More than Fish
Everyone has heard the story of feeding the five thousand right?
Yeah, most of you reading this probably have. It's a true story that displays many of the characteristics of God and symbolically puts forth the gospel.
Imagine this:
You're around town with a few neighbors and you hear the rumors that the man named Jesus is near. Everyone starts to scurry, wishing to even just see him. Some even dare to bring their sick daughters, sons, and parents, in their last hope that their loved one might just live. If what they had heard was true, it was worth a shot right? It's hot and dusty but you follow the crowd, veering away from the town to the remote place where Jesus was said to be. You doubt this guy could actually heal someone, but the temptation to test him compels you forward with the others from your town. The crowd begins to grow bigger by the minute, and then, there he is. The man named Jesus. The sick are gathered around and Jesus actually begins healing them, one at a time. Can this be real? Who is this guy? You notice the men around him. The ones who seem not to leave his side, like they know him. Why do they follow so closely?
It starts to grow late in the day and your stomach makes you aware of its need for sustenance. Oh and how far you've come to see this man. It was worth it, you tell yourself, but boy are you hungry, and very tired. An hour or so passes and the mumbles of hunger come through the crowd, and the men who stood closely with Jesus direct you to sit with a group of men, some of whom you know. Soon after the mumbles, comes a basket, with fish and bread. Tons and tons of fish and bread. Taking your fill you pass it on, and quite honestly, you don't really question who provided the food and why, you just eat. You can't remember a time when you ate and felt so satisfied. As the night comes in you start your journey home, thinking over what happened that day; the miracles you saw and the satisfaction you felt for a time from the delicious food. You walk briskly back to where you were before you saw Jesus.
Friends, please stop tiptoeing around the gospel. Stop presenting a gospel that's watered down because you don't want to offend anyone. The gospel is offensive. We ARE sinners. We DO need a savior. You CAN'T get to heaven on your own and you can't make God love you any more or less. You are incapable. I believe churches that worry more about members having an emotional experience instead of a convicting and sanctifying experience are hindering the gospel. Stop making it a cool cultural thing to wear certain clothes, have certain piercings, and get that God glorifying tattoo. I'm not saying any of these things are bad in and of themselves, but are we making these our standards for being a Christian? Don't seek what other believers do, seek Christ. This aches my heart. It's so easy to fall in love with being a Christian instead of falling in love with Christ. I've experienced this, and it's hard to recognize in your own life.
I don't know about you but I don't want to be one of the five thousand. No, they never did anything wrong. They saw Jesus, some even met him, and some even brought their families to him to be healed. Many of the people who heard Jesus teach and saw Jesus heal, were in masses. The masses came, but they also went. Isn't this the way many "Christians" are today. They come to Him for satisfaction but only the fleshly kind; and then they eventually leave. But the disciples... they lived alongside Christ. They believed he could satisfy all of their needs. They were the ones who sought his help when there wasn't enough food. They were the ones who were with Jesus in the private places. They were the ones who would eventually share in the suffering of Christ. No one in the masses went on to build the church after the death and resurrection of Jesus. The disciples did.
I yearn to know Christ as his disciple. I yearn to know Christ personally, to be a stones throw away from him in the most intimate moments, as the disciples were in the garden. Drop your nets, and go. Don't follow the crowd seeking temporary things. Follow Him.
It's worth it. The suffering now is nothing in comparison with the eternal weight of glory that will later be revealed. Yes, this is scary, but He is worth it all.
Yeah, most of you reading this probably have. It's a true story that displays many of the characteristics of God and symbolically puts forth the gospel.
Imagine this:
You're around town with a few neighbors and you hear the rumors that the man named Jesus is near. Everyone starts to scurry, wishing to even just see him. Some even dare to bring their sick daughters, sons, and parents, in their last hope that their loved one might just live. If what they had heard was true, it was worth a shot right? It's hot and dusty but you follow the crowd, veering away from the town to the remote place where Jesus was said to be. You doubt this guy could actually heal someone, but the temptation to test him compels you forward with the others from your town. The crowd begins to grow bigger by the minute, and then, there he is. The man named Jesus. The sick are gathered around and Jesus actually begins healing them, one at a time. Can this be real? Who is this guy? You notice the men around him. The ones who seem not to leave his side, like they know him. Why do they follow so closely?
It starts to grow late in the day and your stomach makes you aware of its need for sustenance. Oh and how far you've come to see this man. It was worth it, you tell yourself, but boy are you hungry, and very tired. An hour or so passes and the mumbles of hunger come through the crowd, and the men who stood closely with Jesus direct you to sit with a group of men, some of whom you know. Soon after the mumbles, comes a basket, with fish and bread. Tons and tons of fish and bread. Taking your fill you pass it on, and quite honestly, you don't really question who provided the food and why, you just eat. You can't remember a time when you ate and felt so satisfied. As the night comes in you start your journey home, thinking over what happened that day; the miracles you saw and the satisfaction you felt for a time from the delicious food. You walk briskly back to where you were before you saw Jesus.
Friends, please stop tiptoeing around the gospel. Stop presenting a gospel that's watered down because you don't want to offend anyone. The gospel is offensive. We ARE sinners. We DO need a savior. You CAN'T get to heaven on your own and you can't make God love you any more or less. You are incapable. I believe churches that worry more about members having an emotional experience instead of a convicting and sanctifying experience are hindering the gospel. Stop making it a cool cultural thing to wear certain clothes, have certain piercings, and get that God glorifying tattoo. I'm not saying any of these things are bad in and of themselves, but are we making these our standards for being a Christian? Don't seek what other believers do, seek Christ. This aches my heart. It's so easy to fall in love with being a Christian instead of falling in love with Christ. I've experienced this, and it's hard to recognize in your own life.
I don't know about you but I don't want to be one of the five thousand. No, they never did anything wrong. They saw Jesus, some even met him, and some even brought their families to him to be healed. Many of the people who heard Jesus teach and saw Jesus heal, were in masses. The masses came, but they also went. Isn't this the way many "Christians" are today. They come to Him for satisfaction but only the fleshly kind; and then they eventually leave. But the disciples... they lived alongside Christ. They believed he could satisfy all of their needs. They were the ones who sought his help when there wasn't enough food. They were the ones who were with Jesus in the private places. They were the ones who would eventually share in the suffering of Christ. No one in the masses went on to build the church after the death and resurrection of Jesus. The disciples did.
I yearn to know Christ as his disciple. I yearn to know Christ personally, to be a stones throw away from him in the most intimate moments, as the disciples were in the garden. Drop your nets, and go. Don't follow the crowd seeking temporary things. Follow Him.
It's worth it. The suffering now is nothing in comparison with the eternal weight of glory that will later be revealed. Yes, this is scary, but He is worth it all.
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| A small picture of the glory of God from my hometown. Just cause. |
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