He said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?"

After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased. And Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples. Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward him, He said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?" But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do. Philip answered Him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little." One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him, There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?" Then Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted. So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost." Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world." Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.

- John 6:1-15

Over the course of the past several readings, we have been reading about incidents that took place in the temple, at the time of the Festival of Weeks, or the Jewish Feast of Pentecost. Jesus first healed a paralytic man, telling him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk." The authorities challenged the man, saying he was violating the Sabbath; he told them that the man who healed him said to take up his bed. When they found Jesus, they confronted Him about doing these things on the Sabbath, and He said, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working." Therefore they wanted to persecute Him all the more, because He said He was God's Son, and made Himself equal with God. Jesus than began to teach about Himself. He did as the Father willed, was given all things by the Father. He will do greater works than they have seen, for in Him is also the life in the Father. Moreover, the Father has committed Judgment to the Son. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. He told them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live." In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued. He offered four witnesses to His Sonship: the Father, John the Baptist, the works that He does as given by the Father, and finally the Scriptures of Moses and the Old Testament. He said, "I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?"

After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased. And Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples. Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. While John reports seven signs altogether in His gospel, we are also told that many signs were performed that the Gospel doesn't mention. In this way, Jesus is already very well-known, and has many people -- "a great multitude" -- who wish to see Him. Now He has crossed back over the Sea of Galilee after the Festival at Jerusalem and the events there we read about over the past several readings. Now the Passover Festival draws near. My study bible tells us, "The Passover coincided with the Feast of Unleavened Bread which commemorated not only the Exodus from Egypt, but the first food from grain eaten in the Promised Land after the crossing of the Jordan."

Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward him, He said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?" But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do. Philip answered Him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little." One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him, There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?" John gives us a glimpse here into the mind of Jesus: He's testing Philip, because He already knows what He is going to do. That's a very interesting understanding. Often we may read in the Old Testament Scriptures about God's testing of Israel throughout its history. Here, we also have a fulfillment of "type" -- the multitudes follow Jesus onto a mountain top, as the Israelites leaving Egypt into unknown territory for the Promised Land. Can one buy bread in the wilderness? My study bible says that Philip was tested because he needs to understand who Christ is. Jesus continually reveals Himself -- especially in this Gospel -- through the things people don't know and don't understand, what they cannot see. He reveals the potentials inherent in His identity, and in relation to those who have faith in Him and to His Creation. Two hundred denarii is a large sum for these working people, about 200 days' wages for a laborer. Andrew looks to see what is on hand, but can't understand what can be done with such small provisions. By noting that these are barley loaves, we get a picture of the people who follow Jesus: they are the poorer people. Barley cost less than wheat, and, my study bible notes, was ready for harvest in the springtime at Passover.

Then Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted. The feeding of five thousand (this is the number of men, a traditional way of counting -- there would also be women and children present) is reported in all four Gospels. It is a preview of the Eucharist: to "give thanks" in the Greek is the verb eucharisto. The food is blessed, distributed to the disciples and then given to the people. This is Jesus' fourth sign in John's gospel. Here in this setting, and at this time, it is a revelation of the divinity in Christ in the "type" of the feeding of Israel in the wilderness after the Exodus in the gift of manna.

So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost." Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. The twelve baskets are symbolic: the Twelve Apostles will go out into the the world with the food of the Gospel, for all the world. My study bible says, "As with the manna in the wilderness (Ex. 16:16-21), nothing of the gift of God should be lost. In contrast to the manna, here we have an abundance of twelve baskets of leftovers, one for each disciple."

Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world." We contrast this with Jesus' speech made to the temple leadership, which John has just reported in the verses previous to today's reading. He told them, "Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?" Jesus was referring to the verses in Deuteronomy, when Moses foretold of the Prophet who was to come: "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him" . . . "I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him." Here, those who have seen this sign believe that He is that Prophet, as predicted by Moses. The witness or testimony of the sign has been in a certain sense grasped by these people who are fed on the mountain top, but not by the leadership in the temple. Their expectations of this Prophet are not in keeping with Jesus' identity nor mission -- John once more gives us truth through the people's misapprehension. My study bible says, "The Galilean Jews, with their misguided messianic enthusiasm equate Jesus with the Prophet of Deuteronomy 18:15-19, whom they expect to be an earthly, political leader who will lead them against the occupying Romans, as Moses led his people out of bondage. Because He is not to fulfill these expectations, Jesus withdraws from the crowd." He is another kind of Leader, one who seeks those who will worship God in spirit and truth, the Teacher for all of us.

In yesterday's reading, Jesus contrasted the love of God with the love of the praise of men. He spoke of those who understand only the glory that comes from men rather than the glory that comes from God. There is repeatedly an assertion about a relationship first with the Father, and from this comes the understanding of Christ. So, I think that even in this reading, we have to ask ourselves, "What is glory?" Even through this great miracle or sign of the feeding in the wilderness, we will see the misunderstanding arise. John reports Jesus' signs, but does not offer them as proofs to force faith. Instead, they are testimony; they point to something beyond themselves. Over and over again, what is taken at face value is taken wrongly. Worldly assumptions about Christ and what He does simply can't take in the truth of His mission and His Person and intentions. Instead, He asks for those whom the Father is seeking: those who will worship in spirit and truth. The purely worldly, the obvious, is mistaken, just as an authority that comes only from other people and fails to have a connection to the true authority of God, through the love of God, will fail to grasp what is truly present. Let us ask ourselves what it is to worship in spirit and truth. Let us ask ourselves what we seek when we look at this text, or read of these signs. Can they teach us more than what we read or hear? Is there something we reach toward, even within ourselves, that takes us beyond our own limits and expectations and assumptions? That is the place we will find faith, the love of God -- the potential that is truly there in five barley loaves and two small fishes. Without this, we will miss the abundance of life itself.