John 6:1-2 (King James Version)1After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias.
2And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased.
One of the first things we notice here is the need for expectation. The reason the multitudes were following Jesus was because they were expecting to see a miracle. They knew from past experience that Jesus was capable of raising the dead and wanted to see what He would do next. If they were not fully convinced He was capable, the multitudes would have never wasted their time.
This is the same way a farmer planting seed in a field is expecting that seed to grow into a crop he will someday harvest. Even though he will not see results for some time he tends to the crop (fertilizes, waters, etc.). This farmer is not only believing if he does these things he will see a crop, he believes his actions are helping that unseen crop grow, become stronger and more plentiful. He is putting action to his faith, right! (see James 2:17) We as believers must expect when we sow spiritual seed we will reap the spiritual harvest God promises us in His word.
John 6:3-6 (King James Version)
3And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples.
4And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh.
5When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
6And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.
Here we see Jesus in a teaching moment with His disciples. I believe He was trying to get Philip to look past the natural and into the spiritual. The verse clearly states that Jesus knew what He was going to do. Jesus was asking Philip, where would the provision come from. Let’s see how he answers.
John 6:7 (King James Version)
7Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.
The first thing Philip does is look at the bank account. He looks at the natural. Jesus knew there was not enough money to buy bread for the 5,000. Jesus also knew even if they had the money there were no where near enough vendors in the area that would have that much bread to sell them on such short notice.
He already knew what He would have to do. The truth is our provision comes from the Lord and not what we see here in the world. Though it is not part of our theme verse, here is another place in scripture to illustrate this point.
Matthew 6:25-27 (King James Version)
25Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
So when we sow seed we must understand that ultimately, when the harvest does come, all good things are from God. He is a loving father who will always provide for us no matter what it looks like in the natural. We must constantly keep our focus on Him if our sowing and reaping is to be successful.
I think, speaking for personal experience, we as Christians get caught up in the trap of thinking we must do the providing. This is especially difficult for men who are hardwired with the instinct to provide for a family. We think results are based off of our actions in the natural rather than our obedience to God. The result is our seed ends up dormant. The Word says if we seek out God’s will and are obedient to His voice, if we seek first His kingdom and to glorify His name, the provision and harvest will follow (see Matthew 6:33).
Now, getting back to our verse, let’s see if Andrew can help Philip out a little here...
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