Little Becomes Much

The record of the feeding of the five thousand has several interesting lessons hidden in it. On the surface this may simply be a lesson highlighting Jesus’ compassion for hungry people and His willingness to perform a miracle to feed them. Although Jesus often told the beneficiaries of His miracles not to share, this may have been one time when He wanted to make a declaration. Beyond that, many people have expressed curiosity about the meaning of the leftover baskets of food. It would seem to be more than coincidence that there were twelve baskets left over on one occasion and seven on another; these are two often repeated numbers that have biblical significance, but what they mean here is uncertain.

The fact that this is the only miracle of Jesus that is recorded by all four gospel writers leads me to think it must be of special significance. (Mathew 14; Mark 6; Luke 9; John 6) The lesson that struck me when I last read it was how much Jesus could make of a little. All four evangelists record that there were five loaves of bread and two fishes. This would have been enough for a small family – perhaps just the boy and his parents. I’m reminded of the Boy Scout motto: Be Prepared. Apparently, this young lad’s family was the only one to think they might get hungry. Maybe they were so interested in what the popular rabbi had to say that they didn’t want to miss anything while they went to dinner.

Someone has asked an interesting question: what if the boy’s parents had refused to give up their meager meal? They didn’t. They may have been among those who had already put their faith in the man from Nazareth. It is conceivable that they had witnessed His first miracle – water into wine – at the wedding in Cana which was only a few miles down the road. For whatever reason, they were willing to put their provisions in the Master’s hands. Just like the steward and the wedding, they were amazed at what happened when Jesus took over.

It's like the song “Ordinary People” says: “Little becomes much as you place it in the Master’s hand.” The twelve Jesus called especially had given Him everything they had, although it wasn’t much since most were just common laborers. Regardless of their net worth, they gave Jesus their very lives to follow Him for the three short years of His earthly ministry. When the Master called the fishermen, He promised to make them fishers of men. I doubt they fully understood what that meant at the time, but I am convinced that Jesus wasn’t choosing them for their talents as fishermen or their entrepreneurial skills.

From our vantage point centuries down the trail, we know they were chosen for who they were, not what they could bring to the table. Just consider Peter, James, and John, Jesus’ inner circle. Peter denied knowing Jesus on the night of His betrayal but came back strong as a leader in the Jerusalem church. James was also a leader in Jerusalem, and he became the first martyr for Christ. John outlived all his peers as far as we know and survived being boiled in oil and exile to go on to write the Book of Revelation, one of the most significant books of the New Testament.

It may sound trite, but I would say we are not chosen by Christ because we are great, but we are great because we are chosen. I am writing this in my seventy-third year of life, most of which was spent in some kind of Christian ministry vocationally or otherwise. I will admit with a touch of disappointment that I have not achieved the “greatness” I might have longed for in my youth. Nothing I have done will put me in the “Who’s Who” of Christians in my generation. I have come to terms with that. I’ll wager the little guy who surrendered his lunch to Jesus had no idea he would be remembered to the end of the age. He just did what little he could do at the moment, and Jesus made the moment great.

I love the song Ray Boltz sang many years ago called “Thank You.” The lyrics recall how he put money in a collection plate or taught Sunday School with no idea how his actions affected others. Then, when Ray gets to Heaven, a long line of people come up to him thanking him for what little he gave. There it is. I may never know which of my dollars in the plate brought someone to Christ. I may never know which of my hundreds of high school students were encouraged by my witness. I may never know how many of the thousands of readers of this blog have been inspired to make significant contributions to the cause of Christ. Maybe I’ll be standing next to Ray one day amazed at what has happened. But even if I don’t get that confirmation, I will keep giving what little I have knowing that little becomes much when you place it in the Master’s hand. I hope to meet the little guy who shared his lunch too.

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