From the desk of Pastor Ben

Lessons from the Feeding: The 12 Established – Part 1

“Ordering the people to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds, and they all ate and were satisfied.”         (Matthew 14:19-20a)

The 12 apostles were always objects of Jesus’ concern, training, and instruction. Just from this episode of the feeding of the 5000, our Lord taught them a number of important principles.
First, Christ demonstrated the principle of withdrawing from needless danger (Matthew 14:13). Martyrdom, or any type of unnecessary suffering sought for the wrong motives (such as self-glory), has no place in the believer’s life. Second, the Lord modeled the importance of rest and solitude, even when there is much ministry to do. We can’t always get rest and refreshment just how and when we want it, but that does not mean we have to abandon it. In the same way, the apostles saw from Christ the need for occasional times of retreat with fellow laborers to support one another and share needs and feelings.
Further, Jesus confirmed the apostle’s need to have compassion on the needy, even if those people seem fickle and undeserving. Christ generously met the physical needs of the crowd that day even though He knew most of the people would not follow Him to the end. Rest and leisure are important, but they must sometimes give way to service to others when that need is greater. Christians have no inalienable rights to personal prerogatives. Those must be expendable, along with all possessions, in service to others in the name of the Lord Jesus (see 1 Corinthians 9).

Ask Yourself:
If you struggle with allowing yourself to rest and refresh, think about what that is likely to cost you in the long run. How could you force yourself to take more seriously your own limitations and your need for re-charging, being as driven to relax as you are to exert yourself?