God Will Provide - Look to the Star

How can God provide for so many people? That’s a great question! I’m sure the disciples were wondering that when Jesus told them that they should give the people something to eat that day on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Five barley loaves of bread and two small fish could never feed so many, could they? Not normally, but in this instance Jesus wanted to show the people and the disciples that 1) he cared about the needs of the people, yes, the physical needs. That included healing the sick, but it also meant that it was God who provided for their meals. And 2) anytime there is a miracle text, Jesus was showing that he was God so they might believe he was the Savior of their souls.

This is true for us as well. My box of breakfast cereal comes to me through a complex food chain that starts with farmer and crops. This includes truckers, factories, stores, and hundreds of people who work to make my breakfast a reality. Through all of that the Lord provides. Normally he uses natural means so that people like us get to participate in his incredible providence of creation. God will provide.

Look back at the feeding of the five thousand, God didn’t need to use the disciples to pass out the food. He doesn’t need any of us! But he gives us the privilege of passing out his blessings. How fun was it for the twelve disciples to pass out food to so many people?! They knew exactly where it came from.

That would be a great place to end, but I want to point out that when God provides, it’s not just food for your belly. Sometimes in the history of the world God has moved through ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things. The example I gave in my sermon was that of Nich Winton, and English banker who saved the lives of 669 Czechoslovakian children just before World War II. Our Lord has saved us from something far more deadly than a concentration camp. He provided a way out for us from the fires of hell. That is what we deserved for our sin. Jesus took our place so that we might be free. Want to hear more? Watch this Sunday’s message taken from Matthew 14.