The Lord is my Shepherd and Chef?!
We wish to thank Senior Pastor Chris Lenhart, of Calvary Monument Bible Church (CMBC) Paradise, PA, for much of the content of this post. You can check out his actual sermon on this on CMBC’s Facebook page!
We’ve all felt lost, and we’ve all felt hungry! Whatever your current need may be today, take heart, dear friend; Jesus is more than enough! Today, we look at two passages (one Old Testament and one New Testament) that are parallel and teach us this great truth.
In John 6, a large crowd had been following Jesus because they had seen Him heal people. Knowing the people were hungry, Jesus asks His Apostle, Philip, in John 6:5, “’Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?’ He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, ‘Two hundred denarli (almost a year’s wages) worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.’” If you are familiar with this passage, you know what happens next. Peter brings a young boy forward whose mom has packed him five small barley loaves and two small fish. Jesus has the people sit down and the disciples feed 5,000 men (+women and children). And after everyone ate as much as they wanted, the disciples collected 12 basketfuls of leftovers.
This is probably a familiar narrative to most of us. What you may not have thought about though is how this passage is a direct parallel to Psalm 23. Are there any more comforting words in all of Scripture? The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies, you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Jesus chooses the location of the miracle in John 6 with a purpose. He leads the people to the grassy shores by the Sea of Galilee (green pastures & still waters) The people were coming in droves looking for what they could get out of Jesus. They were an embattled people who were being oppressed by Rome. They felt hopeless. When Jesus appeared on the scene performing miracles, they thought He must be the promised Prophet and King from the Old Testament. His appearance offered them what they longed for most – hope of deliverance (He restores my soul.)
By this time of the day, the people would have been hot and bone weary, and Jesus offers them refreshment (Your rod and staff, they comfort me). Jesus didn’t need the boy’s meager dinner, nor did He need the disciples to hand the food out to perform this miracle, but He has them participate anyway. There is order and intention to what Jesus was doing. He was showing the disciples, and the people, that while He didn’t need any help, He was inviting them to participate in what He was doing for their good and His glory. (He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake).
Most of the people there probably were living in poverty because of the Roman oppression. They would have known what it was like to go without food. But Jesus doesn’t just feed them a small portion to hold them over, He feeds them as much as they wanted with 12 baskets full left over!! (you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; my cup overflows).
The point is that our God, who is unchangeable, is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. The magnificent, benevolent God that inspired David to write that beautiful Psalm is the same God who fed 5,000+ people, and the same God who takes care of our needs! Sadly, most of the people Jesus fed misunderstood that Jesus came to fill a much deeper need than mere physical hunger or earthly oppression. After He fed them, the people closed in on Him trying to force Him to become their King. They were looking for a warrior King who would defeat Rome and free them from their oppression. They did not understand that they had a much deeper need they needed to be delivered from. Theirs, and our, greatest need is to be freed from the oppression of our sin and the wrath of God because of that sin. Even the disciples did not fully understand this until they received the Holy Spirit. But when we understand what Jesus has delivered us from and the hope that He brings, we can say with a heart full of thanksgiving, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
