I read a story about a first-grade class where some students were recent refugees from other countries. The topic being taught in class was simple fractions.
The teacher defined halves and quarters and then asked the children to write down 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 have a quarter, more people could have a piece of candy.”
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 is the account of Jesus feeding 4,000 people.
Those who want to find fault with the Scriptures are quick to point out that Mark has either made an error in duplicating one of Jesus’ miracles or invented this story to convey the point that Jesus provides for the needs of both Jews and Gentiles. Do these critics have a point?
Follow along as I read the text and listen for similarities or differences between the two accounts.
While these two events share numerous similarities, they also have significant differences. I will focus on the differences because they prove that feeding the 4,000 is a different incident than feeding the 5,000.
The most compelling proof is that Jesus verifies them in the conversation surrounding the event in Matthew and Mark. Another proof is they took place in two completely different geographic areas, one near Bethsaida on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee and the other in Decapolis on the southeast coast. Jesus fed the 5,000 after they had been with Him for one day and the 4,000 after they had listened to His teaching for three days. The first group was primarily Jewish, and the second group was mainly Gentile.
The time of year was different, too, because the 5,000 sat down on the “green grass” while the 4,000 sat on the bare ground. Furthermore, all four Gospel writers include feeding the 5,000, while Matthew and Mark specifically note feeding the 4,000. Finally, they had various amounts of food to begin with and different amounts left over after everyone had eaten.
Let’s turn to the text and see how the ACTIONS of Jesus validate Him as the benevolent provider.
The First ACTION is,
He Cares for All People
One who is benevolent genuinely wishes other people welland finds joy in doing good. Jesus was that kind of person. Crowds gathered to hear Him teach and witness His miracles wherever He went. This foray into Gentile territory was no exception. He had previously been in the region of Tyre and Sidon, modern-day Lebanon. Taking a circuitous route, He left Tyre, went north to Sidon, made His way east, came back south, and then back up to the Sea of Galilee in Decapolis, modern-day Jordan. This trip moved in the shape of a horseshoe and took 120 miles.
By meeting the needs of the Gentiles, Jesus verified God’s promise to Abraham and the message of the Old Testament prophets. Jesus cared about human needs wherever He found them and was ready to meet them. In the Sermon on the Mount, He said of His Father, “He makes His sun rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the just and the unjust.”
The Gospel writers recorded many times that Jesus felt compassion toward people. Only here in our text and Matthew’s account of this same event did Jesus, speaking in the first person, declare this about Himself. 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 the hurting ones.
This crowd had been listening to Jesus teach for three days but had not adequately prepared for this marathon teaching session. Jesus, in His infinite patience, knew that many in this crowd were following Him out of idle 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.”
These words reveal how our benevolent provider cares for everyone. However, as He told the Syro-Phoenician woman whose daughter He healed, these were not “His” people. Still, He is always ready to show compassion, even to the graceless, the faithless, and the followers of this world. He will receive them graciously 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,” whatever that is? While you and I cannot miraculously provide food for someone in need, we can use our resources in a kind and compassionate way. Those resources aren’t always physical. Sometimes, it’s a listening ear, a sincere prayer, or an encouraging word.
Let’s ask God to help us mirror the actions of Jesus in His care for all people.
Another ACTION is,
He Confronts Doubt
Immediately, someone will say, “How does confronting doubt validate Jesus as a benevolent provider?” Remember, one who is benevolent genuinely wishes other people welland finds joy in doing good. Do warm, fuzzy feelings always accompany joy and doing good? No. Wishing others well sometimes calls for kind and gentle confrontation.
The disciples doubt 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 they did 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. After all, it was forbidden for Jews to eat with unclean Gentiles. To their credit, they didn’t suggest to Jesus that He send the multitude away, as they had earlier with the predominately Jewish crowd.
It is easy for us in our position to judge the disciples. We don’t know how much time elapsed between these two events, but it could have been weeks or months. Did they forget so soon? Or was it that during this time, their wants had been supplied in an ordinary way? How often have you and I doubted God’s ability to provide in a seemingly impossible situation after He graciously provided for our daily needs for months without interruption?
After all, 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 incarnate. That only happened after Pentecost. We see His power as inherent and, therefore, permanent. They saw His power as intermittent rather than constant. Through their doubts and Jesus’ responses, their faith in Him gradually increases.
Jesus doesn’t scold His disciples for their doubt. Instead, as He did feeding the 5,000, He involved them in solving the problem. He could have miraculously caused the bread and fish to appear in the hands of the expectant multitude, but He didn’t do that. He allowed the disciples to participate in this miracle of divine compassion.
There are many examples in Scripture of God or Jesus using the doubters to change the situation. When the children of Israel faced the Red Sea, and Pharaoh was behind them, God said, “Go forward.” They had to exercise faith in the face of doubt. They had to move first. A similar thing happened many years later at the crossing of the Jordan River.
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 giving the pieces to the disciples to distribute. The grammar implies that the miracle took place in Jesus’ hands. He kept breaking the loaves until there was enough for everyone.
While this picture is fresh, imagine the 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.
Do you remember Jesus’ interaction with Thomas after the Resurrection? Thomas said, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” How did Jesus respond, with criticism, with rebuke? No, with an invitation. “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
We all experience doubts, just like the disciples. How has Jesus confronted doubt in your life? By inviting you to trust Him, correct? 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.
Through these actions, Jesus shows us how to care for others genuinely and to gently confront their doubts.
A Final ACTION is,
He Cultivates Faith
Let’s back up in the story for a moment. Did the crowd overhear the discussion between Jesus and the disciples? I don’t know. However, 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. I don’t know about you, but 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. It created an expectancy in the people and the disciples.
In response to the crowd’s obedience and the disciples’ cooperation, Jesus performed this notable miracle. He was proving to them that He could be trusted and that they could confidently put their faith in Him. We see this process play out over and over again in Scripture. Even for those whose faith is weak, Jesus cultivates it to make it grow. He never mocks a trusting soul.
After everyone had eaten to the full, the fragments were gathered up just as they were in the feeding of the 5,000. In that case, there were 12 baskets of fragments. Can we suggest one basket for each disciple? Interestingly, the original word for baskets in these two miracles is different. In feeding the 5,000, they are “handbaskets,” the kind one could carry easily. In this case, they are large baskets generally used for storage. This was the same kind of basket used when Paul escaped the city of Damascus after his conversion. One can easily miss these details in a cursory reading of the accounts.
By providing enough for everyone to eat and more besides, Jesus cultivated faith in the participants. According to Matthew’s account, about 4,000 men, plus women and children, partook in this miraculous meal.
As noted earlier, the composition of these groups was different. The first group was predominantly Jewish, while this one was predominantly Gentile. The way Jesus dismissed the groups was also different. After feeding the 5,000, He first sent His disciples away and then dismissed the crowd. He did that because they were ready to proclaim Him as King and Messiah. However, we know this euphoria was only temporary. Later, Jesus reproved this Jewish crowd for following Him for a free meal (John 6:26). In this account, Jesus sent the multitude away after the 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 worship given to Jesus by the woman from Syro-Phoenicia. 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 heal or feed crowds of hungry people, but they knew someone who did. They struggled with doubt even as Jesus cultivated their faith.
Finally, by including them in the food distribution in these events, He demonstrated His benevolent provision for all people, regardless of religion or ethnicity. This was a significant paradigm shift, but the disciples needed to learn the value of all people.
Have you experienced Jesus as the benevolent provider in your life in both mundane and supernatural ways? 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 uses you to demonstrate His benevolent provision to all people, believers and unbelievers alike.
