed to
me before
men, I'll
be ashamed
of you before
my father,
which means
that in
reality it
never really
took place.
The first
step to make
that private
decision
public,
by Jesus'
example and
by his
commission is
to be
baptized,
to recognize
that relationship
publicly through
baptism, a
physical picture
of what happens
to us spiritually.
If that's
never happened
to you, it's
your next step
of obedience
to follow
God.
Maybe you're
here and
God's drawing
you to First
Baptist Church.
Listen,
Brian mentioned
four years,
that I've
been able to
be your
pastor.
God's been
good.
Four
fabulous years
and I thank
you for being
part of that.
God's drawing
you to
Pickens
First
Baptist Church.
He's doing
a move here
and I thank
God for that.
He's leading
you to come.
Be obedient
and follow
him.
But then
there's maybe
stuff in your
life when you,
there's your
stuff.
stuff that
he needs
to bring
order to,
needs that
he needs
to supply.
Maybe you've
been running,
trying to catch
him,
running down
the shore.
You need
relief.
You need a
touch.
Surrender all
that to God
tonight.
At this altar
with me praying
in your seat
wherever,
just be obedient
to follow God
and whatever
he'd have you
to do.
Heavenly Father,
thank you
that you are
more than
enough.
For whatever
it is we need,
help us to be
obedient as you
speak to our
hearts and lives.
In Jesus' name,
amen.
Amen.