Matthew 14:19-21 ESV Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.
Jesus started with five pieces of bread and two fish. He finished with around ten thousand full stomachs and twelve extra baskets of food. The economy of Heaven is a whole lot different than the economy of the world. In the world, if you give what you have away, you have less. In Heaven, if you give what you have to God, He makes it into something wonderful.
Matthew does not mention where the bread and fish came from, but John tells us in his gospel that it really belonged to a boy in the crowd. Interestingly enough, that boy was the one person there who didn’t need a miracle. He was prepared and had enough food for himself. Because this boy was generous, God multiplied his generosity into a miracle.
Christians in America could learn a lesson from that boy. For the most part, we have enough for ourselves, but the world is full of people who do not have enough. If we were willing to sacrifice from just our surplus, God would take it and multiply it.
According to a former president of World Vision if every Christian in America gave only ½ of 1% of their income to the poor we could end world-wide poverty in just a few short years. I am not sure if his math is correct or not, but I am confident that if American Christians gave generously that God would multiply it and do a miracle.
Two thousand years later we are still talking about what God did with that boy’s offering. Just think what the world would say about what God would do with our offering. With minimal sacrifice we could significantly ease, if not erase poverty in the world. We would lose very little, but God would be glorified and honored by tens of millions.
Lord, You are the Great Provider. Thank You for the abundant physical and financial blessing you have bestowed upon the American Church. Grant us a heart to pass on those blessings in a manner that honors and glorifies You!
2 Replies to “Matthew 14:19-21”
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A good one Tom. I can verify. My lifelong problem was “a day late and a dollar short”. Until I realized the Bible was our roadmap for life. When He gave me the ability and desire to read it (I was on the bottom) life took a change for the better. I began to donate to the Salvation Army, a couple dollars a week. I remembered J. Vernon McGee saying the ones and twos were the backbone of his radio ministry, not the big one time donations. So I soon found myself able to send him a couple also. These days I’m able to do much more. He keeps up with me and then some. I think it was J. Vernon who said the “lunch boy” was carrying 5 bagels and two bluegill. L o L !! What a God we have.
I fully believe in the concept of reaping and sowing. Just sorry the health and wealth proponents have kind of hijacked the premise. It is scriptural when done with proper motivation and attitude.