Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude. So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them. (Luke 9:16-17)

Leftovers From Nothing

The miracles of Jesus were done to show that He was the divine Son of God and that believing in the miracles would lead men to eternal life. No one could do the miracles Jesus could do. He healed all diseases, commanded the elements to His desire, changed the course of nature, cast out demons, and raised the dead. His critics never denied that Jesus performed miracles but attacked his teaching. Multitudes followed Jesus in the thousands. On one occasion, more than five thousand people followed Jesus to hear His teaching. The five thousand was just the men, not including the women and children. As the day was wearing on, the twelve came to Jesus, telling Him He needed to send the crowd away so they could find food. It was obvious that Jesus and the twelve were ill-equipped to care for such a large crowd.

Jesus shocked His apostles when He told them to feed the multitude. Looking at the plus five thousand people, the apostles were astonished and dismayed. They could only find five loaves of bread and two small fish. Telling the apostles to make the people sit down in groups of fifty, the Lord took the five loaves and two fish, blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to give to the five thousand plus people. As the disciples passed out the bread and fish, they multiplied until everyone was filled, leaving twelve baskets full of the leftover fragments. Jesus began with five loaves and two small fish, and left the crowd with twelve baskets full.

The miracle of feeding the five thousand showed the world the incredible power of God. It should not surprise anyone that Jesus could multiply the bread and fish. It was by Jesus that all things were created, both in heaven and on earth. All things were created through Him and for Him. Replicating bread and fish is Jesus showing His power as Creator. The lesson of the feeding is also a reminder of what God can and will do in the lives of His people.

Jesus started with almost nothing, and when the people were filled, there was an abundance left over. That is the promise God makes for how He cares for His people. Man is an empty shell. Sin has decimated the nature of man to face the wrath of God. There is no redeeming quality in the character of man. Nothing man can do can find a way to save himself from the fury of God. Only when God sent His only begotten Son did man find hope. Through the blood of Jesus, grace was given to sinful man. By the mercy of God, humanity found relief. Obedience to the will of the Father will bring one into an eternal relationship with the Father. Man began with nothing and was given abundance.

The leftovers from the feeding of the five thousand is God telling the human heart what is in store for him if he will trust in the Son of God. Jesus is able to make grace abound in the heart that is washed, cleaned, forgiven, renewed, and abounding in the love of God. Man sees the impossible. God shows the possible. Man is empty. God fills him. Man is hopeless. God brings hope. Man stands condemned. God brings salvation. It is often said that the best part of a great feast is the leftovers. The grace of God is an abundant feast that is greater than anything man can understand. Having twelve baskets after feeding thousands of people is the message of God that in His Son, blessings abound – and they get better every day. Only Jesus could have fed five thousand with five loaves and two fish. Jesus is the only way, truth, and life. He is the abundance of God’s love.