O God, your Word brings light to your people now, just as it did long ago. Fill us with your Spirit as we listen for your Word. Open our minds and hearts to receive light to guide us and truth to change us in the name of Christ, our Risen Lord. Amen.
Gospel Reading: Mark 6:30-44
Have you ever felt worn out—spiritually, emotionally, physically—just running on empty, with nothing left to give? Maybe you’ve been in a time where the needs around you feel overwhelming, where people are depending on you, but you feel like you’ve got barely enough strength for yourself.
The disciples of Jesus knew that feeling. In our reading from the Gospel of Mark, they come back to Jesus after a whirlwind time of ministry—preaching, healing, casting out demons. They’re excited, but exhausted. And Jesus, in his tenderness, says, “Come away by yourselves to a quiet place and rest a while.” That’s the kind of Saviour he is, aware not just of the crowds, but also of his own people’s need for rest.
But even that rest is interrupted. The crowds follow. Thousands of people show up, hungry, desperate, needy. And what does Jesus do? Mark says, “He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.” He doesn’t sigh and send them away. He doesn’t scold them for bad timing. He sees them, he feels for them. And then he feeds them—body and soul.
This morning we’ll have a look at that event, not just to witness a miracle, but to see the heart of the one who performed it. A Saviour whose compassion isn’t just a feeling, but a force that moves him to act. Here we see that Jesus cares for and has compassion on not only the crowds, but also his own followers. And it’s the same compassion he has for me and you.
Our opening line of today’s Gospel reading, “The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught.”, raises some questions; where had the disciples been and what had they done and taught? To try and find some answers to this we’ll have to look back a few verses in chapter 6 of Mark’s Gospel. Here he tells us, “He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over the unclean spirits…’ So, they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. They cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.” (Mark 6:7, 12-13)
Jesus had sent the twelve disciples out on their very first missionary trip. After a successful mission they had come back tired and hungry. Added to this was hearing the distressing news of the beheading of John the Baptist by Herod Antipas. Knowing that his disciples needed to rest and needed a break from the pressure, Jesus took his men by boat to a remote region on the northern edge of the Sea of Galilee. He meant it to be a time of retreat, rest, and rejuvenation.
But that wasn’t meant to be, Mark tells us, “Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.” So, instead of sending them away, Jesus is moved with compassion. Even when Jesus is tired, his compassion never runs dry. Where we might see an interruption, Jesus sees an opportunity. He sees the crowd not as a burden, but as sheep needing a shepherd. He teaches them. He loves them. And soon, he going to feed them.
Jesus had a shepherd’s heart. Remember, it was he who said, “He who hungers and thirsts after righteousness shall be filled,” (Matthew 5:6). And here were men and women so hungry for the word of deliverance that, though he took a boat and rowed four miles across the lake, they ran ten miles by foot around the northern end of the lake and arrived at the other side before he got there! They were waiting there for him to teach them when he came. So, without a word of rebuke, Jesus began to teach them many things.
Jesus saw that they were hungering and thirsting after the words of righteousness, but these hungry people had no faithful, spiritual pastors to feed them with knowledge and understanding. The Scribes and Pharisees were supposed to lead them and guide them, but these men, who were to be their shepherds, were blinded by their own sin and self-righteousness. Because they had no shepherds, the people of Israel were ready to perish for lack of knowledge. They were left destitute and hopeless and there seemed to be no way out for them.
Then into their lives walks the Man of Galilee, the Lord Jesus Christ. Here was a teacher, a preacher, a minister, a prophet and someone who came like a breath of fresh air to the hungry souls and hopeless lives of the people of Israel. He was a man who had compassion, and a man who had answers for their questions. Here was a man who actually practiced what he preached. His words were powerful, informative and refreshing to the soul. His words brought hope and a newness to life that every man longed for.
What we see from this is that compassion is never inconvenient to Jesus. Even when exhausted, his love overflows. He sees our struggles, our hunger, both physical and spiritual, and responds. Are we willing to reflect that same compassion, even in moments of personal weariness? How do we respond to the needs of others around us? Hopefully, if we take the time to rest, to be filled spiritually through solitude, prayer, meditation and reflection; we then can go back out into the busyness of our lives and give of ourselves that which we have received from God.
After a full day of Jesus teaching the crowds, evening drew nigh and Mark says, “When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late; send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.’ But he answered them, ‘You give them something to eat.’ They said to him, ‘Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?’
It’s late, the people are tired and hungry, and there isn’t any food available. So, the disciples make a very practical suggestion: “Send them away and let them find food.” That’s logical. The suggestion is not made from bad motives; in themselves the disciples had no resources to meet this enormous need. They had no food and no money. What else could they do? They couldn’t do anything!
When Jesus looked out over the crowds who came to him on those hills that day, it is no surprise that he was moved with compassion for them. Jesus looked at these people, the sick, the hungry, the thirsty and he saw much more than just people who needed a little food, or some water to drink. Jesus saw people who needed a shepherd; people who needed a Saviour. The disciples noticed the hunger and thirst of the people too, but they felt powerless to do anything for them. They wished to feed the people, to see their needs met, but there was a problem, there wasn’t any food.
Jesus knew what the disciples had. He knew they didn’t have the finances to go and buy enough food for such a large crowd. Surely Jesus was aware of their limited funds, and he knew that they had brought nothing to eat with them, at least not nearly enough. Why did he even tell them to feed the people when he knew what their limitations were?
The Lord was not shaken by their lack of faith. He understood that his disciples still looked through eyes of flesh and that they could only think of what they could do in their own ability to feed the people. But Jesus took them one step farther. He told them to find out what they did have so that he could use that to meet the needs of the people.
What do we have to offer the world? Jesus tells us, “Go look!” We search and answer, “Not much.” And, well, what about our needs? Shouldn’t we use our limited time and resources to take care of ourselves? There are so many needs out there, it’s overwhelming. How are we to even begin to know where to focus? And what difference will we make, anyway?
Jesus is always teaching. His primary message to his disciples was this. You are never able to perform the work of the Lord within your own power. Your abilities are never enough. Your knowledge is never enough. Your provision is never enough. You must trust in God and have faith in his power to provide for your needs.
Jesus told the disciples to go and see how much food was available, of course he knew already, but he was trying to make a point with them. They returned and said there were only five loaves and two fish, a small amount of food for such an overwhelming need. Yet Jesus saw opportunity where others saw obstacles, Mark writes, “Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. And all ate and were filled; and they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.”
It’s interesting to note that in the Matthew’s gospel he says, “And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.” So, there would have easily been ten thousand people which Jesus fed with five loaves and two fish. And at the end the leftovers amounted to twelve baskets of broken pieces of bread and fish! God doesn’t just meet our needs, he exceeds them.
What we can learn from this story today is not just what Jesus did, but rather who he is, he is the heart of compassion. When we think about Jesus, we think about his power, his miracles, his teachings. But if you look closely at the Gospels, there’s a thread that runs through all of it—a consistent, tender compassion for the people around him. It’s this compassion that moved him to heal, to teach, to feed, and to forgive.
Jesus cares deeply about your needs. Whether physical, emotional, or spiritual, he sees you. And he has compassion on you. Jesus is always near, and he will take you just as you are, with all your faults, with all your sin, with all your doubts and fears, and with your limited time, talents and understanding. Jesus came so that your life could count. Jesus came so that you could be delivered from sin and given eternal life. Jesus can take you, just as you are, and he will make you into what is needed to build his kingdom.
Let us Pray:
Lord Jesus, we thank you for your heart of compassion. Thank you for seeing us when we feel invisible, for reaching out when we feel unworthy, for healing our wounds, and for forgiving our sins. Teach us to love like you. Give us eyes to see the hurting, hearts to feel their pain, and hands willing to help. May we carry your compassion into a world that desperately needs it. In your name we pray,
Amen