A Ministry Lesson from Jesus – Part 2
Luke 9:10-17 (12-17)
September 23, 2018
I realize it has been a couple of weeks
Since we looked at this passage in Luke’s gospel.
If you will remember, Luke is still in his 3rd major section of his gospel (7:18-9:20) which we simply call the “Who Is This Man?” section.
We have several times seen the question posed in Luke’s gospel, “Who is this Man?”
• John the Baptist
• The Pharisee in his house
• The disciples after the storm
• And most recently Herod upon hearing of the disciple’s ministry
Luke 9:9 “Herod said, “I myself had John beheaded; but who is this man about whom I hear such things?” And he kept trying to see Him.”
And of course each time Luke emphatically reveals the answer to that question.
• After John the Baptist asked, Jesus instantly worked miracles
• After the Pharisee asked Jesus declared the sinful woman forgiven
• After the disciples asked the demoniac made the declaration
And the answer to Herod’s question is coming soon
Luke 9:20 “And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.”
It is fairly easy to see that Luke has recently been
On a dedicated mission both to ask and to answer
The foundational question about Jesus.
Who is this man?
He is Jesus, the prophesied Messiah, the Savior, the Son of the Most High, the Christ of God.
Luke has been pretty focused on revealing that without many diversions.
However, we noted that Luke did interrupt the continuity of Herod’s question by inserting this story in the middle.
IN ORDER TO MAKE HIS POINT ABOUT WHO JESUS IS, it would have been a seamless transition to go from Luke 9:9 directly to Luke 9:18,
But Luke risked the distraction in order to include this story.
Some no doubt might assume that Luke is just being thorough,
Wanting to make sure he records all the stories of Jesus and lists all His miracles.
But that isn’t true.
If you read the other gospel accounts you find that Luke actually skipped a lot of information that would have fit in this section.
• Luke omits Jesus walking on water
• Luke omits Jesus’ sermon about being the bread from heaven
• Luke omits many miracles along the Sea of Galilee
• Luke omits the healing of the Canaanite woman’s demon-possessed daughter
• Luke omits Jesus feeding the 4,000
• Luke omits Jesus restoring sight to a blind man
Luke most definitely was NOT trying to give you
An exhaustive description of all that Jesus did.
He recorded what fit his theme.
And since this story of feeding the 5,000 actually seems to interrupt his current theme, we really begin to wonder WHY HE INCLUDED IT.
And the answer is because this story
Begins to introduce us to Luke’s next theme.
Beginning in 9:21 Luke will move to his next segment
Which could be called “Messianic Misconceptions”
Jesus is going to begin addressing all the misconceptions the disciples have about the Messiah and about what it means to follow Him.
This story certainly fits that mold,
And it is apparent that Luke couldn’t bear to skip it.
We are looking at this story because here we find Jesus doing such a wonderful job of explaining the necessary attributes of true ministry.
• Ministry is not a platform for fame
• Ministry is not a gateway for riches
• Ministry is not an occupation of rest
• Ministry is not a conduit for accolades
Though many in our world certainly make those assumptions.
Jesus is giving the disciples there first real lesson in ministry. Namely He is revealing what makes Him tick,
And what must make them tick if they are to follow Him.
These are 5 necessary attitudes a person must have to be in ministry
We already saw 2
#1 ACCOUNTABILITY
Luke 9:10a
We simply read “When the apostles returned, they gave an account to Him of all that they had done.”
We are reminded that every believer is in the service of the Lord
And every believer will give an account of that service to Him.
• We don’t serve according to our own standards
• We don’t operate according to popularity poles or social pressures
• WE SERVE THE LORD AND WE ANSWER TO THE LORD
2 Corinthians 5:9-10 “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”
The Lord had told the 12 to go, preach, heal and to be content as they went,
Now He is asking, “Did you? Did you do what I commanded?”
Every single believer in this room
Can expect to answer that same question one day.
We are accountable.
#2 PRIORITY
Luke 9:10b-11
And I again remind you of the setting.
When we take into consideration the information from all 4 gospel accounts we learn:
• The disciples have just returned from a mission trip and they are likely exhausted
• Jesus just received word that John the Baptist had been beheaded, and He was no doubt grieving
• The crowds throughout Galilee were relentless
• Bethsaida was not only remote, but actually home to at least 5 of the disciples.
Mark 6:30-31 “The apostles gathered together with Jesus; and they reported to Him all that they had done and taught. And He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.)”
And we talked about the joys of a peaceful retreat and get-a-way.
We talked about the excitement of returning home on furlough.
But you remember the problem.
Mark 6:33 “The people saw them going, and many recognized them and ran there together on foot from all the cities, and got there ahead of them.”
Someone leaked their itinerary and when the disciples got off the boat near Bethsaida, the crowd was already waiting.
And we recounted how frustrated we might have been
Under similar circumstances.
But Jesus, to no one’s surprise, did what Jesus always does.
John 6:37 “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.”
They came, and He accepted them.
Luke said, “and welcoming them, He began speaking to them about the kingdom of God and curing those who had need of healing.”
OF COURSE HE DID.
He came to seek and to save that which was lost.
But it forced us to answer the question.
Does the ministry ever end?
I mean if exhausted disciples and a grieving Jesus aren’t reason enough to close up shop for a day, is there ever a time when we can?
And the answer from Jesus certainly seems to be, “No”.
We are always on mission.
Our ministry is priority #1
• Does that mean we never make plans? No
• Does that mean we never take vacations? No
• Does that mean we never tend to necessities? No
It just means that in all of those things we are still ministers,
And we never forget that.
1 Peter 3:15 “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”
Ministry rarely occurs when you plan for it.
But it’s not uncommon to pop up at Wal-Mart, or the airport, or at the doctor’s office, or some other place when you weren’t expecting it.
Make sure that service to your Lord is your priority.
Saw these 2 last time, but there’s more that is required
#3 LOVE
Luke 9:12-13
Of course we probably need to first remind ourselves what love is.
Love is the sacrifice of self for the good of another.
And it is an absolutely necessary attitude of ministry
Which Jesus teaches the disciples here.
I’m sure AT THIS POINT the disciples
Must have felt like they had already been MORE THAN GRACIOUS.
Luke says, “Now the day was ending”
And the point is that it was already very late.
• The disciples must have felt like they had already done their part and had probably already gone the extra mile.
• Their vacation had already been interrupted, but now it’s time to send the crowd away so we can get on with our trip.
And so Luke records:
(12) “Now the day was ending, and the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the crowd away, that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging and get something to eat; for here we are in a desolate place.”
Now for the sake of full understanding
You need to know that this issue of feeding the crowd
Had already been on the mind of the disciples all day.
In fact, John’s gospel tells us:
John 6:5-6 “Therefore Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?” This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do.”
That means, from the moment that the crowd began to arrive
Jesus had already placed the bug in their ear
About what it would require to feed them.
Jesus already knew what He was going to do, but this was a teaching opportunity.
The immediate answer from Philip was:
John 6:7 “Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little.”
As soon as Jesus brought up the question, Philip did the math and figured that feeding this crowd just wasn’t going to be cost effective.
A “denarii” was a day’s wage.
• We’re talking about nearly a year’s salary to feed this crowd (this crowd that
shouldn’t even be here I might add)
But it is evident that as Jesus began to preach
They began to try and figure out what to do
About this crowd’s physical needs of hunger.
And by evening time they have it figured out.
(12) “Send the crowd away, that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging and get something to eat;”
The disciple’s solution?
Send them away.
And if you’ll notice, their reasoning even sounds noble.
• We don’t have the money
• It’s getting late
• This is a desolate place
• It’s really in their best interest
• We’re only thinking of them
And if you think the disciple’s only motive was the crowd’s well-being
Then you are gravely mistaken.
• Did Jesus not give these same 12 authority to heal diseases and cast out
demons?
• Had Jesus not just commissioned these same 12 to also preach the gospel?
And yet, nothing is recorded about any of them doing any of that.
A crowd of 5,000 shows up
And they aren’t preaching, they aren’t healing,
They’re just trying to find an acceptable way to get rid of them.
“Send the crowd away”
You’ll notice that their noble reasoning earned them a rebuke.
(13) “But He said to them, “You give them something to eat!”
Again, other writers give us a little more to the story.
When the disciples suggested sending the crowd away so they could eat,
• Jesus first asked them to look and see how much food they already
had.
Mark 6:38 “And He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” And when they found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.”
They said to send the crowd away and Jesus said,
“Don’t you have some food?” And then “Go look!”
It is the reminder that IF YOU HAVE THE MEANS to meet the need
Then YOU SHOULD MEET THE NEED.
1 John 3:17 “But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?”
So the disciples start looking and what do they find?
(13b) “And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.”
SURELY Jesus wouldn’t want them to go
And spend that much money on 1 simple meal.
But do you understand what Jesus is teaching here?
He is teaching the necessity of love in the ministry.
• Those who minister must do it without selfishness.
• Those who minister must learn to sacrifice themselves for the good of others.
That might be your resources
That might be your lunch
That might be your time
Because the reality is that if you don’t minister out of love,
You either won’t minister at all or you’ll minister wrong.
Consider this example:
Luke 10:30-35 “Jesus replied and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. “And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. “Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. “But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him. “On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’”
The Levite and the priest had no love, and so they had no ministry.
There is very little ministry that ever occurs without costing you something.
I’ll admit that it would be nice if all ministry could be scheduled between 10:30 and 11:30 on Sunday mornings, but it’s not nearly that organized.
It’s usually inconvenient…
It’s usually expensive…
It’s usually frustrating…
And if you don’t have love, then you won’t even attempt
95% of the ministry opportunities that come your way.
And then those other 5% that you DO attempt…
Without love you won’t do them correctly.
What did Paul teach us?
1 Corinthians 13:1-3 “If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.”
If you don’t learn to sacrifice yourself for the good of another (love) then you either won’t minister at all, or you’ll do it wrong.
Jesus just confronted the selfishness in the disciples.
They had had enough of the crowds, “send them away”,
Let us get on with our own plans. And Jesus rebuked them.
Go find what you have and give it to these people.
LOVE IS REQUIRED
AND THE REMAINDER OF THE NEW TESTAMENT GIVES MANY EXAMPLES OF THIS:
2 Corinthians 12:15 “I will most gladly spend and be expended for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less?”
Philippians 2:3-8 “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
Philippians 2:17 “But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.”
1 Thessalonians 2:8 “Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.”
2 Timothy 2:10 “For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, so that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory.”
Do you see it?
• Ministry requires self-sacrifice; otherwise known as love.
• It cannot be done any other way.
Accountability, Priority, Love
#4 TRUST
Luke 9:14-16
• Well we know that the disciples have learned that Jesus expects them to feed the crowd.
• You’d think after all the authority Jesus had just given them, this wouldn’t have seen so far-fetched.
However they don’t know what to do.
All they could scrounge was “five loaves and two fish”
John 6:9 “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?”
And the reason this seems so insignificant is because “there were about five thousand men.”
I think you can easily multiply that number according to their families
And 20,000 people is a safe assumption (at least)
Are you really going to feed 20,000 people with 5 loaves and 2 fish?
And then notice what Jesus said:
“And He said to His disciples, “Have them sit down to eat in groups of about fifty each.”
That alone is a requirement of faith.
• The disciples are well aware of the limitations,
• They’ve already calculated and seen that this is beyond them.
But they do what Jesus says.
(15) “They did so, and had them all sit down.”
And I love what happens next.
(16) “Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed them, and broke them, and kept giving them to the disciples to set before the people.”
The phrase I really like there is the phrase “kept giving”
It was a repeated action.
Jesus would reach into the basket and give Peter 5 loaves and 2 fish and tell him to go pass it out among that first group of 50.
• So Peter puts it in a basket and heads over…
• But he’s got to be thinking this is going to be embarrassing.
• Meanwhile John is in line right behind Peter and he’s thinking Jesus just gave
Peter all the food, what is He going to give me?
• And yet, to his surprise there’s 5 more loaves and 2 more fish. So he takes off.
And this occurs for each of the 12.
• And when Peter reaches that first group of fifty he reaches in and hands 1
loaf to the first guy (because you know you’ve got to ration it somehow) but
then when he looks in, there’s still 5 loaves there. Wait…what?
• And when he gives 5 loaves and 2 fish to the 50th person in the group his
basket is empty so he goes back to Jesus who puts five more loaves and
2 more fish in in it.
He “kept giving”
What’s the lesson there?
(it’s not for the crowd, it’s for the 12)
ALL MINISTRY FLOWS FROM JESUS
Trust is required
This miracle is a living illustration of John 15.
John 15:4-5 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”
So can I tell you something about ministry that may shock you?
YOU AREN’T SUPPOSED TO BE ABLE TO DO IT
The ministry God commands is to be done only by His Spirit,
It is Him working through us.
If you can do it in your own strength, or by your own abilities
Then it is not by the power of His Spirit,
And therefore it can never be effective.
Take the statement by Paul.
2 Corinthians 12:7-10 “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me — to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Christians are real good at expressing all the things they can’t do in the ministry.
• I’m not a good speaker…
• I’m not a good listener…
• I’m just not good at that…
This ministry here of feeding the 5,000
Was absolutely impossible for the 12,
But it was not impossible for the Lord.
Christ is NOT asking you to just
“Do what you can” for the kingdom.
Make no mistake, Christ is asking you to
Do what you can’t for the kingdom.
Remember the concept of spiritual gifts?
1 Peter 4:10-11 “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
All that Christ is asking you to do,
He is asking you to do in His ability not your own.
Perhaps it will help if you think a moment about THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN worship and ministry.
Do you know the difference?
• Worship is when you bring gifts to God for His satisfaction.
• Ministry is when God gives gifts to you for His service.
While worship may deplete all that you have to offer.
Ministry is done in God’s strength.
He equips
Ministry is Christ doing through you what you can’t do on your own.
And this is important for every believer to understand.
If all you ever do is what you are confident you can do, then there is a lot of ministry you will never even attempt.
If you are going to minister for Christ
• You most certainly must make it a priority,
• You most certainly must do it in love,
• But you also have to trust that God can use you, and that He will use you.
All ministry is done in faith.
I’m always mindful of a friend of mine named Dallas Huston (he’s actually preached here in the past). We were talking about this very concept one day and he shared we me how he has often taken his sermon notes before a sermon and lifted them up to God and said, “Lord if you take 5 loaves and 2 fish and feed a multitude, then surely you can do something with this.”
That’s the mindset.
• Trust God to supply the words
• Trust God to supply the compassion
• Trust God to supply the opportunity
• Trust God to supply the strength
He’s the vine, you’re the branch – trust Him.
Accountability, Priority, Love, Trust
#5 FULFILLMENT
Luke 9:17
I love that this piece of information is included.
On one hand it REINFORCES what Paul told the Ephesians:
Ephesians 3:20 “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us,”
This story certainly proves that.
But beyond that, have you ever wondered why there were 12 baskets left over?
• There’s no doubt…it’s because there were 12 disciples.
The phrase is very telling “they all ate and were satisfied”
Jesus didn’t just ask them to sacrifice their trip…
He didn’t just ask them to endure a long evening of ministry…
JESUS FULLY SATISFIED THE DISCIPLES THROUGH THE MINISTRY.
Now think about this.
• Ministry is costly…
• Ministry is tiresome…
• Ministry is inconvenient…
• BUT MINISTRY IS SO FULFILLING!
Let me read a couple of those verses again:
2 Corinthians 12:15 “I will most gladly spend and be expended for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less?”
Did you pick up on the “most gladly” part?
Paul wasn’t bitter about it, he was eager.
Philippians 2:17 “But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.”
Did you catch what Paul said about being poured out?
“I rejoice”. There was no grief there.
1 Thessalonians 2:8 “Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.”
We were “well-pleased” to minister to you.
I think the disciple’s attitude prior to the miracle is pretty obvious.
I don’t think they’re all that excited about the ministry opportunity that day.
But how do you think they were feeling after the miracle?
After seeing thousands of people satisfied; after being the one to meet the need?
How do you think Peter felt, sitting on that grass, with a full stomach, looking over the contented multitudes and seeing what Jesus had just done?
Do you think they still wished they would’ve just sent the crowd away?
No way!
There is a fulfillment in ministry that you can’t get anywhere else.
It is pure joy to have Christ use you to bless another.
• Especially when it rerouted your day…
• Especially when it was done in His strength, beyond yours…
This is what sets us apart.
False prophets only minister for fleshly fulfillment.
• They want money…
• They want gratification…
But the true ministers of God are seeking something way better.
We are seeking the fulfillment of having been used by God.
That’s a blessing that money can’t buy.
So when Jesus sends you out as His minister; His ambassador
• You are called to do that which will be the absolute priority of your life
• You are called to do that which can only be done in love
• You are called to do that which can only be done in His power
• You are called to do that for which you will give an account to Him
ALL THAT IS TRUE
BUT I CAN ALSO PROMISE YOU THAT IF YOU DO THAT,
IT WILL SATISFY YOU MORE THAN
A WEEKEND GETAWAY ACROSS THE LAKE EVER COULD.
If you’ll think about it, this was a lesson Jesus has been trying to drive into the disciples for quite some time.
• What do you think He was saying when He found them mending their nets and
He told them “follow Me and I will make you fishers of men”?
• Was this not part of the point to the miracle of the great catch of fish?
• It was certainly the point at the end of John when Peter has returned to fishing
and the Lord reminded him, “You’re a shepherd Peter, not a fisherman”.
They were created for this.
This is where their fulfillment lies
AND THAT IS TRUE FOR YOU TOO!
• You weren’t just born for ministry, you were “born again” for ministry.
• You weren’t just created for ministry, you were recreated for ministry.
AND THERE LIES YOUR SATISFACTION
It is fulfilling
And this was the ministry lesson from Jesus.
