O WHAT A SAVIOR

O WHAT A SAVIOR

John 6:5

Our Lord seemed to enjoy teaching His Disciples about Himself. Much of what we know about Him came that way. Here He would first emphasize the great insufficiency of man :5, 7. This illustrates the great insufficiency in the character or nature of man. He would also show His great sovereignty in the face of that need :6, 10-13. Praise God! He is more than a match for every need - our great sinful nature included. He would also have them know Who He is :14. Moses had prophesied that another prophet would come like unto himself. In verse 14 the people were saying that He was that prophet, and He was.

Our Lord would farther reveal Himself. The barley loaves in verse 2 were not loaves like we are used to buying. They were small cake like things that one could hold in his hand. Here the little boy carried five of them and two small fish as his lunch. They picture His lowly entrance into the world. The Creator and Ruler of the universe came to earth as the Son of a lowly Jewish virgin. They could not even find a room in an inn, but they were given a cow stall in which they could spend the night. Jesus was born that night, and they laid Him in a manger where the cows fed.

Five thousand men not counting the women and children were fed from those humble beginnings (five loaves and two fish). When they had all eaten, the left overs were gathered up. Those left overs filled 12 baskets. These remains show us the great power that His deity maintained. He used what was at hand and multiplied it. He really is not dependent on us, however. See Luke 19:40, "And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out."

Our Lord taught these lessons with design to teach a greater one. He would teach us that He was the Bread or Manna that came down from Heaven :49, 50. He would teach us that that by that Manna from Heaven we would spiritually nourish ourselves. This required the eating or assimilating the truth of His person :53.