Jesus has compassion on His people. Our Bible teacher, J. Mark, considers Jesus’ feeding of the 4,000 in Mark 8:1-10. In response to the crowd’s obedience and the disciples’ cooperation, Jesus performed this notable miracle, proving that He could be trusted and that they could put their faith in Him. In this episode, we look at Jesus’ actions and see His care and love for others that reveal Him as “The Benevolent Provider.”
Transcript
It’s a privilege to be with you and study the Word of God together. Thank you for being there and listening to Hope for Today. In this lesson, we will see again that Jesus is the best person to place our hope in. He alone will not fail, and He can be trusted.
Our study today brings us to Mark chapter 8. We are about halfway through this action-packed book, and in this chapter, we see Jesus feeding the 4000. Similar to his miracle of feeding the 5000, but this is not the same event.
Our title today is The Benevolent Provider, and we are thankful Jesus still cares about the practical needs of His people. Please turn to Mark 8, and Bible teacher J Mark will lead us through this passage.
A schoolteacher was teaching her students simple fractions. She defined halves and quarters, then asked the children to write whether they would prefer a half or a quarter of a candy bar. As she walked around the room, she noticed some students had written that they would rather have a quarter of a candy bar.
The teacher thought she would have to re-teach the lesson because the children didn’t seem to understand that a half was bigger than a quarter. So, she asked the students why they would rather have a quarter of the candy bar. One little girl replied, “If I only had a quarter, more people could have a piece of candy.” She cared about the others around her.
Compassion for others should come naturally to Believers because we are empowered to be like Jesus. We see Jesus’ profound compassion on display in our text today, Mark 8:1-10, which recounts Jesus feeding 4,000 people.
1 In those days, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them,
2 “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.
3 And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar.”
4 Then His disciples answered Him, “How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?”
5 He asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven.”
6 So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.
7 They also had a few small fish, and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.
8 So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.
9 Now those who had eaten were about four thousand. And He sent them away,
10 immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.
This text shows how Jesus’ ACTIONS validate Him as the benevolent provider.
The First ACTION is,
He Cares for All People
One who is benevolent genuinely wishes others well and takes joy in doing good. Jesus was that kind of person. Crowds gathered to hear Him teach and witness His miracles wherever He went. This trip into Gentile territory was no exception.
The Gospel writers record many instances in which Jesus felt compassion toward people. The verb translated “feel compassion” means “to be moved in one’s bowels.” The ancients considered the bowels to be the seat of emotions. The English word compassion conveys feelings of deep sympathy, pity, and kindness toward those in pain.
This crowd had been listening to Jesus teach for three days but had not adequately prepared for this marathon teaching session. Jesus knew that many in this crowd were following Him out of curiosity. Yet, He says explicitly, “I have compassion on them. Some will faint if I send them away to their homes because they have traveled a long way.”
This reveals how our benevolent provider cares for everyone. Even though these were not “His” people, He was willing to show compassion, even to the graceless and unbelieving. He will receive them and pardon them freely if they only believe in Him.
If you are a Christ-follower, you have experienced Jesus’ care in a multitude of ways. Are you willing to show His compassion to others, especially those outside the people in your “group”? While you and I cannot miraculously provide food for someone, we can use our resources in a kind and compassionate way.
Let’s ask God to help us mirror Jesus’ actions in His care for all people.
Another ACTION is,
He Confronts Doubt
“How does confronting doubt validate Jesus as a benevolent provider?” Remember, a benevolent person genuinely wishes others well and takes joy in doing good. Do warm feelings always accompany doing good? No. Wishing others well sometimes calls for kind confrontation.
The disciples doubt that enough bread can be found in “this wilderness” to feed such a large crowd. After all they have witnessed Jesus do, they feel as helpless as when confronted with the needs of the 5,000. Why? Did they assume that Jesus wouldn’t miraculously feed this crowd because they were Gentiles? Perhaps. To their credit, they didn’t suggest to Jesus that He send the multitude away, as they had earlier with the predominantly Jewish crowd.
It is easy for us to judge the disciples. Yet how often do you and I doubt God’s ability to provide in a seemingly impossible situation after He graciously provides for our daily needs for months without interruption?
If the miraculous becomes commonplace, then it ceases to be miraculous, correct? Remember, at this point, they did not yet fully realize Him as God. That only happened at Pentecost. We see His power as inherent and permanent. They saw His power as intermittent. Through their doubts and Jesus’ responses, their faith in Him gradually increases.
Jesus doesn’t scold His disciples for their doubt. Instead, He involves them in solving the problem. He allowed the disciples to participate in this miracle of divine compassion.
On this occasion, they had seven loaves of bread and a few small fish instead of five loaves and two fish. After giving thanks, Jesus began breaking the loaves and distributing the pieces to the disciples. He kept breaking the loaves until there was enough for everyone.
Try to imagine this scene as spiritual rather than physical. Shortly after feeding the 5,000, Jesus said in John 6:35, “I am the bread of life.” Later, after breaking the bread at the final Passover meal, Jesus said, “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.” There is no limit to the supply of Living Bread. As many come to Jesus in faith, they eat from that life-giving supply.
We all experience doubt, just like the disciples. Jesus confronts our doubt by inviting us to trust Him. He gives us the gift of faith to take the next step. He asks us to invest in the process. With these actions, Jesus shows us how to care for others, gently confronting their doubts.
A Final ACTION is,
He Cultivates Faith
I picture the crowd milling around, uncertain about what will happen next. So, Jesus commanded the people to sit on the ground. Their obedience demonstrated faith. If I had been there, that would have created an expectation on my part. It would have been a signal that something was going to happen.
In response to the crowd’s obedience and the disciples’ cooperation, Jesus performed this notable miracle. He proved to them that He could be trusted and that they could confidently put their faith in Him. We see this process illustrated many times in Scripture. Even for those whose faith is weak, Jesus cultivates it, helping it grow. He never mocks a trusting soul.
Once everyone was satisfied, the fragments were gathered up. By providing enough for everyone to eat, Jesus cultivated faith among the participants. According to Matthew’s account, about 4,000 men, along with women and children, shared in this miraculous meal.
After three days of intense ministry culminating in this supernatural meal, Jesus enters a ship and heads back to Jewish territory. Even though the location is uncertain, the following verse introduces Jesus interacting with the Pharisees.
What did the disciples learn about faith during this extended stay in Gentile territory? First, they were exposed to Jesus’ divinity. They witnessed His power over demons, deafness, and disease. They experienced the miraculous multiplication of food. They began to understand that only God could be the source of such power.
Next, they learned that the ultimate priority in life is worship. They saw Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman and the Gentile woman’s worship of Jesus. According to Matthew 15:31, it was the Gentile crowd that glorified the God of Israel. The Jewish religious leaders refused to worship Him.
Further, through these experiences, the disciples began to understand the divine resources available to them. They could not yet heal or feed crowds of hungry people, but they knew someone who could. They struggled with doubt even as Jesus cultivated their faith.
Finally, by including them in the food distribution, He demonstrated His benevolent provision for all people, regardless of religion or ethnicity. This called for a significant shift in their thinking, but the disciples needed to learn the value of all people.
Have you experienced Jesus as the benevolent provider in your life? Do you thank Him daily for His care and provision? You should do that for many reasons, primarily because He is worthy of thanks, and thankful people are joyful.
Has Jesus confronted doubt in your life by inviting you to trust Him? By giving you the gift of faith to take the next step. By asking you to invest in the process, even though you can’t see how it will turn out? Make sure you extend that same grace to others who are struggling.
How is God cultivating your faith? How does He include you in His care for all people? What are you learning in your faith journey? We’d love to hear how Jesus is using you to demonstrate His benevolent provision to all people, believers and unbelievers alike.
Thanks, J. Mark, for this encouraging teaching. Three actions of Jesus that show us He is a good provider. I had to think about the second one: He confronts doubt. I had to wonder if there ever was a follower of Jesus who hadn’t doubted at some level. Thankfully, Jesus is caring and kind. He gets us and is not offended or surprised by our humanness. In our lesson, it was the disciples, those who knew him best, who doubted how they could feed so many. He did not scold them; instead, he walked with them through it, and today, He will do the same for you in your place of doubt.
If you have any questions about today’s lesson, or if you would like to share a story of Jesus provision with us. Here are a few ways you can contact us. Our email address is hope@heraldsofhope.org. Or you can contact us via our website. Go to heraldsofhope.org. There you will find “contact us,” under the partner tab on the top right. Click that to message us directly. We would love to hear from you.
Thanks so much for listening. We have been encouraged to put our hope and trust in Jesus. This teaching made me think about our hope. Hebrews 6 gives us a great word picture of what our hope in Jesus is like. It says, “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast.” Our hope is an anchor for the soul. What a great thought to end with.
