Reading 35: The Gospel According to Mark By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. Send the people away so that they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But he answered, “You give them something to eat.” They said to him, “That would take more than half a year’s wages! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?” “How many loaves do you have?” he asked. “Go and see.” When they found out, they said, “Five—and two fish.” Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand. Context & Questions: Neither Jesus, his disciples, nor the crowd had yet eaten. It had been a long, grueling day. But the kingdom is breaking in! So Jesus challenges the disciples to feed the people. Is he teasing them? No, for they had just returned from traveling and sharing the good news of God’s reign. They had done mighty signs themselves. These signs are not about proving that Jesus is God. They are about returning God’s people and God’s creation to their intended flourishing. In the kingdom we will eat and drink and be made whole. Next up: Who knows?
Posted on: Sun, 01 Jun 2014 20:00:47 +0000