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March 13 -- John 6:1-24

“[Jesus] said to them, ‘It is I; do not be afraid.’” –John 6:20 (NASB)

In the first chapter of his gospel, John tells us, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made” (vv. 1-3). Jesus is the Eternal Son of God who has always existed as the Second Person of the Trinity. He is God, and He “became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). This truth is woven throughout John’s gospel, and in chapter 6, John uses two miracles to show that Jesus is the God of the Old Testament Scriptures—the feeding of the 5,000 and the walk on the Sea of Galilee.


John 6:1-3 tells us that a large crowd was following Jesus due to the miraculous healings He had performed, and as they followed, Jesus went to the top of a mountain and sat down. Then, verse 4 throws in what seems to be an irrelevant detail: “The Jewish Passover Festival was near.” But this isn’t irrelevant. John wanted his readers to be thinking about the miracles God did at the time of the first Passover during the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt.


When the Israelites escaped slavery in Egypt, they were pursued by Pharaoh’s army. God miraculously parted the Red Sea for them to escape, and later in the desert, He provided bread from heaven (manna) for them to eat. In John 6, after saying the Passover was near, John relates two miracles that are strangely similar. The first is the feeding of the 5,000.


John tells us that Jesus asked Philip where they should buy bread for the 5,000 people following them. He asked this question only to “test” Philip because He already knew what He was going to do (John 6:6). Philip didn’t see any possible way of accomplishing such a feat, and Andrew pointed out that they only had five loaves and two fish, which could hardly be expected to feed so many. Jesus took what little they had and fed the crowd. (Later on, the crowd would show that they got the connection with the exodus. In John 6:30-31, we are told the same crowd tracked Jesus down and asked Him for another sign like the “manna in the wilderness.”)


The feeding of the 5,000 is the only miracle that is reported in all four Gospels. It reminds us of two things: (1) Jesus is the Eternal Son of God who is One with the Father, doing what the Father does (see John 5:19), and (2) we should never have a scarcity mindset in our walk with Christ. When He asks us to do something, we will be able to do it if we commit our gifts and resources to Him. When we submit and surrender to Him, offering what little we have, He can stretch the resources we commit to Him to accomplish His will for His glory.


Instead of submitting and surrendering to Him, however, the crowd tried to make Jesus submit to them when they attempted to make Him king “by force” (John 6:15). Of course, this flips the whole notion of what a king is upside down. A king is supposed to be the one in charge, not the people. Yet these people tried to force Jesus to do what they wanted Him to do.


Rather than remain with the crowd or go with His disciples to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus withdrew by Himself. After some time away in prayer, He performed another miracle, walking on rough waters out to His disciples’ boat during the night. The disciples were frightened until Jesus announced, “It is I; do not be afraid” (John 6:20).


The Son of God who walked on the Sea of Galilee just before the Passover Festival is the same God who parted the Red Sea just after the first Passover. He told His disciples, “Do not be afraid,” just as Moses told the Israelites fleeing from Pharaoh’s army, “Do not be afraid” before the parting of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:13). And that same God tells us not to be afraid today. Just as He provided bread from heaven, He will provide for you, and His power over natural forces means that He has power enough to calm your mind, bring peace to your heart, and save your soul.


Consider: Am I currently offering Jesus all that I have, trusting that He will use it to accomplish His will through me? Am I coming to Him as a willing subject, allowing Him to reign in my heart? Or am I holding back, afraid that He will not come to me on the rough waters of my life?


Ask God to help you surrender your gifts, talents, resources, and your need for control to Him. Spend some time talking with Him today about specific circumstances in your life that need to be handed over to Him. Ask Him to increase your faith so you trust that He is able to do “immeasurably more than all [you] ask or imagine” (Eph. 3:20). Invite Him into your boat, especially if you currently find yourself in turbulent seas.

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Kathy Herndon Schwindenhammer
Kathy Herndon Schwindenhammer
Mar 15, 2022

thanks so much for the Searches and Certainties daily reading! I am really enjoying it so much!

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My name is Melissa Anderson. I'm a spiritual director and ordained pastor who loves God, people, and words. You can read more about me by clicking the button below.

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