Filled Beyond Full :: Mark 8:1-9
And (Jesus) announced toward the crowd to recline upon the ground. And having taken seven loaves and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people. And they set them before the crowd. And they had a few small fish, and having blessed those, (Jesus) said that those also should be set before (the people). And they ate and were filled. And they took up what was left over, seven baskets of broken pieces. And there were about four thousand people. And he dismissed them.
Did you hear that? They did what Jesus told them to do! It’s a miracle! Or is it two?!
In our Gospel lesson today, Jesus fed four thousand tired and hungry followers with a feast of overwhelming abundance. Jesus took the bread, gave thanks, and broke it. He then gave it to the disciples, who started feeding the people following Jesus. They all did what they were told to do. And in the process, they not only didn’t run out of bread, they had a superabundance in the end.
I am not sure now which is more miraculous. The fact that four thousand people were filled with but a mere seven loaves of bread, or that everyone in this reading ... the disciples and the people ... did exactly what Jesus told them to do.
May the Lord bless you and keep you ...
Of course, we can’t help but think, Well ... duh! Of course, they got their fill and then some! Why wouldn’t they? They had heard about the feeding of the 5,000 on the other side of the sea. Clearly, they just wanted a free lunch, too.
But it bears stressing how abundant the leftovers were. There were seven huge baskets full of bread and fish leftover! These aren’t just Easter baskets with little round pieces of flatbread. Jesus wasn’t giving out candy bars. In this particular miracle, brothers and sisters in Christ, unlike at the feeding of the 5,000, each of these baskets are big enough to hold a man. Saint Paul was lowered out a window in one of these types of baskets (Acts 9:25). Some estimate each of these baskets could hold 50 loaves of bread. Now do the math. Seven times 50 ... yep, 350. The disciples filled those baskets ... after the people had their fill! If seven loaves can feed 4,000, Jesus could have fed another 192,000 people just on the leftovers.
1, This is to say Christ fills every need ... of both body and soul ... and then some.
We should burn this lesson into our memories so that we may learn to believe that, regardless of our perceived lack of resources, regardless of how hungry we think we really are or aren’t, our Lord provides! He always provides. If only the world were so receptive. What an honor it is to be on the receiving end of such a gracious and profound miracle!
I think if we’re honest, when we hear about these Gentiles being filled by the gifts of Christ, a certain sense of jealousy and covetousness comes over us. That is our natural response when we realize someone has more than us. Look at the world around you right now. Everywhere you look, all you hear and see is dissatisfaction. People are angry or afraid or both. They’re scared and anxious. In fact, it’s hard to believe that anyone could possibly feel like they can get their fill in the midst of all the sickness and fear and violence and hatred all around us.
We tell ourselves, we don’t have enough money to take care of what we need to take care of. And then even when we realize we do, we have people denying the gifts of Christ to the people.
It will take too much time, we say.
That’ll cost too much money!
You mean, I have to do more around here?! But I am tired, and ready to faint.
Did you know there are people who think that you can receive the forgiveness of sins too often? Did you know there are people worried about how much time it will take to receive that? Did you know there are people who think if you receive the forgiveness of sins so often it will lose its specialness? How can receiving the forgiveness of sins ever lose its specialness? How can you ever not enjoy life in forgiveness?
Our Lord sees the needs of the people and he provides. As we have been hearing now for weeks in our readings ... it is a feast of forgiveness, it is an unending feast. The invitation is always yours. And when we do what he commands, extraordinary things happen!
As we were reminded in our supporting readings, God is the God of plenty. We had a superabundance in the garden. Then the fall came. Mankind is now literally dying in sin. Sin has been killing you ever since. Sin leaves you feeling empty, filled with fear, hunger, and thirst for more. It leaves you not knowing where your next meal is going to come from.
But the Lord sees us in our need. He knows you will faint on the way home. So he has compassion on us ... declaring come, recline here in this sanctuary with me. That is why he continues to prepare for you his Word of life and why he gives you his sacraments. He did it in the garden, and he is still doing it today.
These Gospel imperatives ... yes, you could say commandments ... urge you to recline at his table to receive the forgiveness of sins from him. The disciples don’t see this need. They don’t recognize it. They just see a desert, a wasteland.
How are we going to fill the people, we ask ourselves.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, repent! Believe the Gospel. Jesus gives you all you need. Stop relying on yourselves. We are sheep who will die of hunger and thirst if left to ourselves. But our shepherd is leading us to green pastures. Here, he orders the filling to begin. To use Saint Paul’s word from Ephesians 1, He fills all things. All things are under his feet ... He is the head over all things in the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all (Eph 1:23).
He did this by first emptying himself (Pp 2:7). He who knew no sin has lifted the weight of our deadly debt of sin from us. He has taken our place as the sin bearer, to shed his blood for you. He was punished for your sin. He suffered for your sin. He was beaten and crucified and nailed to a cross for your sin. He died for your sin in your place. The punishment you deserve ... became His punishment.
What’s more, in the great exchange for this punishment ... because the wages of sin is death ... his righteousness was credited to you, giving you life. Jesus, the sinless son of God, did what we couldn’t do: He was born without sin, lived a life without sin to set us free from sin and to satisfy our God-given hunger and thirst for righteousness.
In this way he has filled our every need.
But he doesn’t stop there! By virtue of the baptism he poured out upon us, the baptism in which we died to sin and were raised to eternal life, he nourishes our faith. His baptism gives you faith, faith that saves. In faith we can then confess our sins, knowing that he who is faithful and just will cleanse you of all your sins, proclaiming you are forgiven and free, now and forever. Then he leads you to the foot of this chancel where he delivers to you his bread of life with the cup of salvation. These sacraments are all for your forgiveness, brothers and sisters in Christ.
So set aside your grievances with each other and forgive each other of anger, resentment, jealousy, lust for more.
SEE WHAT KIND OF CHRIST WE HAVE: HE CARES FOR BODY AND SOUL
Clap your hands, all you people! Shout to God with loud songs of joy! (Ps 47:1)
Our Lord cares about not just about our spiritual needs ... he cares about our physical, material side of life too. Just take a moment to think about all the daily bread your Lord fills you with. As Luther teaches us ... Daily bread includes everything that has to do with the support and needs of the body, such as food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, home, land, animals, money, goods, a devout husband or wife, devout children, devout workers, devout and faithful rulers, good government, good weather, peace, health, self-control, good reputation, good friend, faithful neighbors, and the like. ... Just in case you think something was left out or omitted we remember this.
He longs to fill you in every way ... and lead you in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake (Ps 23:3). He longs to richly and daily provides for all our needs of body and soul, even when we fail to ask, even when we think we don’t need it, even when we fail to return thanks.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, my prayer for you is that you will finally begin receiving with joy what the Lord longs to give you in his Divine Service to you, through you, for you ... His word of promise ... His life-giving water and Word ... His absolution ... His body and blood for the forgiveness of your sins.
Receive these gifts of heaven in faith as often as you can.
Receive them with joy.
Follow Christ all the days of your life. He will satisfy you with the fruits of faith that lead to sanctification and the Telos ... the fulfillment of all things in Christ ... eternal life in the kingdom of the heavens (Rm 6:22).